MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: TOMMY GREEN JR. - LIVE AT SECOND WIND

Tommy Green Jr. travels all over the world in his self-confessed "sweet" gig, as a featured performer on cruise ships, so popular with vacationers he's renewed every season. But for this release, he sailed back home to Carleton Co., N.B., to play for family and friends at the new Second Wind Music Centre in Bristol. It was a chance to sing the songs and tell the stories to the very people who inspired many of them, and to show off the skills he's polished on the road, er, waves.

Green lets the tape roll to capture the stories that charm his audiences, with six of the ten cuts set up this way. These aren't rambled pauses while he tunes or in-jokes, it's a major part of his performance and a solid way to connect with people. While many performers don't like giving away the truth behind the songs, Green has us paying even closer attention, as we're now in on the secret. They aren't over-rehearsed either, and often are adlibbed for the occasion, such as the night in question, where we hear loving stories about his father and his grandfather, each in the audience.

That only makes songs such as 89 years, in celebration of that grandfather who hands out chocolate to everyone, or Turn The Jets On, the hockey advise he got from his dad. Then there's I Blame Toronto, which we all do to some degree, but for Green, it's because of a break-up. It's a rare skill, being this personable in performance, and the result is we like Green the person, so we like his songs even more.

Tommy Green Jr. is playing the Capital in Fredericton on Friday, Sept. 29, opening for Adyn Townes.