As the days grow shorter here in Elora, Ontario, I’m getting ready for a little hibernation. I’ll be taking some time away from live shows to write, work on arrangements, and head into the studio to begin recording a new album.

There’s something about the quiet of winter that makes it easier to sit with a song, play it through one more time, and hear a line or a little turn on the guitar that I’d been missing.

Meanwhile, I have some good news to share. “King High Tide” was selected by Elbows Linked for The Great Canadian Playlist, part of the Canada 160 celebrations. I wrote the song after years of travelling across Canada. It comes from a deep affection for the country I call home, and from thinking about the work we still have to do together on reconciliation and climate change. I’m grateful the song will be part of that conversation. Explore The Great Canadian Playlist.

I’m also booking shows for 2027, and a few dates are already on the calendar. I’ll be sharing the bill with Chris MacLean at Red Bird in Ottawa on June 3 and with Drea Lake at Motel Chelsea in Chelsea, Québec, on June 6. Later in the summer, Anna Green and I will be playing the Flesherton Fling on August 7. I’ll add more dates as they come together. See upcoming shows.

For now, I’m looking forward to the quieter days ahead, with a guitar close at hand and a few new songs to keep me company. I’ll share more from the studio as the album takes shape.

Wishing you a warm and peaceful winter,
Ken

One thing I've learned over the years is that the road doesn't always lead where we expect it to. Sometimes plans change, new possibilities emerge, and what initially looks like a change of direction turns out to be an opportunity.

In my last blog post, I shared plans to head west in January for a Vancouver Island tour. Well, as it turns out, those plans have changed, and I'll be spending the winter here in Ontario instead.

And you know what? I'm looking forward to it!

While I certainly won't miss the prospect of navigating icy roads and shovelling snow, there's something comforting about spending the winter close to home, surrounded by familiar landscapes, good friends, and the warmth of our local music communities.

More importantly, I'll be available for performances throughout the winter months, and I'm looking forward to reconnecting with audiences across Southern Ontario.

Winter can be a wonderful time for live acoustic music. There's something particularly intimate about gathering in a warm room on a cold evening, sharing songs and stories, and finding a little light in the darker months. Some of my most memorable musical experiences have happened in just such settings.

I'm also continuing to work on material for my next album. The songwriting process remains an adventure, sometimes surprising me with where a melody or a few words can lead. I'm hoping to share some of these new songs along the way.

As I look ahead, I'm exploring opportunities for solo performances, songwriter circles, and collaborative concerts with fellow musicians. I've always believed that music is as much about community as it is about the songs themselves, and bringing artists and audiences together is one of the great joys of performing.

So, while the road west will have to wait, the musical journey continues right here at home.

If you're a concert presenter, house concert host, or someone who simply enjoys bringing people together through live music, I'd love to hear from you. And if you're a listener, I hope you'll join me somewhere along the way.

As always, upcoming performances and announcements will be posted on my SHOWS page.

Sometimes the most interesting journeys begin with a change of plans.

Here's to the music, the friendships, and the unexpected possibilities waiting just around the bend.

Stay warm, stay well, and keep the music playing!

— Ken

Summer has a way of arriving all at once and leaving before we quite realize it. Now, as the season begins to turn, I find myself falling into fall—and, in many ways, falling into the future.

Before looking too far ahead, I want to pause and offer my gratitude to everyone who welcomed me and allowed me to share my music this summer. The road carried me across Ontario, from my new hometown of Elora to Massie, Lion’s Head, Port Elgin, Whitevale, and Flesherton. It also carried the songs into cyberspace, where music continues to connect us across distances that might otherwise keep us apart.

Every community offered something different: a room, a porch, a gathering place, a familiar face, or a first meeting. Wherever the songs were heard, I was reminded again that a concert is never only about the person standing at the microphone. It is created by everyone who listens, welcomes, organizes, encourages, and helps make a space where music can live.

Thank you to the presenters, hosts, fellow musicians, volunteers, friends, and audience members who made these performances possible. Thank you to those who travelled to a show, stayed to talk after the final song, shared a kind word, or listened online. Your generosity has meant more than I can easily say.

