Pharis and Jason Romero Channel Vintage Folk with New LP

BY Alex HudsonPublished Jan 30, 2015

If you haven't heard of the rural BC town of Horsefly, rootsy husband-and-wife duo Pharis and Jason Romero are hoping to change that. The Horsefly pair are releasing their album A Wanderer I'll Stay on March 3.

The album, the duo's third, was recorded at home in the couple's workshop, where they run their own J. Romero Banjo Company. It features the pair backed by players on fiddle, bass, drums and pedal steel.

The 12-song album includes some old-tyme covers like the Civil War ballad "The Dying Soldier" and the Alan Lomax-era tune "Goodbye Old Paint," but a press release notes that "the real focus of the album is the original songs." This includes "Ballad of Old Bill," which was written about a local man who was eaten by a bear.

For a taste of the Romeos' classic folk sound, listen to the title track from A Wanderer I'll Stay at the bottom of this page.

Also below, scroll past the tracklist to see their tour schedule. Most of the shows are in British Columbia in March and April, but there are also a couple of Alberta stops.

A Wanderer I'll Stay:

1. A Wanderer I'll Stay
2. Ballad of Old Bill
3. There's No Companion
4. The New Lonesome Blues
5. Lonesome and I'm Going Back Home
6. Backstep Indi
7. Goodbye Old Paint
8. It's a Sin to Tell a Lie
9. Poor Boy
10. Cocaine Blues
11. Old September
12. The Dying Soldier

Tour dates:

03/04 Grand Prairie, AB - Douglas J. Cardinal Performing Arts Centre (Vinyl Cafe)
03/05 Fort St. John, BC - North Peace Cultural Centre (Vinyl Cafe)
03/06 Dawson Creek, BC - Unchagah Hall (Vinyl Cafe)
03/08 Prince George, BC - CN Centre (Vinyl Cafe)
03/13 Vernon, BC - Vernon Elks Hall
03/14 Calgary, AB - Bow Valley Music Club
03/15 Canmore, AB - House Concert
03/17 Fernie, BC - Clawhammer Press Gallery
03/18 Nelson, BC - Old Church House Concert
03/19 Castlegar, BC - House Concert
03/20 Grand Forks, BC - 257 Market St.
03/21 Ashcroft, BC - TBA
04/10 Vancouver, BC - St. James Hall
04/12 Victoria, BC - Oak Bay United Church

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