A singer-songwriter acclaimed by a galaxy of artists from Bob Dylan to Elton John, Chris Martin to Michael Bublé, Steve Earle to Lucinda Williams for his insight into the human heart and a melodic purity (to paraphrase admirer Elvis Costello) unheard of since the heyday of Paul McCartney. You’ll find him straight after the Sex Pistols in any self-respecting encyclopedia of modern music and that’s as close as Ron Sexsmith has ever got to in-yer-face hard rock. Until now. For his 11th album, LONG PLAYER LATE BLOOMER, the award-winning troubadour has paired himself with a fellow Canadian, the producer of bone-crunching classics by Metallica, Mötley Crüe and The Cult — the genuinely named Bob Rock.
The reassuring news for Ron’s loyal international fanbase is that Bob Rock’s production does full and eloquent justice to another wonderful collection of Sexsmith songs. Great news for everyone else is that every one of them sounds like an honest-to-God hit you turn up when it pops up on the radio. Along with Bob came a band including guitarist Rusty Anderson (Paul McCartney), bassist Paul Bushnell (Elton John, No Doubt), keyboard player Jamie Edwards (Aimee Mann) and drummer Josh Freese (Devo, Nine Inch Nails).