J.P. Cormier is a man with many musical talents. He is a skilled songwriter, a gifted singer, and an extraordinary musician who has accomplished success with more than one instrument. During his long career, he has won many competitions, including the Canadian Open Guitar Championship, the Southern U.S. Fiddle Championship, and the Southern U.S. Banjo Championship. He has also worked with a number of big-name artists and appeared on the ever-popular Grand Ol' Opry over two dozen times. His debut album, Out of the Blue, was released when he was only 16 years old.
Cormier was born in London, Ontario, Canada. When most kids were just starting kindergarten, he was already showing a strong interest in music. Soon that interest proved to be an impressive natural talent. He taught himself to play the guitar. It would only be the first of many string instruments he would master in the coming years.
Not long after Cormier's ninth birthday, he won his first guitar competition, holding his own against musicians of all ages. He landed his first steady professional job when he was only 14. It was a weekly bluegrass television show called Up Home Tonight. Two years later came the release of a debut album filled with instrumental bluegrass music that showcased his guitar skills. After some time appearing at a number of festivals, Cormier became the mandolin player for the famous bluegrass-gospel group the Sullivan Family. He spent a number of years afterward touring with the group, and with other major artists.
In 1997, Cormier, all grown-up, finally finished a sophomore offering, Another Morning, for his fans. The award-winning recording was followed by a third full-length album, Heart & Soul. Along the way to making a name for himself, Cormier has performed with countless artists, the list reading something like a who's who in music. J.P.’s impressive body of work has earned him a vast and loyal fan base and multiple award nominations and wins, including 14 East Coast Music Awards, Canadian Folk Music Award, five Music Nova Scotia Awards, Juno nominations, commendations from the Governor General of Canada and Premier of Nova Scotia. His 2015 album, The Chance, was nominated for a Juno award in the Traditional Roots Album of the Year category while his 2018 release with Dave Gunning, Gunning & Cormier – Two, won a 2019 East Coast Music Award.
Dave Gunning is a Canadian folk singer-songwriter born in Pictou County, Nova Scotia. Gunning credits the first live concert he ever observed, a 1981 double bill of John Allan Cameron and Stan Rogers, to be a major driving force in shaping the direction his life would take as a musician."That show changed my life. I would not be writing and playing folk music if not for seeing that concert and every other John Allan performance in Pictou County.”
Over the span of his career, Gunning has released ten albums, received a Juno Award nomination and has been awarded two Canadian Folk Music Awards and recognized with eight East Coast Music Awards.
He is known for the incorporation of story telling into his live show. In particular, Gunning relates anecdotes of notable characters from Pictou County and performs impressions of musicians that he has worked with over the years.
The track "A Game Goin' On" from Gunning's album No More Pennies was submitted to the Great Canadian Song Quest (2013 edition: Hockey Night In Canada Song Quest). The song was named as a top 10 finalist of the contest.[3] On January 1, 2014, during the NHL Winter Classic "A Game Goin' On" was announced as the winner.