SUPPLIED IMAGE
Doc Walker – Dave Wasyliw and Chris Thorsteinson – will be in Medicine Hat next week. The duo is on the Hit After Hit Tour with George Canyon, Charlie Major and special guest Manny Blu. The tour is at Ralph
s Texas Bar & Steakhouse on May 9.
cbrown@medicinehatnews.com@MHNBrown
There will be distinct East Coast flair at the city’s country hotspot next week.
Canadian country singers George Canyon, Doc Walker and Charlie Major are at Ralph’s Texas Bar & Steakhouse on May 9 on the Hit After Hit Tour. Those three acts and special guest Manny Blu, plus the venue, bring cowboy hats and saloons to mind. Be ready for something different.
“We found a kitchen table, which is nice,” said Doc Walker’s Chris Thorsteinson this week.
Don’t worry, they don’t take a mid-show break for a meal.
In the early stages of the tour, the laidback format of the show had all the performers coming and going throughout the night. Someone compared it to an East Coast-style kitchen party and an idea was born.
“We wanted one of those old style chrome-rimmed tables and somebody brought one to a gig for us. We threw a crib board and some beers and now it’s a kitchen party,” Thorsteinson said. “It’s nothing I’ve ever seen before.”
It’s brought a different feel to this tour, said Thorsteinson, and moves away from the monotony that can set in on a tour after more than 20 years on the road.
“It’s always great playing for the fans but it’s a very structured show. This one changes from night to night and there’s a lot of times we’re playing two nights in a row and I swear if people had tickets for both shows, they would be entertained in two different ways because no two are the same.”
The show has an East Coast feel, but the music is straight from the Prairies.
The last record from Doc Walker – Thorsteinson and Dave Wasyliw – was 2017’s “Weathervane,” from which the first single was “Heart of the Heartland.” Thorsteinson said their roots really showed on “Weathervane.” Those roots are in a time when people bought albums instead of singles and listening to music via streaming.
“(There’s) a lot of songs that were inspired by the Prairies. Instead of just throwing a bunch of singles out there we wanted people to have a little bit of a storybook of our history.”
George Canyon has been one of Canada’s top country music hitmakers for the past 15 years. Hit singles include “Good Day to Ride,” “Drinkin’ Thinkin'” and “Daughters of the Sun” while he’s picked up Juno Awards and Canadian Country Music Awards for such songs as “One Good Friend” and “Somebody Wrote Love.”
Charlie Major is a multi-time winner of both the Juno’s country male vocalist of the year award and the Canadian Country Music Association’s male artist of the year award. His hits include “I’m Gonna Drive You Out of My Mind” and “(I Do It) For the Money.”
Manny Blu is also on the bill. Making his Medicine Hat debut, Blu released his first single, “X on my Heart,” in February. It’s the first of three singles to drop before his EP is released this summer. A former mixed martial arts fighter, Blu transitioned to music while recovering from injuries suffered while winning his first fight.
