Spirit of the West
The band that became Spirit of the West
began as a Folk trio called Evesdropper in
Vancouver over 20 years ago. 12 albums
later, they have proven themselves to be
road-worthy and durable, having toured
Canada, the US, UK and Europe consistently,
building a dedicated following of fans from
all over the world.
They have four gold and two platinum albums
to their credit, and are responsible for
such songs as Home For a Rest, And if Venice
is Sinking, Five Free Minutes, Save This
House, and The Crawl. The band s newest
album Star Trails is their first studio
recording in several years.
The band is:
John Mann, Guitarist, vocalist and
charismatic front man. John is also an
accomplished actor who can be seen on
episodic television and movies often
pretending to be an assassin, ghost, devil,
or other evil-doer. His recent solo album
Acoustic Kitty was released to excellent
reviews. John likes wine. A lot.
Geoffrey Kelly, Flutes, whistles, bodhran,
guitars. Geoffrey was born in Scotland and
raised in North Vancouver. One of Canada s
finest Celtic musicians, he can be found
appearing as a guest with acts such as The
Irish Rovers and the Paperboys. His solo
album Gringo Star was released in 2002. He
still owes the Musician’s Union $4 in unpaid
death benefit fees.
Hugh McMillan, Multi-instrumentalist. Hugh
is capable of playing practically anything
with strings on it. Weak drummer, though. He
is a producer, composer and engineer, as
well as a bit of a mad scientist. Quick to
hand out dietary supplements to those who
look a bit peaked. Hugh can be seen
appearing as a guest in concert and on CD
with James Keelaghan, Oscar Lopez, Don Ross,
and many, many others.
Vince R. Ditrich, Drums, percussion, vocals.
Class clown. Although well known for his
comedic onstage antics, Vince has appeared
in concert and in the studio with artists
the likes of Sue Medley, Long John Baldry,
Doug & the Slugs, Great Big Sea, Rick Henry,
Oscar Lopez, James Keelaghan, Mae Moore,
Todd Butler and many others. Vince also
composes & produces, having released his
solo CD Supertonic in 2002; as well, he
coordinates all refreshments for the band.
Tobin “The Gull” Frank. What began as a
temporary guest slot with the band in 1997
has grown into a long-time association.
Tobin plays basses, piano, organ, and
accordion. He is only occasionally allowed
to sing. There is a reason for this. Tobin
is author of the upcoming book Rock Stars &
Tupperware: 101 surprising tales of food
preservation.
Presented by Wide Glide
Productions &
Warm Valley Contracting
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