The Second Round of Cashbox Radio Christmas Indie Pick Hits Added to Rotation

Fri Dec 01 2023
Cashbox Radio

As the season is upon us, Cashbox Radio, like most stations at this time, is busy putting the rotation list together of the old standards as well as the 2023 Indie Releases that we feel deserve airplay and attention.

The Second Cashbox Radio Christmas Pick Hits are:

(in alphabetical order)

Don Graham –Make Every Day Like it Was Christmas Day

Don Graham –Make Every Day Like it Was Christmas Day

Len Mizzino – It’s Christmas

Len Mizzino – It’s Christmas

The Canadians Are Coming

Fri Jul 21 2023
Barry Stagg

Look out Rinkaby, Sweden, the Canadians are coming! They say good things come in threes and this summer three seasoned Canadian recording artists are setting sail for Sweden to prove that axiom true.

Canadian-born Lisa Hartt, Barry Stagg and Don Graham are packing their stories, songs and six strings and heading across the sea to hit the stages at the Lilla By Festival in Rinkaby on the Baltic Sea. This is the 3rd year of this festival, founded and produced by Jonas Tancred and Malin Östh, both performers in the successful Swedish duo Bara Jonson and Free.

Don Graham performed at last year’s 3rd Annual Lilly By Festivalen and it will be the first time for Hartt and Stagg to experience the magic of the “little festival” by the bay. This is Don’s second year playing at the event and he is thrilled to be joined stages this year with both Lisa and Barry who has known for most of his early musical career days in Canada.

What the World Needs Now is Love

Fri Feb 03, 2023

What a truly strange and stressful few years we have all experienced! COVID, wars, tragedies, hurricanes, tornados, short of locusts we have experienced it all. (Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned locusts and invited that one in!)

But throughout it all we have had music. There is a song for every moment, every memory we have had in our lives. Artists carried on providing us with new songs to keep us going. Legendary artists are touring reminding us about the soundtrack of our lives.

So with music always there – what else do we need? Love. It always ends up as important as breathing and our hearts beating.

What better way to celebrate February the month of love with Cashbox Canada and Cashbox Radio than to create a Pick Hit list of what we love as our favourite songs.

We kick it off with an amazing rendition of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David-penned song, What the World Needs Now is Love. Released in 2018 this cover features

Burt Bacharach, Steve Tyrell, Martina McBride, Rod Stewart, James Taylor & Dionne Warwick and truly is remarkable.

Check it out on YouTube here:

Country Nights In The City, Live Music Is Back!

Fri Oct 08 2021
(l-r) John Dawson, Don Graham, Dave Woods, Courtney Bowles, Rob Watts

All Photo Credits Fiona Lawson/Studio 22 Photography

The COVID-19 pandemic took away a lot of things we took for granted, gathering with our friends for meals or drinks or sporting events and a host of other social functions. But most of those were brought back, with certain restrictions and rules we had to follow.

But live music, played by live musicians to live people was one of the last things to be reinstated. I have been playing live music for most of my adult life so this is the longest stretch i have gone without playing out. Finally, after more than a year I got to do what I've always done, play to a live audience with a bunch of other singer/songwriters.

Don Graham Sings of Love Found and Lost Under a Magical Mexican Moon with Single “Como Te Amo”

Fri Jul 30, 2021

A big, bright sun, plus soft sand, warm ocean breeze, and falling madly in love under a Mexican moon... Doesn’t that sound wonderful? Especially now?  During our long COVID winter, idyllic scenes like this have been just a dream for most… But now, Canadian singer/songwriter Don Graham is set to turn your summer day into a romantic tropical getaway with his new single and video, “Como Te Amo”.

Inspired by a last-minute holiday Graham took to Guyabitos, Mexico, “Come Te Amo” recalls a beautiful but bittersweet moment in time in an equally beautiful place set to a rollicking country-rock soundscape.

Check out 'Como Te Amo' here on YouTube:

Christmas and New Year’s 2020 Let’s Find The Rainbow

Fri Dec 25 2020
Don Graham

Christmas and New Year’s Eve, the last week of the calendar year are most often a time of constants. At Christmas we sing the same carols and songs we sang as kids, watch the same timeless movies, “A Christmas Carol”, Scrooge and his ghosts don’t get any less scary, while we have our hearts warmed by “It’s A Wonderful Life”.

We decorate the tree with some of the old decorations that have been handed down and open presents Christmas morning and eat the same turkey, stuffing, yams, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce that our mothers and their mothers before them prepared. There is something comforting and grounding in tradition. It gives us roots and steadies us.

And New Year’s Eve is the same. We gather and wish each other well and wait patiently for the stroke of midnight and sing Auld Lang Syne like our parents did and theirs before them. We talk excitedly about the coming year and discuss the good and bad of the outgoing year.

Don Graham Releases New Single “You Can Count On Me”

Fri May 08, 2020

The state the world is in right now we could all use some hope and inspiration.

“Music can be very a effective way of speaking to people and letting some positivity and light shine in their lives,” says Canadian singer/songwriter Don Graham, “my hope is it will give the listeners some belief in our fellow man, we’re all in this together.”

