Blind Dog Johnston & the Sinners play the Stationhouse
Blind Dog Johnston & the Sinners are playing the Hope Station House Saturday, Oct 17, 7 p.m. Tickets are $4.99 at the door.
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Updated: October 13, 2009 7:11 AM
By Mike McLoughlin
Contributor
Blind Dog Johnston and the Sinners are back to play Hope this Saturday night.
Recent local dates by the band include the very successful Hope Flightsfest dinner and dance at the Hope Airpark. Over 60 airplanes flew into town that day, bringing crowds of people to this growing event, and in the evening packing out the dance and barbecue held in the Emil Anderson Aircraft hangar. Who could forget the warm classic sounds of Blind Dog Johnston and the Sinners floating out over the endless lawn-like airport runway and the crowds of people pouring out onto the tarmac to view the aerobatics of the Fraser Blues air team unfolding in front of a majestic backdrop of granite mountains, cloaked in the coastal rainforest.
On Saturday, the upper Fraser Valley band is returning to the Station House to help support the historic Canadian National Railway building, one of only a few significant and publicly used buildings that have been a Hope landmark for a good part of a century.
At the core of the group is blind Keith Johnston on cross harp and vocals. Keith picked up the harmonica in the late 50‘s. For this event he’s going to bring out some Elvis, and CCR, not to mention the blues.
Fred McHargue on bass and vocals is largely inspired by Peter Paul and Mary, the Beach Boys, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Johnny Reid. For this event he will be doing one of the new additions to his repertoire with the current band – a very motivating devotional piece of Waylon Jennings.
On electric lead guitar Lawrence Pelletier is the most commercially successful of the group, making his living off music in the late 60’s, playing six to seven nights a week. He even played the Hope Legion when it was ‘packed’ every weekend back in the 70s. He is known for a signature smooth lead guitar style on his Gibson. When he plays he includes a selection of tributes to his early influences could include Little Richard, Hank Snow, Johnny Cash, the Everly Brothers, and Dylan. One of his current favorites is a new version of ‘Somewhere over the Rainbow.’
In celebration of the season, the band will also be playing some of their material, last used at their successful Oktoberfest show held last year in Harrison Hot Springs.
Blind Dog Johnston & the Sinners are playing at Hope Station House Sat Oct 17, 7 p.m., Tickets are $4.99 at the door.
Local pharmacist Michael McLoughlin is the youngest member of the band who will be on vocals, rhythm guitar, and alto sax for this event.
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