Bloor Annex Summer Music Series: Collette Savard

Just a kid from North Bay who fell in love with songs and the things with strings one needs to make them, Collette Savard has made the best of her time chained inside the Tower Of Song. Savard independently released three albums with her long time partner, producer and multi-instrumentalist John Zytaruk (Most Improved Cheerleader, 2005; Zen Boyfriend, 2008; Best Dress, 2012). It is now her great delight to be releasing her first album (due January 2018) with her Cadillac of a band, The Savants, featuring backup singer/percussionist Rebecca Campbell (Jane Siberry, Ian Tamblyn…), bassist and producer John Switzer (Jane Siberry, Vance Gilbert, Katherine Wheatley etc.) drummer Martin Worthy (Joe Hall, Paul Quarrington), guitarist Tim Posgate (So Long Seven, The Cluttertones…) and keyboardist Megan Worthy (her dad Martin Worthy! Among many other Toronto bands). Collette’s influences and the unique songs that reflect them range from the French folk tunes and the old country music that shaped her youth to singer-songwriter greats like Joni Mitchell, Tom Petty, Tom Waits and Lucinda Williams. Her compositions, written on a whimsical array of folk instruments, are sung in a smooth and sultry country blues style that somehow also betrays her love of Edith Piaf. Their topics range from love and loss to mental health and self-empowerment and always manage to strike a chord with her diverse audiences. Fans, drawn in by Savard’s poignant lyrics and soulful melodies, remain fixated by her charming, authentic stage presence and ultimately leave with one of her catchy pop choruses in their heads.