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Musicians have more in common than just a name

New trio The Gords met while touring with musician Ian Tyson
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The Gords – Gordon Lee Worden

There’s three of them – Gords, that is.

Gordon Lee Worden, Gord Maxwell and Gord Matthews met as session musicians for Canadian folk legend Ian Tyson.

As work with Tyson winds down, the three men are hitting the road as a group to promote their first album.

“We were known as ‘The Gords’ for years,” Worden said, of their collective nickname in Tyson’s band. “It was, like, we just have to do this.”

With each of the three songwriters coming from a different background, their combined sound is a mix of roots, retro 70s, pop and blues.

“If you ask each of us what we play, we’ll come up with different answers,” Worden said. “Everything we do is a melting pot.”

Their career experience has been a melting pot, too.

Matthews backed k.d. lang in the 1980s, which included two performances on David Letterman, plus spots on Saturday Night Live and the Grammy Awards. Maxwell fronted his own band, One Horse Blue, and is a sought-after singer and bassist who performed with country singers Ridley Bent, Lisa Brokop and Aaron Pritchett.

Worden played with Nick Gilder in Sweeney Todd, plus session work and touring in Asia and Europe.

The Gords recorded their first album, Pick, piecing it together from a short studio session and individual bits of recordings captured in their homes in Oregon, Coquitlam and Alberta.

Then producer Tom McKillip, whom they also knew from the Tyson connection, put it all together.

“He made sure we were all playing the same song at the same time,” Worden said.

As they head out on tour, Worden said they only have good feelings about where the band is headed.

“We already have enough material for three albums,” Worden said.

The Gords perform at the Queen’s Sunday (Aug. 26) at 8 p.m. Doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets $15/advance; $20/door. Please call 250-754-6751.

arts@nanaimobulletin.com