Ruth McGillivray - Lead Vocals

One of the most surprising secrets in today’s Canadian blues scene is the voice and presence of Ruth McGillivray. Simply stated, she’s an amazing talent. Her deep, rich tone turns every head when she starts to sing. But it’s Ruth’s emotional range that stops people in their tracks; she can go from aching tenderness to power and fury in about a verse and a half.

The electricity, freedom, and honesty in her delivery are reminiscent of Janis Joplin. She does it for love and the audience can tell. Her recent performance at the Pender Harbour Jazz Festival mesmerized a record-breaking audience, and when she closed with Piece of My Heart, they were screaming for more.

“Everyone asks me when I started singing,” Ruth says, “And I always tell them it’s the classic story. Daddy was a preacher and I grew up singing in the choir.” As a teenager Ruth performed in churches throughout Canada with her musical family, and started writing her own songs. Later, Ruth’s work gave her the opportunity to meet the jazz fusion band, Uzeb, and that sparked a love of jazz. She developed her ear, range, and keen sense of melody by singing the lines of Alain Caron. A bootleg tape of Etta James taught her to tell a story with soul, so it’s no surprise that the day she finally walked into a blues club, she put up her feet and knew she was home.

Voice lessons with Vancouver jazz singer, Jennifer Scott, gave Ruth the technique and confidence to begin fronting Vancouver-area bands. For years she performed the music of Etta James, Bonnie Raitt, Aretha Franklin and Gladys Knight, but eventually she grew tired of copying others. When Sheldon Bradley joined her R&B cover band, they began to pursue a mutual interest in songwriting. In 2003 they released their first independent CD, River of Soul, under Ruth’s name.

River of Soul showcased a wide range of influences, demonstrating Ruth’s ability to write and sing blues, funk, gospel and jazz with equal proficiency. These days, her diverse musical tastes are being fed by artists like John Cleary, Cassandra Wilson, Eva Cassidy, Susan Tedeschi and Warren Haynes.

Since releasing River of Soul, Ruth and Sheldon have renamed themselves the Bradley McGillivray Blues Band. Whether gigging as a duo or with the band, they love the stage and the improvisational freedom of playing in the moment. Their much-anticipated second CD, due for release in fall 2007, will feature the drop-to-your-knees abandon fans have come to love in Ruth’s live shows.

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