JIMMY RANKIN

Canadian singer songwriter Jimmy Rankin, grew up in the small village of Mabou on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia where modern-day influences blend seamlessly with the time-honoured Gaelic traditions and music of the community’s Scottish immigrants. This unique cultural milieu greatly influenced Jimmy as a songwriter and performer. Says Rankin: I cut teeth playing at weddings and dancehalls around Cape Breton - where entertainment meant playing a mix of traditional songs, the latest pop radio hits, folk music and fiddle tunes. I incorporate all of those elements in my songwriting and music - along with a healthy dose of life experience.

After graduating with a degree in Fine Arts from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Jimmy started his career as front-man and primary songwriter for The Rankin Family. The Rankins rose to the top of the Canadian music scene and international fame in the 1990s, winning 5 Juno Awards including the coveted Entertainer of the Year award and selling over two million albums. In 1999, The Rankin Family disbanded.

In 2001, Jimmy embarked upon a solo career with his critically acclaimed CD, Song Dog. Like any painter worth his salt, Jimmy Rankin knows how to make a lasting impression. Except that, as a man who has won six SOCAN-sponsored ECMA-and-Juno Songwriter Of The Year Awards for radio hits such as "Fare Thee Well Love," "You Feel The Same Way Too," "Followed Her Around" and "Midnight Angel," his canvas isn't restricted to an easel and a few tubes of paint.

It's framed by experience -- and depending on how the Cape Breton native channels his idea -- a masterstroke of an alt. country, adult-contemporary or rock-flavoured arrangement depicting his life, emotions and observations with resonating finesse. From the sea-faring strains of "We’ll Carry" on and the stirring ballad, "Lighthouse Heart" to the homage to the home-town kid gone wrong Tripper, many of Jimmy’s most poignant songs are about life and people in his native Cape Breton.

Just hand him a guitar -- preferably an acoustic Gibson; give him a little think-time and watch Jimmy -- no, hear him -- weave some aural magic.

Here is a brief history of Jimmy’s solo career. · 2001 - Jimmy embarked on a solo career with his critically acclaimed CD, Song Dog. His first solo effort won numerous awards including Best New Solo Artist - Adult Contemporary at the Canadian Radio Music Awards, a SOCAN top radio play award for "Followed Her Around" and two Juno nominations. · In 2003, he returned with Handmade, another treasure-trove of roots-rock/alt-country gems which spawned top-ten radio and video hits. · In 2007, Jimmy released his 3rd solo CD, Edge of Day produced by Colin Linden (Lucinda Williams, Bruce Cockburn, Emmylou Harris). Songs on Edge of Day fuse roots, rock, pop and alt-country based on live studio sessions, building on Jimmy’s previous radio & video cross-over successes. · In addition to completing numerous successful solo headline Canadian tours, Jimmy has opened for Keith Urban, John Prine and Great Big Sea on their national tours. Says Urban of his touring with Rankin: "I’ve been a Jimmy Rankin fan for a while. And to be able to hear him play every night was enough for me to want to go on this tour" (Source: Calgary Sun) · While still maintaining his solo career, Jimmy reunited with The Rankins in 2007. In 2009, The Rankin Family release a new studio recording, These are the Moments followed by a national Canadian tour which was in the top 100 tours worldwide for the first quarter of 2009. Their 2008 CTV television special debuted to an audience in excess of 1 million viewers. · Awards include: 5 Junos, 23 East Coast Music Awards, 6 SOCAN top radio play Awards, 4 Canadian Country Music Awards, 2 Canadian Radio Music Awards including Best New Solo Artist - Adult Contemporary.