Peterborough Blogs
Meet The Peterborough Dentist Who Travels Around The World To See Pearl Jam
/Peterborough dentist Edward Segura has to be one of the biggest Pearl Jam fans on the planet. Segura, who owns every Pearl Jam album ever made, has been to about 40 Pearl Jam concerts around the world.
"I clearly remember the day in 1991 when I first heard Pearl Jam," Ed tells PTBOCanada. "My then-girlfriend and current wife Christine and I were hanging out at my parents’ home in Toronto after spending a day record shopping on Yonge Street. I had purchased this band Pearl Jam’s debut record, Ten, as it was being touted as an incredible record from a young angry band with great music and social integrity. I had heard 'Alive' on the radio as it was on regular radio play at the time. As soon as the needle hit the record….well that was the beginning of a lifelong affair for me with this unparalleled band."
Ed with his son Aidan in Prague to see Pearl Jam in 2012
Segura travels around the world, often with his wife and two boys, Aidan and Liam, to go to Pearl Jam concerts—working his vacation schedule around them, and getting front row seats as much as possible.
"A live show by Pearl Jam must be experienced to truly appreciate just how good this band is," he says. "They never play the same set twice, and play on average 2:45-3 hours a night in a world where most big bands will play on average 1.5 hours!"
Seeing Pearl Jam in New Orleans in 2013
The first time Ed saw Pearl Jam perform live was at Lolapalooza on August 5th, 1992 at Barrie’s Molson Park—an unbelievable experience for a self-described "19-year-old grunge pissed-off kid."
"The energy is one I will never forget," Ed tells PTBOCanada. "The crowds during the '90s grunge era were very aggressive and there was a lot of crowd-surfing and slam dancing. You had your ripped jeans or jean shorts, a T-shirt under your flannel shirt, long hair, and Doc Martens with wool socks. That was the uniform. As I have gotten older, I have noticed: (1) crowds are older, as is the band obviously; (2) that youthful aggression and disdain for everything no longer exists but the excitement of seeing them perform live is alive and well; and (3) the crowds are familial."
The Pearl Jam tour shirts Ed has collected over the years
After Lolapalooza, Ed would see them perform anywhere near/in Toronto, where he was living at the time, and over the years things have snowballed since moving to Peterborough.
"I have been guilty of planning family trips around Pearl Jam tours," Ed tells PTBOCanada. "In 2012, my son Aidan and I saw them twice in Berlin and in Prague."
Ed's son Aidan with the tambourine Eddie Vedder gave him at Berlin concert
Indeed, an amazing moment with Eddie Vedder happened at one of the Berlin shows. "I managed to get Aidan, who was 10 at the time, front row seats, and Eddie Vedder gave him his tambourine at the end of the show—which was an unforgettable event for both of us."
"We stayed at the Four Seasons Prague and didn’t realize the band was also staying there (we missed them)," Ed adds. "That family trip was awesome, and seeing them perform in Europe was the icing on the cake."
Wristband tickets Ed scored in 2014 for Detroit concert
Ed (to the left) of Eddie Vedder rocking out in Detroit, 2014
Ed has travelled to various Canadian and U.S. cities to watch them over the years: Hamilton, Ottawa, Halifax, Toronto, New Orleans, New York, Detroit, Chicago, and somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Wisconsin for their 20th anniversary shows.
Seeing Pearl Jam in Halifax, 2009
Seeing Bono and Eddie, 2005, Toronto
Over the past week alone, Ed's family went to Ottawa to watch them perform—then saw them twice in Toronto. "All three sets were three hours long and vastly different," Ed says. "Any hardcore fan will tell you that there are no two PJ shows that are alike, and that is the beauty of this band."
Ed with his son Aidan seeing Pearl Jam in Ottawa, 2016.
Rocking out to Pearl Jam in Toronto, 2016
Another concert pic from Ed at Pearl Jam's Toronto show, 2016
Ed is such a huge Pearl Jam fan that he plays their songs as part of this grunge/classic rock cover band, the Jobbers, he's in in Peterborough with four other local fortysomething guys. He also loves discussing Pearl Jam with his patients, and has been known to play their music during his operatories.