Tune in and listen to “You Can Count On Me” here:
https://youtu.be/fAplU7_0Gj4

BTW-Sven Gali, Prescilla Una, Pantayo, Jesse Cook, Emily Rockarts, Don Graham, Kim Doolittle, The Emburys

Fri May 01 2020
Sven Gali

This week’s featured neighbourhood food bank is another Parkdale institution doing good work at the gritty street level. Please help if you can.

Yelp Food Bank
797 Dundas St W, Toronto · 416-203-3011 Opens Tues.10 AM

Back from the undead comes popular Toronto hairband Sven Gali. Leading the charge, the single “Now” off their soon come EP entitled “3” due out June 12. Known for their fusion of 80s screaming hard rock and 90s blazing metal, the new EP is their long-awaited follow up to 1995's "In Wire" and 1992's gold-selling and Juno Award nominated self-titled debut album released on BMG Music Canada that featured hits “Under The Influence” and “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore”.

“3” features two previous released singles “Kill The Lies” (2018) and “You Won’t Break Me” (2019) both produced by David Bendeth (Paramore, Breaking Benjamin, Bring Me The Horizon) along with new tracks “Now” and “Hurt” produced by Jon Howard (Threat Signal).

Cashbox Caravan Indie Week Wraps Up with Two Nominations for EMG Artists

Fri Nov 29 2019
Ventresca

Cashbox Canada participated in our first Indie Week Canada and oh what a week it was!

Continuing our journey of the Cashbox Caravan, (recently performing in France and Sweden) we had two official showcases and both were met with resounding success. In addition, our acts performed at other venues throughout Indie Week, all to great reviews and accolades.

The first Cashbox Caravan Showcase was Thursday, November 14 at the B-Side Lounge, a cozy gem of a venue with a great stage and friendly staff. A cocktail hour show from 5-7pm featured Toronto’s newest shining star Ventresca, followed up by veteran singer-songwriters Barry Stagg and Don Graham.

Cashbox Canada Magazine Hosts Two Showcases at Indie Week 2019

Fri Nov 08 2019
Cashbox Canada Magazine Hosts Two Showcases at Indie Week 2019

The Cashbox Caravan continues its journey, having stopped in France (MIDEM in Cannes, France) and Orebro, Sweden (Live at Heart Sweden) and ending our year back here in Canada at the ever-popular Indie Week 2019.

“The idea behind the travelling Cashbox Canada Caravan was to give indie artists a chance to showcase at major events and have the opportunity to perform for agents, pr people, and labels with first-class sound and on professional stages all on a global level,” says organizer Sandy Graham. “We are proud to be able to offer an alternative way of showcasing at major events where the competition for submission is so high.”

Now the third event this year of the Cashbox Caravan will be back in the country of origin for the magazine, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

“Indie Week has given us the opportunity to bring talent from other areas in the world so we will be able to have acts from not just Canada, but Sweden, Spain and the USA,” Graham says.

The first CASHBOX CARAVAN SHOWCASE is at the cocktail hours of:
5 pm – 8 pm
Thursday November 14
B-Side Lounge (669 College St)
Doors: 5:00pm

BTW - Lenny,We Got Your Back! Jaymz Bee, Tim Bovaconti, Kim Doolittle, Don Graham, Fergus Hambleton, Hotcha!, Laura Hubert, Big Rude Jake, Look People, Danny Marks, Joanne Powell, Audra Santa, The Essentials

Fri Mar 15 2019
Look People

BTW is given over to saluting the musicians who have so graciously and generously donated their time and energies on my behalf by performing at Lenny, We Got Your Back! This benefit concert for yours truly takes place at the Horseshoe Tavern, Mar.28 with an 8PM showtime. My heartfelt thanks to everyone, and there have been many of you, who have had a hand in making this happen. I am humbled and grateful. Gonna be a hot show, tell your friends.

Jaymz Bee is an artist, musician, philanthropist and broadcaster who has produced countless events, over a dozen albums and been a member of several bands including The Tiki Collective, Tuk, The Royal Jelly Orchestra, Bonzai Suzuki and Look People. He's hosted and/or produced charity events for JAZZ.FM91 (over 16 years), Unison Benevolent Fund, Covenant House and the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation (amongst others).

I Just Called Him Dad Don Graham

Fri Jan 19, 2018

Singer/songwriter Don Graham has written hundreds of songs in his long career about dozens of subjects. He’s written songs about good love, bad love, lost love, unrequited love, songs about war, about his friends, about his travels and his mother and sisters. But one topic has eluded him all these years, until now. “I could never write a song about my Dad. I tried. But I didn’t want a ‘punch in the shoulder, good ole boy hey Pops song and I didn’t want a song about ‘my old man’. Dad hated that term. I wanted to write something from my heart like I’d done for Mum. So I made a deal with myself to try every Father’s Day to write a dad song. I had zero success until this year. “

On Father’s Day 2017, Don sat down with his guitar and being true to his promise to himself started to try and write a Dad song. “I figured I’d at least try. I started to play and the first two lines came and I liked them! Then within an hour, I had the whole song. All I could think at the time was – finally! ”

