* Live music venue with Top 40, Country, & Rock/Classic Rock acts.
* The Fortresss Tavern is the best sounding room in all of Chatham. They have live bands
every Friday and Saturday night. They also have solo acts every Thursday night.
*Fortresss Tavern is Wayne Caron’s dream come true. For a long time, he was fed up of the inconsistent availability of good live music and Chatham-Kent and he always said that one day he would open a bar to do something about it. Well, that day has finally come!
Some of the bands playing in 2018/2019.
80’s Gone Wild, Loveless, Mrs. Fox, Lucas Chaisson, Mark Chichkan, Continuum, John Atlee, Dusty D’Annunzio, Mouth Trap, J#Major, The Chasers, Retrospect, Those Guys, United Snakes, Moondog Howlers, SnakeBite, The Whaling Band, Guy Shields Trio, Dirt Road Jammers, Hurt N Merv, Soul Signatures, Paying Cash: The Johnny Cash Show, Blutonium, The Mixx, British Beat 66, Twang Bastards, Rob Kirkham and Neon Rain, Bombsquad, The Soulshakers, Contact Zero, Rendition, Superfly, United Snakes, The DAM Band, Jessika Rabbit, Whistler Creek, Johnson’s Creek, Practically Hip, Jeff Back,
Band:PHYZIKAL GRAFFITI Year:2019 Home:Chatham-Kent Genre:Classic Rock Covers. Formed: Nov. 2016.
Band Members: Mitchell Robinson – Guitar Mitchell Doxtater – Bass, vocals. Kevin Slater – Lead Vocals / Keys Dwayne Foulon – Drums
Notes: * Bringing to you covers of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Aerosmith, Queen, Jimi Hendrix, Lynyrd Skynyrd and so much more…It’s a 60’s, 70’s and some 80’s Rock N Roll extravaganza!!! * Performed at USB, The Elephant’s Nest, Frendz, & the Jazzbah.
Band: Painted Dogs Release:Live Fast, Die Young Year:2018 Genre:Garage Punk Home: The Motor City
Chatham Connection: Vocal/Guitarist Christ Hart is from Chatham-Kent. Chris began fronting punk rock bands such as L.O.T.D. (Lice of the Dead), Jivaro Fracus & the Matadors. Chris put out several solo records from his new home, London Ontario.
In 2016, The Painted Dogs released the Vibrator EP, which includes four songs that are on this full length.
Written, Performed, & Produced by The Painted Dogs.
Except Be My Baby written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector.
Bass and Drums recorded at Beach Road Studios by Siegfried Meier.
Guitars and Vocals recorded 5000 Miles Beneath The Earth by Boris Novosel.
Mixed in London, Ontario by Darren Morrison.
Mastered in London, Ontario by Gregory James Hatchette.
Tracks: 01.Live Fast, Die Young 02:49 02.Killchain 03. Vibrator 04. Amen 05.Be My Baby 06.Dead Rebel 07.Meth 08.Great Imposter 09. Troubled Girl 10.Dance 11. Eyes Off You
Tickets on sale now. At The Cultural Centre Box office or online. Info below.
Aberdeen Reunion Date: Saturday July 29th 2017. Where: Bar Out Back 160 Keil Drive South, Chatham. Gates open: 6:00pm, show starts at 6:30pm sharp, till 11pm.
(Outdoor event, Bar Out Back parking lot)
Bands: Town Krier Lyra Electric Voodoo Beggars Opera Def Bombs
Event Mc’s
* Jason Allan (Comedian from London)
* Mat Drew(Frontman for Face4Radio, and previously Foster Child & The Janet Theory).
Prizes: ‘Ab Tab Draw’. Three $100 cash give-a-ways to cover your tab for the night.
Ticket Info: Tickets: $18 + Handling fee. Available at: * The Cultural Centre Box Office, 75 William St. N., Chatham. 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM – Monday To Friday. * Or order online at cktickets.com * Tickets go on sale Monday Feb. 13th.
