Canadian road warrior

Singer-songwriter Jimmy Rankin may be part of the famed East Coast Rankin Family, but he’s still very much his own man.

Since launching a solo career in 2001, the Canadian country roots artist released Back Road Paradise, his sixth album and first full-fledged country project in April 2014.

“For me country is a natural progression. I meander. I go with what I like and now that I’m living in Nashville I’m influenced by country. And I grew up listening to country,” said Rankin.

By all accounts, the 12-track has received strong reviews, especially with peer support in the form of two duets. Grammy Award winner Allison Krauss pairs up with Rankin in Flames while Blue Rodeo’s Jim Cuddy partners in Never Gonna Leave.

Having established a successful solo career, Rankin is on a 24-date tour hitting small towns across Alberta and Saskatchewan from Feb. to April. On Thursday, Feb. 12, he drops by the Morinville Community Cultural Centre for a friendly down-home-style concert.

The Canadian road warrior is responsible for platinum sales and scores of industry awards including five Juno Awards, 27 East Coast Music Awards, nine SOCAN awards, two Music Nova Scotia Awards and seven Canadian Country Music Awards.

But instead of taking it easy, he continues touring through the winter months – some of the most treacherous on the road.

“I’ve had great success and I’ve surpassed all my goals. I’ve had tons of accolades and sold tons of records. But the industry has changed in all levels. We don’t sell as many CDs so we tour live. We go where people pay to see us,” he explains.

In this latest batch, Rankin stays true to his signature style of smart lyrics, catchy tunes and emotive vocals. Whether it’s a ballad or uptempo chart, Back Road Paradise is about life, falling in love, enlarging the family or just partying with friends on Friday night as in Whiskey When the Sun Goes Down, his latest single.

“When we made the record we tried not to put filler songs in there.”

The title track reveals the songsmith’s passion for rural living, an idea that was nurtured while touring on numerous back roads across the country.

Paris or Rome was written in Nashville with Patricia Conroy while the two were sitting in the backyard enjoying an evening fire.

“Inspiration struck while we were talking about all the places we were hungry to see but didn’t have enough money to go.”

Throughout Rankin’s acoustic tour, guitarist Jamie Robinson will provide support as the duo performs a mix of old and new, Rankin classics and requests.

“At the end of the night, it’s a rockin’ show.”