Hi Folks
As a follow up to our November 1 show we released a single from our live show and very soon we plan to release a final Free to Grow album which will include other songs from the show.
This will be the seventh and final Free to Grow album.
A huge thank you to all those who supported us over the last 11+ years.
On to new adventures and Peace and Love to all
Jeff Patch
Thanks to those who made it out to our Assorted Ruminations album release show!!
We recorded audio and video and also played some even newer material including a song called “I Listen to the Crows.” This song was born after I heard a crow saying “hello” outside the bedroom window earlier in 2025. Working with Amanda, we tweaked it a bit and the band played it for the first time at the show. It is now available as a single on Bandcamp and on our website. Check out the video on YouTube and don't forget to like and subscribe.
Peace and Love
Jeff
Hi folks
This Saturday don't forget that we will be performing at the Charlotte Street Art Centre. Tickets are still available on line. Doors at 7PM, show starts at 7:30.
Our friends Keegan and the Vandalorians will open the show and then we will be performing our new album, Assorted Ruminations, which will be available on all music sale and streaming sites on November 1. After that we will play a second set of tunes from our catalogue and even have a few surprises in store.
Other awesome performers joining us include Marie-Hélène Michaud, Chris Browne, and Doug Schwartz.
Peace and Love to everyone
Jeff
Hi Folks
On Saturday November 1 at 7pm we are having a show to present our 6th album, “Assorted Ruminations.”
It will be held at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre and will include special guests Keegan and the Vandalorians. Early Bird tickets are available until October 15.
See full info on the poster below.
Band merch will be available including our awesome T-shirts designed by Amanda and our catalogue of albums. $5 from every purchase will be donated to The Cancer Society.
We will be recording audio and video during the show so join the fun to be included in music videos and a future Free to Grow movie presentation. This may well be the last opportunity to enjoy the full Free to Grow band experience for at least some time.
We are going to have lots of fun so please join us and thank you for your support.
Pic by Douglas Schwartz (be like Doug)
Peace and Love to all
Jeff
Hi Folks
A few years ago a former colleague was diagnosed with inoperable / incurable cancer not long after he retired. He passed away shortly thereafter. Greg Watling was highly respected in natural resource management circles and had been the Miramichi Regional Director for Natural Resources. He was a great father, husband and grandfather and a leading member and supporter of the Miramichi Historical Society.
Hi Folks
Hi folks
Happy to announce that our new 3-song EP “Lady of the North (and other fine stories)” has dropped as of today (January 3, 2025). A wonderful way to start the new year. You can listen to the tunes on our website, Bandcamp, and the usual wide ranging suite of music sale and streaming platforms.
Please visit our YouTube channel to view the 3 new videos that go with the music. Please don't forget to like and subscribe as it is a great help.
Peace and Love and Happy New Year
Jeff
Hi Folks and Happy December Tidings
We plan to start the upcoming New Year with some fun new music. On January 3, 2025 a 3-song EP will be released entitled “ Lady of the North (and other fine stories).” It will be available via our website, Bandcamp, and the usual suite of global music sale and streaming sites.You can also expect some funky videos to be simultaneously released. We have delved into using AI and it has been a fun (ny) exercise.
In 2025 we expect to release a fifth full length studio album which, with our LIVE album, will result in a catalogue of 6 Free to Grow album releases. All original and made with love.
Once again, hoping all is well with everyone and best wishes for the upcoming holiday season and New Year.
Peace and Love
Jeff
Hi Folks
Unfortunately we are unable to perform with our friends Kozmic Blues Revue on Wednesday August 14 at Dolan's Pub. This is something we had been looking forward to, but circumstances have gotten in the way.
There will still be a show and we encourage people to head out and enjoy Kozmic Blues Revue that evening. They will put on a great show as always!!
Peace and Love
Jeff
Hi Folks
We had a fun album release show last month and a big thank you to Roots and Soul Music Promotions, Dolan's Pub, Josh Ritchie, Black Suit Devil and all who came out to the show.
This week, on July 11at 6:30 pm, Jeff and Marie-Hélène will be performing a number of Free to Grow tunes as part of the Tony's Music Box Piano Room Series. Click for website links and Facebook links for the show info.
Soon we will be able to announce a couple of shows coming up in August and the info will be passed on when finalized.
Peace and Love
Jeff
Hi Folks
Exciting times are here.
On June 5 we will be releasing our 5th album which is titled “Along for the Ride.” The music will be available on this site as well as the usual suite of online streaming and music sale sites, including Bandcamp. Contact us if you want a hardcopy CD.
