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Ken Workman & The Union



Last Updated: 12/8/2009

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Status: Single
City: Ottawa
State: Ontario
Country: CA
Signup Date: 10/11/2005

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Sunday, July 26, 2009 
http://www.ottawaxpress.ca/music/music.aspx?iIDArticle=17889

A Workman's dream
Steve Baylin
 
Workman: "I've always seen the hope at the end of the rope"
photo: Courtesy of Ken Workman

Ken Workman & The Union collaborate with legendary Rush producer

More often than not, musicians storyboard their success and how it plays out frame by frame in their head like a film, the scenes more romantic than pragmatic.
But when Capital City singer-songwriter Ken Workman first picked up a six-string, he had but a few modest goals in mind: to play a few gigs, spin some stories, and, perhaps "put together a CD of my songs, just to see how it would sound."
Finally, after many years of club shows in and around Eastern Ontario, he did just that. Last fall, the 40-year-old Workman and his band The Union, armed with 10 tunes culled "from a vault of about 150," hit Dave Draves' Little Bullhorn Studio for a few no-nonsense, live-off-the-floor sessions.
Then, thankfully, the humble scene in his head went off script; enter Rush's Terry Brown at stage left. Workman, in search of someone close by "to kind of make it sound how I wanted it to sound," on a whim decided to pick up the phone and cold-call the legendary producer for a recommendation.
"I was a pretty big Rush fan as a kid," he says of his motives.
"I also liked some work he did with other Canadian bands. So I figured why not? I didn't even expect him to answer."
To Workman's surprise, not only did Brown answer but, blown away by the tunes, he took a personal interest in the project: He mixed the whole record, gathering individual tracks from the master,
to "put it all together from the ground up."
The end result is the suitably sensible self-titled debut, Ken Workman & The Union - roots-rocking, down-to-earth, cautionary country tales for the torn and tangled-up alike, whose conflicted soul never breaks faith with its working man's conscience.
"Struggle has always fascinated me," says Workman. "But I've always seen the hope at the end of the rope."
Ken Workman & The Union CD release
@ Tucson's
July 24, 8 p.m.Ottawa Xpress article on Ken Workman & The Union

8:24 PM 
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Sunday, July 26, 2009 
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/health/Sharing+tough+lessons/1803220/story.html

Ken Workman & the Union Rating 3 1/2
Ken Workman & The Union (TenVolt)
Ottawa songwriter Ken Workman embodies his name and the proof is all over this debut.
Workman's every-dude ruminations bring to mind, first and foremost, Springsteen. There's evidence of other classic roots-inspired rockers too: The single, Centennial Girl, is Workman's Jack & Diane, while Walk You Home is his Harvest Moon.
Workman's voice resonates with all the touchstones of the genre. Hard-won lessons reverberate in every note, while remnants of late nights and memories of long roads taken seem evident too.
Workman crafts painstakingly and the pace of each tune reflects that. His band -- Ian Cook (drums), Sean Burke (bass), Rich Haller (guitar) and Tom Pechloff (keys) -- is effective and even.
His subject matter is familiar and in fact, it would be nice to see Workman branch out. Highways, trains and righting wrongs have become comfortable mainstays of the genre.
Still, that doesn't hamper Workman's ability to write songs that are deeply affecting.
Ken Workman & The Union host a CD release party Friday at Tucson's, 2440 Bank St., 9 p.m., $10.
Fateema Sayani


Ottawa Citizen Ken Workman & The Union CD Review
8:22 PM 
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Wednesday, June 10, 2009 
http://www.nxew.ca/2009/06/ken-workman-union-this-union-has-strong.html

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Ken Workman & the Union: This Union Has Strong Roots

Listening to the brand new debut CD from Ken Workman & the Union made me wonder about the idea of 'roots' music. I always assumed it was a reference to music born in the USA, where many of the roots of rock and roll have grown for so long - countryish yes, but echoes of Memphis too, a bit of Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta - all those great midwest/southern music centres. Songs from the soul.

But there are plenty of Canadian musicians who perform in this genre, and perform well - home grown as BC bud but incorporating influences from across the continent. And that's really the key: this style of music is truly continental in scope - music from North America. And Canada has plenty of great roots musicians to be proud of.

Whatever the tag, Ken Workman & the Union nail it solidly, and well. Their first, self-titled CD is an excellent effort from a band whose members have been honing their chops in and around small bars and clubs in the Nation's Capital and Eastern Ontario. These boys have day jobs, and they play live music around schedules that include work, kids, houses, and just plain ol' living. Which means they play music because they LOVE it. That's the best kind of music - and this CD proves that in spades.

All the tracks are originals from Workman, each one a meditation on the simple things in life - love, the road, moving on - and the most complex things at the same time. Workman distills these paradoxes into well-written, melodic tunes - songs meant to be listened to, not just heard. And while these tracks are rooted in lives, this CD cries out for live performance. No surprise there: the tracks on this CD were recorded pretty well live off the floor (at Dave Draves' Little Bullhorn Studios).

The focus of the record is Workman's smoky, whiskey soaked voice - very much like Steve Earle without the twang, a little Tom Cochrane energy, and Gordon Lightfoot sentiment - all the soul and genuine commitment to the craft of a songwriter. "This Train Goes Home" is a great opener - with a train-like drum beat, and Bakersfield sound guitar, this track is a lovely introduction to this fine music, with solid percussion from Ian Cook (the Cutmen) and Sean Burke, and wonderful keys and organ courtesy of Tom Pechlof. (The CD also features guests Jeb Bond - drums, Dan Deslauriers - bass, Don Kenny - drums and vocals, and Greg Harris - bass)

Mid-paced "Centennial Girl" recalls Springsteen, with an arena stomping chorus that deserves a crowd that big, but for now will likely be reserved to such fine venues as Irene's Pub and the Elmdale House Tavern. And that is the way it should be - this is people's music - heartfelt and genuine, and meant to be enjoyed with a [quite a few] pints of local brew in the company of good friends and music lovers. The Steve Earle comparison is strongest on "'Til It Comes Around", a pretty track with strumming guitar and rollicking piano, a down and out but I am still gonna make it theme, and a great organ/bass break that sets the stage for hope: "....Go back and take a right where you took a wrong...."

"Highway One" starts with a gorgeous piano/organ combo, then the soft lilt of Workman's guitar strumming kicks in, and the voice shifts gears as well. Workman stretches the vocal range here, and it sounds great. A loner's song for sure - I'm thinking the highway may not be a physical road but a mental state - no doubt the refrain of many hard-working musicians. "Here We Go Again" is one of the strongest tracks on the record. A song about love, for sure, and you can hear the longing in the voice, the beat, the back up vocals, and the lyrics: "Give it shot, cuz it just might be your last. And the next one won't be along for a while. Do I try and be myself for the first time?"

"The Healing" should get some radio play - this is a summer shimmery tune with a great vocal line and marvelous harmonies - think the Jayhawks for sure, but the keys still evoke Springsteen and Jackson Browne. Closer "Lonelytown" wraps up the record with the loner theme - and once again Workman's fantastic voice carries this song, but not without the solid, tuneful backing of his band. Radio friendly for sure, this one is meant for playing LOUD in the car, windows down, rain or shine, on the highway going faster and faster.

I found it hard to complete this review because each track deserves a comment: this is a solid record with no weak songs - and that's where the Terry Brown story comes in. Anyone in their 40s who listened to great Canadian music as a teen is familiar with Rush, and Ken Workman is no exception. Workman identifies Rush as a 'big influence' when he was a teen, and no one could hold those great record covers without seeing the name 'Terry Brown' identified as a producer. Workman and bandmate Ian cook decided to look up Brown, with the hope that he might recommend someone from the Ottawa area to help out with the record.

