“We have partnered with Linus Entertainment for some 13 years in distribution and they have been our partners in the best sense,” said Grit Laskin and Bill Garrett in a joint statement announcing the transition. Laskin (also a noted luthier) and Garrett (an in-demand producer) founded Borealis in 1996, along with fellow musicians Paul Mills and Ken Whitely. The label was committed to recording only Canadian artists, seeking out artists from all of Canada’s regions, entering into “ethical artist agreements that are fair and typically more generous than what is the industry standard, “ and presenting all the diverse styles of music under the folk and roots umbrella.

“It has been a joy to work with Grit and Bill and their wonderful artists,” said Geoff Kulawick, president and CEO of Linus Entertainment. “Taking on the responsibility of managing the Borealis catalog, which includes many ever-green musical gems of Canadian culture and folklore was a natural fit as we know the music well, so transition for the artists and our global distribution partners will be seamless.”

The Borealis catalog includes more than 200 titles. Among the more than 60 artists who called the label home are The Bills, The Bombadils, La Bottine Souriante, Jon Brooks, Michael Jerome Browne, The Fugitives, Beppe Gambetta, Gathering Sparks, Eve Goldberg, James Gordon, James Keelaghan, Linda McRae, Melisande (electrotrad), Evelyn Parry, Nathan Rogers, Pharis & Jason Romero, Chris Ronald, Oliver Schroer, Jayme Stone, Shari Ulrich, Le Vent du Nord, Ken Whiteley, and the late Ron Hynes, Penny Lang, Stan Rogers, Laura Smith, and Jackie Washington.

“Being an artist on Borealis has been a wonderful thing,” said Eve Goldberg, a Toronto-based singer-songwriter and part of the folk-roots duo Gathering Sparks. “On the artist side, they have always acted with great integrity and respect for the music and the musicians, and I think they’ve made a big difference for a number of artists. It has always felt like they are part of my music community, and that means a lot in the midst of this business.’

Goldberg has been associated with Borealis since its inception — having initially handled artist relations and a variety of administrative tasks for the label. “When Borealis started, there weren’t many Canadian labels that were releasing folk music, and as an independent artist it was challenging to get your music out there,” she said. “ I think [Borealis] made a huge difference on the Canadian folk scene. They were never in it to get rich (who gets rich off of folk music anyway??). They were purely motivated by love for the music, wanting to help artists’ careers, and wanting to lift the profile of folk music in Canada and beyond…. Although I’m sad to see Borealis ending this phase of its life, I know that True North will be a great new home for Borealis artists and for the Canadian folk music Borealis has nurtured for 25 years.”

James Gordon, a Guelph, Ontario-based singer-songwriter, best known for his topical songs about Canada’s identity and heritage, shares her sentiments. “I’m doubly grateful for all the nurturing support that Borealis has offered me for the last 20 years, and for the fact that they have found a home for all of us Borealis artists with True North Records, where I know I’ll be well looked after.”

Gordon, who has released more than two-dozen solo recordings and was a founding member of the Canadian folk trio Tamarack, noted that when he started out in the music biz more than 40 years ago his Canadian music heroes like Bruce Cockburn and Murray McLachlin were on the new True North label. “I always dreamed that some day I’d join them, and that seems now to have accidentally happened.”

“I have nothing but respect for any label that manages to survive in these challenging times,” Gordon told AcousticMusicScene.com. “In the pandemic, purchasing CDs and downloads (definitely not streaming) is pretty much the only source of income for many of us in this biz, so I am extra pleased that there appears to be a smooth transition for Borealites,” he added.

“For an independent artist, they were a perfect – always there to answer questions, confer on strategy, bolster my confidence in my work – and always in the audience when I was in the same town,” said singer-songwriter Shari Ulrich, who signed on with Borealis in 2013. “In 50 years I have run the gamut of the full range of worldwide deals on major labels, to releasing albums completely independently, and Borealis filled a critical sweet spot in Canadian music.”

Ulrich continued: “Bill and Grit and their team also became very good friends, as I suspect they did with all of their artists. I always sensed that they had my best interest at the forefront, as I do now as they hand off their roster to True North Records. As with everything else these days, I can’t predict what the future holds, but I know and trust Geoff Kulawick to share their principles (and taste in music!) and hope to find a good home there,’ she added.

“We have been most fortunate in being able to work with a large number of very fine artists over the years,” Laskin and Garrett acknowledged. “Their music has been a constant source of inspiration and the friendships made will be life-long. Although we leave the business of running a record company behind we by no means will be leaving music.”

