John Wort Hannam
Two Bit Suit
Release Date: January 1, 2007
Produced By: Steve Dawson
Recorded In: Vancouver, BC
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When John Wort Hannam saw the town drunk outside the local off- sales store, dressed in dirty old clothes and doing a late night jig under a full moon, the name of his third CD came to him.
Two-Bit Suit.
On John’s 3rd release and debut for Black Hen, he takes his traditional story-telling folk/roots songwrit- ing style and combines it with Steve Dawson's contemporary production elements and sounds.Two- Bit Suit is an exquisite collection of 11 new tunes from this prairie troubadour and is filled to the brim with John’s unique take on the simple day-to-day dramas of the common man through songs that map the landscapes of both the human heart and this vast country of ours.
From the The protest-leaning love song "10,000 Acres to the foot stompin' title track that explores the happy side of being down and out in small prairie town,Two-Bit Suit covers a lot of ground.The 3/4 time waltzy feel of "Sweet Sweet Rose" is followed 2 songs later by the heart wrenching "Infantryman" the story of a soldier's father welcoming his son home and then moves on to "Black As Coal" written for the widows of the 2006 Sago,West Virginia coal mining disaster. Homage is paid to one of Alberta's late- great hotel bars in the rip roaring "National Hotel" and the album closes out with the heart breaking "Wrecking Ball".
Two-Bit Suit brings together a great cast of musicians that includes Steve Dawson on all kinds of gui- tars, banjo,Weissenborn Hawaiian guitar, and pedal steel, Keith Lowe on bass (Fiona Apple, Bill Frisell), Geoff Hicks on drums, Chris Gestrin on keyboards and features guest musicians such John Reischman on mandolin, and J.T. King's Jeanne Tolmie and Tyler Bird on backup vocals.
John has been nominated as "New/Emerging Artist" and "Best Contemporary Folk Singer" at the 2005 Canadian Folk Music Awards and as "Outstanding Songwriter" at the 2005 Western Canadian Music Awards. Also in 2005 John took home a CBC Galaxie Rising Star Award.
John Wort Hannam continues to tour most of the days of the year, singing and playing his heart out in cities all across Canada and the United States.Watch for him in your town soon.