Over The Moon with Ryan McNally

Kicking off the Nick’s 2025/26 season will be multi-instrumentalists/vocalists Suzanne Levesque and Craig Bignell, the duo known as Over The Moon with Ryan McNally as the opener.

Suzanne and Craig have long been known as session and touring musicians for other artists. They met, fell in love, got married, and discovered their voices blend together beautifully. Their music is a wild ride, from 40’s-sounding western swing, to Appalachian old-time, to cowboy blues. Suzanne and Craig used to live on a ranch in southwestern Alberta’s beautiful Rocky Mountain foothills. It’s no surprise that their songs have a common thread that speaks of the Canadian west.

When the couple released their debut album Moondancer in 2017, the resonances were there for all to hear, reflecting the pulse of life lived, in a territory that is both dirt-hard rugged and beautiful. Their album Chinook Waltz was nominated for Best Traditional Album at the 2022 Juno Awards, and in 2023 they were nominated as Ensemble of The Year at the Canadian Folk Music Awards. Opening the show will be Ryan McNally, best known for his interpretative playing of traditional acoustic blues, jazz and old time music.

Ryan McNally will be opening the show, and Ryan is best known for his interpretative playing of traditional acoustic blues, jazz and old time music.  He first discovered jazz and blues by uncovering a huge collection of ‘78 records that belonged to his grandfather. His curiosity for the sound and history anchored his love for the genres and it’s only grown stronger since.  His first album Down Home,was recorded live by CBC North and received a feature on Saturday Night Blues, hosted by Holger Peterson.  His second album, Steppin’ Down South was nominated for Blues Artist Of The Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards.  McNally plays guitar, harmonica, mandolin, violin and banjo, all in many different styles. Whether performing solo or with his band, his music is grounded in the legacy of the generations of players that came before him. All the while he continues to push the boundaries of his own signature sound.