He also has a collection of 40 guitars in his basement, and would love to get one signed by members of Pearl Jam some day.
Seeing Eddie in Halifax, 2005
Next up for Ed and his Pearl Jam tour: This August, he and fellow Peterborough dentist Dr. Brian Smith along their wives will be going to see Pearl Jam perform at Wrigley Field in Chicago. "That will be insane," Ed says.
Oh, and Ed adds that there are much bigger Pearl Jam fans than him: "Believe it or not, there are way crazier fans than myself. I just read about a guy who saw his 1000th show!!!"
—By Neil Morton
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That Magical Session On Stoney Lake With Ronnie Hawkins, Gordon Lightfoot & Kris Kristofferson
/UPDATED POST (August 16th, 2016): It has been unveiled on Kris Kristofferson's Facebook page that their magical collaboration that weekend on Stoney Lake was "Me & Bobby McGee". You can buy it here.
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ORIGINAL POST (May 12th, 2016)
By all accounts, it was a magical couple of days in early May on Stoney Lake near Peterborough that no one who was there will ever forget.
Music icons Ronnie "The Hawk" Hawkins, Gordon Lightfoot and Kris Kristofferson gathered at The Hawk's sprawling Hawkstone Manor Estate overlooking majestic Stoney Lake in the Kawarthas for a secret recording session in the Hawkstone studio—the specific details of which no one will divulge yet.
Front row: Gordon Lightfoot, Ronnie Hawkins & Kris Kristofferson. Back row: Robin Hawkins (The Hawk's son), Ryan Weber, James McKenty & Sam Weber. Photo by Leah Hawk, Facebook page
Many local musicians—including the Weber Brothers, James McKenty from The Spades, Melissa Payne, Karl "Kawartha Karl" Lawson and more—were also there, along with The Hawk's kids Robin and Leah, and some members of the Sadies and Blue Rodeo.
"We were fortunate enough to be part of a historical moment," Sam Weber, one of the hired session musicians, tells PTBOCanada, adding "We were asked to keep what went on pretty much under wraps until further notice."
Photo by The Weber Brothers, Facebook page
What we do know is that a special song was recorded.
"3 Pals who happen to be Legends!!! Lightfoot Hawkins and Kristofferson!! What a song they recorded, last 2 days!! Can't disclose what CLASSIC HIT it is. All in good time!!!," Leah Hawk, The Hawk's daughter, said on a Facebook post.
Photo by The Weber Brothers, Facebook page
Imagine being a fly on the wall for this recording session with these legends The Hawk, Kristofferson and Lightfoot...
Photo by The Weber Brothers, Facebook page
Melissa Payne had this to say to PTBOCanada about being there: "It was an honour and a privilege to watch these three legends not only immersed in one another's company but to watch them come so Alive with their shared passion for the music."
Photo by The Weber Brothers, Facebook page
Kawartha Karl, who is good friends with The Hawk, even had the chance to have his guitar autographed by Gordon Lightfoot...
Karl Lawson and Gordon Lightfoot (photo by Eric Kelso Mckibbon, Facebook)
We can hardly wait to see the result of this music collaboration.
—By Neil Morton
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Immaculate Conception School Choir Singing With Johnny Reid At PMC Is Pure Awesome
/Canadian country music artist Johnny Reid played the Memorial Centre Tuesday night (March 22nd) to an electric crowd.
One of the amazing moments was when Reid brought Peterborough's Immaculate Conception Elementary School choir up on stage to sing his positive song of hope, "Today I'm Gonna Try And Change The World".
Johnny Reid with Immaculate Conception
Watch the amazing, memorable, heartwarming performance below...
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6th Annual 24h Music Project Is March 19th At The Red Dog
/The 6th Annual 24h Music Project is coming up March 19th. Over the past 5 years, more than 100 local musicians have taken part. This year's project is no different with over half of the 30 participating musicians being first timers.
The project allows musicians from town to play with and get to know other artists that they may not otherwise have had the opportunity to work together with. It brings together musicians from various styles and challenges each to play a style that they normally might not play.
The structure of the project is as follows...