Set Times * 06:30 – 7:05pm Town Krier (Stage 1) * 07:10 – 8:10pm Lyra (Stage 2) * 08:15 – 8:50pm Electric Voodoo (Stage 1) * 08:55 – 9:55pm Beggars Opera (Stage 2) *10:00 – 11:00pm Def Bombs (Stage 1)
Town Krier: Performed at the Aberdeen between 1983-1986. They still get together once or twice a year. Members include Billy Wolsing (Drums), Chris ‘Hymie’ Zelina (Bass & Vocals), & Herby Classens (Guitar).
Lyra: Performed at the Aberdeen in the late 1980’s. A great local rock band who’s members later went on to perform in Sweet Fa, Rockus, Blu Bones, Thunder Circus, Killer Dwarfs, Fear Disorder, Tangled Puppet, Manpower, & Teethin’ Freaks.
Electric Voodoo: Rocked the Aberdeen through the 90’s, mostly as a Jimmi Hendrix tribute. A popular true party staple band, and the soul of rock & roll for Chatham. Dave Major & Mitch Robinson will return. Bass player is unknown at this time, they had some great players & they will let us know who is available to attend.
Beggars Opera: Another great band from the Aberdeen 90’s era. Members also continue to be a part of many great bands out there today.
Def Bombs: Currently London’s most popular rock cover band, including members from Syre, Helix, Sven Gali, Leather Snake, & Before The Damned). Excited to have them perform.
Band: Jivaro Fracus Release:Ejoy (Demo Cassette) Year:1992 Genre: Rock Home:London
Chatham Connection: Chris & Ted Hart are from Chatham-Kent, but had moved to London after graduation.
Tracks: 1. Got It On Film 2. Confessions 3. Stranded 4. Her Side
Members: Chris Hart – Vocals Ted Hart– Bass Wayne – guitar Shawn – drums.
Notes:
“Got It On Film” was recorded at Fanshawe’s MIA studio in November of ’91.
It was produced by Nikki Servos and Matt Wormsbecker and engineered by Brad Nelson
The other songs were recorded live at Call The Office in London on December 9th by Brian Smith.
Artist: Leah Morise Release:Live at the House of Harmony Date: 2015 Genre:Folk/Jazz Home Town: Chatham-Kent Resides:Fingal Ontario (Near London)
Notes: This is her second album, the first was released in 2006, entitled ’Take Me Anywhere’.
Tracks: 01 By the Time the Leaves Fell 02 Highway 17 03 $2 Bill 04 Love My Old House 05 Flowers in the Carpet 06Never Enough Time 07 If Only He Had Known the Language 08 Peaceful River 09 She’s a Hurricane 10 Stranded 11 Together You and Me 12Tiny Trailer _ *Watch the CD Preview here.
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Links: * Website here. * Purchase on iTunes here. * Download/preview this CD (CDBABY) here.
Note: For info on the 2017 Aberdeen Reunion, Click here.
The Official tribute to Chatham’s legendary Rock Bar, the Aberdeen.
Aberdeen Reunion * Sat. August 13th, 2016 * At Bar Out Back, Chatham (Behind Swiss Chalet) * 160 Keil Drive South, Chatham, Ontario. * The event sold out. * View above pic in original large size here.
* The show began at 8pm to a full house. Some of the bands on the bill were reuniting for the first time in years. Lyra reunited for the first time in 28 years and played flawlessly. Beggar’s Opera, Foster Child, & Electric Voodoo all shared in their respective reunions. The Aberdeen had closed 20 years ago this year.
* Highlights included the people who attended. It was a love fest of a true nature, in that all that attended, were attendee’s from back in the day. Many people signed the huge Aberdeen reunion sign, which can be seen at Bar Out Back, in Chatham.
Live Entertainment Electric Voodoo (Reunion) (1-2AM) The Smash Tones (10:30-12:30PM) Lyra (Reunion) (9-10PM) Foster Child & Beggars Opera (8-9PM)
Band: The Jessika Rabbit Band Home: Chatham-Kent Cat: Cover band Genre:Top 40, popular genres. Year: 2016
Notes:This is a new band combining players who are currently regulars on the stage in various other bands. The group covers all grounds with top 40, Rock, R&B, Country, Reggae, Pop, Motown & Hip Hop.
Members: Courtney Wells – Vocals Jeff Mifflin – Guitar Jean Marc Haslip – Bass & Keys Ryan Caron – Drums
* Web Link here.
