In the summer of 2021, Toronto southern soul band Bywater Call took the stage to film “Live at The Empire”. It was the first time doing so in Canada since November 2019’s sold out CD release at Hugh’s Room Live, and at that moment, in a beautiful, empty auditorium in Belleville, Ontario, they could see a tiny shimmer of light; the possible end of a very long tunnel.

The Maple Blues and Independent Blues nominated band, returned from their 2020 European tour, just days prior to the industry shutting down for what felt like a lifetime. From the void of these difficult and strange times, new tunes and a new passion for performing emerged.
On Friday, November 19th, Bywater will release this energetic and emotional “Live at the Empire” production on their Youtube channel for a limited time. Keep an eye out in the comments for the official streaming link.

If you’re familiar with the band, you know the raw powerful vocals of Meg Parnell and the singing slide guitar of Dave Barnes. As always, featuring the talents of Alan Zemaitis (Keys), Mike Meusel (Bass), Bruce McCarthy (Drums), Julian Nalli (Sax) and Stephen Dyte (Trumpet), and joined for the first time by Mario Allende (Percussion), Tafari Anthony (Background Vocals) and Nick Ferraro (Background Vocals), this show is a true feast for the ears, eyes, and soul.

The show is free to all, but if you would like to make a donation, you can do so here: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bywat....

Special thanks to The Empire Theatre in Belleville and the amazing crew there, Gypsy Soul Records, RHC Studios, Samantha Martin, Alex Coleman and his team, and of course, FACTOR and Canada Council for the Arts.

“‘Bywater Call’ is an exuberant musical hybrid of rock, blues, New Orleans funk, r&b and southern soul. And while the focus is inevitably on the arresting vocals of Meghan Parnell, she is part of a road tested band with a vibrant horn section that is sparked by the significant dynamic guitar parts of Dave Barnes” - Get Ready to Rock Magazine