• At 9 p.m. on March 18th, 10 songwriters gather together. They are randomly paired off and have until 8 a.m. the next morning to write a 20 minute original set. This year's writers include Beau Dixon, Michael Bell, Kayla Howran, Sara Decarlo, Kate LeDuece, Nick Ferrio, Rob Wilkes, Dave Robertson, Kelly McMichael and Rob Swales.
• At 8 a.m. on Saturday, March 19th, the five pairs of writers gather again and draft their bands from a list of 20 other participating musicians. What results is five new 6-piece bands.
• At 9 a.m., the 20 participating musicians show up, have breakfast courtesy of Black Honey, find out what band they are in and head off to one of five rehearsal spaces around town. The bands then get together for lunch at Rare, and rehearse again for the afternoon.
• 24 hours after the writers got together, the show goes on. The performances start at 9 p.m. on Saturday, March 19th at The Historic Red Dog.
Local band Television Rd will be headlining the evening. It is only $10 entry fee and always proves to be a fun night and a wonderful celebration of our community.
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This Year's WayHome Music Festival Features Killer Lineup
/The lineup for this year's WayHome Festival in Oro-Medonte, Ont., July 22 to 24th has just been released and it is amazing.
It features Arcade Fire, The Killers, Arkells, Third Eye Blind and a whole pile of other great acts.
Twitter is blowing up over the announcement of this year's lineup, which thousands of people from Peterborough and the Kawarthas attend each year.
Tickets go on sale February 16th. Watch their promo teaser video here...
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Here Are The 8 Snofest Idol 2016 Finalists Who Will Perform At Showplace
/The 2016 Snofest Idol Finals take place Sunday, January 17th at Showplace Performance Centre at 2 p.m. Here are the finalists...
Kristin Taylor-Head
The 19-year-old has been singing since she was 5 years old, and plays piano and guitar. She attends Fleming College in Peterborough for General Business Administration, and recently performed in CATs: The Musical that was put on by Showplace Performing Centre.
Owen Wright
The 17-year-old attends Norwood District High School and is in Grade 12. He records and writes his own music and has produced his own CD called Owen Wright Uninvited.
Cameron von Criegern
The 17-year-old played the lead in his high school production of the Elton John musical Aida and is currently enrolled in Grade 12 at TASSS. He has competed at Centrepoint Theatre in Ottawa and The Opera House in Toronto.
Jamie Lavoie
The 22-year-old TASSS grad has a Child and Youth Worker diploma from Sir Sandford Fleming. Her hopes for the future are to go back to school to become a counsellor while singing and acting on the side.
Melissa Post
The 16-year-old Grade 11 student at TASSS is excited to be a part of this year's production of The Little Mermaid at the school. Melissa provides live sound effects for Andrew Root's production of Crime City at the Theatre on King and has sang the national anthem at a Peterborough Pete's game.
Emilie Thiel
The 22-year-old from Apsley has been singing since she could talk. Music has always been her passion. She was in the St. Peter’s Secondary School vocal’s class and jazz chorus, and was awarded the Vocal Music Award in Grade 12. She is a member of the Peterborough Children’s Chorus.
Jessica Wilson
The 18-year-old is currently attending Trent University, majoring in sociology. She has had a love for music ever since she was young. She made it to the Top 8 at last year's Snowfest Idol and didn't reach her goal of getting to the Top 3, but is determined to make it there this year.
Natasha Sokolon
The 15-year-old is a Grade 10 student at St. Peter's. She has previously been a member of the St. Peter's vocal group, and has performed with them on numerous occasions. She has always loved to sing and is extremely excited to perform.
Get out there to Showplace, Sunday, January 17th and support this amazing local talent! Bring the family. Pay what you can at the door.
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Neil Young In Grade 1 At Omemee Public School
/Neil Young spent many of his formative years in Omemee, Ontario near Peterborough—and a museum, Youngtown Rock & Roll Museum, dedicated to the rock legend was there for many years before relocating to nearby Lindsay.
An awesome photo (see below) was posted to the Vintage Peterborough, Lindsay and the Kawartha Region Facebook page of Young in a Grade 1 class photo at Omemee Public School (1951-52). Neil is standing in the back row, third from the left (with that distinct Neil Young facial expression).
Neil Young, third from left, standing in the back row