Email: info@jessikarabbitband.com
Members: Jesse V. – Vocals Shawn B.– Acoustic Guitar, Backing vocals Joe C.– Percussion (Cajon)
Bio:The Casuals are a new acoustic cover band from Chatham-Kent who perform popular music from modern rock to motown.
Members Jesse Verleye & Shawn Beaulieu have performed together off & on for the past 25 years, in several popular original & cover band line ups. Most notable works include Saint Ends (currently), Foster Child , The Janet Theory, Demo Kid & Face4Radio. The guys have toured around Canada & The U.S.A. a few times and have released several albums through the years. They have been united with Joe Carson on percussion, a young man who shares the same passion for music, and is also the drummer for Face4radio.
The Casuals are just that, casual. They prefer patio settings and a good summer time vibe where the interaction between the listeners and the band is relaxed & fun.
Specs:The band is equipped with its own sound system for the patio environment or small venue, and will roughly perform three 40 minute sets within a four hour time frame. No additional services, such as a sound engineer are required.
Song Selection Sample
Kenny Chesney, Steely Dan, Violent Femmes, Green Day , James, Black Keys, Tom Petty , Matchbox 20 , Alan Jackson, Lumineers, Nirvana, Otis Redding, Semi-Sonic, White Stripes, Kid Rock, Magic, Temptations, George Michael, The Eagles, Jimmy Buffet, Gin Blossoms, Oasis, Rixton, Hank Williams Jr., etc……
Band:Blutonium Home:Chatham-Kent Ontario Genre:Rhythm & Blues Covers Year:2014 Formed: 2009
Members Scott Campbell – Vocals Bob Wilson – Bass Rick Chrysler– Drums Jeff Mifflin – Guitar
Notes: * Scott Campbell took over lead vocal duties in 2013 with the departure of Phil Caron. *Blutonium is the most viewed band at the Chatham Music Archive website. *The band plays locally (Jazzbah, Big Shots etc.) and often in Sarnia and Windsor at the Cosmos Lounge at the Casino.
Brief Members Band History: *Bob Wilson has played bass for major acts such as Kim Mitchell, Troiano, & Black Market. He has played in popular local acts such as Tom Lockwood, Quadrant, Badge, & Friends. *Scott Campbell – Beggers Operah, & Blueswraith, among others. *Rick Chrysler – Hat Trick, Blues On The Rocks, Big House, The Why Nots, Stephanie McIlroy, True Blue Hoodoo, The New Love Family Band, Nexus, Quadrant , Rosco, Fifth Night, Red Herring, Chickoree, Rebel, Airtight, Route 66, Manpower, & Highwaze. *Jeff Mifflin – Stephanie McIlroy, A Step Further Into The Blues, & O’Hara Brothers Band. He also is a recording engineer on his own time and has done several recordings for many bands & projects.
Members: Mat Drew– Vocals Dave Richie– Acoustic guitar & Backing vox
Notes:
Currently members together in the party cover band Face4Radio, Mat & Dave relaunched their acoustic duo last year to play the more intimate venues such as the Central Tavern in Pain Court.
Band:Blues On The Rocks Genre:R&B/ Blues (Originals & Covers) Year: 2013 Formed: 2012 Home:Chatham-Kent
Members: Mike Copley– lead singer Aug Polowick – guitar Dwayne Purdy – bass, backing vox, Rick Chrysler – Drums Tom Starks– Hammond organ
Bio:
Between the sum of its memebers, BOTR has amassed many decades of experience on the live music scene. Although the band incorporates some blues standards, it has made a conscious effort to lean towards the rocky, funky, up-tempo side of the genre. Along with its repertoire of cover songs, the band has put a great emphisis on writing their own material and have produced a great deal of origninal songs. In a short amount of time the band has performed at the Canada South Blues Museum, Shrewsbury Ribs n Blues Festival, Grapejam Festival, Ceasars Windsor as well as logging numerous bar gigs.
Notes: One of the oldest bars in Ontario,Centrally located between Chatham, Wallaceburg & Tilbury.
The Central Tavern hosted decades of great live music & was a busy place for bands through the golden years of the 1970’s straight through the 1990’s. The venue is currently under new management today that works hard at creating all kinds of events to keep the venue vibrant & warm to those who stop in. Now, if those walls could talk!
