THERE’S ALWAYS FRED MacNEIL: The burning question on everyone’s lips in recent times has been: “If Rita MacNeil had a distant cousin, what kind of music would he make? An answer has arrived, in the form of Fred MacNeil’s charming debut CD, “Always”. Born in Toronto in a distant era known as “The Fifties”, Fred is a singer-songwriter whose time has finally come. Fred was raised in Nova Scotia, and moved nomadically through various Ontario towns, laboring long years in a series of thankless pursuits that fed the belly, while starving the soul. Along the way, Fred developed some decent chops as a musician while sharing stages with a lengthy list of name brand artists, too long to bore you with here. But, boy – are there ever a lot of them…. Some you’d even recognize. While watching these stellar performers bare their souls in song, Fred eventually turned to songwriting and says today of the momentous decision: “I thought, if these guys can do this, why can’t I”? The result being “Always”. Fred’s modesty is typical of most Maritimers, and belies the subtle and insistent charm of the songs contained on “Always”, particularly the title tune. Having developed a passion for the music of Hank Williams, Lyle Lovett, John Prine and Harry Chapin, Fred learned the immense value of a songwriter-as-storyteller. In turn Fred tells some remarkable stories in song on his “Always” CD. Some of them may yet turn out to be true. An investigation is underway.