LAFLECHE – With the aesthetics of a perfect evening, Jeffery Straker thrilled a backyard of music lovers in Lafleche recently.
A calm night with zero bugs, a crackling fire, and a space surrounded by trees welcomed guests on a musical joyride.
As part of a summer music series, Straker on keys and Bryn Besse on guitar returned for their second show in as many years at the Wood River Inn & Studio on July 14. Affectionately nicknamed “Lafleche-a-polooza 2” by Straker, 40 people relaxed in lawn chairs and enjoyed the wonderful melodies.
Straker, who was recently named Keyboard Player of the Year at the SCMAs held in Assiniboia, is akin to Saskatchewan as Gord Downie or Stuart McLean are associated with representing Canada. The Punnichy-born Straker just seems to weave so much of the province into his thoughtful - often whimsical - lyrics. While some of his music is seemingly targeted toward a more small town audience, Straker noted how relatable those same lyrics can be through foreign ears.
“It's weird how the specific lyric can be universal,” he explained. “One of the songs that has come out of me in the last while is about the disappearance of grain elevators on the prairies - and I’m really fond of them, such an iconic thing.”
“I’ve been flabbergasted that so many people that follow me out of England, they just love it! In the bigger picture, it’s a song about the disappearance of a way of life; the small town way of life. The same thing is going on in England, how the small town way of life is collapsing.”
Summer means lots of time on the road for Straker, with a pile of house concerts filling the schedule of this often globe-trotting singer/songwriter. In fact, it was performing house concerts that helped him during the height of Covid - a time when people were strongly regulated with gathering restrictions.
Like many other musicians, Straker took to social media with live performances. In addition, live shows between June and September of 2021 alone netted 60 backyard shows, with gathering restrictions lessening somewhat at that time.
“It was almost like a year crammed into three months,” Straker said of those concerts. “It totally saved me.”
But it wasn’t just the music, it was the new social aspect of people once again being able to exit their Covid bubbles.
“There’s something really special about them,” Jeffery mused of backyard shows. “Live music is a catalyst to bring people together - it’s a real thing”
So far this year, the Wood River Inn & Studio has also hosted Tennyson King, Sweet Alibi, and Greg Herman. Future concerts include JJ Voss, Road Waves, and Katherine Fischer.
But the music will not stop as the leaves turn brown as the Inn also plans on hosting house concerts through the winter to keep the music scene in Lafleche alive.
