Fred Eaglesmith

2025-09-23T20:22:01Z

2604:3D09:A179:3800:89A8:2BDC:4C13:EFDF: The cut statement has insufficient context. He has a long history of extensive touring.

{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox musical artist|
| name = Fred Eaglesmith|
| image = Eaglesmith 2006.jpg|
| caption = Fred Eaglesmith at the Roots of Heaven festival at [[Patronaat]] in Haarlem, the Netherlands (2006)|
| image_size = ||
| background = solo_singer|
| birth_name = Frederick John Elgersma|
| alias = |
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1957|07|09}}|
| death_date = |
| origin = [[Caistor Centre, Ontario]], Canada|
| spouse = [[Tif Ginn]] (2014–present)
| Instruments = |
| genre = [[Alternative country]]|
| occupation = singer-songwriter|
| years_active = 1980–present|
| label = A Major Label, [[Lonesome Day Records|Lonesome Day]]|
| associated_acts = [[Willie P. Bennett]], [[Tif Ginn]]|
| website = {{URL|http://www.fredeaglesmith.com/}}|
}}

'''Frederick John Elgersma''' (born July 9, 1957), known by the stage name '''Fred Eaglesmith''', is a Canadian [[alternative country]] singer-songwriter.<ref name="Publishing2005">{{cite journal|author=Here Publishing|title=The Advocate|journal=The Advocate the National Gay & Lesbian Newsmagazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-GMEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA65|date=March 29, 2005|publisher=Here Publishing|pages=65–|issn=0001-8996}}</ref> He is known for writing songs about vehicles, rural life, down-and-out characters, lost love and quirky rural folk. His songwriting uses techniques of short story writing, including [[unreliable narrator]]s, surprise endings, and plot twists.

==Early life==
Eaglesmith, one of nine children, was raised by a farming family near [[Guelph]] in rural [[Southern Ontario]].<ref name="Inc.1999">{{cite book|author=CMJ Network, Inc.|title=CMJ New Music Monthly|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sikEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA47|date=July 1999|publisher=CMJ Network, Inc.|pages=47–|issn=1074-6978}}</ref> He began playing the guitar at age 12.<ref name="Inc.1997">{{cite book|title=Billboard|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_7wkEAAAAMBAJ|date=November 1, 1997|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_7wkEAAAAMBAJ/page/n9 10]–|issn=0006-2510}}</ref>

==Career==

As a teenager Eaglesmith hopped a freight train to Western Canada and began writing songs and performing.

Eaglesmith founded a band known as the Smokin' Losers. He later formed a group called both the Flying Squirrels<ref>{{cite book|title=No Depression|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FzNLAAAAYAAJ|year=2001|publisher=No Depression|page=121}}</ref> and the Flathead Noodlers, switching the name to represent different styles of music. The Flathead Noodlers play [[Bluegrass music|bluegrass]], while the Flying Squirrels play more folk and rock. His first self-titled album was released in 1980.<ref>[http://dakotastudent.com/8923/features/fred-eaglesmith-rocks-the-empire/ "Fred Eaglesmith rocks the Empire"]. ''Dakota Student'', October 4, 2016</ref>

Eaglesmith appeared in a 2001 television movie, ''The Gift''.

A typical Fred Eaglesmith show includes his music set between several lengthy between-song comic monologues by Eaglesmith. Topics in the past have included stories about crossing the U.S.–Canada border, Newfoundlanders, and some friends from an [[Indian reserve]]. His fans are known as "Fredheads", a nod to [[deadheads]], who followed the [[The Grateful Dead|Grateful Dead]]. He is known to tour extensively throughout Canada and the U.S.

When Eaglesmith appears in solo performances, he bills himself as Fred J. Eaglesmith. In addition to his own albums, he frequently collaborated with the late [[Willie P. Bennett]], a former member of Eaglesmith's band, who stepped down after a heart attack in early 2007.<ref name="Robertson2016">{{cite book|author=Ray Robertson|title=Lives of the Poets (with Guitars): Thirteen Outsiders Who Changed Modern Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BGEfDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA176|date=March 21, 2016|publisher=Biblioasis|isbn=978-1-77196-073-1|pages=176–}}</ref> Eaglesmith publishes his own records.

In 2010, Eaglesmith was featured on the ''[[Late Show with David Letterman]]'' as the musical guest. He performed "Careless" from the album ''Cha Cha Cha''.

Starting 2012, performances were billed as the Fred Eaglesmith Travelling Steam Show and include opening songs performed by Bill Poss, [[The Fabulous Ginn Sisters|The Ginn Sisters]], and [[Tif Ginn]].<ref>[http://www.kamsacktimes.com/news/local-news/fred-eaglesmith-performed-in-concert-in-kamsack-1.2400247 "Fred Eaglesmith performed in concert in Kamsack"]. ''Kamsack Times'', October 31, 2016</ref>

Fred co-wrote Tif's self-titled 2012 album with her, and the pair married in 2014. The backing band was disbanded in 2016 and they have been touring together as a duo since.<ref name="kawarthanow.com">{{cite web |url=https://kawarthanow.com/2019/03/30/fred-eaglesmith-tif-ginn-market-hall/ |title = Fred Eaglesmith has found his musical love in Tif Ginn|website=Kawarthanow.com| date=March 30, 2019 }}</ref><ref name="chicagotribune.com">{{cite web| url = https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/music/ct-fred-eaglesmith-ott-0303-20170228-story.html| title = Fred Eaglesmith is just kickin' life around - Chicago Tribune| website = [[Chicago Tribune]]| date = March 2, 2017}}</ref>

Eaglesmith's songs have been included in the musical play, ''Dear Johnny Deere''.<ref>[https://thestarphoenix.com/entertainment/local-arts/fred-in-your-head-eaglesmith-musical-illuminates-rural-life "Fred in your head: Eaglesmith musical illuminates rural life"]. Cam Fuller, ''Saskatoon StarPhoenix'', September 15, 2016</ref> The play was performed at the Charlottetown Festival in 2013.<ref name=guard>[http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/living/2014/1/10/new-fred-eaglesmith-album-worth-the-wait-3571241.html "New Fred Eaglesmith album worth the wait"]. ''The Guardian'', January 11, 2014</ref> Tif co-produced and mixed Fred's 2017 album, ''Standard''.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.discogs.com/Fred-Eaglesmith-Standard/release/9817858| title = Fred Eaglesmith – Standard (2017, CD) - Discogs| website = [[Discogs]]| date = January 27, 2017}}</ref>

==Band members==

Initially a solo performer, Eaglesmith started performing as a trio with bass player Ralph Schipper and mandolin & harmonica player [[Willie P. Bennett]] around the time of his 1987 album ''Indiana Road''. This group grew to a quartet with the addition of [[Washboard Hank]] on percussion and [[dobro]].The group continued to evolve and change, using different names, including ''The Flying Squirrels'', ''The Smoking Losers'', ''The Flathead Noodlers'', and ''The Fred Eaglesmith Travelling Steam Show''. He retired the band in 2016 and toured as a duo with [[Tif Ginn]] until March 2020.<ref name="chicagotribune.com"/><ref name="kawarthanow.com"/> Since the pandemic the pair have performed select, curated concerts with their new rhythm section ''The Tribute Band''. In 2023, Fred and Tif co-wrote and self-produced a holiday record entitled ‘A Christmas Card’ with Costa Chatzis on drums and percussion, Andy Dmytryshyn on electric bass and guitars, Tim Elgersma on keyboards, and more.

