Joe Vickers Drifts East

Alberta-born songwriter brings his ballads and stories to the East Coast this month.

Joe Vickers Pic — www.joevickers.bandcamp.com

Some may say Joe Vickers is living the dream. During the summer months he works as a grain farmer in Alberta. Once the harvest is complete, he hits the open road to share his songs and stories with anyone who will listen. A member of the folk-punk group, Audio/Rocketry, Vickers’ solo efforts centre on his powerful voice, acoustic guitar and his folksy balladeer delivery.

From Drumheller, Alberta, Vickers currently calls Portland, Oregon home, but will be performing out east this month and reconnecting with family and audiences alike.

“My Maritime connection became ineffable when I married a MacDonald a couple of years ago,” said Vickers. “It seems like I’m now related to the entire North Shore of PEI, and I’m finding that they are some mighty good people to be related to.”

In 2001, Vickers and his bandmates toured from Alberta to Cape Breton, a tour that included a memorable performance at the Miner’s Museum in Glace Bay.

“It was a really moving performance for me and the audience,” said Vickers. “I was singing about events from my hometown from 100 years ago, but the content was relevant to modern day Glace Bay. This connection taught me that experiences can be shared across time and place, and helped me understand the hardships and triumphs of the community.”

Vickers will make his way through Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick over the next couple of weeks with performances in Saint John, Moncton and Fredericton.

“The strong sense of community on the East Coast is really something else,” he said. “People pop by unannounced for a cup of tea, the live music kitchen party culture is still thriving, and strangers always have time to stop and talk about what’s going on. So even though I split my year up with summers on the grain farm in Alberta and winters down in rainy Oregon, I always feel at home when we come back to the island.”