close window x . .Telegraph Journal

This Alberta roots performer aptly bills himself as blue collar. His songs speak for the everyman, in simple words and basic structures, packed with emotion and description. He taps into the feelings of today – and the past – without pandering to pop culture or mass-market hype. Instead he listens to the simple truths that affect ordinary people. He writes about what he knows, with several songs set on his side of the country, but there’s one in particular that will touch all Canadians: Infantryman is one of the first songs that speaks directly to our participation in Afghanistan: “My boy came home from the today/and he was draped in the Maple Leaf.” You can catch John Wort Hannam at Sessions Café in Rothesay June 14, 8 p.m.

-Bob Mersereau