It’s only a two-hour early show but a Friday March 7 performance by Howard Gladstone, backed by a powerful pair of accompanists, will pack a lot into it for those able to make it to the Tranzac Club.

From 7:30-9:30 in the Southern Cross Room of the club at 292 Brunswick Ave., in the heart of TO’s Annex area, Gladstone will unveil tunes from his forthcoming fifth album, perform some of the selections from his previous four, and give away ten copies of what I’ve already described as his breakthrough Roots & Rain album from a few years ago.

You can expect to hear tunes such as “Tammy (The Wheels of Justice)” which he wrote for an unjustly accused and imprisoned mother (since released) and the brilliantly iconic ballad “Mercy of The Wind” (both from RAR) as well as quite likely other memorable tunes such as “Too Many Voices Gone Silent” and the title track “Candles On The River” from that album.

I’d also bet that he’ll perform “Gridlock City” from the forthcoming new disc –he shared that with us at one of my open stage nights in November and received a very positive crowd response to its clever and pithy lyrics.

Although known best as an advocate for social justice in his songs (as some of the titles make plain) Gladstone also has a tender, wistful element to some of his writing that suits his somewhat dry yet compelling vocals.

But any stoic reserve in Gladstone’s singing is more than compensated for by the rich lushness of the accompanying musicians he chooses. For this show he’ll be have deft and delightful guitarist Tony Quarrington (recently honoured by a special Honouring Our Own tribute concert at the 2014 Winterfolk Festival for his musical skills and contributions to the Roots scene) and stand-up bassist Tony Laviola on hand.

It’s a pay-what-you-can affair and I’d suggest a prompt arrival because you won’t want to miss a single tune. There will also be copies of all four of his previous albums available at just $10 each. –Gary 17