October

From their website:

The Undesirables are a refreshing and infectious songwriting duo who kick out heat like an old woodstove. Guitarist/harmonist Sean Cotton and lyricist/singer Corin Raymond deliver a brand new vibe with roots clout.

It all began in Sean's basement in Georgetown, Ontario. Corin & Sean met while still in high school, and their fast friendship was sealed by a mutual love of raw, unadulterated American roots music. Pouring over album liners of small-town staples like The Doors and The Rolling Stones led them to the songwriters that would truly rip their hearts out; guys like Howlin' Wolf, Blind Willie McTell, and Slim Harpo. They discovered the blues together, and soon were on a steady diet of southern sounds: gospel, old-school R&B, rag and the music of New Orleans. To ask The Undesirables to list their influences is to spark a conversation that will leave you smiling at their enthusiasm and knowledge, and respect for those who came before.

It was in Georgetown, 10 years ago, that they wrote their first song, California Wine - still a requested favourite. As a songwriting team, they each brought an ingredient the other lacked. Sean, who was playing lead guitar in his father's country band at age fourteen, brought the music - a unique style of guitar playing that provided solid rhythm, rich colour, and an unexpected fullness of sound. Corin brought the words. His childhood was filled with stories, poems and the songs of Broadway wordsmiths. In his adolescence he devoured Dylan Thomas, Robert Frost, and Edna St. Vincent Millay. He brought a respect for words and a workman-like attitude to writing lyrics. One goal occupied both their minds: to write good songs.

In performance, The Undesirables are a mesmerizing unit. They perform with total commitment. Corin hand-delivers each lyric with entrancing conviction while Sean digs into the guitar with mastery and taste and their voices blend with sibling harmony.

Their sound fills the room like the smell of onions frying on an iron skillet. Hips start swaying accidentally. Spirits rise.

November

Always a favourite at Greenbank. Come and enjoy an evening of Gypsy Swing. First time in Greenbank since 2005. Don't miss this concert.

"Club Django Sextet of Toronto got the fans bouncing with a combination of gypsy and swing jazz that sounded like front porch music - if your friends and neighbors who come over for a jam session are really great musicians. The founder of the band, Andre "Papy" Seguinot, demonstrated his love for the music of two of his heroes, Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt. In fact, the band listens to those two's records so much, they titled one of their one original songs "Exact Copy" (sic ...??). With Seguinot on rhythm guitar, Abbey Sholzberg on double bass, Rodion Boshoer on violin, Gerry Duligal on accordion, John Farrel on lead guitar and Tony Oldland on rhythm guitar, the Canadians folk music makers (sic...!) obvioulsly had a ball, swinging with "Minor Swing", waltzing with "I'm Confessin' " (sic ...!) and revving everybody with "Dark Eyes" which they described as the Gypsy National Anthem.

(Mark Bialczak, The Syracuse Post-Standard, June 26 2005)