Johanna Sillanpaa In Concert

Canadian singer – songwriter Johanna Sillanpaa, who was born in Sweden, may be trying to put a little more distance between her and writing about deeply personal songs and yet the centerpiece of her recent concert in Alberta, Canada was the song “Soul,” from her new album Make Of Me. It is a love song, “Nothing else seems to matter / When I’m in with you / When You’re holding me / Nothing tops a true connection / Like our two hearts in harmony / This is my soul, heart and soul / All I am / Show me yours…”  Ms. Sillanpaa was at her best on this song as the audience was treated to her signature, soulful vocals. The song co-written with longtime songwriting collaborator Aaron Young, is a song whose beauty lies in the simple melody, words that are poetic and speak to the heart and instrumentals that are subtle and do not obscure the vocals. The song was performed during the first of two sets at Festival Place and featured a pretty acoustic guitar solo by Edmonton musician Jim Head.  

Johanna Sillanpaa is a testament to the belief that good talent always rises to the top. Despite living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, a great city, but geographically challenged due to its distance from major music venues and cities, Ms. Sillanpaa has performed at an Olympic Games venue, a major music festival in Berlin, Germany and the Montreal Jazz Festival. Johanna Sillanpaa has also twice been nominated for prestigious national music awards in Canada.

Johanna Sillanpaa was dressed entirely in black, with the exception of a gold lame mini skirt that was worn over black leggings and in addition to Jim Head, who also doubled on electric rhythm guitar, she was backed by bass guitarist Moni Matthew, drummer Jamie Cooper and longtime friend and songwriting co-writer Chris Andrew who played piano and the electric keys.  

Ms. Sillanpaa who featured mostly songs from her new album, Make Of Me, opened the evening with “Beautiful Love,” the first tune from her CD. The singer poses the question what is love? She arrives at the point where she realizes love is both bitter and sweet and is something that she both loathes and loves. The mood is contemplative, as she reflects upon a time in her past when she questioned whether love really exists and realizes she really desires to be in love again. The chemistry between Johanna Sillanpaa and Chris Andrew makes for a magical musical moment.  

The first set also featured two more original songs, “Sunny Day,” another Sillanpaa / Andrew co-write that allowed the audience to fully appreciate the R&B side of Johanna Sillanpaa’s music, something that music fans first embraced enthusiastically with the release of her Good Life album a few years ago.  The mood struck on “Sunny Day,” is one of love at the crossroads, “Let’s pretend, we’re still okay for another day,” yet pausing to savor the last few moments of a relationship that does have beautiful memories. It is about hoping for more and being seduced by emotions that resurface, “I’m still mesmerized by your eyes / You draw me in / And play me like a violin / And hopeless for another day...”

Although several of her songs, seemed to follow the theme of relationships and Ms. Sillanpaa she surprised herself with her songwriting, because she has been upbeat and she confessed to writing better when as she said, “I am miserable,” it is obvious once again that Johanna Sillanpaa is as gifted as a songwriter as she is a singer. Songs such as “Peace,” co-written with Aaron Young expresses the wish to go back to a former lover and being able to converse with grace and dignity, “even if it didn’t change a thing.”

Other highlights of the evening included a cover of the George and Ira Gershwin Jazz standard “I Got Rhythm,” that in places is more subtle than the original and in other spots Chris Andrew shines on piano as he borders on stride piano playing. “Linger,” co-written with Tyler Hornby and “Make Of Me,” (Sillanpaa and Young) are also well worth listening to and plunking down some cash for if you are thinking about purchasing Johanna Sillanpaa’s brand new album Make Of Me.  

You can listen to some of Johanna Sillanpaa's music on her website, including some songs from her new album Make Of Me

Reviewed by Joe Montague

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