Cranking out the music

St. Boniface

West End

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This article was published 19/03/2025 (436 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Stephen Fearing is looking forward to being on the road again, and he’s happy to be receiving a little help from his friends.

When the renowned, Juno-winning Canadian folksinger-songwriter takes the stage at the West End Cultural Centre on March 29, he’ll be joined onstage by Winnipeg visual artist and musician James Culleton, who will spool a custom-made crankie during The Empathist, the title track from Fearing’s just-released new album.

“A crankie is a pretty old thing, at least 100 years old, and it’s like a picture in a box that you can crank along to a song,” Culleton said. “It’s a storytelling device.”

“I’ll be on stage with Stephen cranking the crankie.”

Culleton said he was taken aback when Fearing, whom he doesn’t know, reached out, but he’s happy to be part of the fun. He was recommended to the singer-guitarist by their mutual friend Leonard Podolak, founder of Winnipeg’s Crankie Festival which, in its day, celebrated the old-time art form.

“I was shocked when I looked at my phone and saw Stephen Fearing had called me,” Culleton said. “He’s kind of a legend, so it was a little mind-blowing.”

Culleton, who has worked with local entertainers including Al Simmons and Ray (Coco) Stevenson, said the crankie he created for Fearing will be situated inside an old suitcase. He will crank it in front of a camera as Fearing plays the song, and the images will be projected on a screen onstage.

Fearing, also known as part of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings — along with Colin Linden and Tom Wilson — said he’s looking forward to playing in the city again. Over his nearly 40-year career, the 62-year-old musician has performed multiple times at the Winnipeg Folk Festival, the WECC and the Burton Cummings Theatre.

“Winnipeggers are unique, and many will know what a crankie is more than anyone else,” he said. “I first came across a crankie in Ireland, and it’s a very visual art form. It’s a kind of magic lantern, a very old art form, and I was looking for someone in Canada to help me with that,” he added, explaining how he came to work with Culleton.

The Empathist, his 16th solo record, was recorded last year in Nashville, Tenn., and co-produced by Grammy-nominated Wilco drummer Ken Coomer. It was released March 14.

“Being in Nashville was very exciting,” he said. “I’ve had the pleasure to play at the Grand Ole Opry, and to know I was in the town where people like Hank Williams and Kitty Wells were was one of those amazing feelings.”

As the tour progresses, Fearing is also looking forward to travelling across the country with Danish group The Sentimentals — not least because of the recent upturn in patriotic pride due to the ongoing economic battles with the U.S.

“I’m very excited to see my Danish friends and travel across Canada. I’ve had the great pleasure of touring across places such as Holland, Germany and the U.K., and now I get to show them my country,” he said.

“(The music on this record) is very present, and it’s like stretching a rubber band to the limit — I’m really excited to unleash this.”

Visit www.stephenfearing.ca for more information.