Stephen Vance, Staff
Steve Poltz is coming to Meaford Hall on October 29. You might not know his name, but you’ve probably heard his work at some point given that he has been in the music business for more than 25 years, and has co-written songs with numerous musicians including Jewel’s 1996 smash hit You Were Made for Me.
While Poltz has performed in the area previously at Summerfolk, as well as at the popular Irish Mountain house concerts, this will be his first performance at Meaford Hall, and he is looking forward to it and says that he enjoys small town shows.
“They’re all fun, but it seems like in the smaller centres that a lot of time people are putting together their own shows, so they’re putting them in halls, or house concerts, and they have a more do-it-yourself type ethos that I really like because there is something more charming about it, and a lot of times in the bigger shows in the cities it’s a bit less personal.”
For those not familiar with his music, Poltz says that his shows are all about telling stories, and having fun.
“I’m kind of a roving storyteller, troubadour, singing songs, talking about whatever is going on. Every show is kind of like a snowflake, I never know what I’m going to do, I don’t use a set-list, and it’s kind of a roving commentary on my life and life itself. Some people seem to like that, they like to laugh, and there’s always a lot of laughter, and stories, and songs, and hopefully a sense of redemption at the end of the show. They don’t leave depressed,” he explained.
How does he know when he’s had a good show?
“I can usually feel it, and see it in people’s faces. Hopefully there’s some sense of unity in the room, and I haven’t offended them. I feel like the longer I’ve done this, the better I’ve gotten at reading a crowd. When I’m playing a show, I’m reading the audience. ‘Oh that person over there is yawning, I think I need to wake this crowd up’. I’m constantly reading the crowd and feeling their energy, so I’m morphing (throughout the show). That’s why each show has its own vibe. Sometimes you walk out and the crowd is so ready for you, it’s like shooting ducks in a pond, but other times you’ve got a really hard audience.”
Born in Nova Scotia but having lived most of his life in California, and now based in Nashville, Poltz, who is a dual citizen, told The Independent that this year’s presidential election campaign has reminded him that he is very much Canadian at heart.
“When I go to Canada I flash the Canadian passport, and when I go to the U.S., I flash the U.S. passport,” Poltz said with a laugh. “In Canada everybody that I talk to says to me ‘how could Trump even be a candidate?’ Unequivocally, most everybody says that, whereas in the U.S., if you put something (political) on Facebook, it’s amazing how many people that live in the U.S. don’t say things like that. There’s definitely a different sensibility in Canada, and so I find that I relate to those people in Canada, we’re very close in that respect, and I think it might be the way I was raised. My parents were both very Canadian, they were formed in Canada. They haven’t been infected by the ‘Trumpian’ virus.”
Poltz suggests that Canadians shouldn’t get too high on their horses however, when observing what is happening south of our border.
“That being said, while Canadians ask how Trump could be a candidate, Toronto elected Rob Ford. So I think lurking in every society is a self-eating virus that votes against itself, and I don’t understand it.”
Musicians and their daily lives are often misunderstood by the public, who hear songs on the radio and videos on the screen and assume it’s a glamorous life, but Poltz says that the reality is much different than some perceive.
“I think they don’t realize that we’re actually truckers. We just happen to have guitars in the back of our vehicles. We’re in a constant state of change. I do well over 220 shows per year, and I think a lot of people don’t realize that if you want travel tips, talk to a musician. I can tell you where to buy really good luggage, I can tell you how to get the best deals, which hotel chains have the best reward programs,” he says with a laugh.
Poltz says that travelling musicians can also have plenty of knowledge about world events and culture, thanks to hours upon hours on the road filling time listening to podcasts, reading news, and newly released books. Not to mention the experience and cultural awareness that is built from years on the road, visiting new cities and countries from week to week.
“If you’re talking to a well-travelled musician, and you brought in ten different friends from all different areas, I think the musician would be able to have a really good conversation with all of them at a diner party.”
Steve Poltz will perform at Meaford Hall on Saturday, October 29, at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $35 and are available at the Meaford Hall box office, or online at meafordhall.ca.
