Two of the performers in this weekend’s installment of the Room Full of Sound Concert Series are used to sharing the same stage.
Berna-Dean Holland, Tim Williams and The Mike Clark band will take to the stage at the Okotoks United Church for the concert on Saturday evening.
Mike Clark Band leader Mike Clark plays in Tim Williams’ band the Electrifiers, but Williams will be on his own for his performance this weekend.
As for Clark, this weekend he will be leaving out the horn section his performances are sometimes known for, but he’s ready for a good, upbeat show.
“There’ll be everything from jazz, some folky kind of stuff and some straight ahead rockin’ blues,” said Clark.
With an up and coming singer-song writer and a couple seasoned veterans, blues fans will delight at the line up for this weekend’s installment of the Room Full of Sound concert series.
Holland is a Calgary singer-songwriter; Williams is a 40-year veteran of the blues and roots music scene; and Mike Clark is one of Canada’s premier blues and roots artists. He was named horn player of the year for three years in a row from the Maple Blues awards and saxophone player of the year in 2008 and 2010 by the Calgary Blues Music Association’s Hall of Fame.
Clark said his sound is influenced by his own experiences and music he has played over the years.
“I grew up listening to ‘70s country and all that and playing guitar, while playing saxophone was influenced by jazz and blues,” he said.
The Turner Valley resident said it’s been a while since he has played in Okotoks and he likes getting to play closer to home.
“I haven’t played in Okotoks for a while, so I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
The concert will be Calgary singer-songwriter Berna-Dean Holland’s first time performing in Okotoks.
She plays a variety of blues, bluegrass, folk and alternative country. She joked her “blues-grass” sound can be much to the chagrin of bluegrass traditionalists.
“I kind of hit a few different genres with my music,” said Holland.
She will be playing a number of songs from her first album “Fledgling”, as well as a few new ones that could appear on her next album.
“I’m working on material for the next one, but how long it’s going to be before I get it out, I’m not sure,” she said.
Holland doesn’t get very personal in her music. Instead, she likes to write narratives about hard times and good times, nature and animals, or her husband’s life in the construction trade.
She garnered attention with her song, Black Gold, which was selected for the David Suzuki Foundation’s Playlist for the Planet collection along with Canadian legends like Bruce Coburn and Gordon Lightfoot.
It comes from her previous career as a zookeeper at the Calgary Zoo. She was on-track to go to graduate school before music took her in a new direction.
Holland’s background with animals comes through in some of her songs.
“I’m very passionate about conservation of nature and wildlife,” she said. “A lot of these things do, on occasion, filter into some of my songs.”
The concert starts at 7 p.m. at the Okotoks United Church, with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $21 and are available at the door or on-line at www.aroomfullofsound.com.
