This Prolific songwriter/performer has released 6 albums, which have won him a host of awards and nominations from both the JUNOS and the East Coast Music Awards. Having previously recorded 5 critically acclaimed albums of his songs in the English language, Gallant fulfilled a long held dream of recording an album in the language of his roots. The album, Le Vent Bohème, has received much praise in the French press and a great deal of airplay on radio. It won Francophone Album of the Year at the 2003 East Coast Music Awards, Acadian Artist of the Year at the Gala Éloizes, and Album and Artist of the Year at the Gala des Étoiles this past November.
Le Vent Boheme has received much praise in the Acadian press and a great deal of airplay. It won Album of the Year at the 2003 East Coast Music Awards, Acadian Artist of the Year at the Gala Eloizes, and Album of the Year at the Gala des Etoiles this past November. "It's an absolutely wonderful CD (Le vent bohème), the lyrics are powerful and the music is sensational" Bernard St Laurent, CBC Radio
2003 was also the year that saw one of the country's highest honours bestowed on Gallant for his contribution to Canadian culture when it was announced he is to be named to the Order of Canada "Gallant has garnered much respect for his hard hitting songs chronicling the lives of people dealing with tremendous adversity and serious issues. Songs like Peter's Dream, Island Clay, Man of Steel and The Hope for Next Year, articulate the feelings of many caught up in desperate situations beyond their control, and at the same time celebrate the beauty of lifestyle and landscape with their strong poetry and stirring narratives."
As a performer, Gallants intense delivery reaches down to the very soul of his audience, moving effortlessly through stirring narratives, comic observations, and hard driving rhythms. He has toured extensively playing festivals and concerts across the continent and in Europe accompanied by full bands, symphony orchestras, and in acoustic trio settings. We've been used to welcoming visitors from Canada's east coast in recent years. The biggest impression of all, though, could be the one Lennie Gallant makes when word about him reaches beyond the dedicated seekers of transatlantic talent who investigated this Scottish debut!" - The Herald Glasgow, Scotland
Other performers obviously believe in Gallant's writing abilities as over 30 artists have recorded his songs internationally, including Jimmy Buffett on his recent release. "I have always wanted to bring Lennie Gallant's music to the forefront" Jimmy Buffett. Gallant has also written for films, theatre, documentaries, and special events. He co-wrote the theme song for the first World Acadian Congress, and for Pier 21 Canada's immigration gateway museum. He was also asked to write a song for Halifax's 250th anniversary which was then performed with a choir of 2000 voices on one of the two bridges spanning the harbour.
Lennie Gallant is considered to be one of the strongest concert performers in Canada and he has been called a leading light in the burgeoning roots music movement that has taken place on the country's East Coast as his 13 ECMA wins [a record number for a solo artist] clearly demonstrates. Much of his early experience in Celtic and Acadian traditional music shows up in subtle ways in the contemporary music he is creating today. He is able to keep his songwriting and stagecraft fresh yet instill it with a depth that can only be gained from having been there and done that.
He has shared the stage with such accomplished songwriters as Lucinda Williams, Patti Griffin, Ron Sexsmith and Roger Hodgson [Supertramp] and has represented Canada at songwriter events in Nashville and Kerrville festivals [Texas].
"Our northern neighbor has given us some of the best songwriters living today. You can add Lennie Gallant to that list." - Perfoming Songwriter, Nashville.
Lennie Gallant is a board member of The Songwriters Association of Canada, and is a spokesperson for UNESCO.
