TRURO - The frontman for Prairie Oyster is making his way back onto the touring circuit.
Russell deCarle is back and touring with a trio and will stop at the Marigold Cultural Centre on July 19.
One of the biggest voices in Canada, deCarle is stopping in Truro for the first time since releasing his first solo record, Under a Big Big Sky, in October 2010. Rounding out the trio is widely acclaimed multi-instrumentalists Denis Keldie and Steve Briggs.
deCarle pays homage to some of his all-time favourite artists with his album, while remaining simultaneously fresh and familiar with his mix of blues, jazz and R&B-tinged western swing.
After spending some alone time with his acoustic guitar, deCarle was finally fired up enough to strike out on his own in the studio.
"For decades, people have been asking for a solo record but I never thought I was ready and the band always satisfied the musical part of my life," said deCarle.
Although he'd initially intended to weight Under the Big Big Sky more heavily in favour of covers than original material, the more deCarle played and wrote, the more he found himself falling naturally into a style that marked a definite, if unintentional, departure from his past work.
When it became clear that the balance of the record would feature his own material, deCarle approached longtime friend, pianist/arranger/producer John Sheard and asked him to take a listen.
"We'd wanted to do a project together for years. He's absolutely one of my favourite musicians in the world and musically we share a lot of things," he said.
During his Truro stop, Halifax-based singer-songwriter Linda Brooks will join deCarle onstage.
Tickets are $25 and are available online at www.marigoldcentre.ca.
Showtime is 7:30 p.m.
