Ben Sures

Singer/songwriter Ben Sures is a winner in the folk category of the John Lennon songwriting contest and has twice won the International Songwriting Contest. He is a fan favourite for his lyrics and stories. Think Lyle Lovett meets Jack Johnson. Ben Sures is the perfect artist to have at any festival or concert event. The modern troubadour has to fill many shoes to stand out at festivals: Ben Sures has lasting stage presence, great songs, witty stories and a lot of soul.

The modern troubadour has to fill many shoes to stand out at festivals: Ben Sures has lasting stage presence, great songs, witty stories and a lot of soul. He ranks up there with the best of these with one foot rooted in the tradition of folksingers like Woody Guthrie and the other in the present trajectory of the modern world.

Ben has a gift for tapping into the human condition, the 30 something's heart and at the same time his anthem-esque songs like Used to Have a Raygun, Any Precious Girl and Everybody Matters, songs that give a voice to the silent few who cluster in their oddball groups.

Raised on The Winnipeg Folk Festival and his mother's record collection, Ben learned how to entertain an audience with the likes of Greg Brown and Taj Mahal's music. He has opened for The Preservation Hall Band, Ray Davies of The Kinks and Herman's Hermits, to name a few. Ben has played many of the major festivals in Canada where he not only makes his mark as an engaging performer and songwriter, but often ends up playing impromptu in other songwriter's bands at their request. During the 2011 festival season Ben played guitar with Linda Macrae (Spirit of The West), Corin Raymond, Ferron and a host of others. He has toured from the east to the west coast of Canada regularly for over a decade and this year he travels abroad to England, Ireland, Scotland and Beirut.

Ben has played guitar on numerous recordings and live shows by other songwriters including Paul Reddick, Rita Chiarelli, Angie Nussey, The Wyrd Sisters, Mireille Moquin, Ferron and many more.

Ben has five independent cd's available through iTunes and CD Baby. He has worked as a commissioned songwriter for CBC Radio in Winnipeg, Vancouver and Edmonton. Currently he is a semi-regular musical feature on the CBC hit sketch comedy program The Irrelevant Show and contributed music for film and television soundtracks including Sesame Street.

His latest album, Gone to Bolivia, is produced by Don Kerr of the Rheostatics and features Juno award winners The Good Lovelies, members of The Creaking Tree String Quartet, Michelle Rumball (Grievious Angels) and more. Praised for ?his best work yet? and that he ?has hit one over the fence with this release? (Penguin Eggs, Summer 2011), Ben Sures proves he's only getting better with time.

Discography
Gone to Bolivia- 2011
Field Guide To Loneliness- 2008
Good-bye Pretty Girl-May 2004
Live: Keep Fresh-2001
Ooh Wah Baby-1997
No Absolutes-1994

http://www.bensures.com/