Tami Neilson: Manitoba Sunrise At Motel 6
Now a major star in her adopted homeland of New Zealand, the Canadian-raised roots singer/songwriter previews a new album with a killer old-school country ballad that'll hit your tear ducts.
By Kerry Doole
Tami Neilson: "Manitoba Sunrise At Motel 6" (Outside Music): Now a major star in her adopted homeland of New Zealand, this Canadian-raised roots singer/songwriter is deservedly beginning to have an international impact.
Her next album, Sassafrass! , comes out on June 1, and the first single, "Stay Outta My Business," was a big and brassy R&B romp. Neilson, a stylistic chameleon, returns to her country roots for this second single. A real album highlight, "Manitoba Sunrise At Motel 6" finds her channelling her inner Patsy Cline, delivering a tear-jerking ballad in emotionally convincing fashion.
In a recent FB post, she recalls the origins of the song: "It was a freezing cold February morning in the middle of a cross-Canada winter tour. I was missing my boys terribly and I took a photo of the sunrise upon waking, captioning it with 'Manitoba Sunrise from Motel 6,' and immediately began the lyrics. They sat in my notebook for months until the day I heard the news of Glen Campbell’s death.
"I was so saddened and felt like I’d somehow lost a part of my childhood, another part of my father, who had died two years earlier. I picked up my guitar and wrote the music and melody in homage to him, a way to express my sadness, celebrate his legacy of music and thank him in my own little way."
Given the Canadian setting, you'd think this would be a natural fit for country radio here, but the sound may well be too old-school to belong on banal current playlists (the video did get a premiere on Rolling Stone Country). Steel and strings are employed judiciously, but Neilson's force of nature voice rightfully holds centre stage. The track showcases her strengths as a songwriter too, via lines like "lonesome prairie wind, won't you blow me home again").
Neilson plays the Mariposa festival (July 6-8), followed by Ontario shows in Gravenhurst, Burnstown, and Corbyville. Details here
Links
Label Publicity: Stephanie Hardman stephanie@outside-music.com
Diljit Dosanjh photographed by Lane Dorsey on July 15 in Toronto. Styling by Alecia Brissett.
Diljit Dosanjh photographed by Lane Dorsey on July 15 in Toronto. Styling by Alecia Brissett.
Diljit Dosanjh photographed by Lane Dorsey on July 15 in Toronto. Styling by Alecia Brissett. On Diljit: Hermès shirt & pants.
Diljit Dosanjh photographed by Lane Dorsey on July 15 in Toronto. Styling by Alecia Brissett. On Diljit: EYTYS jacket