Me and the Mrs. tour brings music home

Laureen F. Guenther
Times Contributor

 

Me and the Mrs., the Rosebud-based duo Paul and Heather Zacharias who perform “honest and melodic” folk and roots music, are touring the western provinces this summer. Now they’re bringing their talents home to southern Alberta.
“We’ve been playing a bunch of new tunes and getting many requests to record these songs,” Paul Zacharias said. “People have been incredibly receptive. The shows have been so much fun.”
The couple have also enjoyed time with friends and family, and a visit to the tiny church in historic Barkerville, B.C., where Zacharias’s great-great-grandparents were married. And it was memorable to have a goat eat a hole in Heather Zacharias’s skirt at the Beacon Hill Park petting zoo in Victoria.
In Rosebud in early September, Me and the Mrs. will give two performances with two other Rosebud-rooted bands: The Fig and the Flame, and The Dearhearts.
“Our friends in these two bands are so talented and write amazing songs. This is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” Zacharias said. “The fact that we have these three bands all playing on the same night is a dream come true for us.”
The three groups will give a concert Sept. 3 in Rosebud’s Akokiniskway Gallery. Michael Janke of Six Two Six Productions will film the event. The next day, at the all-day 15 Minutes of Fame festival, the three bands will collaborate in a 45-minute set.
On Sept. 9, Me and the Mrs. will perform a concert at Calgary’s Cornerstone Music Cafe, which Zacharias calls “an intimate little venue where music lovers go to encounter new artists.”
Then on Sept. 10 at 7 p.m., they’ll be back in Wheatland County to perform for the Musical Arts Society at Kim’s Cafe in Strathmore.
“We’ll be playing tunes from both our albums and probably half the songs will be brand new material,” Zacharias said. “A new duet called ‘Rubies, Pearls and Jewels’ is a new favourite for us. It’s about two lovers at odds in an old fashioned western shootout.”
Tickets can be purchased online or at Marlin Travel, Pro Water Systems and Kim’s Cafe.
On Oct. 20 at 7 p.m., they’ll be at Hope Community Covenant Church for the 11th annual Hope Bridges Gala Artists Among Us, a celebration of the community’s diverse artistic talents. Tickets can be purchased at the door, starting at 6:30 pm.
“Hope Bridges Gala is a true celebration of the gift of sharing music,” Zacharias said. “It’s a joy-filled, open-handed offering. We’ve never experienced anything quite like it before and are so glad to be involved again this year.”
In the meantime, Me and the Mrs. are planning their third album.
“We’re taking the time we need to get the songs in front of audiences first to learn what’s working and what’s not, and fine-tune them in preparation for recording,” Zacharias said.
“So many of the concerts we play are to people that know nothing or next to nothing about us, and take a chance. Generally folks have a pretty great time.
“Come see us play this fall. If you don’t like the music, we’ll give you a free CD”
Sample Me and the Mrs. music at their website (www.meandthemrs.ca).