BTW- Lindi Ortega, Bear Call, Lori Cullen, Collette Savard, Harrow Fair, Yoke Lore, Beatrice Keeler, Don Graham

Fri Jan 19 2018
Lindi Ortega Photo Credit Kate Nutt

Happy New Year y'all. It's been said Lindi Ortega has ‘the pipes of Patsy Cline with the visual flair of Amy Winehouse,’ and she’s planning to kick off 2018 with a headline tour making stops across Canada and the US. With more than 30 dates on the books and additional ones sure to be added, the shows will feature a feisty, rockabilly mix “drenched in passion, heartache and country swagger,” claims Huffington Post. Additionally, fans can expect to hear new music from Ortega’s forthcoming concept LP, which was recently recorded at Battle Tapes studio in East Nashville.

Come And Sing A Simple Song of Freedom

Fri Apr 28, 2017

“ Come and sing a simple song of freedom, sing like you’ve never sung before. Let it fill the air, tell the people everywhere, that we the people here don’t want a war.”

Those lyrics written by Bobby Darin are as relevant and true today as they were 48 years ago when Darin wrote them.

Don Graham
Don Graham

It’s true we’ve had wars since, the Gulf War and the Persian War and unrest in the Middle East but somehow, although we had military involved, it was never a threat in our own backyard. It always seemed far away. It’s a little different now. Now you have two unstable leaders with access to nuclear codes and  we can feel the breath of the threat on our necks. Nuclear war never seemed a possibility to me because level heads on both sides know that with each having the deadly weapons, nobody wins. But these are not level headed times.

BTW-Canadian Music Week Edition-Kill Matilda, METZ, Alex Laurie & The Heat, The Kerouacs, Jully Black, The Jessica Stuart Few, Don Graham & Bob Cohen, Port Juvee, Aviator Shades

Fri May 01 2015
Kill Matilda

Saturday night's alright for freaking and Kill Matilda brings it large. The VanCity noise punk crew is making its CMW debut and given its rep for loud and energetic live performances, this gig should be intense. Formed in late-2007, Kill Matilda garnered immediate attention for its O.T.T. frontwoman Dusty Exner. Blessed with an impressive vocal range married to a penchant for extreme stage behaviour, a love of beer both onstage and off and a colourful range of cusswords, Exner's one of the most watchable performers in hard music. The current lineup's   Marcus Luk (Drums) – Mykel Exner (Bass) – Dusty Exner (Vocals/Guitar) and they'll be playing most of current EP, 'Punk, Zombie, Rock n' Roll' their weirdest set yet and somehow quite danceable.

"We are excited to be playing Canadian Music Week for the first time ever! After 6 months living in a van and touring the US being home and being part of this event is awesome. Our showcase is going to knock your socks off, so come prepared!" comments vocalist / guitarist Dusty Exner.

Kill Matilda. Bovine Sex Club. Sat. May 2nd

The Worthy Dozen-Twelve Albums You May Have Missed But Shouldn’t

Wed Dec 22, 2010

The Worthy Dozen-Twelve Albums You May Have Missed But Shouldn’t

Even with all the gloom and doom emanating from the major and minor record companies, new music continues to be released in greater number than ever. Which means as sure as God made minor keys that much worthwhile music gets buried under the torrent. Even with social networking and all, media attention and career breakthroughs come soonest to those allied with the major labels.

In no particular order except that they all deserve the attention, here’s the first six pack of twelve hearing-worthy Canadian albums whose release may have flown under your personal radar.  The other six-pack arrives next week.

DON GRAHAMDon Graham
A Willing Heart
Breakin’ Records

The Two Countries of Country – Keith Bradford Cashbox Nashville talks to Canadian Don Graham

Fri Jul 09, 2010

Recently I interviewed Don Graham by telephone and he was gracious enough to answer the following questions and many more that I have edited from this article. The Toronto Tunesmith Graham is leaving at the end of July to tour with Texas Troubadour Larry Patton in Norway, Ireland, and Austria.

KB:  Tell me a little bit about yourself – how does a guy from Montreal, Quebec end up in country music?

DG:  "I could only get one Country Music radio station in the 60's and even then it was only on a clear night.  It was WWVA in Wheeling, West Virginia.  I loved the commercials.  You could order 500 baby chicks for $3.99 or something like that; that fascinated me.  I really enjoyed hearing the music of Marty Robbins, and Hank Williams."

KB: You had a pick hit in Cashbox Magazine in the late -70’s – how does it feel to be on the cover now?

Don Graham: A Willing Heart

Fri Apr 09, 2010

The country market is filled with great singers, talented songwriters and larger than life performers. That is why it is refreshing to hear a CD that has it all.

Don Graham: A Willing HeartThis new CD by veteran country rock artist, Don Graham (a founding member of Graham County) has it all. Great story telling songs, amazing production, infectious guitar lines and most of all a voice that will keep you hooked from the first song.

The first track, “GOT WHAT IT TAKES”, says it all. ‘An everyday man of everyday means at home in my t-shirt and my old blue jeans’ captures the image of an average man who is comfortable in his own skin.