1 	Ol' Rattler 	
2 	Walk On Boy 	
3 	My Walking Stick 	
4 	Lookin' For A Love 	
5 	Ophelia 	
6 	Talk In Circles 	
7 	Three Shots 	
8 	Lonely Blue Boy (Danny's Song) 	
9 	Drown In My Own Tears 	
10 	I'm Living Off The Love You Give 	
11 	What Are They Doing In Heaven Today? 	
12 	I Want My Crown 	
13 	One Life (Creole Poetry)

Jim Byrnes - Composer, Guitars (Acoustic), Pedal Steel Guitar, Vocals
Matt Chamberlain - Drums, Percussion
Steve Dawson - Banjo, Bass (Upright), Glockenspiel, Guitars, Lap Steel Guitar, Mellotron, Percussion, Pump Organ, Slide Guitar, Ukulele
Chris Gestrin - Organ, Pump Organ, Tack Piano, Wurlitzer
Stephen Hodges - Drums, Percussion
Keith Lowe - Bass (Upright), Double Bass
Lindsay Mitchell - Guitar (Electric)
John Reischman - Mandolin
Sojourners - Vocals
Jeanne Tolmie - Vocals
Jesse Zubot - Viola, Violin

It's impossible to say whether the St. Louis born and raised Byrnes would have found more success in the States had he stayed there than in Vancouver, where he moved a few decades ago and remains as of this recording's 2009 release. Like fellow countryman Colin Linden and the Band (whose "Ophelia" he covers here), Byrnes assimilates a variety of Americana influences, filters them through his grizzled, often spiritually based viewpoint, and delivers a wonderfully diverse disc, surely the equal of, and arguably better than, his 2007 Juno award-winning Album of the Year House of Refuge. Byrnes has found a sympathetic partner in guitarist/multi-instrumentalist producer Steve Dawson who also owns the Black Hen label that has provided Byrnes with a stable home for his music since 2004's Fresh Horses. There are a few originals, but the majority of My Walking Stick is comprised of wildly eclectic covers from dissimilar sources such as Irving Berlin, the Valentinos, Ray Charles, Conway Twitty, and Mel Tillis. Despite the varied material nabbed from different decades, the album coheres due to Byrnes' and Dawson's infallible sense of direction, and a rustic, sonic landscape that, like Linden's, keeps the sound rootsy yet not musty. Double bassist Keith Lowe and Tom Waits' drummer Stephen Hodges create the shadowy pocket, while Byrnes' powerful salt-and-pepper vocals and Dawson's firm grip on guitars and especially arrangements take the dusky spotlight. Much of this is blues based, such as the riveting version of Charles' "Drown in My Own Tears," but that is just one of the ingredients that make these tunes connect. There are strong hints of Cyril Neville and even Joe Cocker in Byrnes' voice, and he's just as soulful as both, especially when tackling R&B influenced material like the Stax nugget "Living Off the Love You Give" (best known by Little Milton) and the Valentinos' "Lookin' for a Love." Gospel vocalists the Sojourners return from Byrnes' previous album to bring a churchy angle that sets this firmly in Americana soil. They also take lead on a cover of the traditional "What are They Doing in Heaven Today?," one of a few deeply religious tracks that infuses intense honesty and passion into these performances. The songs are bound by a vague lyrical thread of working-class folks searching for love and salvation while refusing to be deterred by life's roadblocks, a reasonable metaphor for Byrnes' own hard knocks career. It's a consistently engaging hour-long set that, like any formidable work, demands repeated listens to expose its deeper layers. ---Hal Horowitz, AllMusic Review

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1. Hot As A Pistol 
2. Yield Not To Temptation
3. From Four Until Late
4. Black Nights
5. No Mail Blues
6. Walk On
7. You Can't Get That Stuff No More
8. Storm Warning
9. Take Out Some Insurance On Me
10. He Was A Friend of Mine
11. Bootlegger's Blues
12. Me and Piney Brown

Baritone Saxophone, Arranged By [Horn], Alto Saxophone – Bill Runge (tracks: 1,4,8,12)
Bass, Vocals, Body Percussion [Handclaps] – Keith Lowe (tracks: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,9,10,11,12)
Drums, Percussion, Vocals – Geoff Hicks
Harmonica – Keith Bennett (tracks: 9)
Organ, Electric Piano [Wurlitzer] – Chris Gestrin (tracks: 1,2,5)
Piano – Mike Kalanj (tracks: 4,12)
Slide Guitar, Banjo, Guitars, Organ [Pump Organ], Dobro, Vocals, Bass, Mellotron,
 Pedal Steel Guitar, Mandotar, Handclaps, Marxophone – Steve Dawson
Tenor Saxophone – Jerry Cook  (tracks: 1,4,8,12)
Trumpet, Mandolin, Fiddle, Vocals, Banjo [Tenor] – Daniel Lapp (tracks: 1,3,4,6,7,8,10,11,12)
Vocals – Jeanne Tolmie (tracks: 2,4,5,8,10)
Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Guitar – Jim Byrnes

Some music simply can't be played in the background. The first note catches you as the rest of the world melts away and you've got no choice but to stop what you were doing and listen. Jim Byrnes' new album, "Everywhere West" catches you that way. Listen closely and you can hear the wind blowing through the floorboards of long abandoned roadhouses. Wind that lifts up the dust ground down by the stomping feet of Saturday night dancers hurting, forgetting and testifying while Jimmy Reed hollered down the devil and ghosts of done me wrong romance. Open the door a little wider and some of that dust gets down your throat and all of that trapped passion and good time hurting becomes a part of you – just like the music of Jim Byrnes does.

