fred eaglesmith and tif gina

Fred Eaglesmith and Tif Ginn (from the album ALIVE available on Sweetwater Music)  (by Bryant Liggett)
The stage banter alone is worth the price of admission. Canadian Folkie Fred Eaglesmith has always had a knack for edgy, between-song dialogue, his words thought provoking, humorous if not hilarious, quips to scratch your head. Fred’s latest ALIVE is packed with them. Said stage banter precedes some of the best cuts from Eaglesmith’s past catalog. Recorded at Jammin’ Java in Vienna, Virginia in 2019, ALIVE a casual enough effort to make you think Eaglesmith is in your living room, a ball-busting pal invited over for a few beers. 
 
After a simple introduction and welcome he kicks into “Cultivator,” the first of many cuts that reference farming, family, and romance. The setlist digs into his vast catalog, cuts like “I Like Trains”, “Tractor Song”, and “Trucker Speed” are rough around the edges with minimal instrumentation, that roughness given a soft texture via the backing vocals of wife Tif Ginn. ALIVE is dark, owing more to gritty Rock’n’Roll than fluffy Folk. The chat is a ride of conversation and observations regarding his career, questioning the state of Rock’n’Roll, and pondering his place in it. Fred also questions aging fans and bangs out quote worthy one-liners like ‘manbuns aren’t going to save the world’ or ‘it’s hard to be a revolutionary when you have a large 401K’. That’s two of dozens, some of which, like when he refers to the nights lodging as ‘I don’t know where I’m staying but I’ve been told its better than all the other westerns’ come quick and as they say in the joke biz are ‘pure gold’. It’s a stellar stamp of the duo’s ability to wow a room.  
 
Listen and buy the music of Fred Eaglesmith and Tif Ginn from AMAZON
 
For more information head on over to the Fred Eaglesmith website
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