Yukon singer-songwriter Gordie Tentrees embraces country blues on his 11-track album, recorded live with Jimmy Bowskill and Steve Marriner.
Whitehorse, Yukon-based singer-songwriter Gordie Tentrees embraces his country blues roots on his latest album, Dandelion Blue, an 11-song collection exploring life in northern Canada. Recorded with acclaimed Canadian blues musicians Jimmy Bowskill and Steve Marriner, the album captures the raw chemistry of three musicians working together in an intimate studio setting.
Dandelion Blue follows Tentrees’ 2025 collaboration with Jaxon Haldane, Double Takes, which Americana UK described as “ten songs packed with melody, musicianship and morals.”
The new album was recorded over five days at Ganaraska Recording, an Ontario farmhouse studio operated by Bowskill and Marriner. Working live off the floor with vintage recording equipment dating back to the 1930s, the trio set out to capture the warmth and spontaneity of traditional country blues.
The album’s latest focus track, “Ganaraska Gold,” pays tribute to the recording experience, inviting listeners into the intimate musical environment that shaped the project.
“I felt ready to create a record with minimal overdubs that sounded like a couple of pickers on a front porch who the listener happens to stumble upon. I wrote to Jimmy and Steve and they both loved the idea, and their studio was absolutely perfect for capturing the kind of magic I was looking for.”
Gordie Tentrees Dandelion Blue – A Live Recording Experience
After laying down six songs in quick succession, Tentrees, Bowskill, and Marriner quickly recognized the musical chemistry developing between them.
With Tentrees performing on National steel guitar and harmonica, alongside drums and upright bass from his collaborators, the sessions unfolded naturally. The remaining songs were completed with the same spontaneous approach, followed by a handful of mandolin and harmonica overdubs.
The result exceeded Tentrees’ expectations.
“I am in a place where I now feel comfortable singing and playing guitar and harp all at once in a studio without overdubbing each,” Tentrees explains. “This is, to me, a unique sounding record—just three guys working together. It’s important for me to try new things and I enjoy failing along the way, but I feel something special happened here.”
Rather than relying on elaborate production, Dandelion Blue places the emphasis on musicianship, storytelling, and the natural interplay between three accomplished performers.
Gordie Tentrees Brings Northern Stories to Dandelion Blue
Although born and raised in Ontario, Gordie Tentrees has spent much of his adult life in the Yukon, where he has raised his family and developed close connections with local Indigenous communities.
His experiences living in northern Canada continue to shape his songwriting, bringing personal observations and regional stories into his country blues sound.
An internationally travelled performer, Tentrees has appeared at major festivals, including Celtic Connections in the United Kingdom, National Folk Festival in Australia, Woody Guthrie Folk Fest in the United States, and Auckland Folk Festival in New Zealand.
He has also shared stages with artists including Fred Eaglesmith, Mary Gauthier, Danny Michel, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and Steve Poltz.
A troubadour in the truest sense, Tentrees continues to build a career around storytelling and live performance. With Dandelion Blue, he explores another dimension of his artistry, drawing inspiration from the traditions of artists such as Ry Cooder and John Hammond while maintaining his own distinctly Canadian perspective.