Paint Court is a small french speaking community just outside of Chatham.
Email your info & pics to:chatham_music_archive@hotmail.com
Store: Tony’s One Stop Music Shoppe City: Chatham Ontario Canada Address: 83 Center Street (Downtown) Phone: 519-351-4885 Year: 2011
Founded by Tony Meriano, a fixture of the Chatham-Kent music scene for over 35 years, Tony’s One Stop Music Shoppe is committed to providing Southwestern Ontario with the very best music services.From music equipment, to studio gear, to live sound, Tony’s has the experienced staff to help you make the right choices, and take your productions to the next level. Contact them today.
Venue: Golden Tap and Grill City: Chatham Ontario Genre: Country Music Bar Bands: Live bands on weekends Phone: (519) 351-1907 Address: 429 Grand Avenue East
The Golden Tap has remained the only true country music bar in Chatham Ontario since the early nineties. But it did not begin there. The venue was previously known as the ‘Kingsway Hotel’, which had a good run through the 1970’s to the early 1990’s. Bands from around the continent (big and small) performed here in the 1970’s when live music was the main and only source of weekly entertainment.
Today, you can still enjoy country music bands performing every weekend at the Golden Tap.
Event: Rock Stock Where: Tecumseh Park, Chatham Ontario When: Aug. 13th & 14th 2010 Note:proceeds to benefit the Heart & Stroke Foundation. Price: $30 a night, or $45 for both.
Note: This will be the third annual Rock Stock. The first two years were held at the Chatham Airport.
Line-up Aug. 13th The Doors
Time (Windsor Band) The Long Lots (Local)
Redinger
The Standstills
Songs From A Room
Line-up Aug. 14th
Big Sugar
Thornley
Marginal Potency (local) The Cause… If Anything (Local) Forclosure (Local) S.U.D.S. (Local) Mic Lordz (Windsor) Dead End Charlie (Local)
Venue: Elephants Nest (A.K.A. The Nest) Location: Chatham Ontario Address: 149 King Street West
The Elephant’s Nest is a cool little music bar located right down town on King Street. Tuesday night is the highlight for musicians and music lovers as Julie Ross hosts ‘Open Mic Night’. Instruments are supplied and many performers play throughout the evening acoustically.
The Nest also has live duos/ bands on the weekends. The key to this club is that you never know what to expect. The club has a cool underground vibe to it on occasions, yet it also plays to the mainstream expectations of your favourite cover songs ringing out into the pub style atmosphere.
The Nest is another choice stop downtown for club crawling. The Nest, Spankys , The River Rock, The JAZZBAH, and the Smoke House are all located on the same block. Add a 5 minute stroll and you will also make it to ‘Big Shots’.
Night Club: Encore Bar & Night Spot City: Chatham Ontario Where: 90 Richmond St. What: Live concerts, comedy, dancing, top 40, indie shows, pool
The place to be. Where you can dance the night away to the top 40 hits, rock out to your favorite live local bands, see great concerts and unique appearances by comedians, recording artists, and famous celebrities, play pool, watch sporting events on Chatham’s biggest screen and 10 tvs, and most of all, enjoy an evening with good friends, food, drinks and great entertainment.
With over 6000 sq. feet, ENCORE is Chatham’s largest bar and boasts an upscale atmosphere with a fresh attitude and feel. It’s the place where friends congregate and celebrate. From our innovative cocktails to our impressive lineup of live DJ’s, great bands, international performing artists, and hilarious comic relief, we serve fun every night of the week.
We are the only place in town bringing big name acts to Chatham’s most equipped sound stage. Having featured live shows from notable performers such as Crash Karma, Bif Naked, Thornley, Helix, Karl Wolf, Faberdrive, Default, D12, Jason Mewes, YUK YUKS Comedy, and the Trailer Park Boys, to name a few, ENCORE creates nights you won’t forget.
Band: Southwest Dirt Home: Chatham-Kent Year: 2007 Genre: Rock
Members: Mike Copley – vocals Alex Polowick (Aug) – guitar (Blenheim) Gavin Dawson – bass Simon Coleman – drums
Former Members:
Nate Spicer – lead guitarist (2002 to 2006)
The group formed in the spring of 2002 as a soulful solid rock band called Southwest Dirt. They started off covering the likes of ZZ TOP, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and other great acts.
From 2002-2006 they played heavily at bars, parties, Stag & Does, and other events. During those first four years, Nate Spicer was the lead guitarist for the band.
In 2007, the band began to shift to writing and playing original music. It began when Mike (Vocals) entered the studio in 2007 to record an original entitled “Simple Times”. The song was played often on the Rock95.1FM Indie Show. The song was recorded with the help of Bob Hiltz (Bass), Jason Guttridge (Drums), and Aug (guitar).
Band: Sin Dealer Release: Dying to Live Year: 2007 Formed: 2005 Home: Toronto Genre: Metal Chatham Connection: Guitarist Ron Bechard is from Chatham-Kent (Merlin)
Eric Kuthe – Vocalist
Ron Bechard – guitarist
Frank Sargeant – bassist
Jeff Zurba – Drummer
Tracks: 1. Lying to Myself 2. Got Into You 3. Gasoline 4. Betrayal 5. Dying to Live 6. Magic Woman 7. Going Down 8. One Foot in the Grave 9. Walk All Over You 10. Devil’s War
________________ Chart Attack Review below:
Sin Dealer – Dying to Live – CD Review By Jason Daniel Baker
Vocalist Eric Kuthe, guitarist Ron Bechard, bassist Frank Sargeant and drummer Jeff Zurba form Sin Dealer, a Toronto based quartet locally considered one of Toronto’s finest metal bands.
Drawing upon the vast wealth of long experience on the Toronto music scene the members of the combo unleash a sound that is raw yet paradoxically polished at the same time.
Comprised of former members of bands like Edwin, Sea of Green, Sons of Otis and Plasma Blast, the respective pedigrees are indeed impressive but would be immaterial if they couldn’t play together as smoothly as they do.
Comparisons are too numerous to mention and ultimately pointless. This outfit is such a blending of different influences the term “Sludge Metal” is used and I do not think it is misapplied.
Sin Dealer are an absolutely awesome band in my opinion, and I really think their sound is topflight with great riffs and attention to melody. One sees plenty of heads bobbing to their rhythm at their shows. True metal fans fully appreciate the talent of this group…………………..
Band: That Waling Band Release: Live – Jack’s Gallery Year: 2008 Genre: Rock Home: Chatham
Members:
Ray Whaling – Guitar, Vocals
Andy Martin – Bass, B. Vox Daryl Denault – Guitar, B. Vox, Percussion Joel Laprise – Drums
Tracks: 01. Jeckyll Meets Hyde 02. Quarter Mile Straight 03. Lookin’ For A Girl 04. Black Ryder 05. Rock Me 06. Get back Tomorrow 07. Rainen 08. Wheelz Of Fire 09. Shine
Recorded at Eyre Space Studios by: Bob Hiltz & Ray Whaling All songs written by Ray Whaling.
That Whaling Band record a new release’ live off the floor’ in the studio.
Visit them online here.
Name: Laura Moelker CD Release: Unfolding Stories Year: 2009 Performance: classical concert pianist Home: Chatham-Kent Resides: Hamilton
Notes: The CD is a collection of classical piano music from Chopin, Mendelssohn, Gershwin, and Schubert.
Official Bio Laura Moelker, a native of Chatham, Ontario, is a classical concert pianist with a profound love for music. Her outgoing personality, remarkable enthusiasm and precision at the piano have given her enormous success and praise from audiences.
Laura grew up in Chatham, Ontario where she began taking piano lessons at the age of 5. Born into a musical family, Laura received unending support from her parents and siblings. She continued taking lessons and received numerous awards in local music festivals, including the O.R.M.T.A. award, which she received in 1999. This only encouraged Laura to continue in her musical studies. In 2002 Laura moved to Hamilton, Ontario where she continued studying music at Redeemer University College under Dr. Christiaan Teeuwsen and world-renowned pianist, Valerie Tryon. In May 2006 she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in music (piano performance). Upon graduating Laura continued her classical training with the Royal Conservatory of Music and in January 2009 graduated and received her ARCT diploma in piano performance.
