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Swing Soniq

About Me

SwingSoniq is a vibrant, all-acoustic blend of three amazing musical talents who celebrate the sounds of yesteryear with their own version of contemporary jazz-swing.

In a remarkably short time, SwingSoniq has ascended to the upper echelons of the Canadian music scene. Performances at the Montreal Jazz Festival and the Winnipeg Folk Festival have secured the band a position of unparalleled profile.

Their debut recording Moonglow is a fantastic collection of original compositions and hand-picked standards.

SwingSoniq was honoured with two 1999 Prairie Music Award nominations - Outstanding Jazz Recording for Moonglow and Outstanding Songwriter for Greg Leskiw.

Greg Leskiw began playing guitar at the age of 12. It was during "kitchen jam sessions" with his father that he learned many of the popular songs of the '30s and '40s. Many of these favorites make up the current repertoire of SwingSoniq.

In 1970, Greg Leskiw was asked by Burton Cummings to join The Guess Who. He went on to tour Canada, the U.S. and Europe with the band, performing for Britain's Royal Family and U.S. President Nixon at the White House, as well as appearing on The Johnny Cash Show. He has received gold album awards and Juno Awards for Share The Land, So Long Bannatyne and Rockin' and a platinum album award for Best Of The Guess Who (Volume 1). Greg has also received the keys to the City of Indianapolis presented by Mayor Richard Lugar, and the keys to the City of Winnipeg.

In 1972, Greg left The Guess Who to form Mood Jga Jga. The band was promptly signed to Warner Bros. and recorded their debut album in New York with producer Phil Ramone (Paul Simon, Billy Joel).

Throughout the 1970s, Greg continued to perform with other bands as well as Mood Jga Jga - primarily Crowcuss and The Les Q Band, later named Kilowatt when it signed with Dalcorte Records (RCA). Kilowatt recorded two albums produced by Domenic Troiano, which included the hit singles "Lovers on the Run" and "The Kids Are Crazy".

In the mid 1980s, Greg opened Vox Pop Studios and his primary focus shifted from live performance to music production, recording and song writing.

Vox Pop hosted many Winnipeg artists including the bands The Crash Test Dummies, Harlequin and Mood Jga Jga.

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My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 20/12/2005
Band Website: www.SwingSoniq.com
Band Members: Greg Leskiw - guitar and lead vocalsRichard Moody - violaNenad Zdjelar - double bass
Influences: Great guitar players from Django, Chet Atkins, The Ventures and Jimi Hendrix. Singers like Nina Simone, Ray Charles, Louis Armstrong, and The Everly Brothers. Singer songwriters and bands like Chuck Berry, The Beatles, The Stones, The Band, The Beach Boys, Lovin Spoonful, Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot and Ricky Scaggs.............there are way too many to mention..........all the greats from every era of music from classical and jazz, to pop, rock, blue grass, roots and country. Everyone listens to everyone from all over the world. Music written 500 years ago can be performed to this day.
I learned pop songs from the thirties and forties as I learned to play the guitar from my father. I loved pop radio and grew up listening to music from the fifties through to the present. I was turned on to jazz and classical music from all the great musicians I played with in various bands starting in the mid-sixties, all very knowledgable and talented players. The gift of music from around the world and through the ages, encompassing all genres, is truly one of the great gifts to mankind.
Sounds Like: Prairie Swing, Country Swing, Country, Mood jga jga, Hot Club of France, Greg Leskiw
Record Label: Swing Soniq
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

GOOD NEWS FROM SWINGSONIQ March 28, 2006

Hello SwingSoniq fans SwingSoniq is celebrating the release of their second CD, Love Wild, at the West End Cultural Centre on Saturday, April 8th.This promises to be a fun-filled, warm and inviti...
Posted by on Tue, 28 Mar 2006 16:15:00 GMT