Bonnie James - Between The Covers (2004)

Bonnie James loves to sing. At age 10 she used a candlestick "microphone" to sing along with the radio hits of the day. She had her favourite female singers, but she really liked jamming with Elvis, Fabian and the The Everly Brothers. Her voice tends toward the low range and she found it easier to sing along with the male vocalists. Born in St. Catharines Ontario Canada, she has lived most of her life in the Niagara Region, and spent a few of her younger years in the Muskokas. Her passion for music took her life over completely. She'd sit by the radio and write out the lyrics of popular songs. She could be heard singing in the house everyday. Her mother supported her in this and urged her to perform in front of family and friends. She was the only one in her family who showed any musical inclinations and it was radio and television that kept that passion alive.Bonnie moved to Toronto at age 18 to spend some time with her father who was ill. She became involved with "basement bands" singing popular hits from the radio. This led to performing at parties and student events. But, the groups she associated with were intent on playing "Rock n Roll" while she wanted to move toward Folk music so they ultimatley parted ways, while remaining friends.This was 60's Toronto and the Folk Scene was in high gear. Bonnie saw Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, Ian & Sylvia and Peter,Paul and Mary at live gigs. Her desire to perform grew. She advertised for a folk guitarist and along came David Wilcox. He was 17 years old, seemed to her an awkward and shy young man, but boy could he play. She had heard him perform at a party a couple of weekends earlier so when he answered the ad she was excited.

However, this union of great accompanist and aspiring singer was not to be because Bonnie's boyfriend proposed marriage.Her music career was temporarily shelved while marriage, children and family life moved to the forefront. For now, Bonnie was content to sing around the house and entertain her children. You could still catch her sitting by a radio copying down song lyrics keeping her passion alive. Twenty years would pass before the urge to perform was reawakened.After the family was well on it's way and children off to school, Bonnie's husband suggested she get a job. Momentarily shocked (she thought she had a job), she took that as a sign to return to performing. Bonnie decided to start her own 50's/60's style band. She advertised for musicians and started rehearsing (back in the basement again!). This helped dust the cobwebs off her singing voice. The band seemed stuck in the basement and Bonnie realized that her ambition for live performing would not be met here. She answered an ad for a vocalist hoping this might work better but the clincher came when the band leader insisted she sing "Stand By Your Man." That's exactly what I've been doing for the last 20 years! she thought. Having a lucrative contract in hand Bonnie was determined to honor it and needed new players right away. Her husband had seen an existing 50's/60's band shortly before that played a lot of the same tunes. After confronting them with a nice paying gig and only two rehearsals, she had her first real gig in front of a packed house and blew the audience away. Bonnie finally emerged from the basement and her singing career was launched. For the next 7 years she worked with regular accompanists and was booked most weekends.

She also became a "special occasion" disc jockey, promoting herself as "DJ with a Difference". She would entertain crowds with great dance music and sneak in a few live tunes using karaoke CDs and singing for them. Once the audiences realized that she was singing they loved it, finding it unique. It became her calling card, with many people booking her as a DJ because of her ability to sing. Along came the new millennium and Bonnie met a karaoke DJ who was also a professional singer,John McCabe. He was in the process of recording a demo and invited her to observe the sessions. Witnessing music being recorded in a professional studio excited her and a new bug was born. Now, Bonnie could see herself recording her own CD.

A growing appreciation for jazz led her to a supper club that featured a great jazz pianist named Joe Ingrao. Occasionlly she joined Joe at this club and learned to sing jazz standards. Joe and his bass player, Garth Vogan, introduced Bonnie to the essentials of musical structure and how to communicate with other players.Now Bonnie could sing with the pros without rehearsal. Back at the studio John began urging Bonnie to do a demo of her own. Using karaoke tracks she did just that. She took her 2 song demo to Joe and Garth who were so impressed they immediately suggested she do an album. Bonnie discovered that her cousin, Glen Reid,who was in the music business, had recorded folk and bluegrass albums. He was also stunned by the demo and invited her to join him at his Heritage River Festival and perform a couple of songs with him. Glen began to introduce Bonnie to all the professionals she would need to create her dream album. Her project came together as if it were pre-ordained. "Between the Covers" features 14 jazz standards and 2 originals which are receiving widespread airplay on radio stations across Southern Ontario. The album is a great piece of work and is landing Bonnie the quality gigs she always wanted. Professional musicians accompany her wherever she performs. Her jazzy, sultry style just lets the music flow. No more struggling with basement bands. No more singing by the radio(what? she'll always sing by the radio, just not with a candlestick, nearly set her hair on fire one time doing that.) Bonnie James, the singer has arrived, and we are all the richer for it.