He’s currently traversing the continent, along with a band and a production that are so big, they won’t all fit on just one tour bus. He’s selling out dozens of shows at concert halls that seat thousands of people. And what’s he playing? Pretty much exclusively his own original roots, folk, and blues songs; and a handful written by some good friends of his. Matt’s whole music career has always been exceedingly homespun and genuine. In fact, a bunch of his best friends are in his band!
How is this kind of success possible? In this day and age? Well, it’s incredibly rare. But it certainly helps if you have the soul, grit, presence, work ethic, humility, smarts, and sheer mind-boggling talent of New Brunswick powerhouse Matt Andersen.
Matt’s new album The Big Bottle of Joy is also the name he gives to his eight-piece band of brilliant musical pals. On their way through Alberta in April 2023, Matt generously shared some of his precious off time with CKUA. And he brought his guitar!
Matt popped by CKUA’s Studio A to tell us about his musical beginnings in the tiny town of Perth-Andover, New Brunswick; how he’s crafted a stellar international music career in the true time-tested way, through an endless application of blood, sweat, and tears over more than 20 years; how his friends, family, and heroes have always kept him grounded and inspired; and how the songs and the giant band on the new record were products of these difficult past three years – the one time in his life he’s ever stopped for a moment to catch his breath.
On top of his touching, hilarious, and wide-ranging conversation, Matt offers us a pair of exclusive performances. Given the size and scope of the band sound on the album, it’s absolutely astounding to hear Matt Andersen pour his larger-than-life musical soul into an intimate, solo acoustic performance of two songs from The Big Bottle of Joy: “Only an Island” (written by his friends in the band Port Cities) and album closer “Shoes” (a song Matt wrote with Donovan Woods).
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