Courtney Wing

Courtney Wing is a living illustration of modern Canadian multiculturalism. Born to a Chinese father and a Russian/Icelandic mother, Wing has played traditional Chinese percussion, sung with members of his hometown’s Icelandic folk community, played with a reggae band in Belize and danced flamenco in the south of France. It’s no wonder his second album, Starlight Shuffle, suffers from a minor identity crisis. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But Wing is catholic in his tastes, and his broad musical interests emerge track by track, as he hops and skips from soul to folk to piano bar jazz without missing a beat. Though the playful strains of organ and electro synth that permeate many of his songs please the ear and lighten the heart, Wing is definitely at his best when he edges towards the country genre, with his melancholic lap steel proving the perfect accompaniment to his smooth, mellow vocals.