For his part, Laskin said that he continues building guitars full-time and serving in a volunteer capacity as president of the Canadian Folk Music Awards board of directors. He’s also been part of the band Friends of Fiddler’s Green for nearly 50 years. Laskin, who has published four books, two coffee-table tomes and a novel, informs AcousticMusicScene.com that he also is engaged in research for another novel. “In short, there is no lack of things to keep me out of trouble,” he said.

American, Canadian, Irish and Scottish artists will be featured in what Cheryl Prashker, the festival’s artistic director and general manager; hopes will be “a magical online experience.” Nearly eight hours of pre-recorded music made especially for the festival will be viewable via the festival’s website (CelticFestival.ca), as well as its Facebook page (https://facebook.com/goderichceltic) and YouTube channel (https://youtube.com/channel/UCHRa3SZ8Y1wn88xYtNvR4Lg/featured?view_as=subscriber). FolkMusicNotebook.com, a 24/7 online music channel, will also stream the festival on its website.

From its humble beginnings as one-time memorial concert in 1993, the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival is now the oldest pan-Celtic festival in North America. In addition to a three-day outdoor festival showcasing some of the world’s best Celtic musicians, dancers and artists, it has grown/evolved to include a weeklong Celtic College and a Celtic Kids Camp, as well as a series of rural outreach mini-concerts,

The festival –- whose physical location is surrounded by the Irish and Scottish heritage reflected in the nearby communities of Belfast, Dublin, Kincardine, Lucknow and Seaforth — was founded on the spirit of community and connecting people with Celtic roots and exploring new Celtic expressions. It generally features more than 60 hours of live musical performances by dozens of artists and acts on five stages, ranging from small intimate ones to a high-powered main stage.

Postponing the 28th edition of the Goodrich Celtic Roots Festival to August 2-8, 2021
“was a really emotionally hard decision to make,” Prashker acknowledged, ”but we’re going all out with this virtual one.” Prashker -– who is also part of the Celtic roots group RUNA and a ‘percussionist to the folkies’ — noted that when she assumed her position with the festival two years ago it was her “secret hope to put the beautiful small town of Goderich on the world map … and now it will be on the world stage virtually.”

Here’s a link to view a short commercial for the festival:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_fcUWQrzE0

The virtual Goderich Celtic Roots Festival 27.5 will feature pre-recorded performances by Ariko (Canada), Bourque Emissaires (Canada), Cherish The Ladies (U.S.), Shane Cook (Canada)), Joe Crookston (U.S.), The deBarra Brothers (U.S. & Ireland), Flack (Canada), Eve Goldberg (Canada), Joe Jencks (U.S.), Kruger Brothers (U.S. & Ireland), Emory Lester (Canada), Malinky (Scotland), North Atlantic Drift (Canada), Brian O’Headhra & Fiona MacKenzie (Scotland), One for the Foxes (Ireland & U.S.), Reynolds, Robinson & Lodge (Canada), and RUNA (U.S. & Canada).

“We returned to the festival the following year and, by that time, I had absolutely fallen in love with the town and the people, not to mention the beach at Lake Huron,” said Prashker. Noting that “There is an energy here that many say is what keeps them coming back time and time again,” she continued, “Each year after that, even if RUNA was not booked at the festival, I would come back anyway and teach at the Celtic College.” That led to her spending more and more time in Goderich — visiting and eventually moving there and assuming her current dream job. “It reads like a fairy tale (at least to me it does.), and I am so honored to be here,” she added, expressing hope that online festival viewers will get a small glimpse of the spirit and beauty of Goderich that drew her there.

The annual Celtic Roots Festival is run under the auspices of the Goodrich Celtic Folk Society — a charitable nonprofit organization that produces events designed to foster awareness, participation, and education in the world of traditional Celtic culture. Although admission to the virtual festival is free, there will be a virtual tip jar (celticfestival.ca/donate) and all contributions will go to the participating artists.

The December 2019 Top Albums, Songs and Artists charts are based on 15,586 airplays reported on 500 playlists submitted by 121 different DJs. The number of reported spins is shown below in parentheses.

Folk Alliance International (www.folk.org) is a nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen, and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion. Its annual conference takes place Jan. 22-26, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The monthly top albums and songs charts are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com, with permission.

