Linda McRae first gained notoriety during her stint as bassist, accordionist and vocalist with platinum recording artists, roots rockers Spirit of the West, with whom she spent eight years touring, recording and performing internationally.
Since leaving SOTW to resume her solo career, Linda has released three recordings. Flying Jenny (Stony Plain) was produced by Colin Linden, and featured a high powered roster of Canadian talent, including members of The Tragically Hip, The Band, Blue Rodeo, Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, as well as Willie P. Bennett, Gurf Morlix and Syd Straw. Cryin’ Out Loud (Black Hen Music) was produced by Gurf Morlix (Lucinda Williams, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Mary Gauthier) and featured her veteran Vancouver band Cheerful Lonesome.
These two widely acclaimed recordings featured Linda's tuneful Country-Folk. Her third recording Carve It To The Heart was released in 2007. This is Linda’s sophomore Black Hen release co-produced by Linda and Marc L’Esperance (Po’ Girl, Ray Condo) and showcases the new sound she continues to develop through her love of clawhammer banjo and her associations and collaborations with fellow songwriters.
Carve It To The Heart features 9 new songs steeped in the dust bowl traditions as far-reaching as the Canadian Prairie to the heartland of the Appalachian Mountains. Collaborations with fellow band mates Nova Devonie (Ranch Romance, Jo Miller & the Burly Roughnecks) and Stephen Nikleva (Ray Condo, Sarah McLachlan, Sandy Scofield) have yielded a collection of rich, heart rendering songs ranging in subject matter (as one fan coined) “From Dear John to John Deereâ€. The tenth track on the album is a moving version of Jean Ritchie’s classic “The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymoreâ€. Carve It To The Heart also features Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame inductee Gary Fjellgaard on background vocals.
Linda is an accomplished songwriter and workshops and camps hosted by Pat Pattison of the Berklee School of Music have led to collaborations with Pat on “How Can I Bring Her Backâ€, and an association with Grammy Award winning songwriter Jon Vezner. Linda’s repertoire of instruments has grown through the years to include guitar, bass and banjo, along with the ubiquitous accordion.
Linda was recently awarded a Canada Council study grant and now resides in Nashville, TN where she is working with Grammy winning songwriter Jon Vezner and in Bloomington, IN with renowned “Round Peak†clawhammer banjo aficionado Brad Leftwich. She was also recently awarded a Canada Council international touring grant for a European tour this fall and is currently being managed by James Whitmire of Nashville's 42 Artist Management.
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MUSIC EXPERIENCE
DISCOGRAPHY
SELECTED PERFORMANCESRoots on the Rails Fred Eaglesmiths train trip across Canada Fred Eaglesmith Charity Picnic, Springwater Conservation Area, Aylmer, ON Gurf Morlix & the Real Killers, guitarist/vocalist, Twangfest, SXSW, Nietsches, Buffalo, NY, Railway Club Vancouver, BC, Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto, ON Fred Eaglesmiths Picnic Ontario Commodore Ballroom, Womens Band featuring Jane Sibbery, Joan Besson (Prairie Oyster), Sue Leonard (k.d. lang), Linda Kidder (k.d. lang), Karen Graves, Revelee Nixon Neko Case, Commodore Ballroom Vancouver, BC Vancouver Folk Festival Workshop Host with Dave Alvin, Tony Price, Alberta Slim, Herald Nix Vancouver Folk Festival Workshop playing and singing with Peter Seeger. Alberta Slims 90th Birthday, Vancouver Folk Festival Presents, Wise Hall, Vancouver, BC Stan Rogers Tribute Performance, West End Cultural Centre, Winnipeg, MB Winnipeg Folk Festival Workshop with John Prine, Townes van Zandt, Guy Clarke. Festivals: Vancouver, Kispiox, Bella Coola, Calgary, Edmonton, South Country Fair, Regina, Winnipeg, Mariposa, Ottawa, Hillside, Festival of Friends, Peace Accord, ArtsWells, Brandon, RocknTwang, Stan Rogers Folk Festival, Bumbershoot, WOMAD, Reading, Glastonbury, Shetland Islands Folk Festival Symphony Performances with the VSO, Calgary Philharmonic, Edmonton Symphony, and the Lennie Solomon Waterfront Orchestra (Toronto). Sing Out For Sight SEVA Benefit, featuring Rick Danko, Bob Weir, Wavy Gravy, Rob Wasserman, Jorma Kaukonen Roadside Attraction, Tragically Hip Touring Festival Across Canada Canadian Tour with Irish Band The Fat Lady Sings British Tour with the Wonder Stuff, Glasgow Barrowlands, Brixton Academy, The Marquis Club Horde Tour, Blues Traveler U.S. Touring Festival European Tour with German band Poems for Laila
SELECTED TELEVISION APPEARANCES