Yellowknife (Oct 27/06) - Vancouver's Jim Byrnes produced a repertoire of blues music that had fans cheering for more last week during the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre's A Blue, Blues Night.

Byrnes, of Highlander fame for non-blues-lovers, was backed by Steve Dawson on guitar and Jesse Zubot on fiddle.

Vancouver bluesman and actor Jim Byrnes performs before a nearly full house at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre. - Jessica Klinkenberg/NNSL photo

Before I get into the magic these men made, I have to give credit to Zubot, who made me aware that the fiddle can be a blues instrument. Both Dawson and Zubot played electrifying solos that had the audience whooping and cheering in admiration.

So with two strong musicians to back him up, Byrnes could do no wrong Friday night.

Byrnes has that bluesy quality to his singing voice.

That whiskey-soaked, cigarette-tortured raspiness that lends itself to the music, and can make you forget that moments earlier you took a header down the stairs in front of everyone (to those few who noticed; I'm fine. My knee's a little bruised, but I'll survive).

Byrnes played a song that he said blues legend Muddy Waters taught him, and spoke about what music does to people. "...It can change you, how it can heal you and how it can take you far away from where you are," he rasped into the microphone before launching into Spanish Harlem, written by Jerry Leiber and Phil Spector.

Though Byrnes's repertoire on Friday night consisted mainly of some strong classic blues and a few more contemporary blues tunes, he played his own songs as well.

Byrnes didn't just launch into the songs, however. He told the stories behind them; why they were important to him, an essential part of the blues.

His song Just a Pilgrim was based on his visit to a church in Paris, where he met with a group of pilgrims making their way to the churches of their patron saints.

Byrnes ended two hours of solid blues with Johnny Cash's famous Folsom Prison Blues, doing the Man in Black proud, before being easily coaxed back into song by cheers from the audience.

Bob Dylan's Don't Think Twice, It's All Right song was the audience's reward for their thunderous applause.

It was a Blue, Blues Night that left a smile on many audience members' faces.