It’s been 25 years, but the music is still going strong.
“I can’t believe Chicks with Picks is 25 years old!” said Melanie Morin, one half of the iconic Sudbury duo.
Morin and Chicks with Picks bandmate Nancy Palladino went to high school together, but never played or sang together at that time. Palladino was “more of a closet singer, so I didn’t know at that time that she had a voice,” explained Morin.
Years went by, and finally Palladino and Morin saw each other singing separately, at a few different events. “We thought, well why don’t we get together and do this, rather than by ourselves?” expanded Morin.
Morin played guitar and sang, but Palladino didn’t have an instrument, so she took up the guitar too.
“We practised, put together a set list and went around to local venues, told them we were new and dropped off the letter and set list,” remembered Morin. “Our first gig was January 2000, in Lively, at Mr. G’s Roadhouse. They took a chance on us.”
The chance paid off as the duo packed the place with friends and family, and had a successful night.
For the first three years, Chicks with Picks was known as Somewhere in Between (“A really terrible name,” said Morin).
“Three years in, we were playing somewhere, and a guy came up to the stage and said, ‘Hey, chicks with picks, that’s a great idea!’ We looked at each other and thought, wow, that’s a great name!” said Morin. “So, we changed it immediately!”
The duo has a large repertoire and play many different genres of music, from different eras, including Ed Sheeran, Johnny Cash, Maroon 5, Rihanna, and lots more. The only song they do by The (Dixie) Chicks is that band’s version of “Landslide”.
“We played 10 shows a month for a lot of years, but nowadays it’s more like 4 or 5 a month,” said Morin. Both women have busy daytime careers. Morin works in the mining industry as a client services manager with The Ivy Group, and Palladino is an administrative assistant for a local dental office.
Morin added, “We are choosier about where we play nowadays. We don’t do as many bar shows, that scene has changed. We like to do festivals, private parties, weddings, that kind of thing. We love performing at local long-term care homes, and playing for the community. Sudbury Performance Group has been very good to us, we often play for them at the Hilton Garden Inn and the Trevi, as well as at Her Northern Voice Festival.”
“Chicks with Picks have been a game changer in the Sudbury music scene, in my opinion,” stated Mark Mannisto, President of Sudbury Performance Group. “With these two women commanding the stage, they have perfected the art of harmonies, they have set the bar of what female musical groups should aim to achieve. They have class, they have beauty, they have tremendous talent, and they are a force to be reckoned with.”
One of the Chicks with Picks’ favourite gigs is the YMCA Women’s Wellness Weekend on John Island, where the duo is boated in to provide music for dancing. Another one is the Harbour Days Festival on Manitoulin Island.
“Sometimes we talk about retiring, but then we get up on stage, and there’s nothing like it. That adrenalin, that feeling of community. When I’m on stage playing, I forget about everything else, there’s only the music. I don’t get that feeling anywhere else,” said Morin.
She finished, “We still have that love for the music, that passion. So, we will keep playing as long as we can keep that alive.”