===Current members===
*Fred J. Eaglesmith – guitars, vocals
*Tiffani Ginn – vocals, accordion, guitar, melodica, mandolin, ukulele, stand up bass, percussion
*Costa Chatzis — drums, percussion, vocals
*Jesse Murphy — electric bass, vocals
*Billy “Blue” Passalacqua - guitar, vocals

===Former members===
*[[David Essig]] – mandolin, guitar
*[[Scott Merritt]] – guitar, multiple instruments
*[[Willie P. Bennett]] – mandolin, harmonica, vocals
*[[Washboard Hank]] – washboard, dobro<ref name=no>[http://nodepression.com/album-review/fred-eaglesmith-50-odd-dollars "Fred Eaglesmith – 50-Odd Dollars"]. ''No Depression'', June 30, 1999</ref>
*Ralph Schipper – bass, vocals
*Justine Fischer – bass
*Darcy Yates – bass, vocals
*Luke Stackhouse – bass, vocals
*Skip Wamsteeker – drums
*Jude Waldman – drums
*Kevin Komatsu – drums
*Kori Heppner – drums
*John P. Allen – fiddle
*Craig Bignell – banjo, vocals, percussion
*Roger Marin, Jr. – pedal steel, guitar, vocals
*Dan Walsh – dobro, guitar, vocals
*Matty Simpson – guitar, banjo, vocals
*Mike Zinger – mandolin, banjo
*Brit Ginn – vocals, flute
*Tim Elgersma - keyboards
*Chris Altmann - pedal steel, banjo
*Liam Brown - electric bass
*Andy Dmytryshyn - electric bass, guitars, vocals

==Discography==

===Albums===
* ''Fred J. Eaglesmith'' (1980) as Fred J. Eaglesmith
* ''The Boy That Just Went Wrong'' (1983) as Fred J. Eaglesmith
* ''Indiana Road'' (1987) as Fred J. Eaglesmith
* ''There Ain't No Easy Road'' (1992) as Fred J. Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels
* ''Things Is Changin<nowiki>'</nowiki>'' (1993) as Fred J. Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels
* ''[[From The Paradise Motel]]'' (1994) as Fred J. Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels
* ''[[Drive-In Movie (album)|Drive-In Movie]]'' (1996)
* ''Lipstick, Lies and Gasoline'' (1997)<ref name="Schneider2010">{{cite book|author=Jason Schneider|title=Whispering Pines: The Northern Roots of American Music... from Hank Snow to the Band|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c--zNXu1v74C&pg=RA1-PT162|date=December 15, 2010|publisher=ECW Press|isbn=978-1-55490-552-2|pages=1–}}</ref>
* ''50 Odd Dollars'' (1999)<ref name="Inc.1999"/><ref name=no />
* ''[[Live: Ralph's Last Show]]'' (2001)<ref name="Benarroch2008">{{cite book|author=Mois Benarroch|title=The Modern Troubadour – Music Reviews of Singer Songwriters|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yl_pYcKcUOQC&pg=PA44|date=July 14, 2008|publisher=Lulu.com|isbn=978-1-4092-1059-7|pages=44–}}</ref> as Fred Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels
* ''Falling Stars and Broken Hearts'' (2002)
* ''The Official Bootleg Series Volume 1: Live Solo 2002'' (2002) as Fred J. Eaglesmith
* ''Balin'' (2003) as Fred Eaglesmith & The Flathead Noodlers
* ''The Official Bootleg Series Volume 2: The Fred Eaglesmith Texas Weekend 2004'' (2004) as Fred J. Eaglesmith
* ''[[Dusty (Fred Eaglesmith album)|Dusty]]'' (2004)
* ''Milly's Cafe'' (2006)
* ''Tinderbox'' (2008)
* ''Cha Cha Cha'' (2010)<ref name=guard />
* ''6 Volts'' (2011)
* ''Tambourine'' (2013)<ref name=guard />
* ''Standard'' (2017)<ref name=guard />
* ''Alive'' (2020, with [[Tif Ginn]])<ref>Steve Horowitz, [https://www.popmatters.com/fred-eaglesmith-tif-ginn-alive-2648872675.html "‘Alive’ Showcases the Two Sides of Fred Eaglesmith and Tif Ginn"]. ''[[PopMatters]]'', November 12, 2020.</ref>
* ''A Christmas Card '' (2023)