We are looking forward to kicking off the Living Roots Music Festival with our release show on June 5 at Dolan's Pub in Fredericton. We hope to see you there if you are in the area on that date. We are sharing the stage with Black Suit Devil, Noelle Francis, and Josh Ritchie who will open the show. Show starts at 7:00 PM with Free to Grow scheduled for 9:00 PM.
In other news we have some new merch. As per usual Amanda has contributed the art. Here is a picture of friend of the band Doug Schwartz rocking the shirt. Doug was sad that his old shirt was getting threadbare from extensive use. He bought our new shirt and can now see the sun again! Be like Doug. One can be yours for $25 ($25 + shipping if you are from away). We have a range of sizes, but get yours before they run out.
Stay tuned for upcoming events and other news.
Peace and love to all.
Jeff Patch
We have exciting news including two upcoming performances including an album release show!!!
On April 19 at Klub Khrome we will be participating in a Battle of the Bands. This is not something we would normally do, but the temptation associated with a chance for a $3000 prize and a bunch of other goodies is hard to pass up on. For those on Facebook the event link is here.
You can support Free to Grow (or another band if you must) by buying tickets in advance and choosing Free to Grow. Login or create an account at the Bounce site, search for the “Battle of the Bands (3rd Battle)” and buy a ticket in support of Free to Grow. Online tickets are $6.45 ($5 plus fees) and tickets at the door are $10. If you buy a ticket at the door you will get a ballot and your opportunity to vote for Free to Grow. We will be competing with two other great bands and all will put on a great show.
The second live performance we are announcing is the kick off of the 2024 Living Roots Music Festival on Wednesday June 5 at Dolan's Pub. Check out the Facebook event. For us it will be an album release show for our 4th studio album. The CD has arrived so contact us if you want an advance copy of the album ($10). A special thanks and shoutout to the Jane LeBlanc Legacy Fund. The 2023 JL Music Composer Award helped fund this project.
Peace and Love to all
Jeff Patch
Hi Folks
At long last our LIVE album is available on our website, on Bandcamp plus the usual suspect suite of music sale and streaming sites. A huge thanks to our friends The UnHeard who invited us to open for them; to Roots and Soul Music Promotions for hosting the show; and to MRD Studios for recording the event. In addition to the audio recording, a video playlist is available on YouTube which includes all 11 songs performed. Liking and subscribing is a great help to us so please feel free to do so.
We had a great time on February 25, 2023 as we performed live for the first time in 4 ½ years. Yes cancer sucks as did the pandemic, but it's awfully good to be back. An amazing highlight was performing “Miracle Man” live for the first time in front of the man himself. It is so great to have both the audio and video documentation.
Stay tuned as we plan to release a full length (14 songs) studio album in the near future.
Peace and Love
Jeff Patch
We were very sad to get the news last month of the passing of Doug Barron who, among many other things, was a former cohost of CBC Weekend Mornings out of Halifax NS. Doug was supportive of our band and would send us positive messages saying how he enjoyed our music. We had discussed the possibility of a joint show with his band and had made tentative plans to pursue that this year. RIP Doug and condolences to family and friends.
In band news, original member Joe Bonnell has left the band and we wish him all the best in future endeavours and thank him for all his outstanding contributions to our music and shows over the years.
Our August 30 outdoor show was rained out but we did get to perform on the rain date of Monday September 4. We closed off the Fredericton Northside Concert Series sponsored by Business Fredericton North with a fun performance where we played 22 original Free to Grow numbers. We even played the song Miracle Man in front of the man himself and I had an opportunity to test out my new Insta 360 X3 camera and make a video of that part of the event. Friend of the band Doug Schwartz took some video and we have been using it to make some shorts on YouTube and Reels on Facebook. We'd love it if you subscribed to us on YouTube and followed us on Facebook if you haven't already done so.
Peace and Love to All
Jeff Patch
Hi Folks
Lots of news to share: the most recent, wonderful and exciting being Jeff's receipt of the JL Music Composer Award from the Jane LeBlanc Legacy Fund. This $1000 CAD award will substantially offset our studio expenses as we continue work on our fourth studio album. This is awesome news for us!!!
We continue to prepare for our next live performance (Facebook Event Link) on August 30 at 7-8:30 pm at Mitch Clarke Park on Fredericton's Northside. This free performance is sponsored by Business Fredericton North as part of their Northside Concert Series. We even made a YouTube Short Promo Video!
On a last note several people have enquired about what happened to our June 23 gig at The Tipsy Muse Cafe. Unfortunately one of our members contracted and tested positive for Covid the night before the scheduled show. Regrettably the show had to be cancelled.
That should bring us up to date. Peace and Love to All
Jeff
Hi Folks
We have a gig coming up and if you can come out, we would love to see you there!
