The Gary Cain Band (Canada)

Gary Cain is a Canadian-born guitarist, singer, and songwriter with  one foot planted firmly in the blues, and the other foot planted in  seemingly everything else. He’s been called “ridiculously talented” and a  “jaw-dropper” by Blues Matters Magazine. The foundation of his  virtuosic style was laid via marathon practice sessions as a youngster  in his parents’ basement. “Back then it’s all I would do some days –  sometimes 13, 14 hours a day. I’d have to be reminded to eat.” says  Cain.

Long days poring over the musical styles of blues legends gave him a  deep respect for the music, but he’s not beholden to it. “I’m not a  purist.” he says, “What made those players so great was what they  brought to the music to make it their own. Albert King was the best  Albert King there’ll ever be. You gotta do your own thing with it.”

Cain’s music career eventually led him from the blues clubs in  Canada, to a 6-nights a week gig in Dubai in the house band of the  largest nightclub in the emirate at the time.  Playing cover tunes paid  well, but eventually saw Cain return to Canada burnt out. “I didn’t  touch my guitar for 3 months after I got back, which I hadn’t done sinceI first picked it up as a kid.  It had always been my favourite  thing, and somehow I’d made it into a chore.  Eventually I just thought  back to what made me love it in the first place, playing strictly for  the joy and expression of it, not to make money or fit other people’s  expectations.  Lots of people want you to fit into their box.  In the  end the most important thing is you stay true to yourself.  I’m thankful  to have learned that lesson early on and it’s something I’ll never  forget.”

The shut-downs and tour cancellations of COVID saw Cain return to the  woodshed for marathon days of practice and writing, culminating in his  second album, “Next Stop”, set to release May 6, 2022. Written and  recorded in Austin, Texas, the album sees Cain’s seat-of-the-pants  guitar playing, strong songwriting, and stylistic diversity on full  display.

In 2016 Gary placed 4th in the world in the blues category of Grammy  Winner Lee Ritenour’s Six String Theory guitar competition, judged by  such greats as Joe Bonamassa, Ry Cooder, and Joe Satriani. In 2018 he  opened for George Thorogood and the Destroyers, and was a semi-finalist  in the 2018 International Blues Challenge in Memphis. He has played at  festivals and clubs across Canada, the USA and Europe.