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Juno Awards 2020: Montreal’s jazz scene reigns supreme

By 2020/06/29

Jazz and blues artists from Montreal won nearly all their categories in this year’s Juno Awards, which were finally announced Monday after being delayed for several months. The Juno Awards gala was supposed to take place in Saskatoon back in March, but it was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, the awards ceremony took place virtually in a CBC Music live stream on Monday evening. Montreal singer Dominique Fils-Aimé won the Juno for vocal jazz album of the year for her second record, Stay Tuned! The album, which was also shortlisted for the Polaris Prize, is the second in a trilogy exploring different styles of Black music, beginning with the blues record Nameless in 2018 and to be followed by a third album exploring soul, hip hop, funk and R&B.

<a href="http://singwithmi.bandcamp.com/album/stay-tuned">Stay Tuned! by Dominique Fils-Aimé</a>

Trumpeter and composer Jacques Kuba Séguin was awarded jazz album of the year: solo for his album Migrations. Billed as “one of Montreal’s most adventurous musicians,” Séguin returned to a more classic form of jazz for this album. He based each of the compositions on interviews with people from various cultural communities in Quebec and wanted to use the music to encourage openness in others. Séguin has previously been nominated for two Félix Awards and one Prix Opus.

<a href="http://jacqueskubaseguin.bandcamp.com/album/jacques-kuba-s-guin-migrations">Jacques Kuba Séguin: MiGRATIONS by Jacques Kuba Séguin: MiGRATIONS</a>

In the third jazz category, Ernesto Cervini’s Turboprop won the Juno for jazz album of the year: group for their third album, Abundance. The award comes two years after the Toronto-based drummer and his sextet were first nominated for their sophomore release, Rev. In total, Cervini has released six albums as a leader (three of them with a quartet) while also co-leading two trios: TuneTown and the Juno-nominated Myriad3.

<a href="http://anzicstore.com/album/abundance">Abundance by Ernesto Cervini’s Turboprop</a>

Montreal-based “blues diva” Dawn Tyler Watson’s record Mad Love was named blues album of the year. Among the singer-songwriter’s previous honours are two Maple Blues Awards and a Canadian Folk Music Award.

The biggest awards of the night went to Shawn Mendes for artist of the year and Alessia Cara for album of the year. Among the evening’s many presenters were jazz and blues favourites Laila Biali, Tom Wilson and Florence K.

Here are all the 2020 nominees in the Junos’ jazz and blues categories, with the winners in bold.

Vocal Jazz Album of the Year

Bria Skonberg – Nothing Never Happens
Dominique Fils-Aimé – Stay Tuned!
Elizabeth Shepherd – MONTRÉAL
Jazz Affair – Wishes
Monkey House – Friday

Jazz Album of the Year: Solo

Jacques Kuba Séguin – Migrations
Joel Miller – Unstoppable
John Stetch – Black Sea Suite
Ted Quinlan – Absolutely Dreaming
The Mark Kelso Jazz Project – The Chronicles of Fezziwig

Jazz Album of the Year: Group

Al Muirhead’s Canadian Quintet – Undertones
Brad Turner Quartet with Seamus Blake – Jump Up
Dave Young Trio – Trouble in Mind
Ernesto Cervini’s Turboprop – Abundance
Jane Bunnett and Maqueque – On Firm Ground / Tierra Firme

Blues Album of the Year

Big Dave McLean – Pocket Full of Nothin’
Dawn Tyler Watson – Mad Love
Durham County Poets – Hand Me Down Blues
Michael Jerome Browne – That’s Where It’s At
Whitehorse – The Northern South Vol. 2