By Jim Barber
Significant milestones should be celebrated. Whether it’s a big birthday, wedding anniversary, commemoration of an important historical event or celebration of a long-standing business or organization, it’s important to recognize the longevity, the perseverance, persistence and spirit of innovation and cooperation that makes such milestones possible.
For four-time Juno winning Canadian roots rockers The Sheepdogs a super significant milestone took place just last year, as 2024 marked 20 years since the band’s founding in Saskatchewan. Twenty years in any sort of business is exceptionally impressive, but in the arts and music industry, it is truly remarkable. To even get to the point of recording an album, touring and being able to quit your day jobs and being a proper professional musician means beating incredible odds, having remarkable good fortune, a great work ethic and being really, really good at what you do. Over those two decades, the band has seen seismic shifts in the way music is consumed through streaming, the implosion of the traditional record label model, geopolitical forces that impact the ability to tour and travel, and alterations in the taste of music lovers.
For founding members Ewan Currie (lead vocals, guitarist, primary songwriter), bassist Ryan Gullen and drummer/percussionist Sam Corbett, it’s also a mark of their ability to weather these vagaries and vicissitudes. They’ve had to adapt and pivot throughout this journey, while still maintaining their creative and artistic energy, positive attitudes and motivation to want to keep exploring their collective muse and make music that matters, that means something, that is ever evolving, yet which is still as brilliantly badass, fun and compelling as it’s always been since their embryonic days in the early years of the 21st century.
The band’s lineup also includes Ewan’s younger brother Shamus Currie on keyboards, guitars and trombone, who joined in 2012, and the newest band member, the frenetically entertaining and mystifyingly talented guitarist Ricky Paquette. And they are as busy as ever, with a slate of summer festival gigs throughout Canada, leading up to a lengthy run with iconic Canadian musician/songwriter/photographer/rocker/philanthropist Bryan Adams in the fall. After headlining the first night of the legendary Mariposa Folk Festival in Orillia, Ontario on July 4, they’re playing the Because Beer Festival in Hamilton on July 12, the Revelree Music Festival in Sarnia on July 18, before returning to the Drill Hall at Base 31 in Picton on July 19. In August they play a hometown show in Saskatoon with Wide Mouth Mason before a run of dates in The Maritimes with Matt Mays and Kathleen Edwards.
It’s not the first time The Sheepdogs have shared the stage with the artist behind such massive hits as ‘Summer of ’69,’ ‘Run To You,’ ‘Cuts Like a Knife,’ ‘Can’t Stop This Thing We’ve Started’ and so many more. Gullen spoke about the opportunity with Music Life Magazine, after soundcheck at the Mariposa Festival late last week.
“We heard that he was a fan of ours, but we never connected in person. Then last summer, we did a show with him in London, Ontario, called Rock the Park. We were actually supposed to be playing with Neil Young and Crazy Horse, but they cancelled all their shows that summer, so Bryan was brought in to do that show instead, and we met him for the first time there. Then we did a whole run of shows through the more rural parts of Quebec with him last summer, which was a really amazing thing to be in those small communities and still having 30,000 people coming out to the shows. So that was cool because, obviously, he’s Bryan Adams. He’s so prolific and successful, not just as a Canadian musician, but successful for all musicians,” he said.
“It’s pretty wild to spend time with him, but also really interesting because he’s such an interesting guy. He basically manages himself now. Over the last few years he’s taken over the helm and he’s very involved in every aspect of his business. And because I also manage The Sheepdogs, it’s a cool thing to be interacting with him on that level. I mean, when you’re watching his set for every song you’re thinking, ‘oh my God, if I could write even one song like that, it would be amazing.’ And he’s got 15 or 16 of them in each show. But also, I have the musician version of myself and then I can switch on to being the manager version, so we had these like, manager to manager talks. Which is cool but also in the back of my mind, kind of hilarious because he’s also THE Bryan Adams. And he’s one of a kind, but also very, very chill and a very nice guy. Now we’re doing this whole fall tour with him which is very exciting for us. It’s going to be very cool to go across the country with him on this very Canadian tour, where we’re sort of representing a couple different generations and versions of Canadian rock and roll.”
It must have been an interesting conversation when it was announced that The Sheepdogs were no longer opening for one Canadian music and cultural icon in Neil Young, but that he was being replaced by another singular Canadian music and cultural icon in Adams last summer.
“I actually saw one of the last shows – it may have been the second last show – that Neil Young did before they cancelled and it was in Toronto, and it was amazing. I was like, ‘oh man, I can’t wait to play with Neil.’ We’re all obviously very, very big Neil Young fans but you can’t seemingly go wrong when you have Bryan Adams as your replacement. On one hand, you’re a little disappointed because playing with Neil would have been incredible, but it’s a pretty easy and agreeable swap,” Gullen said, reiterating the ‘everyman’ reputation that Adams, much like his American counterpart Bruce Springsteen, has earned over the decades.
“A lot of times when you’re in the backstage area with larger artists of that caliber, you have zoned off areas and places you’re not allowed to go so I was quite surprised that Bryan was just literally hanging out, talking with people, wandering around with no security or whatever. It was very unique. I’ve never experienced that before in all honesty at a festival. Usually when you have a really big headliner like that they’re in a trailer surrounded by people and you don’t see them at all. But we met him right away, as soon as he showed up and came over and said hi and it was wild. Admittedly I would of course have loved to have played with or met Neil. We’ve done other shows with Neil at festivals and things, but not in that sort of setting. So it’s really amazing and inspiring to be around people who have been doing this thing that we’re also doing for much longer and who are much more successful. It’s pretty cool.
“There’s very few people, maybe Tom Petty is another where their music ends up being more than just part of an era, and somehow ends up being timeless. I’ve always found that to be pretty remarkable when you see someone like Tom Petty where he was making successful records over many decades. Neil is the same, right? Neil was equally popular in the 1990s when he was like proto-grunge and slotted right into the Grunge era, but he’s also this guy who was playing in bands like Buffalo Springfield in 1968. So it’s pretty wild to think about that sort of longevity and relevance. Bryan is similar where somehow their songs just speak to people today as much as they did back in the day.”
Back in 2023, The Sheepdogs were one of the first big rock acts to play at the brand-new Base 31 facility in Picton, which is part of Prince Edward County, about an hour and 45 minutes east of Toronto, just south of Belleville. An old military base constructed during the Second World War, the old barracks, mess halls, hangers and other buildings have been converted into a range of heritage, cultural and arts operations, including the Drill Hall, which holds more than 1,000 people for large shows in the summer.
“Sometimes when you get asked about places you’ve played before you have a tough time remembering, but we very much remember it because it’s such a unique space. You show up and you’re at an army base, and there’s all these old original army buildings there. It was a very cool experience and very fun, because when you’re touring, it can feel like [the film] Groundhog Day where many of the venues and hotels and things all blend into one another. The venues all feel the same, but that was one where you’re like this is so cool. It’s fun when you can go and play somewhere that has so much character,” Gullen said.
“In Canada we do have a number of cool summer spaces like The Kee to Bala or the Budweiser Stage in Toronto where you create summer memories. I feel like it’s really cool to play in places like that and especially unique places like Base 31 because there’s a different energy. A festival is always unique, but most of the time you’re also just in a big field, which is great in its own way, but what’s really cool about building or revamping these spaces is they could create an annual seasonal thing that I think we appreciate more as Canadians in a way that you wouldn’t if you lived in Southern California where it’s 30 C every day. Again, I feel that when you have spaces that are important historically rather than tearing them down, instead make something special that creates special memories is such an important thing.”
The Sheepdogs first, self-released EP, The Breaks, came out in 2006, followed by their first full album, Trying to Grow in 2007. After two more albums, the band was signed to internationally renown label Atlantic Records (once home to Led Zeppelin, Aretha Franklin and Yes) with their 2012 self-titled album hitting number one in Canada. Four more albums, and three more EPs have come along, including the companion EPs Paradise Alone and Hell Together, released through their own Right On Records last year – the aforementioned 20th anniversary campaign.