===Singles===
* Take It All Away / Caroline (1987) as Fred J. Eaglesmith; from ''Indiana Road''
* Wooden Wheels in Hagersville (1990) as Fred J. Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels; ''single-only release''
* Watertown (2017) from ''Standard''

===Other appearances===
* Lucille (live), ''Live at the Iron Horse Vol. 1'' (1997)
* White Trash (live in studio), ''WNCW 88.7 – Crowd Around The Mic Volume 2'' (1998)
* Seven Shells (live in studio), ''[[Peter Gzowski|Gzowski]] in Compilation'' (1999)
* Little Buffalo (live in studio), ''KNON 89.3 FM: Texas Renegade Radio Vol.2 – Live In The Studio'' (2000)
* Hallelujah, Go Tell It On The Mountain, ''CMT Christmas'' (2001)
* Freight Train (live), ''Fish Out Of Water 3: Out Of The Fire - Into The Air'' (2003)
* I Like Trains (live), ''Dawson City Music Festival 50.30 – A CBC Compilation'' (2008)
* Arthur Dale's Statement, ''Miners' Angel - A Tribute To Mother Jones'' (2015)

===Filmography===
* ''There Ain't No Easy Road'' (2005) Documentary DVD
* ''Pickin' In The Pines: Live At The 2005 Great Northern Picnic'' (2006) Concert DVD, as Fred Eaglesmith And The Flying Squirrels
* ''Live Below Sea Level'' (2007) Concert DVD recorded live with band in 2006
* ''The Small Beers Tour'' (2009) Concert DVD recorded live solo in 2005
* ''The Fred Eaglesmith Traveling Steam Show'' (2015) DVD including both concert and documentary footage

===Music videos===
{| class="wikitable"
! Year
! Video
! Director
|-
| 1998
| 105<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/videos/fred-eaglesmith/385360/105.jhtml|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722212150/http://www.cmt.com/videos/fred-eaglesmith/385360/105.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 22, 2012|title=CMT : Videos : Fred Eaglesmith : 105|publisher=[[Country Music Television]]|access-date=November 18, 2011}}</ref>
| rowspan="2"| [[Steven Goldmann]]
|-
| 1999
| Rodeo Boy
|-
| 2007
| Thinkin' 'bout You<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/videos/fred-eaglesmith/138719/thinkin-bout-you-from-the-cmt-film-broken-bridges.jhtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130806180852/http://www.cmt.com/videos/fred-eaglesmith/138719/thinkin-bout-you-from-the-cmt-film-broken-bridges.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 6, 2013|title=CMT : Videos : Fred Eaglesmith : Thinkin' 'Bout You (from the CMT film Broken Bridges)|publisher=[[Country Music Television]]|access-date=November 18, 2011}}</ref>
| [[Michael Salomon]]
|-
| 2010
| I Would
| rowspan="2"| Roger Maunder
|-
| 2013
| Johnny Cash
|-
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|http://www.fredeaglesmith.com/}}
*{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p168269}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060623192045/http://www.projectopus.com/fred-j-eaglesmith Fred Eaglesmith's Entire Discography] at [[Project Opus]]
*[http://www.frednet.nl/ Fred Eaglesmith in the Netherlands]
*[http://www.exclaim.ca/musicreviews/generalreview.aspx?csid1=124&csid2=852&fid1=32715 Fred Eaglesmith at exclaim!]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eaglesmith, Fred}}
[[Category:1957 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Canadian male singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Canadian country singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year – Solo winners]]
[[Category:Signature Sounds artists]]
[[Category:20th-century Canadian male singers]]
[[Category:21st-century Canadian male singers]]
[[Category:Canadian folk singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Canadian people of Dutch descent]]
[[Category:20th-century Canadian singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:21st-century Canadian singer-songwriters]]

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Fred Eaglesmith