The Halifax Urban Folk Festival is stoked to give us a blues-based songwriters circle with host Charlie A’Court, Joce Reyome (winner of this year’s Memphis International Blues Challenge) and shredder Logan Richard at The Carleton on Tuesday, September 30th. Show time is a civilized 7 PM and tickets are only $35 + HST.
Planted at the crossroads of roots and soul, Charlie A’Court possesses a mighty voice, fierce guitar work and contemporary songwriting that is loved by fans across Canada and beyond. His new album, San Palarino comes out October 4, and is an Americana-driven deep dive into growing older, emotional well-being, and the collective weight bearing down on humanity. Much of the album features co-writes with some of Canada’s top singer/songwriters including Matt Andersen, Terra Spencer, and Colin MacDonald (The Trews). The music is drawing directly from his influences like Martin Sexton, Melissa Etheridge, Hot House Flowers, and Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit.
Charlie has always been recognized for exploring his musical horizons. As a six-time ECMA winner and eight-time Nova Scotia Music Award winner, Charlie has earned awards for Blues, Pop, and R&B/Soul Recordings of the Year, and on multiple occasions been recognized as Entertainer of the Year. A’Court has also received multiple Maple Blues Award nominations including Male Vocalist and Songwriter of the Year.
A’Court has performed at national and international festivals like Stan Rogers Folk Festival (CAN), Mariposa Folk Festival (CAN), Harvest Music Festival (CAN), Woodford Folk Festival (AUS), Kerrville Folk Festival (USA) and has shared the stage with James Cotton, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, George Thorogood, Harry Manx, Martin Sexton, Delbert McClinton, UB40, Canned Heat, Colin James, Dan Aykroyd and Jimmie Vaughan, among countless others.
Joce Reyome has been captivating audiences with their dynamic performances on stages throughout the east coast of Canada, where they now call home. Reyome discovered their true passion in the rhythmic world of music, where they honed their skills. Joce’s debut single, Cross My Heart, was produced by award-winning producer Erin Costelo and recorded with Colin Buchanan at Hillsound Studios. They followed up with their second single, Grateful. Also produced by Erin Costelo, this single is infused with their trademark classic blues sound, raw vocals, and evocative storytelling. Joce is currently recording their first full length album, which can be expected later this year.
Winner of the 2025 Solo/Duo Category of the International Blues Challenge, Reyome, a genuine soul, brings authenticity to their performances, turning audiences into active participants in a journey through heartbreak and humour. With performances on the Confederation Centre of the Arts main stage, the Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, at JUNOfest 2024, at the East Coast Music Awards and more, they have captivated audiences across Atlantic Canada
Joce lives in Charlottetown with their wife Cameron, burly poodle-mix Frankie, and precocious cat Eggs Florentine who is more affectionately called Flori.
Logan Richard is one of music’s rarest creatures—a compelling and diverse songwriter who also shreds. The PEI-born-and-based artist has been sharpening both skills since he first picked up the guitar as a pre-teen, building a reputation as a deft, genre-fluid songsmith and peerless hired gun for some of Canada’s most exciting musicians. But his new full-length, Character Traits, collects the undeniable evidence of Richard’s talents under his own name as he navigates slick pop, spacey R&B, and soulful folk. As the thesis song and title track attests, he’s a 21st-century renaissance man in both skill and style.
Influenced by his axe-slinging brother, artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan and John Mayer, his dad’s record collection, and his Acadian mom’s fiddle-playing family, Richard hit the stage at just 12 years old, cutting his teeth playing gigs around the island with a blues group filled out by his fellow young peers. He’s built his career as both a solo artist and in-demand live and session player, racking up experience over more than a decade and playing everywhere from dim blues dives to historical soft-seaters. All the committed hours have refined his work with nuances in technique and composition that allow him to express his many multitudes—a predilection that powers and deepens his new record, and reveals the wide scope of Richard’s artistry.