EVENT PREVIEW: International Women's Day Jam

Tomorrow marks the 98th International Women's Day, a day of recognition of women's struggles over the course of history for rights and issues many of us take for granted today.

In celebration, CJAM 91.5's Women's Radio Collective will be doing series of special programming all day long to celebrate this event, from information to music, and at the end of the day, the focus shifts to Phog Lounge for a special music presentation.

Put on in conjunction with the upcoming Smash The Glass festival, this showcase features a nice overview of the females within Windsor's local music scene. Some of the performers, such as Steph Copeland, Tara Watts and This Is Me As A Woman, have been performing standing room only shows for years now, gaining an audience of both female and male to their finely crafted musical stylings. And some of them, such as Erica DiMaio and Nicole Markham, are fresh new faces to the scene.

Although at a casual glance Windsor's music scene is pretty male-dominated it is by no means prejudiced. Women have been making waves in Windsor's music for decades - in fact one of Windsor's first international music stars was a jazz singer named Dorothy Collins, who wowed them in the 1940's and 1950's, breaking in big on radio and many U.S. variety shows. This track, "My Boy Flat-Top", hit #16 on Billboard in 1955.

The past two decades have seen a real resurgence in women in local music and when they've started playing they've dominated. Karen Marrero fronted Lost Patrol during the end of the 1980's, with a scorching album (Second Time Around) and a video on then fledging MuchMusic ("Not The One"). They toured from Windsor to Montreal and beyond before breaking up in 1990.

Nancy Drew is the undisputed matriarch of the local music scene, having started out in the 80's band The Jetsons. But it was during the 1990's that she cemented her Windsor legacy when she took over the vocal duties for Luxury Christ. The rock and roll pixie with the big voice captured an entire scene and Luxury Christ was its biggest band (a testament to its legacy was the packed reunion show over the holidays, after nearly a ten year absence). She's still performing today, reunited with Luxury Christ bandmate Trevor Malcolm in Citywide Vacuum.

Plastic Gary was another female quartet that ruled the indie pop stages of Windsor for much of the early 1990's, and other bands such as The Kildare Trio, The Poumons and Ghoti featured women in prominent musical roles.

Carly Marcoux was a long time Windsor scene supporter for much of the 1990's, starting her own label (Modern Soul) while also recording and touring with her own band, The Low Tones. A tireless promoter, she now resides in the U.S. (Philadelphia I believe).

Jackie Fitzgerald, known more for her art of late, was another musical powerhouse during the 1990's. Her frenetic punk rock attitude and no-holds-barred approach to music frightened some and inspired many more. She carries that same ethic with her art.

Colleen Durino (aka Tex Sin) and Ashley Granger dominated the rock and roll circuit in Windsor for a spell in the early 2000's, first with Tulaine Blacktop then with Dead Heat. They're riff-heavy monster jams were always rock and roll spectacles and these ladies could out rock and roll any of the boys who tried to keep up with them. Ashley has since moved to London, but Tex is still making music, be it here in Windsor or in the Southern U.S.

In 2000, arguably Windsor's top drawing indie act was a group of sisters who performed together as Anneke's Star. The Boyer girls were all musical prodigies and when they played together (first as a duo - Anneke and Christine - then as a trio when younger sister Heather joined in) they were untouchable. Their debut album, Hello, sold quickly and was followed by a series of great live recordings.

As the first decade of the 2000's nears closure, its reassuring to see that women are continuing to be a vital part of Windsor's local music scene and are getting bolder and more confident that they can stand shoulder to shoulder with their male counterparts. A quick look at women in the local scene shows a talented cast that are equally as impressive as any male list - Nancy Drew in Citywide Vacuum,Tara Watts, Perilelle, Jessica Desjardins of Bloodshoteye, Kimberly Ann from This Is Me As A Woman and Vultures!, Liz Graham of Konqistador and 72Blues, Stefanie Zaccagnini and Holly Brush of Two For The Cascade, Cara Salustro, Colleen Durino of Haint Flannery of a See Saw, Stephanie Poort of Hello Bella, Jackie Robitaille, Monique Belanger, percussionist Sally Zori, Bree Gaudette, Amour Amour, Megan Baxter from Dreams Destruction, Abby Reisner and Gisele Martel from Brass Knuckles, Kara Kaufmann...the list is endless and growing more each day!

Music doesn't care about which naughty bits you have. It only cares if it's heard and felt. I have heard so many great women in this local scene and I've felt the passion in their music. This event on Sunday (as well as the Smash The Glass festival later in March) are great ways to see just how strong the women in our local scene really are.


An older video of Steph Copeland (Perilelle) performing with Portia, from the Avalon Front.

A video of Kimberley Ann (This Is Me As A Woman) peforming from Phog Lounge last year.

A clip showing some of the talent that Amour Amour displays on the ivories!