New music with old soul!
Ken Whiteley and The Beulah Band are creating exciting new music that is deeply rooted in traditional North American folk forms. You’ll hear echoes of blues, gospel, swing, string and jug band sounds. They are all outstanding and versatile instrumentalists and great harmony singers. And if anyone can match the youthful energy of his bandmates it is Ken Whiteley.
The Founding Story
It’s been 10 years since Ben Whiteley first began performing with his Dad, Canadian folk legend Ken Whiteley. This past winter they decided to share the producer role for Ken’s new cd and Ben began sharing his insight about where he thought his father’s work might best focus. That shaped a winter of songwriting with definite funky, folky elements. As spring returned, they began talking about who best to play this new material with. When they got together with banjoist extraordinaire, Frank Evans and fantastic fiddler, Rosalyn Dennett, not only did the arrangements come alive, but they found they had that most special of things – a marvellous, 3 part vocal blend. And so was born Ken Whiteley and The Beulah Band!
Rosalyn Dennett is a founding member of Winnipeg’s “Oh My Darling” and has a great feel for not only old timey music and it’s new timey incarnations but also swing and blues fiddle a la Stuff Smith. Frank Evans is a pillar of Toronto’s old time and bluegrass scene playing with a wide circle of musicians including the Slocan Ramblers. Ben Whiteley has been an extremely busy string bass player, touring all over North America and Europe with Basia Bulat, New Country Rehab and the Good Lovelies, among others.
Ken Whiteley has a long and honoured history on the roots music scene. He has received 7 Juno Award Nominations, a Canadian Folk Music Award, a Genie Award for the Best Original Song in a Canadian movie and Lifetime Achievement Awards from Folk Music Ontario and the Mariposa Folk Festival. He has appeared at literally hundreds of folk festivals and concerts across North America and performed with legends such as Pete Seeger, Tom Paxton, John Hammond, Stan Rogers and Raffi. His production work on 140 albums has resulted in 22 Juno Nominations, 2 Grammy Nominations and a host of other awards.
CDs: available from Ken’s Store, Borealis Records, iTunes
In Concert
July 6-8/18 Winnipeg Folk Festival * July 13-15/18 Hillside Music Festival (Guelph, ON) * April 21/18 Flare n’ Derrick Community Hall (Turner Valley, AB) * April 20/18 The Exchange (Regina, SK) * April 19/18 The Bassment (Saskatoon, SK) * April 18/19 The Root (Lloydminster, AB) * April 16/18 Beaverlodge Library (Beaverlodge, AB) * April 15/18 House Concert (Red Deer, AB) * April 14/18 The Cave (Lethbridge, AB) * April 13/18 Prairie Sky Co-Housing Common House (Calgary, AB) * April 12/18 Fernie Arts Station (Fernie, BC) * April 22/17 Ottawa Grassroots Festival * Jan 22/17 Toronto Blues Summit 8 Official Showcase * Aug 19-21/16 Summerfolk Music Festival (Owen Sound, ON) * July 29/16 The Barn (Campbellford, ON) * July 15-16/16 Home Country Folk Festival (London, ON) * July 8-10/16 Mariposa Folk Festival (Orillia, ON) * June 18/16 Old Town Hall (Waterford, ON) * April 9/16 House of Harmony (Fingal, ON) * March 6/16 Northern Lights Folk Club (Sudbury, ON) * March 6 Southwood United Church (Calgary, AB) * Nov 7/15 Octave Theatre (Kingston, ON) * Oct 16/15 FMO Official Showcase * Sept 5/15 Shelter Valley Folk Festival (Grafton, ON) * June 26-28/15 Old Songs Festival (Altamont, NY) * May 10/15 NAC Ontario Scene Festival (Ottawa, ON) * April 29/15 CD Release (Toronto, ON) *