There are still a few notes left in this season. I have shows coming up in Hamilton and Toronto, and I’m looking forward to those final Ontario gatherings before the touring year grows quiet. Current details and updates can be found on the SHOWS page.

After that, I will be stepping away from performing during November and December. It will not exactly be time off. I’ll be returning to the slower, more private work of songwriting and continuing to develop a new album. Songs often reveal themselves in their own time, and I’m looking forward to giving them the patience and attention they need.

Then, in January, the road opens again. I’ll be beginning a Vancouver Island tour, carrying some familiar songs west and, I hope, bringing a few new ones with me. Dates and details will be added as plans take shape.

For now, I’m grateful for the summer that was, for the remaining concerts still ahead, and for the creative season waiting just beyond them. Music keeps asking us to listen—to one another, to the world around us, and sometimes to the quiet voice that points toward what comes next.

Thank you for listening, for supporting independent music, and for sharing the road with me. Wherever you have joined me—in Elora, Massie, Lion’s Head, Port Elgin, Whitevale, Flesherton, or somewhere out there in cyberspace—you have been part of this journey.

May the changing season bring you moments of beauty, reflection, and renewal. I hope our paths cross again, somewhere along the road.

— Ken

Summer Songs, Shared Hearts

Every concert begins long before the first note is played. It begins with people gathering—friends, neighbours, and strangers—drawn together by the simple hope of sharing music.

For a little while, stories become shared experiences. Hearts open. We laugh, reflect, remember, and perhaps leave feeling just a little less alone than when we arrived. That, to me, has always been one of music's greatest gifts. It reminds us that beneath our different lives, we share the same hopes, the same longings, and the same need to belong.

After spending the winter writing, recording, and reflecting, I'm looking forward to another season of concerts across Ontario.

This year's performances will take me to some wonderful places: from the community spirit of the Flesherton Fling, to the breathtaking shoreline of Georgian Bay in Lions Head, to the intimate setting of the "other" Massie Hall in the Bighead River Valley. I'll also be returning to the delightful Whitevale Porchfest and joining musicians from across Canada at the Folk Music Canada Conference in Hamilton.

Some performances will be solo. Others will feature friends and longtime collaborators, including Anna Green, Drea Lake, James Dykeman, and Krista Currie. Each gathering will be different, but they all share a common thread: songs that celebrate beauty, resilience, hope, and the communities that sustain us.

I've created a new SHOWS page here on the website where you'll find dates, venues, times, admission information, and updates as additional concerts are confirmed.

If you're able to join me at one of these events, I'd be delighted to see you. Please come and say hello after the concert. Some of my favourite moments happen after the final song has been sung.

Thank you, as always, for listening, for supporting independent music, and for believing in the simple truth that songs can still open hearts, share love, and build community.

Until then, may your summer be filled with beauty, kindness, and good music.

I hope our paths cross somewhere along the road.

— Ken

I just finished this new video for my song “Old Pouring Rain”.  It was very healing for me to revisit and I am thinking of adding to my live performance setlist again. I hope you find comfort and solace as you journey through it…

I love this time of year—though I suppose I’m not alone in that. The weather finally turns, inviting us back outside, and something in me follows suit. The layers of winter begin to fall away, and I feel a kind of renewal—like stretching wings that have been folded for too long.

With that shift comes a familiar spark: the pull toward music. Not that it ever disappears, but spring and summer seem to open a different channel. New songs begin to surface, gear gets dusted off and refined, setlists take shape. There’s a quiet sense of momentum—of things beginning again.

I also find myself wondering which of those winter applications—for festivals and concerts—might start to bear fruit. And in that spirit, I’m happy to say I’ll be performing across Ontario this summer. Nothing too frenetic—those long touring stretches now live more in memory than in practice—but meaningful appearances nonetheless.

So stay tuned. There’s a good chance I’ll be playing within reach of where you are. And if not, this space will continue to be a gathering point—new songs, new videos, and whatever else emerges along the way.

I’m grateful for music, that quiet magic capable of transforming struggle into grace. Arms of Reason has remained a cherished part of my live set since it was written. This version, with Anna Green, was included on Anthology, Volume 1 in 2022, and I’ve always imagined it accompanied by a conceptual video. Today, April 26, 2026, that vision premieres on YouTube. May it offer solace, beauty, and joy.