We will be playing two sets from 7-9 PM on June 23 at the Tipsy Muse Cafe. Advance tickets are $11.50 (+taxes / fees) and are available here and you may also want to check out the Facebook event.
This will be a bit different in that it will be an unplugged performance with Jeff, Joe, Amanda, and Marie Hélène. We will play Free to Grow songs both new and old in an intimate setting and provide background info on the music. We are excited and it promises to be a fun time.
Cheers and peace and love
Jeff
What fun we had on February 25. Our first time back live on stage since August of 2018. It has been quite a journey. We opened for our friends The Unheard at the Grimross Taproom with MRD Studios providing sound for Roots and Soul Music Promotions.
We played 11 of our songs in our set, including 8 newer songs which will be on our upcoming fourth album. We finished off our night with Miracle Man, our tribute to The UnHeard's Bruce Hughes. The place was full and the crowd was enthusiastic. Awesome time.
We posted a couple of videos on our Facebook page and we expect to post more in the coming weeks.
Peace and love
Jeff
More good news and we are very excited. Thanks to our friends The UnHeard we are playing live on February 25. They graciously invited us to open for them in what will be a fun night filled with original rock music.
"The UnHeard return to be heard and Free to Grow will open for them in a special music event that will warm your bones and thrill your auditory senses with original rock & roll. Doors at 7 PM Show at 8 PM $15 adv / $20 at the door"
You can find the event on Facebook, on our website "Shows" page and advance tickets are available via eventbrite.
Thanks also to Roots and Soul Music Promotions and Grimross Brewing Co.
Hope to see you there!
First Amanda had a baby (a very good thing), then Jeff was diagnosed with bladder cancer (a bad thing), then the Covid pandemic hit (another bad thing). The end result was that after the release of our third album we were not able to have a release concert and haven't performed live for a long time.
The good news is that Jeff has been cancer free and has been writing enough material for a fourth album which will be out by 2023. The band, with a mix of old faces and some new ones, has been rehearsing and recording and we will update you on any song releases and public performances that may happen in the near future.
We will be reentering the world of social media so look for us on Twitter and Facebook. Hope to see you there.
Hi Folks
Exciting times as it has now been a little over a month since the release of the "Imperfection" album. We have since released it in vinyl, which is exciting. If you want a CD, vinyl or a download and haven't got it yet please let me know. If you have and like our music feel free to spread the word. That is always appreciated.
Reviews have been very positive:
Jeff Liberty Review for CBC Saint John
Grid City Magazine Review by Matt Carter
Atlantic Axess Interview with Terry Parker
fred-e-scene review by David MacCoubrey
Note that the previously released Miracle Man remains our most popular video at close to 3.4k views and most streamed song on Spotify with over 2k streams. Silence is another song that has done well, being named video of the week on the International Indie Site Music Talks, and song of the week on Belter Radio in the UK.
In other news we have discontinued our relationship and page on Facebook. Over the years the platform has become less and less effective as a means to communicate with and engage followers. Posts that a few years ago would reach hundreds of people now often reach less than 100 and if there is higher engagement we get invited to pay to boost a post to reach more people. Our revenue stream is not enough to make it cost effective. Couple that with a series of scandals and bad press (no I don't wear a tinfoil hat ) and I felt it was time to leave. For now we remain available on Twitter, Instagram and our website and you can always reach out via email. We also maintain a presence on Bandcamp.
That's all I have for now and best wishes to all.
Jeff Patch for
Free to Grow
Today we released our third full-length album and we are thrilled.
You can order downloads from our music page or our store and it is available at the usual suspect music sites like Bandcamp and also streamable on Spotify.
If you want a hardcopy CD you can also order it from our webpage. Contact us directly if you are closer to the Fredericton area and we can deliver and save on shipping charges.
A huge thanks also to fred-e-scene for a most wonderful review and article. Wowza!!!
Happy New Music Friday everyone. No new music for us this Friday but soon it will be our turn.
Friday August 7 is our planned release date for the new "Imperfection" album. This will be our third full length album and we are stoked about it. Downloads from our website and the usual suspect places will be available then. Hard copy CD will also be available for $20 CAD (plus shipping if outside the Fredericton area). Check out the awesome album cover designed by Joshua Sangster (who happens to sing lead on 5 of 11 songs). Among the menagerie of characters are all the contributors to the album, plus an assortment of friends including health care workers from the Miracle Man video. Hovering over us all is our East Yorkshire dragon wizard Adrian Jenkinson who mixed and mastered the album.
Here we go with the release of another single.
A song for the times we are in. Our original plan was to hold off on more releases until the full album was ready for distribution. The band consensus was that it would be timely to release it, so here we are.
The song is called Silence and the video is up on YouTube.
As always, Peace and Love to all.
Jeff