Toronto Blues Society | » Eleventh Annual Maple Blues Awards results are in, East to West; Downchild Leads the Way

Eleventh Annual Maple Blues Awards results are in, East to West; Downchild Leads the Way

Published January 22, 2008 in Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / PLEASE UPDATE LISTINGS

Maple Blues Award winners from all across Canada aren’t singing the blues now. There’s reason to celebrate right across the nation. Seventeen awards were presented at this year’s eleventh annual Maple Blues Awards Gala held at Toronto’s Mod Club on Monday January 21st. Ontario came out on top with nine wins, followed by the West with six and the East Coast took home two.

Downchild Wins Big
All-time favourite blues group Downchild won multiple awards in five individual categories. Chuck Jackson received the Male Vocal award, Gary Kendall won for Bass Player, Pat Carey for Horn Player, Michael Fonfara for Piano/Keyboard, and Mike Fitzpatrick for Drummer of the year.

Also on hand as a presenter this year was bluesman Colin James, who kicked it with a triple win for Entertainer, Electric Act and Best Recording of the Year (producers Colin Linden and Colin James), with the help of his Little Big Band. Colin James has sold over 8 million albums worldwide, won six Juno awards and has released ten albums in nearly twenty years of making music.

It was a twin-win for Harry Manx for SOCAN’s Songwriter of the Year award and a shared spotlight with Kevin Breit for Acoustic Act of the Year. As two of the best guitar players found anywhere, it’s clear these players were made for each other. Manx and Breit have collaborated on two solid albums, the current In Good We Trust and the award-winning Jubilee in 2001.

OTHER WINNING HIGHLIGHTS
Winnipeg’s legendary Big Dave McLean, a gutsy, raw talent fresh off a widely successful Canadian tour, was honoured this year with the Blues With a Feeling Award for lifetime achievement in the music industry. Big Dave’s career spans nearly 50 years and he learned from the best of them, including John Hammond Jr. and Muddy Waters. He was also an inspiration to younger artists such as Colin James, who says “Dave has spent his whole life dedicated to the music….he is a singer and player that just makes everyone want to do their best.”

Hosting the event was Dawn Tyler Watson, who sparkled in her performances throughout the night and topped it off with a win for Female Vocalist of the Year. It’s no surprise, since this dynamic songstress has the flexibility, range and style to go just about anywhere musically. They don’t call her Montreal’s Queen of the Blues for nothing.

The New Artist of the Year went to the East Coast’s Thom Swift, who also receives the Galaxie Rising Stars of the CBC Award, which includes a cash prize of $1000. With his new solo debut Into the Dirt, he has garnered nominations for this year’s Canadian Blues Awards and the East Coast Music Awards. Thom is also a member of the award-winning trio Hot Toddy.

Seasoned blues wizard Jack de Keyzer takes home the Guitarist of the Year. With a new album Blues Thing and a Juno award under his belt, he is clearly one of Canada’s premier guitarists and singer-songwriters.

Having had numerous nominations in past years for Harmonica Player of the Year award, David Rotundo finally gets to call it his own. He honed his chops playing with artists like Jack de Keyzer and the legendary Ronnie Hawkins and now with his own band, David lives for what he does.

International Artist of the Year
Watermelon Slim has had a long road since farming watermelons in Oklahoma, his current home base.

He is the winner of the International Artist of the Year award and his music has topped the Billboard charts and garnered numerous nominations and awards along the way. He has been dubbed a “one-of-a-kind pickin’ ‘n singing Okie dynamo”.

Blues Booster of the Year Award
Brad Wheeler, the Globe and Mail’s longtime blues/ pop critic and reviewer, was given the prestigious Blues Booster Award (selected by the Toronto Blues Society Board of Directors) for his outstanding contributions to the Canadian blues industry.

BUILDING A HISTORY – THE MAPLE BLUES AWARDS
The Maple Blues Awards is Canada’s national blues awards program, organized by the Toronto Blues Society, with the support and participation of blues societies across Canada and the newly formed Canadian Blues Alliance. Its goal is to promote blues music nationally, and to recognize outstanding achievement in the field. The nominees are selected by a national panel of distinguished blues DJs and journalists, and the winners are selected by on-line voting by blues fans across Canada.

2008 MAPLE BLUES WINNERS

Entertainer of the Year
Colin James

Electric Act of the Year
Colin James & the Little Big Band

Acoustic Act of the Year
Harry Manx & Kevin Breit

Male Vocalist of the Year
Chuck Jackson

Female Vocalist of the Year
Dawn Tyler Watson

New Artist or Group of the Year (Galaxie Rising Stars of the CBC Award)
Thom Swift

Recording of the Year
Colin James and the Little Big Band 3 (MapleMusic)
Artist: Colin James & the Little Big Band
Producers: Colin Linden & Colin James

International Artist of the Year
Watermelon Slim and the Workers

Guitarist of the Year
Jack de Keyzer

Harmonica Player of the Year
David Rotundo

Piano/Keyboard Player of the Year
Michael Fonfara

Horn Player of the Year
Pat Carey

Drummer of the Year
Mike Fitzpatrick

Bassist of the Year
Gary Kendall

Songwriter of the Year
Harry Manx

Blues With a Feeling (Lifetime Achievement Award)
Big Dave McLean

Blues Booster (Lifetime Achievement Award)
Brad Wheeler

The Maple Blues Awards are supported by FACTOR and the Government of Canada through the Canadian Music Fund, GALAXIE – CBC’s Continuous Music Network, Distribution Fusion 3 / Justin Time Records, the SOCAN Foundation, SOCAN, the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council, KMP Designs Inc., Cordova Bay, Stony Plain Records, Long & McQuade Musical Instruments, Steve’s Music / Pearl Drums, True North Records / Linus Entertainment, Southside Shuffle, Make It Real Records, Twisted Pines Music and Arts Festival and CBC Radio/Saturday Night Blues.


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The Toronto Blues Society acknowledges the annual support of the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council and the Department of Canadian Heritage, and project support from FACTOR< and the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage (Canada Music Fund) and of Canada’s Private Broadcasters, The Canada Council for the Arts, the SOCAN Foundation, SOCAN, the Ontario Media Development Corporation, and the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport.