Biography

Born out of a love for southern soul, blues and roots music and a passion to create a powerful and moving experience for listeners, Toronto band Bywater Call was formed by singer Meghan Parnell and guitar player Dave Barnes in 2017 soon joined by Bruce McCarthy on drums, Mike Meusel on Bass and Alan Zemaitis on Keys. In 2018, a 2-piece horn section was added in the form of Stephen Dyteon Trumpet and Julian Nalli on Tenor Sax. In the short time since, the7-piece band has made waves in the Toronto Blues scene (Winners of the 2018 Toronto Blues Society Talent Search) and the Festival Circuit, playing Main Stages at the Tremblant International Blues Festival, Donnacona Blues Festival, The TD Toronto Jazz Festival, the Toronto Beaches Jazz Festival and the Markham Jazz Festival, to name a few. In early 2020 Bywater Call will tour Europe through 9 countries in 45 days. A true testament to the band’s strong, stirring and inspiring live performance is that this has all come about before the recording and release of their self-titled album, set to debut on Nov 22, 2019. With elements of jam band, traditional blues, soul and rock and roll, with touches of New Orleans, Alabama and small town Ontario, with influences from The Band to Duane Allman, Aretha Franklin, Etta James, Otis Redding and Elmore James, with solid musicianship based in jazz, and gritty, raw and emotional vocals, Bywater Call seeks to strike to the core of all who listen.