Wow! What an end to the 2022-23 concert series at the Mary Webb Centre for the Arts. Whitehorse with guest Neville Quinlan put on two amazing performances that had the packed house totally enthralled for the whole evening.
Neville Quinlan, singer/song writer and lead singer for the Canadian alternative country band NQ Arbuckle, started off the evening with 45 minutes of fun, humour and wonderful songs from his new album “Love Songs For The Long Game”. Very entertaining.
Next, music director Peter Garapick brought Whitehorse onstage. They are a Canadian folk rock band, composed of husband-and-wife duo Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland, with the skilled drummer John Obercian. Doucet and McClelland were both established singer-songwriters before opting to put their solo careers on hold to work together as Whitehorse. Melissa had performed at The Mary Webb Centre many years ago, accompanied by Doucet. Both are incredible singers and accomplished guitarists, McClelland on bass and acoustic and Doucet playing several. Doucet was able to make his electric guitar sing.
Over the 3 years of Covid, they wrote and produced/had produced 3 different albums, and they sang many songs from those albums. As you can see in the picture below, they sang many songs face-to-face, totally demonstrating their love and admiration for each other. The concert didn’t end until 11:00 with an encore of Gordon Lightfoot’s song Sundown, that everyone up and dancing. Very few in the audience were in a rush to leave.
It was an exceptional rap to the 2022-23 season. Thanks to the Board of Directors, Marketing Committee and our many volunteers who have made this such a successful year at the Mary Webb Centre for the Arts.
Neville Quinlan
Whitehorse: l-r: Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland