By Graham Matthews
March is Australia's folk festival season, when some of the best performers from overseas tour the country. This year, one of Canada's finest young songwriters, James Keelaghan, will be performing at five of the major festivals and in concerts in most capital cities.
Keelaghan has a strong left political perspective, writing songs about historical and contemporary issues. Speaking out against injustice earned him the Global Visions Artist of the Year award in 1996.
He is renowned as a powerful live performer and has been compared to Tom Paxton and Bruce Cockburn. His tour of Australia is being organised by Crafty Maid Music, Judy Small and Sue Dyson's production company, which is high praise in itself.
The tour started last weekend at the Port Fairy Folk Festival, and continues in Melbourne (March 14) as part of the Brunswick Music Festival. From there Keelaghan travels to Jamberoo in New South Wales for the Illawarra Folk Festival (March 15), Katoomba (March 16), Sydney at Sutherland Folk Club (March 18) and Harbourside Brasserie (March 20) , and then on to the Pod Folk Club in Brisbane (March 22). He then headlines the National Folk Festival in Canberra at Easter (March 28-31), and finishes his tour in WA at the Fairbridge Folk Festival (April 3-6).
Keelaghan is well worth checking out. For more information, phone Crafty Maid Music on (03) 9481 7009.