Toronto-based folk/singer-songwriter icon Ken Whiteley has crafted beautiful songs that have piqued the interest of children, gospel fans, and lovers of tasteful, highbrow folk music. Now Whiteley has again added to his rich discography with his latest single “Hole In The Clouds” from his timely, tranquil, and tremendously solid studio album Unseen Hands. For Whiteley, the 12-track effort features Whiteley performing on 12-string guitar for majestic results.
“The recordings all speak to place in one way or another — from the little patch of ground in downtown Toronto where I live, a conversation with the moon, April in Paris, looking at the stars, the soil, the planet, and how we all connect,” Whiteley says. The album, produced by Whiteley and released on Pyramid Records, is a wonderful collection led by the opening track “Hole In The Clouds,” a dreamy lullaby-esque tune that has Whiteley at his best.
“It is an invitation to open wide,” Whiteley says of “Hole In The Clouds.” “It is musically anchored in Ken’s 12-string guitar, Ben Whiteley’s upbeat bass lines, Georgia Harmer’s expanding background vocals, and Bucky Berger’s bongos and drumming.” The fact that such a simple yet stellar piece of music was derived from simply recognizing the sun breaking through clouds is a testament to Whiteley’s wonderful way with words and his almost instinctive, incredible approach to the craft of songwriting.
Unseen Hands, recorded and mixed by Whiteley and Nik Tjelios at Toronto’s Casa Wroxton Studio and mastered by Harris Newman at Montreal’s Grey Market Mastering, is a lovely, serene 12-track affair. It speaks to simple truths of love, nature, and life in these somewhat trying times with political turmoil, the climate crisis, and people seemingly wrapped up in technology around every corner. From the folksy “Here I Stand,” which celebrates where he resides in downtown Toronto and its Indigenous history before Toronto existed, to the soulful cover of Bobby Womack’s “That’s The Way I Feel About You,” Whiteley is masterful regardless of the song, the topic, or in some cases the choice of covers.
Although Whiteley wrote nine of the 12 songs from Unseen Hands himself, including a co-write with Berger on “Fast Freight Train,” another cover included is a magical, dreamy rendition of “Stars” originally found on The Weather Station’s 2022 album How Is It That I Should Look at the Stars. Here, Whiteley has a sparse amount of instrumentation for a dreamy effect while addressing the issue of climate change.
Meanwhile, other spectacular nuggets include Whiteley’s intricate finger-picking during the chugging “Fast Freight Train” and the blues-tinged “Mixed Up World.” Not to be outdone, Whiteley oozes French flair during the American Songbook standard “April In Paris,” and “New Growth,” which seems to meld world music influences for a song Whiteley penned as a birthday gift to his wife Ellen Manney (who sings on “So We Sing”). In short, fans of any great folk musician or singer-songwriter from Bruce Cockburn to Ron Sexsmith, Bob Dylan to James Taylor would be wise to seek Unseen Hands.
Additional musicians on Unseen Hands include Sundar Vishwanathan on bansouri flute and soprano sax, harmony vocalists Ciceal Levy and Adrienne Mackenzie, accordion player Tom Szczesniak, harmonica player Roly Platt, and string bassist Gord Mowat. As well, Whiteley has a bevy of backing vocalists for the closing “So We Sing,” including Anna Pappas, Keith Kemps, Lia Pappas Kemps, Nastasia Pappas Kemps, Joel Archimbeault, Catherine Stockhausen, Daisy Archimbeault.
Unseen Hands, the follow-up to 2023’s So Glad I’m Here, is another fine addition to Whiteley’s rich history. Having shared the stage with Pete Seeger, Tom Paxton and John Hammond Jr., among countless others, Whiteley has seven JUNO Award nominations in Blues, Roots and Traditional and Children’s genres. He has also earned two GRAMMY Award nominations and 22 JUNO Award nominations in various collaborations and was part of the dynamic trio Scarlett, Washington, and Whiteley alongside the late Mose Scarlett and Jackie Washington. Having received a Genie Award, 18 Maple Blues nominations and Lifetime Achievement Awards from various organizations including the Mariposa Folk Festival and with over 400 songs written, Ken Whiteley is a Canadian folk institution.
Now with a lovely lead single “Hole In The Clouds” and an equally inviting studio album in Unseen Hands, Ken Whiteley continues to both inspire and question like all great artists should.
Ken Whiteley Tour Dates:
November 24, 2024 — Hugh’s Room Live (2 p.m. start) — Toronto, ON (CD Release show with special guests Garnetta Cromwell, Georgia Harmer, Ciceal Levy and Bucky Berger)
December 7, 2024 — Metropolitan Community Church (two shows, 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.) — Toronto, ON (with the Metropolitan Community Church Choir, Kim Doolittle, Jason Jestadt music director)
December 12, 2024 — Shenkman Hall — Ottawa, ON (with Sultans of String Christmas Caravan)
December 19, 2024 — Victoria Hall — Cobourg, ON (with Sultans of String Christmas Caravan)
December 20, 2024 — Nineteen on the Park — Stouffville, ON (with Sultans of String Christmas Caravan)
December 21, 2024 — Hugh’s Room Live — Toronto, ON (with Sultans of String Christmas Caravan)