But Brown liked the songs, and took a direct interest in the project. Then the band thought that he could work on a couple of songs - maybe the most radio friendly - to give them that extra polish. To Workman's surprise, Brown was "completely blown away, which blew [him] away". He couldn't just choose two tracks. So they set aside the business stuff and worked on making a great record. Brown eventually mixed all the songs - with stellar results. Like any great roots record, each of the instruments is there holding down the song, but they blend in a way which is seamless and whole.

As much as you'll like listening to this CD - preferably loud and a few pints into the evening - you're really gonna want to hear this music live, as it should be. That's exactly the way Terry Brown and Dave Draves have captured this great roots rocking band. In Ottawa, you have two chances to see them live in July: at Bluesfest on July 17th (Blacksheep Stage) and at Tucson's on July 24th (the official CD release show - co-sponsored by my radio station - the Mighty 93.1 FM - CKCU). The band has also had some success at C'est What in Toronto, and I'm told they are working on gigs there in July and August.
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posted by David Yazbeck
6:32 PM 
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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 
Hosted By:
Ken Workman & The Union

When:
May 29, 2009

Where:
Irene's Pub
885 Bank
Ottawa

Description:
With our friends The Woodrunners opening up. Should be a blast as we head towards this year's Ottawa Bluesfest on July 17th.

Click Here To View Event
12:15 PM 
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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 
..and available for purchase for $15.00 + s/h

There will be a paypal link setup here shortly.

CD release party scheduled for July 24th at Tucson's in Ottawa.

Hope to see you there :)
12:08 PM 
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Thursday, April 23, 2009 
If you haven't already checked out the lineup, we've been added to this year's Ottawa Bluesfest.

If you're a Blue Rodeo fan, you're in luck. We're playing on the Black Sheep stage just before BR takes the Bank of America Stage on Friday, July 17th.

Ken Workman & The Union play the 2009 Ottawa Bluesfest

NXEW mention KW & The U "will wow the hometown crowd"

And if this wasn't enough good news...there's some even bigger stuff happening.

Stay tuned.

KW
2:23 PM 
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Wednesday, March 25, 2009 

Current mood:  accomplished
Category: Music

I'm doing a solo songwriter thing at the Black Sheep Inn this Sunday...it will be my last solo show for a while.

Beyond that I drag The Union out with me to Toronto on Saturday April 4th. It'll be our first show out of town, but that didn't stop the owners from booking us back for a second date in May.

Stay tuned - there will be a big blab on here near the end of April.

I'll likely not be able to maintain updates to the Myspace site, as I will be handing over all things 'web' to someone else to keep everyone in the loop.

Til then, you can still contact me through here...I read and respond to all messages.

And thanks for helping this thing grow...it never goes as far as it does without your support.

KW
2:00 PM 
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Thursday, February 26, 2009 

Category: Music

We've been lucky enough to gain the interest of legendary producer Terry Brown.

Terry has, among many countless others, worked with Rush, Blue Rodeo, Moist, Joe Cocker, The Who and has a really cool wall with piles of gold and platinum records in his house (yes, we did stay at his house).

He has taken us under his wing and will be doing mixing of our CD.

Just thought y'all should know...
2:37 PM 
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Wednesday, January 14, 2009 
Friday January 30th, we'll be at the Nepean Sailing Club 3259 Carling ave for a full band show. This event is open to the public and admission is $7. This is one of my all-time favorite sounding rooms in a really cool building.

Thursday, February 26th we will be back at the Elmdale Tavern 1084 Wellington St in Ottawa. Starting things off will be Little Birdie and Jill Zmud. Cost is a tiny $5

Cheers!
9:04 PM 
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Monday, January 12, 2009 
A near-150 turnout at the Black Sheep Inn last Saturday, people had a blast and we brought our A-game. Thanks to the bands, staff and the fans who made it the busiest night the place had seen in a while. It's a forgone conclusion we'll be back, and I'll keep you posted on when.

Stay tuned...we're gearing up for the CD release...

Ken
1:25 AM 
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