One of the most celebrated Canadian roots musicians of all time, having sold in excess of 500,000 albums, Ashley MacIsaac has gained international acclaim for his hard-nosed, traditional Cape-Breton style fiddling, and then some. “Brilliant fiddle chops, flying bows, bouncy tunes and stomping feet” – Champion fiddler, entertainer extraordinaire, MacIsaac brings , who leads with a right foot when he plays a tune, leans slightly forward and stomps it hard while he fiddles left-handed with unbelievable precision, speed and savage energy.

He has appeared on the Conan O’Brian show, the Today Show and has been a spotlight at international festivals, theatres and halls all over the world. He has also been featured on Bravo’s celebrity series “Star Portraits” and CBC’s acclaimed series “Life & Times”.

The CD titled “Crossover” is Ashley MacIsaac's first full band recording since 2002. No frills, just great music by a proud Canadian who shreds on a fiddle like no one else can.  With the exciting musical experiments and collaborations of recent years still in his mind, Ashley became energized again with the release of “Crossover”, the first album in this style in ten years.  With Celtic crossovers such as the beautiful “She’s A Rare One”, sung by Mary Jane Lamond. “I begged Mary Jane to sing my favourite old Gaelic song,” MacIsaac recalls, “finally she did and it was worth all the begging! Mary Jane Lamond is indeed a rare one.” There is also the bittersweet ballad “White Velvet”, the lyrics, which MacIsaac credits as the inspiration for the entire album, are coupled with music influenced by his Catholic upbringing. Of course we can also expect electrifying, fast paced Power Rock Fiddle songs like “Poka Rokin.” “This was my dad's favourite Cape Breton step dance tune which I kicked up one powerful notch!”   

 Ashley describes this record as his proper answer to his 1995 multi-platinum record “Hi How Are You Today?” and while having made 7 more albums and ventured into many different genres since then; the album manages to echo his first big hit while also containing different styles which span the range of influences and musical textures that Ashley has discovered throughout his life.

Ashley has just completed a new collection of tunes with Barbara MacDonald Magone called Beautiful Lake Ainslie, a collection of traditional tracks performed with Piano and Fiddle, recorded in Windsor at Polaris Studios this past June.

Ashley MacIsaac will be performing at the North Peace Cultural Centre on Saturday October 27 at 7:30 pm. Advance tickets are available from the box office, by phone at (250) 785-1992 and online. Adult tickets $35($40 at the door), Advance Youth (18 & under) $30 ($35 at the door).