(The Canadian Pacific Railway issued the following news release on November 23.)
MINNEAPOLIS — John Cowan, former lead singer and bassist for New Grass Revival, and his current band and Canadian country singer/songwriter Patricia Conroy will share Canadian Pacific Railway’s boxcar stage next month for the 2004 U.S. Holiday Train.
John Cowan played a few Holiday Train stops last year in the U.S. Northeast, and Patricia was on the 2002 U.S. Holiday Train. She replaces another Canadian country singer/songwriter and Holiday Train veteran, Beverley Mahood, who was previously listed in the 2004 U.S. Holiday Train lineup but had to step down due to a scheduling conflict.
This year’s 35-city U.S. tour to raise food, cash and awareness for hunger relief begins Dec. 2 in Scranton, Penn. The U.S. Holiday Train will visit nine towns in New York State and two in southern Ontario before beginning its eight-day Upper Midwest run on Dec. 9 outside of Chicago in Franklin Park, Ill. Major waypoints include the Milwaukee and Minneapolis-St. Paul areas before the 26-town Midwest tour ends Dec. 16 in Minot, N.D. From there, the train heads into Saskatchewan for three concerts. See http://www.cpr.ca for the complete schedule.
The 850-foot U.S. Holiday Train consists of 12 railcars outlined in thousands of holiday lights, with a lighted tree on top of the locomotive. The performers and Santa ride in three private railcars at the end of the train.
Meanwhile, a second train in Canada will begin a cross-country journey Dec. 5 in Ste.-Therese, Quebec, outside of Montreal and make more than 50 stops altogether by Dec. 19 when it ends in Port Moody, B.C., near Vancouver.
Patricia, who has won several awards from the Canadian Country Music Association and has had five releases, is set to release a new album five years after the release of her last studio record, “Wild As The Wind.”
A Montreal native who lives in Nashville, Patricia is looking forward to riding the rails again for hunger relief.
“It’s quite a unique experience to be traveling on a train for two weeks with other musicians (for hunger relief). It just makes you feel better about the whole holiday season,” Patricia said.
She was amazed two years ago by crowds of a few thousand people waiting at night at railroad crossings, depots and rail yards to see her and the other musicians.
“For the crowd to be out there standing in the snow because we were coming there, because of us, was incredible,” she mused.
John, who also lives in Nashville, was similarly charmed by his Holiday Train experience. “When we did it last year, it was one of the neatest things I’ve ever done in the music business,” said the 51-year-old musician who has been performing professionally since he was 14. He has toured in 44 countries and appeared on “A Prairie Home Companion.”
“It was very cold doing it, but it didn’t matter. People would be all bundled up and put their kids up on their shoulders,” John said. “The whole thing is very sweet.”
A bass guitarist and tenor, John performed for 16 years with New Grass Revival and helped create the sub-genre of music known as “newgrass.”
The John Cowan Band consists of national fiddle champion Luke Bulla; Wayne Benson, who won mandolin player of the year at the International Bluegrass Music Awards this year; IBMA award-winning guitarist Jeff Autry and banjo player Noam Pikelny.
John’s last solo release was “Always Take Me Back” in 2002 on Sugar Hill Records. He is wrapping up work on a new release recorded live at Telluride, Colo.
The John Cowan Band’s Holiday Train songs will likely include the traditional bluegrass tune popularized by Bill Monroe, “Christmas Time’s A- Comin’,” which was written by fiddler Tex Logan; “Let’s Make a Baby King” by Canadian Jesse Winchester and the classic “What Child is This?” done ballad style in four-part harmony.
Patricia plans to sing an Eagles’ song, “Love Will Keep Us Alive,” a tune she wrote called “I Know Santa’s Been Here,” and “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire.)”
An audience sing-along usually rounds out the performance during which Santa and railroad employees distribute train whistles and food shelf workers collect food and cash from the audience.
The 2004 CPR Holiday Train is also pleased to announce that producer/entertainer Randall Prescott will be back this year to oversee the show on both trains. Randall is among Canada’s most awarded producers, with gold and platinum records to his credit.
CPR will make monetary donations to local food banks and food pantries or shelves listed in the schedule below. Event goers are encouraged to bring cash donations or non-perishable food items. All donations made in a community remain in that community for distribution. Since its beginning in 1999, the Holiday Train program has raised close to 213 tons of food and more than $1.5 million (Cdn) for North American food banks.
About Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway is a transcontinental carrier operating in Canada and the U.S. Its 14,000-mile rail network serves the principal centers of Canada, from Montreal to Vancouver, and the U.S. Northeast and Midwest regions. CPR feeds directly into America’s heartland from the East and West coasts. Alliances with other carriers extend its market reach throughout the U.S. and into Mexico. Canadian Pacific Logistics Solutions provides logistics and supply chain expertise worldwide.