Walking With Crows are an original Rock band based out of Ottawa Ontario Canada.
The band formed in late 2016 with the original line up of: Johnny McConnell (Belfast Ireland)(guitar/vocals)
Steve Thompson (Ottawa Ontario)(Drums/percussion)
Kenyon Smith (Ottawa Ontario)(Fretless Bass).
They first got together to record a song that Johnny had written, about the murder of Crl Nathan Cirllio at the war memorial in Ottawa titled "Our Fallen Hero".
The people at Ottawa's radio station 580CFRA caught wind of the song and invited Johnny and Kenyon along to do an interview were they talked about the writing and recording of the song along with the tragedy of the events of that day. "Our Fallen hero" was the kick starter that Irish singer/ songwriter Johnny McConnell needed to further his dream of becoming a serious writer. He knew how passionate and patriotic this song would be to not only the family of the deceased but to Ottawa and all of Canada alike. While writing this song he thought that "Our Fallen Hero" needed some spoken words added to give it the true patriotic effect and so reached out to the Prime Minister of Canada at the time (Stephen Harper) to ask permission to use his voice in the song.. ( which was granted). An acoustic version and interview about the song was also done on the John Counsel show also on 580CFRA Ottawa which had callers from across the country calling in with admiration for the artist and song.
In early 2017 the band added a lead guitarist Scott Cameron (Ottawa Ontario) (lead guitar). Scott added a Rockier edge to the band as it started to write for their first "EP". Scott's amazing guitar playing is showcased on this "EP" as well as song writing contributions, in songs such as "Blu" and in contributions in writing the later released song "Nothing at all". The "EP" went on to be called "IKE", named after the father of drummer Steve Thompson who sadly passed away during the recording of this album. Rest easy Ivan "IKE" Thompson.
The first single from "IKE" was a song called "GONE" which was released in May of 2017 and featured on the Big Money Shot Spotlight on LIVE 88.5fm Ottawa. Shortly after the release of "IKE", Scott Cameron decided to part ways with the band to pursue other interests.
January 2018 the Crows added a new lead guitarist. Chris Morris (Brockville Ontario) (lead guitar). Chris brought a totally new style to the band and also an amazing contribution to the song writing. Almost immediately they began writing, gigging and eventually recording, and on September 13th 2019 they released their first full length album titled "Join us in the small house". The first single from the album was called " Little Man" This song was also featured on LIVE 88.5fm Ottawa. After the release of "Join us in the small house", Kenyon Smith decided to part ways with the band.
Wanting to continue with the band, Steve, Chris and Johnny decided to keep going and hit the studio to continue writing. On December 18th 2020, Walking with Crows released Their third release. Another "EP" titled "Arden Moon".
Singles released:
1) The Stackhouse (Released October 22nd 2020)
2) Statues of Yourself (Released November 12th 2020)
3) One More for the Road (Released December 2nd 2020).
All singles were aired on LIVE 88.5fm.
Today Walking With Crows continue to make music, be it through the computer screen because of the pandemic. Also Johnny McConnell decided to start a video podcast on YouTube. "Beyond the song" talks to artists of all walks of life from singer songwriters to movie actors.