Blue Rodeo

With their superb 16^th studio album Many A Mile, legendary alt-country/rockers Blue Rodeo discovered that even nightmares like COVID-19 can have silver linings. After decades of non-stop performing, time off the road granted them (enforced, really) much-needed downtime during which creativity bloomed. The resulting 12 songs are remarkably coherent, energized, and buoyed by a constellation of surprising textures and touches. From the twinkly, delicate “Symmetry of Starlight” — which soars on luminous pedal steel and angelic harmonies — to the twangy, seriously rollicking singles “When You Were Wild” and “I Owe It to Myself,” Many A Mile is a snapshot of a peerless group at their peak.

The album is also a fitting addition to Blue Rodeo’s canon of achievements which include the Order of Canada, induction in the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, and more than 30 JUNO Award wins and nominations.