For more than thirty years, Jim Byrnes has woven roots so deeply into the Northern Blues scene that it's difficult to remember that this quintessentially Canadian icon was raised in St. Louis and that his instantly recognizable gruff as sandpaper, sweet as honey voice was not always an essential part of the country's musical landscape.

"Everywhere West" marks the fourth collaboration between the multi Juno Award-winning Byrnes and musician and producer, Steve Dawson. Fans of their previous work can rest assured that the intricate acoustic melodies, dirty blues guitar, funky organ and passionate interplay that we've come to expect when the two men get together in the same room are here in spades. If anything, the conversation goes a little deeper this time around and the playing is more assured and trusting than it's ever been before. Listening back to some of the tracks from the album, it's obvious that Byrnes is thrilled with the results. "...with Steve, it's so much fun making a record. It's just a bunch of guys sitting together and playing the music we love – with the tapes rolling."

As we've come to expect, the musicians who support Byrnes on this effort have been selected from the country's best with Dawson studio regulars Keith Lowe and Geoff Hicks laying down a rock solid rhythm section while Jeanne Tolmie offers her usual heavenly back up vocals. Special guest Keith Bennett turns in some tasty harmonica parts while Canadian fiddle and horn legend, Daniel Lapp, blesses listeners with some absolutely inspired performances throughout the album.

Whether Byrnes is singing a Mississippi Sheiks chestnut like "Bootlegger's Blues" or wailing his way through a stripped down banjo driven version of Bobby Bland's "Yield Not To Temptation", he effortlessly inhabits every syllable and corner of this music. Testifying with a poise and authority that few can muster, he adds weight and depth to a Dave Van Ronk inspired take of "He Was a Friend of Mine". Three Byrnes originals round out the album – "Hot As A Pistol" – a passionate straight up blues rave, "Storm Warning" – a first take recording, and finally, "Me and Piney Brown" – a lovely 'autobiographical dream tune' that evokes an imaginary journey to Kansas City in 1938.

As Jim writes in his liner notes, "Everywhere West" is dedicated to 'those who came before', but this music doesn't belong in a museum. As Byrnes notes, "Deep down, blues is an acceptance of life. You stand in front of life and life says, 'that's the way it is baby'. To play the blues, you take all the bullshit that's been piling up and you channel it through your guitar and voice. You let the pain go and turn it into a good feeling. That's the blues – pure and simple."

Pure and simple doesn't get any better than this. When you hear Jim Byrnes pour his whole soul into singing a line as simple as 'One sunny day, I'll be home to stay', you'll instantly know that this is the kind of music you're going to want to listen to forever – and that nearly fifty years after first wondering 'how blue can you get?', Jim Byrnes has found his voice and is just hitting his stride. ---jamestbyrnes.com

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01. I Get Evil
02. Somebody Lied
03. Nadine
04. Old Dogs, New Tricks
05. You'll Miss Me (When I'm Gone)
06. The Duck's Yas Yas Yas
07. The Journey Home
08. St. Louis Blues
09. Cake Alley
10. I Need A Change
11. That Will Never Do
12. Another Night To Cry

St. Louis Times is Jim Byrne's most personal record to date. Reminiscences of his childhood home of St. Louis are expressed through his original compositions as well as versions of songs he grew up with that were recorded by St. Louis musicians. By revisiting songs associated with Chuck Berry, Stump Johnson, Little Milton, Peetie Wheatstraw and more, Jim Byrnes takes us on an intimate musical journey through a world that has passed.

St. Louis Times is the sixth album that Jim Byrnes and Steve Dawson have recorded together. Dawson gathered some of the best roots musicians in Canada together for a super session to record the basic tracks for St. Louis Times. John Hammond trades verses with Byrnes on Ducks Yas Yas Yas, offers some tasty National Steel on Cake Alley and blows some serious harp on Evil and I Believe That Was A Lie. Canadian blues icon Colin James stepped up to play an acoustic solo on That Will Never Do. Also available on 180 gram vinyl with a digital download card. ---Editorial Reviews, amazon.com

“Jim Byrnes was born in St. Louis, Missouri – that’s blues country. He grew up on the city’s north side. One of the neighborhood bars had Ike and Tina Turner as the house band. As a teenager going to music clubs, he and his buddy were often the only white people in the place. ‘We never had any problems. We were too naïve, and had too much respect for the music and culture – they knew it; they could tell.” So reveals the website of Jim Byrnes, a musical veteran who, for half a century (his first professional gig was in 1964), has been keeping the blues alive. Before releasing his eighth album this year, he has earned copious accolades in Canada. Several are JUNO victories and nominations, Maple Blues Awards, and Western Canadian Music Awards. This reviewer can honestly say his music sounds far closer to traditional American blues than many of his contemporaries. “St. Louis Times,” subtitled “Songs From and About St. Louis”, features twelve pristine selections – four originals and eight covers (naturally including W.C. Handy’s “St. Louis Blues”.) ---Rainey Wetnight, bluesblastmagazine.com

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