Darrin Schott – mandolin, fiddle, vocals    Alison Schott – guitar, ukulele, vocals

Ian Bell – guitar, banjo, harmonica, vocals  Shane Cook – fiddle, mandolin

Matt Rait – bass, electric guitar

The Sandplains Pickers is an exciting new musical project a gang of us put together to play orginal songs and tunes. The band is comprised of  – myself, country and bluegrass favourites Darrin and Alison Schott, North American fiddle champ Shane Cook and bass and electric guitar player Matt Rait. In concert, the five members of this versatile band trade off on vocals, guitars, fiddles, mandolins, banjos, harmonica, concertina and string bass. Look forward to some great three-part harmony singing as well.

The Pickers’ songs include great originals by Ian, Darrin and Alison as well a songs by other Norfolk County songwriters including Bruce “House” Milner and the The Band’s Rick Danko. The group’s songs paint a picture of darkest Southwestern Ontario from Backus Mill, tobacco kilns and farm kitchens to the Summer Garden dancehall, motorcycles and Port Dover fishermen. The musical style ranges from old-time country and folk to western swing and always includes some blazing fiddle tunes as well.

Every selection provides a great platform for the virtuosic playing of Shane Cook, who is the only fiddler to have won both the Canadian and US fiddle championships and Darrin Schott on mandolin and fiddle, whose talents have led him to work with The Good Bros., Susan Aglukark, The Ennis Sister and even Stompin’ Tom Connors.

Email with enquiries – ian.bell@sympatico.ca