Top Albums of December 2019

1. The Longest Night of the Year, Volume 2 by Various Artists (248)
2. Recollections/Revolutions by Windborne (97)
3. Happy Holidays, Vol. 11 by Various Artists (93)
4. Winter Stories by Judy Collins and Jonas Fjeld (78)
5. Best of the Rest by Si Kahn (67)
6. Making Life Sweet by The Early Risers (56)
7. Rearrange My Heart by Che Apalache (52)
8. Lines and Spaces by Heather Pierson (46)
9. Facets of Folk by Mara Levine (44)
10. The Storyteller’s Suitcase by Ellis Paul (43)
11. Honest by Ordinary Elephant (40)
12. Catching Rain by Peter Mayer (37)
13. Greening the Dark by Debra Cowan (35)
14. Up Against the Sky by Dave Gunning (33)
14. All That’s Real by Gathering Sparks (33)
14. Bones and Gravity by Lizanne Knott (33)
14. It’s a Dog’s Life by Si Kahn and the Looping Brothers (33)
14. Songs of Our Native Daughters by Our Native Daughters (33)
19. Christmas Morning by Silent Winters (32)
20. Wildwood by Katie Dahl (31)
20. To Everyone in All the World by John McCutcheon (31)
20. Coyote by Catherine Maclellan (31)
23. The Bells of Christmas by Skinner and Twitch (30)
24. Heart Land Again by Tim Grimm (29)
25. Straight to Marrow by Clint Alphin (27)
26. Chasing the Sun by Bobtown (26)
26. How We Want to Live by Lisa Bastoni (26)
28. Paws of a Bear by Sofia Talvik (25)
28. Time and Truth by Joel Mabus (25)
30. Fair Play to You All by Tommy Sands (24)
30. Every Single Star by Dori Freeman (24)
30. Wahoo! by Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer (24)
33. Visions by Alice Howe (23)
33. When They Fall by Annie and Rod Capps (23)
33. If I Catch My Dream by Bett Padgett (23)
33. Even the Sparrow by Kelly Hunt (23)
37. Wonderful Fairytale by Bill Jones (22)
37. Oklahoma by Keb’ Mo (22)
37. Going to the Well by Linda McRae (22)
37. Charlie Parr by Charlie Parr (22)
37. Gonna Love Anyway by Louisa Branscomb (22)
42. Heroes and Sparrows by Kevin Brown (21)
42. Assiniboine and the Red by The Small Glories (21)
42. Me and the Ghost of Charlemagne by Amy Speace (21)
45. If You Fall by Jaime Michaels (20)
46. Today Again by Fred Arcoleo (19)
46. Acorns by Ben Winship (19)
46. Unfortunate Point of View by Katherine Rondeau (19)
46. Due to the Darkness by The Gossamer Strings (19)
50. While I’m Livin by Tanya Tucker (18)
50. Christmas by Bruce Cockburn (18)
50. Words of Love by Allison Lupton (18)
50. Adobe Road by Cej (18)
54. Holly Head by Kate Rusby (17)
54. Christmas Caravan by Sultans of String (17)
54. Slow It Down by Crowes Pasture (17)
54. When Winter Comes by Sofia Talvik (17)
54. Heather Down the Moor by Gatehouse (17)
54. Rings Around Saturn by Marion Halliday (17)
60. How Far It Goes by The Refugees (16)
60. If I Catch My Dream, Songs of Hope for a Better World by Bett Padgett
(16)
60. These Old Hands by Crys Matthews (16)
60. The Hard Stuff by Susan Gibson (16)
60. Caravan of Dawn by The Levins (16)
60. Leylines by Rising Appalachia (16)
60. Free and Fine by Jordi Baizan (16)
60. Tall Fiddler by Michael Cleveland (16)
60. The Gift of the Magi by Darryl Purpose (16)
69. Hush the Wild Horses by Rachel Harrington (15)
69. Moth Nor Rust Ii by Jon Brooks (15)
69. Sketches by Natalie Macmaster (15)
69. Toolshed by Ben Winship (15)

Top Songs of December 2019

[Here’s a link to view a lyric video for “Bringing in the Light” by https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfNaSRAqjqk]

So well-respected was Martin among his peers in the folk music and singer-songwriter communities that many of them participated in benefit concerts in recent weeks to help defray his medical expenses. Such notable artists as Buskin & Batteau, Richard Shindell, Sloan Wainwright and Pat Wictor performed in benefits at Larchmont, NY’s Watercolor Café last month, while close friend Monty Delaney helped organize one in Katohnah, NY, where, in addition to many others taking turns at the mic performing songs penned by Martin, the songwriter himself, who was very touched by the outpouring of love and support, graced those of us in attendance by performing a few with his band.

