Toronto unit Great Lake Swimmers are currently halfway through a nine week North American tour in support of acclaimed new album, The Waves, The Wake. The band returns home for what promises to be a very special performance on November 23 at The Danforth Music Hall with special guests Sister Ray prior to heading across the Atlantic for a 19 date European tour to close out the year.

Recorded in the 145-year-old Bishop Cronyn Memorial Church in London, Ontario and produced by Chris Stringer (Union Sound), lead singer-songwriter Tony Dekker decided to challenge himself by writing new music without any acoustic guitar, which has always been his instrumental mainstay. He further digressed from previous songwriting patterns by looking at each track individually and then tailoring the instrumentation to bring each song to life in its own distinctive way.

Hugh’s Room Live is Toronto’s cozy nest for singer/songwriters, especially of the rootsy/folkie bent. Its new Songwriter Sessions series explores songcraft in a round robin format with players peeling back the stories behind their work. Crossing genres and tapping into the natural Canadian gift of open, honest lyrics and tunes, the artists get to delve deeper as they share their songs and bond with each other. This week’s Songwriter Session features Tony Quarrington, Andrea Ramolo, David Leask and Melanie Peterson, and happens Tues. Oct. 9, 8.30 start.

Veteran musician Quarrington has been a formidable and thriving presence on the Toronto music scene for more than 40 years. He first appeared at the Mariposa Folk Festival in 1966, and played at many renowned Yorkville nightclubs and coffee houses in the late ‘60s, performing ballads, blues and his own original tunes. Quarrington’s relentless career as a sideman and studio musician has seen him appear on literally hundreds of other artists’ recordings, playing guitar, banjo, mandolin, piano and dobro, and lending his voice as a singer.