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Overview
Mountain music from the Grand River Valley: Onion Honey is a 4-piece old-time string band that plays a mix of traditional and original folk music as well as classic country and bluegrass covers. The band typically plays into one mic "bluegrass style" - low maintenance, dynamic performance, great sound - but can accommodate all kinds of setups and sound requirements from entirely acoustic to fully plugged in. 10 years' experience playing weddings, festivals, farmers' markets, birthday parties, fundraisers, restaurants large and small, and much more. Send us your ideas!
3 Reviews
Onion Honey more than delivered! We could not have asked for a better band to play at our wedding. Day of decisions based on the space resulted in the band playing us down the aisle unplugged making it even more intimate and matched the mood perfectly. The instruments played acoustically, unreal melodies, and their beautiful arrangements added such a beautiful touch to our ceremony. They continued through cocktail hour playing a wide variety of songs including many we requested, which ended in rapturous applause from our guests. We are so glad that we heard about Onion Honey and they were available for our wedding.
Folk Band, Acoustic Band, Americana Band, Banjo Player, Bluegrass Band, Guitarist, Mandolin Player, Multi-Instrumentalist, Singing Guitarist, Wedding Band
My guests and I were super pleased and entertained by the sweet sounds of Onion Honey at our backyard birthday party / pig roast event. My Bernese mountain dog took a liking to the tunes as well, cuddling right up to Dave and Esther mid-set. Thanks to the both of them for leaning in. I can't recommend their music or their professionalism enough. Thanks guys!
Acoustic Band, Banjo Player, Folk Band
Response from Onion Honey:
Thanks so much Karin! We loved being a part of your (very cool) birthday celebration and especially getting to hang out with Avalanche 💜
Photos from this event
Great group for listening and dancing too. Really enjoyed the show
Folk Band
Booking Info
Price Range: $200 and up
Gig Length: 30 - 240 minutes
Languages: English
What to Expect
Onion Honey is a four-piece folk band, with the capability to play as a duo or quartet. We play a mix of traditional and original folk & bluegrass songs, ranging from the full hoedown experience to more mellow background music, and can customize our setlist to suit an event as needed. We play banjo, guitar, mandolin, and double bass and all members sing.
About
Onion Honey may hail from Ontario’s tech capital, but musicians Dave Pike, Esther Wheaton, Leanne Swantko, and Kayleigh LeBlanc play folk music like an old-fashioned string band. The multi-talented lineup all sing lead and harmony, write songs, and pass around banjo, guitar, mandolin, and double bass in performance - and three years of weekly ‘Banjo Church’ livecasts through lockdown has polished their onstage rapport and banter to a high shine.
The band released Foul Weather Friends in May 2023, their first professional studio album after over a decade of self-produced music. Recorded live off the floor and engineered by Andy Magoffin at his House of Miracles, Roots Music Canada praised the album’s “out-of-this-world harmonies and sweet, tart, string-band sound” and the band’s “catchy-as-hell little ditties that could easily pass for traditional, with a sense of humour that sets them apart from their contemporaries.”
Onion Honey has been heard on radio stations across Canada, showcased at Folk Music Ontario in 2023, and have performed at a number of festivals including Banjofest in Guelph, Springtide Festival in Uxbridge, Cambridge’s Mill Race Folk Festival, Winterfolk in Toronto, River Valley Bluegrass Festival, and more.
Additional Booking Notes
Onion Honey is a four-piece band, with the capability to trim down to a duo. We can play acoustically in a smaller intimate venue, or we can play amplified as necessary.
We typically play huddled around one condenser microphone, so our tech needs are low, and we can bring our own sound equipment if needed. We can plug in and use individual mics if the venue needs it; just ask us for a stage map.
Services Offered
Set List
Darlin' Corey (Trad)
East Virginia Blues (Carter Family)
Old Dan Tucker (Trad)
Frankie (Trad)
John Henry (Trad)
Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms (Trad)
The Cuckoo (Trad)
O Babe It Ain't No Lie (Elizabeth Cotten)
The Salish Sea (Original)
Distant Land to Roam (Carter Family)
Goodnight Irene (Trad)
Will the Circle Be Unbroken? (Trad)
Falsehearted Chicken (Trad)
Long Winter Blues (Original)
Railroad Bill (Trad)
Let the Mermaids Flirt With Me (Mississippi John Hurt)
Old Home Place (JD Crowe)
Old Joe Brook (Original)
Paradise (John Prine)
Sittin' on Top of the World (Mississippi Sheiks)
Cornbread and Butterbeans (Trad)
Sleepy-Eyed John (Trad)
Mealy Apple Blues (Original)
Hoedown Tea (Original)
Safe Home (Original)
Jeannie and the Sailor (Original)
Lonesome Road Blues (Trad)
500 Miles (Hedy West)
Freight Train (Elizabeth Cotten)
True to Her Track (Original)
Oh Susannah (Trad)
Zombie Love Song (Original)
How Many Biscuits Can You Eat This Morning? (Trad)
False Knight on the Road (Trad)
Lumberjack Blues (Original)
Shoefly Pie (Original)
The Fox (Trad)
Boxcar Betty Blues (Original)
Crabbuckit (K-Os by way of the Good Lovelies)
Don't Bother Me None (Original)
If I Had a Hammer (Pete Seeger)
In the Pines (Lead Belly)
Isn't It Funny? (Original)
Peg & Awl (Trad)
Who Taught You to Say Can't? (Original)
I'll Fly Away (Trad)
Boozefighters (Trad)
Hard Times Come Again No More (Trad)
Spanish Pipedream (John Prine)
Hydration Blues (Original)
Horse to Water (Original)
Harvest (Neil Young)
New Shoes (Foghorn Stringband)
No Love Today (Chris Smither)
I Quit My Job (Old Man Luedecke)
Pickled Sheriff Yodel (Original)
Lady Killer (Woot Suit Riot)
No Quarter (Original)
Old Millstone (Original)
Always Keep an Edge on Your Knife (Corb Lund)
Layers (Original)
Buck Up (Carsie Blanton)
Team
| Dave Pike | Vocal, Guitar, Mandolin |
| Esther Wheaton | Vocal, Banjo |
| Leanne Swantko | Vocal, Guitar, Mandolin |
| Kayleigh LeBlanc | Vocal, Upright Bass |
Influences & Inspiration
Foghorn Stringband, Alison Krauss, The Good Lovelies, Pharis & Jason Romero, Lonesome Ace Stringband, Cahalen Morrison & Eli West, Old Crow Medicine Show, Bruce Molsky, The Carter Family, Mississippi John Hurt, Old Man Luedecke
Setup Requirements
4 vocal mic
or Single Condenser (we provide)
4 DI