Castro's

Wayling James Band
2023-06-18 15:00 - 18:00 (America/Toronto)
Wayling James create and perform high energy, original feel good music and cover all genres from R&B and Reggae to Blues and Classic Rock. Their Soul intent is to fully entertain their audience, get people dancing and connect on a personal level with everyone who attend their performances.

Danny Marks
2023-06-17 17:00 - 19:00, 2023-06-03 17:00 - 19:00
This iconic rocker’s roots go back to the sixties as a founding member of Capitol Records’ group, Edward Bear. After a span as a journey man session musician throughout the seventies, Danny settled in to the club scene, establishing a cult following as a genre bender in music and humor.
A house band gig at Toronto’s famed Albert’s Hall led him to host his own nation-wide TV show, Stormy Monday. Through the eighties, Danny starred in CBC radio’s hit series the Hum Line.
Most recently, Danny Marks recorded two original music albums, Guitarchaeology and True, before paying tribute to Toronto’s R&B roots with Big Town Boy in 2005.
Danny’s in his thirteenth year as the radio host of JAZZ.FM91’s Saturday night blues show, bluz.fm.
As a child, young Danny would lock himself in his room with a stack of 45’s, an old Seabreeze record player, and a fantasy of having his own radio show. More than a few years later this pre-pubescent propensity paid off.

Fraser / Daley
2023-06-16 17:30 - 19:30, 2023-06-02 17:30 - 19:30, 2023-05-19 17:30 - 19:30
A popular concert and recording act for over 14 years, Toronto-based Fraser/Daley has released three CDs of original music and performed widely, consistently entertaining audiences with their large and varied repertoire, big sound and spontaneous sense of fun. Alec Fraser hails from Glasgow, Scotland and is a respected bassist and Juno and Maple Blues Award winner. Mike Daley was dubbed by Jeff Healey ‘one of Canada’s finest guitarists’ and has a long list of live and studio credits. Alec and Mike met while working in Healey’s touring band in the mid-2000s and found that they enjoyed singing together after the gig. In 2008 they began playing together regularly in Toronto as Alec perfected a unique bass-drums combination instrument that gives this duo the unmistakable sound of a trio. Their three albums, Fraser/Daley, The Whole Fam Damily and Fifty Miles of Elbow Room have garnered steady sales and strong airplay on blues and folk radio, and Alec and Mike have become sought after for their versatile performances, playing everything from intimate house concerts to street dances. Learn more at fraserdaley.com.

Mike Daley & Sean Pinchin
2023-06-15 18:00 - 20:00
Mike Daley is a guitarist and singer based in Toronto. A professional musician for over 30 years, Mike has toured Canada, the United States and England and has recorded extensively in a variety of musical styles. He is a longtime member of Fraser/Daley with bassist Alec Fraser and is also proud to work with a variety of bands around Toronto including the Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation, the Travellers and others.
Sean Pinchin is a Canadian slide guitar hero that has been playing professionally for over twenty years. Based out of Toronto, Sean averages 4-5 live shows per week in the Ontario circuit, and self manages cross-Canada tours annually. His breakthrough album Monkey Brain nabbed him a 2017 Juno Nomination for Blues Album of the Year and cemented his reputation as a guitar player’s guitar player.
Gonna Be Okay is the beginning of Sean’s fourth recorded project with Juno-winning producer Rob Szabo, and is a revitalized endeavour into the Folk-Rock, Singer/Songwriter category. The overwhelmingly positive reaction to Monkey Brain(2016) and Sean’s increasingly compelling live show saw him graduate to many larger theatre and festival stages in the years since he released Rustbucket (2013). Sean has spent the last several summers performing at nationally and internationally renowned festivals including: Memphis International Blues Competition, Montreal Jazz Festival, Mont Tremblant International Blues Festival, Trois Rivières En Blues, Orangeville Blues Festival, Donnaconna Blues Festival and Kitchener Blues Festival as well as supporting Juno-Winner Steve Strongman at multiple theatre shows in Ontario.

Melanie Petersen
2023-06-11 19:30 - 21:30
Melanie Peterson has been referred to as “Mary Poppins with a broken heart” by BBC Radio and has been recognized as having “a beautiful voice” and being a “terrific songwriter” by Joe Warmington of the Toronto Sun. Melanie initially moved to Toronto to pursue a career in acting. Between acting jobs she often picked up the Gibson guitar her father had given her as a parting gift. She soon began the second leg of her artistic journey: songwriting and performing her songs live. In 2016 Melanie received her second FACTOR grant which she used to record an original holiday single, which was released to radio stations worldwide. The single, titled Santa’s Sleigh was produced by award winning producer Chris Birkett.

