Fred Eaglesmith

Biography

Frederick John Elgersma (born July 9, 1957), known by the stage name Fred Eaglesmith, is a Canadian alternative country singer-songwriter. 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 narrators, surprise endings, and plot twists.

Early life

Eaglesmith, one of nine children, was raised by a farming family near Guelph in rural Southern Ontario. He began playing the guitar at age 12.

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 and the Flathead Noodlers, switching the name to represent different styles of music. The Flathead Noodlers play bluegrass, while the Flying Squirrels play more folk and rock. His first self-titled album was released in 1980.
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 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. 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 Ginn Sisters, and Tif Ginn.
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.
Eaglesmith's songs have been included in the musical play, Dear Johnny Deere. The play was performed at the Charlottetown Festival in 2013. Tif co-produced and mixed Fred's 2017 album, Standard.

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. 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
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

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' (1993) as Fred J. Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels
From The Paradise Motel (1994) as Fred J. Eaglesmith & The Flying Squirrels
Drive-In Movie (1996)
Lipstick, Lies and Gasoline (1997)
50 Odd Dollars (1999)
Live: Ralph's Last Show (2001) 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 (2004)
Milly's Cafe (2006)
Tinderbox (2008)
Cha Cha Cha (2010)
6 Volts (2011)
Tambourine (2013)
Standard (2017)
Alive (2020, with Tif Ginn)
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), 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)