Bonfire Ball Revue 04.17.10

As one of the most ballsy and tuneful Canadian tours of the year prepares to wrap up, our man in the field caught the first night at CMW and now the last night in Kingston, ON before the bands head out to the Junos. Here's a teaser from an interview I conducted recently with Afie Jurvanen (Bahamas), former member of Paso Mino and chief guitar slinger for Feist.  

Q: If you had to pick a number how many songs would you say you have in your own songbook that is to say originals or covers that you could play and sing at a moment's notice. How many songs would you say then are in the Bonfire Ball Revue songbook and do you see that level of musicianship (artists having large repertoires they can vary from evening to evening) lacking amongst contemporary musicians.  

A:There aren't many songs that I don't play. Of course there are staples, but it's refreshing to change it up and to be able to roll with the crowd. If it's a friday night in Regina and the folks are ready to party and girls are doing Jager bombs at the front of the stage, I usually skip the slow sentimental numbers and try and keep 'em dancing. We're doing around 45 songs every night, so pacing is very important. People need a break to get another beer and visit the rest room...