Last night Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful band played the Empire Theatre in Belleville in Ontario. Not a lot was said and shared by the fans on social media about the concert except how much they loved the performance.
It must be rewarding for musicians and artists like Alan Doyle, when the members of a successful band like Great Big Sea he was in go their separate ways and an audience in their home country continue to come out and support them. The people of Belleville and the surrounding area clearly loved the music of Great Big Sea in 2006 when they recorded a concert there for a DVD and they continue to come out for the music of the same members of the band in 2018.
It must be rewarding for musicians and artists like Alan Doyle, when the members of a successful band like Great Big Sea he was in go their separate ways and an audience in their home country continue to come out and support them. The people of Belleville and the surrounding area clearly loved the music of Great Big Sea in 2006 when they recorded a concert there for a DVD and they continue to come out for the music of the same members of the band in 2018.
I have included two totally gorgeous photographs, one of an Alan Doyle selfie taken from inside the Empire Theatre and one from an Alan Doyle fan during the concert on Instagram. No copyright infringement intended.
(photo credit Bob House )
(photo credit Alan Doyle)
Recently while researching Great Big Sea on the Internet I found an archived copy of the official Great Big Sea webpage and some Alan Doyle archived From The Road blog posts from 2006, 2007 and 2008. They are definitely an interesting read for Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea fans. I will take the archived webpage as genuine as I have checked some of the content with other fan's blog posts published at the time.
I found one post from the 12 June, 2006 where Alan writes about Great Big Sea performing at the Empire Theatre in Belleville and recording the concert for a DVD for the album 'The Hard And The Easy'.
While I have never seen the original content there are pirated copies of the concert recorded on YouTube. There are some wonderful performances of Great Big Sea singing 'The Night Pat Murphy Died', 'The Mermaid, 'Danny Boy' and 'River Driver'. The crowd were on fire and clearly loved every minute.
The Alan Doyle 'From The Road' post is from the archived copy of the official Great Big Sea webpage. No copyright infringement intended.
JUNE 12, 2006
Monday, June 12, 2006
Tour Diary
Belleville, Ontario
Hotel Room
After a few weeks off the GBS bus, the cast and crew have re-gathered in Belleville for two nights at the beautiful Empire Theatre. A very poorly kept secret is that we are here to shoot a concert DVD for the Hard and the Easy Tour. We thought it would be a shame to not capture this two set concert as it has been well received and folks seem to enjoy the format. I would not be surprised if we did not have our next tour in a very similar style.
The DVD should consist of behind the scenes footage that we filmed on the tour in cities like Boston, Washington, and New York, along with the main concert itself that will be cut between last night’s and tonight’s performances in the Theatre here in Belleville. We hope to have it edited and mixed by the end of the summer for a fall release.
Since the tour ended a few weeks back, I’ve been working like crazy, scoring a full length feature film. "Young Triffie’s been Made away With" is a black comedy about a murder mystery in the late 1940’s in Rural Newfoundland. It stars Fred Ewanuick, from ’Corner Gas’, as a young Newfoundland Ranger (NL’s police force from 1935-1950) and he carries the movie as the loveable unlikely hero. There are great performances by Mary Walsh (CODCO, 22 Minutes, Hatching, Matching, and Dispatching), who also makes her first effort as a film director. It won’t be her last. YTBMAW also stars Andrea Martin (SCTV), Colin Mochrie (22 Minutes, Who’s Line), Andy Jones (CODCO), and Quebecois film legend Remy Girard (Barbarian Invasions).
The musical score has everything from 1940’s big band stuff like Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, to NL/Bluegrass versions of hymns like "Blood of the Lamb" and traditional jigs and reels. There is a new GBS tune on there, a couple of offerings from little Sis Michelle, and an amazing orchestral score I did with Keith Power, and superstar film composer in the making who just happens to be from my neck of the woods. He graduated St. Kevin’s High School as did Michelle and I and has been working in Toronto and LA for the past few years. I spent a week in Santa Monica learning the trade while looking over his shoulder. It was a great crash course.
In any case, I would not be surprised if you heard a lot about the film in the late summer, early Fall of this year. Check it out if you get a chance.
Almost camera-check time. Big show tonight.
Happy Summer.
Cheers
Alan