“Anyone who heard Terence knew he was a world-class songwriter and poet,” wrote John Platt, host of Sunday Breakfast on New York’s WFUV-FM, in a post to the Folk DJ Listserv, sharing the sad news of Martin’s passing. “For years I couldn’t understand why he didn’t pursue national recognition more aggressively; then I realized that he chose the life of a teacher, father, and husband over the life of a traveling troubadour. Who can argue with that?,” Platt continued. As Charlie Backfish, host of Sunday Street on WUSB –FM in Stony Brook, NY has said of him: Terence Martin was “an extraordinarily skillful writer whose powerful songs are impossible to forget.”

Jim Colbert, a fellow singer-songwriter, shares his personal remembrances and reflections:

I did not know Terence Martin well, but I spent part of Monday night crying over his death from pancreatic cancer, and praying for his family and friends.

The last time I saw Terence Martin, he was in his black Jeep Wrangler headed east on Pennsylvania Route 6 as the late morning fog was burning off the hills, heading back home to Long Island. We would e-mail a couple times a year, usually initiated by me. I’d drop him a note when I played one of his songs on the Folk Show or he released a new disc; he would respond with gratitude and a genuine interest in my own music. He was gentle, supportive, intelligent and funny as hell – he had a dry acerbic wit, and was a keen observer of the world and the people in it, not unlike my wife Cynthia. More than anything, he was flat out one of the best songwriters I have ever encountered.

We spent a day and a half or so together once, hanging out and doing a songwriting workshop and evening performance together in Cloudersport, PA, along with Jud Caswell and Eve Goldberg. We shared coffee and dessert at a small restaurant on Route 6, talking about songwriting and scrapple and pie and our influences. He played his song Folding Chairs three times for me that day, trying to demystify it for me. “Folding Chairs” was my introduction to Terence’s music; “Folding Chairs,” played in my family room on an acoustic guitar by my friend Chris Cinnelli, who gave me Terence’s CD that weekend. I told Terence later how I thought this was nearly a perfect song. I said I wished I could write a song that good, just once in my life. He seemed a bit uncomfortable with the praise, and spent a long time basically telling me that the worst thing I could do was try to emulate “Folding Chairs;” that what I should concentrate on was being true to myself and my music. He was gently supportive, encouraging, motivating and challenging all at the same time. He listened to the songs I played him, and listened hard. He made me want to write better songs. I could see why his English students often revered him, and probably why some of them that maybe were wasting their potential might not have.

Terence’s guitar style solo was deceptively simple; often working out of first position formation shapes with embellishments, but not unlike Danny Schmidt, he had a gift for incorporating crisply picked flowing melody lines into the picking patterns. It served the songs perfectly. He was playing a sunburst Gibson J-45 that weekend, and the dry woody tone worked perfectly with his voice.

That evening, I played the second of two opening sets, and Terence came up to the microphone next, launching into an impromptu version of about half of my song “Mountain Laurels.” It fit his voice and style beautifully; I always hoped we would have the chance to do it together somewhere down the road. It was a magic moment, and it made me sad that Cynthia couldn’t be there to see it happen.

I left that weekend feeling validated as a performing songwriter. Make no mistake, I’m not turning diva. I’m not putting myself above the level I’m on or harboring delusions about where I fall on the folkie food chain, or implying I can’t improve, or even about whether what I do is what people want to hear. But this was the weekend I stopped apologizing for my style, for the performance and simplicity of my songs and started embracing that. To Terence, this was Jim Colbert being Jim Colbert, and I think I came to terms with that notion that weekend.

There have been a handful of performing songwriters who have really reinforced to me the merit in what I do; that have helped me with the ideas of balancing art with life, that sometimes the creation is its own reward, in being true to myself and my music. Joe Crookston is certainly one; Carolann Solebello and Marc Douglas Berardo and Kevin Dremel. Terence Martin is on that list too. Terence was probably the first performer to really challenge and question my approach that what I was doing somehow needed disclaimers and apologies. “Just play it,” he told me. “Play it like you feel it, play it like you mean it.” I’m no doubt paraphrasing a bit, but that was the point.

And so I cried, for someone I seldom saw or spoke to, who, in the strictest terms, I did not know long or well, but who left a lasting impression on who I am as a writer and performer. I cried the selfish tears of knowing I would not see Terence again, at least not in this lifetime; that my wife would never get to meet him – I think they would have gotten along quite well. That we would never again share a gig or pie or bullshit about Jeeps and philosophy and guitar pickups. But mostly, I cried knowing that, while there were likely dozens of people Terence made a similar impact on, there are no doubt dozens of people who would benefit from his low key, easy going support and validation and will never know that.

To steal one of his own lines, “It was the the way it didn’t go.”

Rest in peace, Terence, my friend.