“We didn’t start this band imagining we’d be around in 20 years. The band started very much in the essence of just some pals, some young dudes that wanted to do something different and decided that It’d be fun to play some music together. From there to where we are now has been a very, very long, crazy road but I think there is something really interesting and cool about any sort of relationship lasting 20 years. It is a big feat. Having any sort of job for 20 years is a big feat but in an industry like music where it’s so subjective and there’s ups and downs and various things to navigate that are out of your control, it just felt pretty remarkable to make it to that point, and not just to make it there, but to be able to sustain it and build on it,” Gullen said.
“For several years we were working jobs, sometimes two jobs, then you quit those jobs to go on tour and lose money and come back and try to make money to be able to go back out again. There’s a lot of investment required in those early years, but I think even to be able to say that we had a moment that sort of propelled us to the spotlight [when they were featured on the Aug. 18, 2011, cover of the legendary Rolling Stone Magazine after winning an international contest] and then we’re able to maintain that to beyond 20 years is something that we don’t take for granted. We feel very fortunate, but we also feel, I guess, validated in a way because we’ve always really believed in what we were doing and hoped that other people did as well. I never wanted to do what we did any differently specifically to earn success, but instead always try to earn and maintain what success we got in an honest, true way. Getting to 20 years was one of those things where you kind of had to take a pause. So much of the music industry and being a musician is always about looking forward to whatever is next. You’re in the process of putting out a record, but you’re already working on a new record. You’re looking down the road to what tours and festivals are coming up. It’s a funny thing because so much of your brain is programmed to always be looking forward or always thinking forward, so it’s an interesting thing to have a moment to pause and look backwards because the industry is always asking, ‘what about your next thing? What about the next song, the next album, the next tour?’”
But Gullen and his bandmates did take the time to soak it in, to reflect, to honour their legacy, but also use it as a stepping stone to new horizons.
“We took a moment amongst us and it was like, wow, this is pretty cool. We were 19 when we started this band. So I have been in this band longer than I lived before the band. That’s wild to think about. And when we’re asked about why we’ve survived, that’s a tough kind of question to answer. I think you’re always asking yourself that and wanting to make sure that, at least in our case, that you’re not doing the same thing over and over, that you’re trying to do things differently, but also not trying to deviate too far from what the sort of game plan is. That’s a real balancing act. A lot of it I attest to the fact that when we started this band back in Saskatoon, it started as us just playing some covers, and that’s how we learned to play in a band together,” he explained.
“We were just hanging out, drinking beers and playing our favourite songs together. It wasn’t like we sat down and said, okay we’ve got all these original songs. None of us had ever been in a band before when we started this band. So it really is like we were learning how to be a band on the job. So it went from let’s play songs we like to let’s write songs and make music that we like. And at various times over the years you get to points where people are saying we should sound more like this, or why don’t we try something like that. And we never really wanted to subscribe to any of that. We always felt that if we’re going to have success, we want to have it doing things the way we want to do them.
“When it came to writing music, it’s always been about making music that we like in the way that we like to do it. I think it would be harder to do what we did if we had to sort of sacrifice some of that in order to chase someone else’s idea of success or whatever. We do a lot of things in the way that we want to do it and I think there’s a certain honesty that comes from that – there’s an authenticity to it. We also realize that we’re not going to be universally liked , but for us, the reason we’re able to keep doing it and I think probably the reason why we’re able to continue is that it’s always been about growing things organically. Getting popular just because of one thing, or one song, one moment, that can go away very quickly. We recognize that even with the Rolling Stone stuff, it was a big opportunity, but we can’t rest on this and hang our hats on it. So much of the discussions we had at the time was about how we continue to do what we do, but at this elevated level that we’ve kind of found ourselves in. I think that’s a big part of why we’ve been able to continue it and why we’ve been able to sustain and continue to grow, not just at home in Canada, but internationally, because of where we’ve come from. Anyways, that’s probably simplifying a way more complicated situation but that’s the way I’ve always looked at it.”