Morgan Davis
2023-06-11 15:00 - 18:00, 2023-05-21 15:00 - 18:00
For nearly four decades Morgan Davis has been on the road travelling across Canada, the United States and Europe. His performances draw from a rich tradition of country blues, as well as his own contemporary songs infused with wit and a large dose of humour.

Communism
2023-06-10 20:00 - 22:00
Communism is a dance party band with high ideals and high kicks. Original songs and classic dance floor anthems by Donna Summer, Kate Bush, Talking Heads, Prince, and much 80’s.

Don Kerr drums (Bahamas, Dan Mangan, Ron Sexsmith, Rheostatics)
Jason Haberman bass (Yaehsun, Yukon Blonde, Dan Mangan)
Mike O’Brien guitar (Zeus, Dan Mangan)
Craig Small – projections

We are Communism – Don, Mike, Jason, & Craig. Joy, unity, and a dance floor for your heart.

Thelonious Hank
2023-06-10 17:00 - 19:00, 2023-05-27 17:00 - 19:00, 2023-05-13 17:00 - 19:00
Thelonious Hank plays your father’s country, rock n’ roll, and jazz. They don’t use set lists and they take requests all day long

Little Magic Sam
2023-06-09 17:30 - 19:30, 2023-05-26 17:30 - 19:30, 2023-05-12 17:30 - 19:30
When the world gets down on Little Magic Sam, he gets down on a Les Paul. Hailing from St.Thomas, ON, Sam Taylor is a born entertainer with a penchant for raw blues and soul music and lyrics that bely someone much older than his 29 years. With an enormous stage presence, it comes as no surprise that this multi-talented singer/songwriter has been performing internationally since the age of 7.

Mike Daley & Mike Branton
2023-06-08 18:00 - 20:00
Mike Daley is a guitarist and singer based in Toronto. A professional musician for over 30 years, Mike has toured Canada, the United States and England and has recorded extensively in a variety of musical styles. He is a longtime member of Fraser/Daley with bassist Alec Fraser and is also proud to work with a variety of bands around Toronto including the Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation, the Travellers and others.
Mike Branton is a man in love with the blues. It was his first musical passion, and one that has remained in full bloom over the years. After making a name for himself as a young guitar prodigy, he has evolved into a triple threat. His signature fluent and exciting guitar playing is as potent as ever, and Mike has now emerged as a highly talented and original singer and songwriter.
The Oakville-based Branton is not just borrowing from the classic blues repertoire but adding to it in the form of fresh new compositions. His talent as a singer/songwriter was showcased on his solo debut, Dirty Feet.

Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation
2023-06-05 19:30 - 22:00
The Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation (TWAC) comprise of some of the best musicians in all of Toronto coming together for their love of Tom Waits and paying Tribute to him and his music!

Sugar Rush
2023-06-04 15:00 - 18:00
Sugar Rush is the ultimate party band, playing really fun, upbeat covers spanning different genres from classic rock, funk, soul, blues, country, jazz, disco, 80s, motown, hard rock, reggae, oldies, R&B, and folk! Get ready for a full evening of dancing, singalongs and just really good music!
Sugar Rush has been a GTA staple since 2007, returning to the circuit after a brief hiatus, familiar to many a musician and music fan for their jam nights at the Curzon, their Friday night residency at the Loaded Dog, beach parties and corporate events. Anchored by Frankie Dee and Tony Carpino with a rotation of top notch players with special surprise guests and currently featuring Gary Lee Hill. This dynamic crew brings all the best classic rock, funk, soul, blues and much more to keep the floor filled. Always guaranteed sweet sounds with Sugar Rush.

