The Performance Hour
with Glen Tilley

Nominated for a combined total of 11 MusicNL Awards this quartet ranks among the finest singer songwriters in the province. Sean Panting whose CD "Man Of The Year was nominated for Male and Pop Rock Artist of the Year; Katie Baggs, nominated for Female, Roots Recording and Socan Song Of The Year for her debut release "Home Again Home Again"; Ian Foster, nominated in four categories including Male Artist, Folk Roots Artist, Album and Socan Songwriter Of The Year for "The Evening Light" and Terry Penney, nominated for Country Artist and Socan Songwriter Of The Year for his CD "My Last Guitar". Recorded live at the LSPU Hall it's an intimate hour of songs and stories from four of the provinces best.

Gypsy jazz maestro Duane Andrews joins country picker extraordinaire Craig Young as we to explore the common ground of jazz, trad and country...and where else would you get the music of Django Reinhardt, Bill Monroe, Tony Rice and Rufus Guinchard all under one roof but here on The Performance Hour.

Almost Forty years have passed since Alan Doyle stood on the bridge in his home town of Petty Harbour and became part of Newfoundland film history. The holywood produced movie "Whale For The Killing" was shot there in the summer of 1980 and for his role Alan received the credit "Boy On Bridge". Fast forward into the next century and Alan Doyle is now a major player in Canada's music scene. Known mainly as the front man with platinum selling trad rockers Great Big Sea, Alan has just released his first solo recording aptly titled "Boy On Bridge".

Although the CD is a solo effort he says "It may be the most collaborative project I've ever done. I just thought it would be cool to write a bunch of songs with some people I really wanted to work with and I had a blast." That blast came from the likes of Gordie Samson, Hawsley Workman and Russell Crowe.

The album was recorded all over North American from studios in Nashville, LA and Toronto to his own basement in St. John's. "I wanted to create the music where we all felt comfortable and that took us to some pretty interesting places"

CBC Radio was at Club One in St. John's for the final night of Alan's "Boy On Bridge" tour.  This exclusive recording can be heard this Saturday on the Performance Hour.

Amelia Curran launched the long awaited and highly anticipated encore to her 2009 Juno award winning CD Hunter Hunter with a sold out concert at the St. John's Arts and Culture Centre. She brought with her a brand new band complete with horns and strings and a bag of great new songs.

"Spectators" marks the growth of this exceptional singer songwriter whose precise poetic sharpness and tuneful rhythms set her apart from most of her contemporaries. The new material continues to explore the hope and despair of relationships and the search for a better ending - every word considered and confidently delivered within an air of vulnerability.

On this the opening night of a Canadian tour Amelia and the band waltzed the home town audience through the heart of her new material with a just enough attention paid to her past catalogue to satisfy the faithful.

Her fan base ever growing Amelia Curran's audience finds a restful place in her music while she quietly achieves star status one show at a time.

Catch the concert this week on The Performance Hour!

Though he emerged just a couple of years ago, Matthew Byrne ranks as one of the finest singers in contemporary Newfoundland folk music. Born into a family of music makers from Placentia Bay his repertoire is heavily influenced by this unique singing tradition. It is a tradition that thrives on the song - the weaving of a great story with a beautiful melody - and Matthew's music reminds us how satisfying traditional songs can be when stripped down to these basic elements. 

In this live concert recording at a sold out LSPU Hall in St. John's Matthew presents tasteful and honest interpretations of folk music delivered with polished guitar work and powerful vocals. He is joined by his Dardanelles band mates Emilia Bartellas and Aaron Collis, his brother Alan, Billy Sutton and Geraldine Hollett.