NEWS NEWS NEWS
BUFFALO STREET IS #2 AT CKUA...HURRAY
What some reviewers have said about Buffalo Street
Edmonton Journal-Roger Levesque"Buffalo Street is a fascinating set of historical portraits translated into song, by this gifted singer-songwriter...personalized with atmosphere, imagery and entertaining details".
CKUA-Bob Chelmick (Road Home)"When I heard 'Buffalo Street', I just felt like giving you the biggest hug for creating such a gorgeous collection of stories...you have found the fulfillment of your musical calling in these kind of moving character sketches... I love a good story, a great melody, and an artist who brings a passion to her work - and lets it live in her songs. That's why I feel so grateful for 'Buffalo Street''.
CFMU-Jim Marino"I will play all of it...I think it is (so far) the best of 09...what a gem, a winner from beginning to end".
See Magazine-Curtis Wright"With this release, Brewster joins a distinguished group of Albertan vocalists — people like the legendary Ian Tyson and that hurtin’ Albertan, Corb Lund — who share her affinity for storytelling and times gone by".
Herizon Magazine-Cindy Filipenko"Cori Brewster writes songs that capture the essence of a place better than most...Brewster has handily managed to turn these narratives into engaging folk songs.The musicianship on Buffalo Street is top notch..., Buffalo Street is an important one, as it represents folk music in the truest sense, recording history through lyric and melody, so that a culture’s important moments are not lost. Give this woman an Order of Canada for telling us about what Banff was before it became just another tourist Mecca".
UPCOMING SHOWS
June 19th - Artpseak Festival Canmore's Miners Hall, 738-7th St. 8:00pm, $15, 403-609-2007
June 27 - Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff, 111 Bear St
6:30 , $15, 403-762-2291
Albertans seem to have a knack for turning history into great music. James Keelaghan is famous for his historical epics; Maria Dunn earned a Juno nod for an album of songs about the early West; and now Cori Brewster has teamed up with Bills alumnus Adrian Dolan and ex-David Francey sideman Dave Clarke for what is arguably the most Albertan history-themed record yet to come out of the province: a collection of songs about the characters of early Banff, many of them members of Brewster’s own colourful family.
Buffalo Street includes “William Twin,” an ode to the Stoney/Nakoda man who befriended the Brewsters in the 1800s and helped them launch their guiding and outfitting business. The song was a finalist in the “Best of Alberta” category of the Calgary Folk Festival’s song contest and won an award for historical relevance. Another “Best of Alberta” finalist, “My Familiar Sky,” tells the story of Peter Whyte, an Alberta outdoorsman who entered a secret relationship with Boston debutante Catherine Robb and lured her to Banff with a series of remarkable letters scrawled on tissue paper. “Diamond Hitch,” one of two songs co-written with John Wort Hannam, looks at early mountain exploration from the perspective of the Rocky Mountain Sherpas, while “Take Me Back to Ireland” is a toast to Brewster’s own great great great grandfather, who left Ireland for Kingston in the 1800s. Dolan enhances the track with some lovely Irish-style fiddle. Other musical guests on the CD include Adam Dobres of Outlaw Social on guitar, Tim Tweedale of Sarah MacDougall’s band on resonator guitar and Daniel Lapp on trumpet. Throughout the album, Dolan and Clarke’s production is as crisp and clean as the mountains Brewster is singing about.
Brewster herself first began singing while on trail rides at the family business in Banff. She moved to Winnipeg in the mid-80s to launch her music career, after first earning a degree in physical education from the University of Alberta. She released a first EP of country songs in 1989, and was immediately embraced on the country scene. She appeared on the Tommy Hunter Show and at the Calgary Stampede, had videos in high rotation on CMT, earned an official showcase at SXSW, and toured Germany. Three more albums followed: 1994’s One More Mountain, 1998’s Stones, and 2007’s Large Bird Leaving. In between the releases of Stones and Bird, Brewster’s partner gave birth to their son, River, now 10, and the couple moved back to the Rockies where Brewster pursued her other interest – sports – by managing a golf course.
Once back in the Bow Valley, and with a child of her own to continue the family line, Brewster began to reconnect with her family history, which, like so many people, she had earlier tried to declare independence from. The idea of writing and recording a historical album appealed to her, not just as a gift to her own child though, but as a way of revitalizing Banff’s pioneer past, which is often forgotten in its current incarnation as a ski resort and tourist destination. Friends encouraged her, Brewster began searching through the Whyte Museum for inspiration, and a grant from the Canada Council sealed the deal.