One of the ways that The Sheepdogs have maintained and grown is because they keep writing compelling music that hits audiences in their various ‘feels’ and they keep putting on killer shows that demonstrate amazing showmanship and virtuosic musicianship. A Sheepdogs show is always a ‘good hang.’ Good songs, recorded well and performed with energy and enthusiasm, is the band’s hallmark, and ensuring the quality of those songs is always of paramount importance, according to Gullen.
“Especially when you’re being retrospective and looking back, even going back and listening to the older records, you realize albums are very much a snapshot of a time, not only in terms of your songwriting ability or your musical ability but also what was going on in your life, or your surroundings or whatever. It’s always really interesting to sort of go back in that sense because when each record was made, we worked with different producers and engineers sometimes. We made an album in a house that I was renting in Saskatoon and made it all by ourselves. We’ve gone to Nashville and worked with big time engineers and then we’ve also done various versions of all these processes. We’re always trying to do different things and always trying something new to see if it works,” he said.
“Because we’re such a live band, you want to catch the essence of that when you’re writing and recording. So it was interesting during the pandemic when we were not sure of when we were going to be allowed to play live again. And because that was so much of what we do, we weren’t really sure how we were to make a record if we weren’t sometimes even allowed to be in the same room together. We figured out a situation with a friend of ours, Tom D’Arcy, who we’ve worked on several records with, where we would go to his studio, when we were allowed to book time, and we would all just sit in a room in a circle, and an idea would get thrown out, we’d kind of jam it and work on it and when it was feeling good, like something was happening, we would just cut it right there, all of us looking at each other, all of us playing in the same room. And we really enjoyed that process, and done it with the last couple of recording projects we’ve done because it really feels like it captures the essence of us all playing together, rather than each one of us doing our parts and then piecing it together. And it’s funny, because when you go back and listen to other albums, you can hear the differences. Even with this last batch of recordings we’ve been doing recently in between tours, we’re always trying out different things because we don’t want to make the same record, exactly the same way, over and over again.
‘Ewan is the main songwriter, and always has been. Every song starts off differently, it seems. With some songs, he comes in and he has a very, very specific idea for most of the parts and it’s an almost fully formed song. Other times, it’s a little more of a general idea and we sort of flesh it out in the room. But also his brother Shamus has written some songs, and other people have co-written. But the formula, for the most part with 85 to 90 per cent of our songs is Ewan comes in with an idea and we work through the songs. Sometimes it may take a whole different shape and other times it ends up exactly like he has it on his demo. Sometimes he’s just sung something into his phone and other times he’s come in with a nearly completely produced version. Most of the time, he brings something in, and then we add the sort of band magic to it. And there’s no issues with that. Everyone sort of knows their role in the situation, and there’s no butting heads with various people pushing for their songs.”
Even though The Sheepdogs released the equivalent of a full LP last year between the two EPs, more new music is on the horizon.
“In the era we’re living in, where you’re needing to be omnipresent and continually releasing content, our sort of mantra has been that the best kind of content for a band to be putting out is first and foremost, music. So we’re always writing. A big part of creating our own label and all this kind of stuff is because we want to be putting out as much music as possible. Once an album or EP is finished, we are rolling back into the studio to do more recording and fitting it in wherever we can. So, we have lots of new stuff on the way, coming out soon,” Gullen said.
To keep tabs on this new music, as well as seeing where the road takes the band throughout 2025 and beyond, visit https://thesheepdogs.com.
- Jim Barber is a veteran award-winning journalist and author based in Napanee, Ontario, Canada, who has been writing about music and musicians for more than 30 years. Besides his journalistic endeavors, he works as a communications and marketing specialist and is an avid volunteer in his community. Contact him at jimbarberwritingservices@gmail.com.
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