In this interview in the Mariposa Talks series, Hamilton-based county singer Lori Yates talks about working with some of the greats of Nashville, about her struggles to overcome addiction and about a foray into stand-up comedy. She also offers telling insights into how the music business has changed dramatically during her 30-year career.
Here’s some live performance videos of Lori Yates for your enjoyment:
The idea of forming The Good Family band took root when a pair of musician brothers invited their parents to join them on a musical romp throughout Scotland, England and Wales. At some venues they were described as Canada’s answer to the legendary Carter Family. Since then, the band has blossomed to include even more of this talented lineage.
No strangers to the stage and studio, some members of The Good family hail from two of Canada’s premier acts. Bruce and Larry Good are two-thirds of Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame inductees and multiple Juno Award recipients The Good Brothers. Travis and Dallas Good are members of Juno and Indie award winning band The Sadies.
Rounding out the family is Margaret Good, wife of Bruce and mother of Travis and Dallas. Margaret is also a veteran performer who appears on several recordings by both The Sadies and The Good Brothers. She also sang on Ronnie Prophets’ “Grand Old Country” which aired on CTV for two seasons, backing such artists as Charlie Pride, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Mel Tillis and Dolly Parton to name just a few.
The Good Family talent pool does not end there, with niece and cousin D’Arcy Good adding yet another dimension with her amazing fiddle and outstanding vocals.
And just when you think it can’t get any better, Sean Dean and Mike Belitsky of The Sadies provide a killer rhythm section.
The Good Family’s debut album consists of country ballads, bluegrass, and folk rock all written and performed by the family. Two of the songs are co-writes with Greg Keelor of Blue Rodeo. A guest musician who makes an appearance on the album is their close friend, the late great guitarist Terry Clements of Gordon Lightfoot fame, who recorded his part way back in 1978. How this was achieved is an interesting story in itself. The album was mixed by Michael Timmins of Cowboy Junkies.
It is said that sibling and family harmonies are unique, and The Good Family drives that point home. They play an eclectic mix of music featuring acoustic and electric guitars along with banjo, autoharp, dobro, fiddle, mandolin and rhythms that will keep you grooving and shouting for more.
The very first artist we are announcing for Mariposa Folk Festival 2014 is Rosanne Cash. We couldn’t think of a better way to begin unveiling what’s shaping up to be one of our best ever line-ups than with this iconic musical figure whose music crosses the genres and the generations.
During her diverse musical career, Rosanne Cash has topped the music charts, gathered loads of accolades and awards, performed or recorded with a veritable who’s who of international stars, and released fourteen albums, with one the way. Though the daughter of a folk-country legend, Rosanne Cash charted her own path in song, drawing upon the folk, pop, rock and blues traditions, and earning a loyal fan base with every step.
With a career in high gear, in the 80s Cash curtailed her work for childbearing and to raise four daughters. She left Nashville and its country music establishment in the early 90s, settling in lower Manhattan with then husband, Rodney Crowell. Cash later married her current musical collaborator, the producer/songwriter/guitarist, John Leventhal, with whom she has one son.
For two and a half years in the late 90s, Cash was unable to sing due to a polyp on her vocal cords. Her musical career was disrupted again in 2007 when she underwent brain surgery for a rare condition. During these musical down times, Cash pursued other creative pursuits including writing, with several books published and numerous articles in prestigious periodicals and collections.
In recent years, Cash released a highly acclaimed album, The List (2009), comprised of twelve songs from a list of the 100 greatest country and American songs given to her at the age of eighteen by her father, Johnny Cash. That album, which features vocal duets with Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, Jeff Tweedy, Rufus Wainwright and Neko Case, was named Album of the Year in in 2010 by the Americana Music Association.
Cash’s highly anticipated follow-up album due in January 2014, The River & The Thread, has also received critical, pre-release praise. Inspired by swampy Delta blues, gospel, Appalachian folk, country and rock, it tells the stories of a colourful, multi-generational cast of characters from the south through a collection of contemporary songs.
In addition to her own recordings, Rosanne Cash has made guest appearances on albums by the likes of Guy Clark, Vince Gill, Lyle Lovett, Mary Chapin Carpenter, The Chieftains, and others, as well as on children’s albums. She has also appeared on tribute albums to The Band, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Jimi Hendrix, Yoko Ono, Tammy Wynette and more. Recently, Cash was featured in a global Americana tourism promotional campaign performing her composition, Land of Dreams.
Rosanne Cash with be the headlining act on Mariposa’s Sunday Evening Main Stage, closing the festival with what promises to be one of those concerts that sticks in your mind long after its over. Staring in January, we will begin announcing a few artists per week until the whole fantastic line-up for Mariposa Folk Festival 2014 is unveiled.
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