Laura now works as a freelance musician in Hamilton, Ontario and is currently involved in various musical activities within her local community.
Visit Laura online here.
Listen to her music here.
Band: Big City Year: 2009 Home: Chatham kent Style: Country
Members:
TERRY ASHLEY – lead guitar and lead vocals
NICOLE SHAW- bass guitar and vocals
RANDY COYLE- drums, whistles and web mgr.
Additional Musicians:
Charlie St. Denis – fiddle and mandolin
Dale Rivard – steel guitar and vocals
Randy Vereecken – steel guitar
Frank Yankovich – guitar and vocals
The BIG CITY Band has become one of the most popular country acts in the Chatham-Kent and surrounding areas.
They have been performing together for over 10 years, to capacity crowds wherever they go.
The group works in three configurations, therefore being able to fit any kind of event format and budget. The first would be the trio, which consists of Terry, Nicole and Randy. The second version of the band, would be the four piece quartet, that work primarily in larger dance clubs, and the third is the five piece group, for major events and shows. This combo has done shows and festivals with Charlie Majors, Beverly Mahood and Thomas Wade, to mention a few.
You can catch the band at the Golden Tap or the CBD in Wallaceburg.
View their website and listen to the music at ‘Myspace’ here.
Band: Rebel Circa: 1985-1989 Style: Rock Home: Chatham Ontario
Members (L-R)
Rick Chrysler – Drums
Waide Holland – Keyboards, vocals
Randy Young – Bass, vocals
Steve Fowler – Guitar
Notes: Steve Fowler is an accomplished guitar player and simply recognized as one of the best in the area by his peers . Steve has played with some of the biggest names in the Canadian Music Industry.
Rebel played extensively 3 nights per week in local lounges.
Members Bob Wilson – Bass
Phil Caron – Vox & Guitar
Rick Chrysler – Drums
Jeff Mifflin – Guitar
The band is made up of top notch players with roots deep in the cities history of the most popular local bands.Those who don’t know bassist Bob Wilson, well, you have heard him play before. A little flashback video below of Bob in the Kim Mitchell band with their hit ‘Go For A Soda’.
Artist: Ian And Sylvia Release: Live at Newport Date: 1996 Sylvia is from Chatham
Recorded at the Newport Folk Festival in 1963 and 1965. A great CD showing what a solid live act Ian & Sylvia were. All recordings previously unreleased except 3, 11, and 12, which had appeared on various Newport compilations on vinyl back in the sixties.
1 – Introduction by Ed McCurdy :08
2 – Oh Katy Dear (trad) 2:49
3 – Un Canadien Errant (trad) 3:28
4 – V’le Bon Vent (trad) 2:12
5 – The Greenwood Sidie / The Cruel Mother (trad) 2:36
6 – Royal Canal (Brendan Behan) 4:22
7 – C. C. Rider (trad) 3:00
8 – Red Velvet (Tyson) 2:21
9 – Song for Canada (Pete Gzowski, Tyson) 4:25
10 – Travelling Drummer (Fricker) 2:20
11 – Someday Soon (Tyson) 2:44
12 – Play One More (Tyson) 2:49
13 – You Were On My Mind (Fricker) 2:51
14 – Maude’s Blues (Losing is an Easy Game) (Fricker) 4:03
15 – Four Strong Winds (Tyson) 4:26
Credits:
Eric “the doctor” Hord: lead guitar, tracks 1-6
Rick Turner: lead guitar, tracks 7-14
Ronny Schiff: notes
Joe Alper, John Cooke: photos
Produced by Jeff Zaraya
Musicians: Mat Drew – Vox, Shawn Beaulieu – Guitar, Vox, Loops & Programming Jesse Verleye – Bass, Vox Dave Richie– Guitars, Dave Major – Drums, Vox
The guys take a break from full on music and decide to wrap it up to spend time with families for a while. After years of playing non-stop in bands, they take a rest. The Janet Theory had fun and thank everyone for their support. Band members will be back on the scene soon slowly one by one.
The band was featured on 2 different compilation Cds put out this year also.
From The Underground – features ‘It’s Alright’. (New York Label) Winter Rose – features ‘ You Suck’. (Chatham Kent/ Essex Release)
Chatham Music Archive 