DJ Rob
2023-06-02 22:00 - 2023-06-03 02:00

Mike Daley & Kevin Breit
2023-06-01 18:00 - 20:00
Mike Daley is a guitarist and singer based in Toronto. A professional musician for over 30 years, Mike has toured Canada, the United States and England and has recorded extensively in a variety of musical styles. He is a longtime member of Fraser/Daley with bassist Alec Fraser and is also proud to work with a variety of bands around Toronto including the Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation, the Travellers and others.
Canadian guitarist Kevin Breit is an acclaimed, multi-dimensional performer whose adept skills bridge his love of jazz, blues, rootsy country twang, and experimental rock. Raised in McKerrow, a small town in Northern, Ontario, Breit began playing guitar at a young age, and by 17 had moved to Toronto. Once there, he began gigging, working with local bands and as a studio musician. Over the years, he has played with such highly regarded artists as Holly Cole, Cassandra Wilson, k.d. Lang, Janis Ian, the Wailin’ Jennys, and many more.
As a solo artist, he debuted in the late ’90s with two instrumental albums, Maybelle and Empty. More well-received efforts followed, including 2003’s Jubilee, 2007’s Burnt Bulb on Broadway, and 2010’s Simple Earnest Plea. Also during this period, he joined singer/pianist Norah Jones’ band, appearing on her acclaimed albums Don’t Know Why, Come Away with Me, and Feels Like Home.
In 2006, he took home his first Juno Award for his work with his jazz ensemble the Sisters Euclid’s album Run Neil Run.He then paired with fellow singer/guitarist Harry Manx for 2011’s Strictly Whatever on Stony Plain. The following year, he won his second Juno Award for Best Instrumental Album with his band Stretch Orchestra’s debut. Ernesto and Delilah followed in 2015, and featured contributions from vocalist Rebecca Jenkins. In 2017, the guitarist delivered the conceptual roots album Johnny Goldtooth and the Chevy Casanovas.

The Del-Fis
2023-05-28 15:00 - 18:00
I don’t know what The Del Fi’s are; the more I think about it, the more I don’t know what to say. But I know it’s right, and I know it’s good. I know it works. I mean, it’s Jerry Leger’s thing, but when I asked him what he would say The Del Fi’s are, all he would tell me is that I (meaning me) am The Del Fi’s, just as you (meaning you) are The Del Fi’s. And because you are you, you understand. Don’t you?
Okay, maybe we should try this again. Jerry Leger is a Toronto singer/songwriter, and one of the best in the world, as far as I’m concerned. If you haven’t heard him, you have no right to be one of these people constantly moaning about how music was so much better when people actually played instruments, blah, blah, blah.
Jerry loves Bob Dylan, Neil Young and John Lennon. Sometimes it sounds as though all three are fighting for space in his songs. But those songs are his own, the product of a natural born storyteller with a sense of rhythm that would make Little Richard’s big toe shoot up in his boot.
Jerry’s songs hit deep in your soul, but he also often loves just making music with folks just to flex some of his old time rock and roll muscles, and explore some of the paths his songwriting normally doesn’t take. That’s kinda where The Del Fi’s come in.
It’s rock and roll that we all care about right? I’m sure you wouldn’t still be reading this if you didn’t agree. So I guess that does make you a Del Fi. Welcome aboard and grab an instrument, we’ve got a show to do.

Mike Daley & Bazil Donovan
2023-05-25 18:00 - 20:00
Mike Daley is a guitarist and singer based in Toronto. A professional musician for over 30 years, Mike has toured Canada, the United States and England and has recorded extensively in a variety of musical styles. He is a longtime member of Fraser/Daley with bassist Alec Fraser and is also proud to work with a variety of bands around Toronto including the Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation, the Travellers and others.
Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia — but raised in Toronto — Bazil “Baz” Donovan gained fame as the longtime bassist for Blue Rodeo. Though traditionally associated with country music (especially hardcore old-time country classics), he is adept at every genre he attempts. He first picked up a guitar at nine and the bass at 13, and started playing professionally at 17. His first group — composed of friends from high school — was a covers band called Demons. His first touring gig was the All-Star Bar Band, a country covers outfit that Donovan describes as “a human jukebox.” In 1980, Donovan joined the Sharks (a new wave-funk combo) with Blue Rodeo’s original drummer Cleave Anderson, David Baxter, and vocalist Sherry Kean, before joining up with two Toronto groups, Strike One (a reggae-ska band) and Scab (a punk outfit).
In 1984, Donovan answered the now-famous ad in NOW magazine that read, “If you’ve dropped acid at least 20 times, lost 3 or 4 years to booze and are looking good and can still manage to keep time, call Jim or Greg.” At a friend’s suggestion, Donovan answered the ad, leaving a message with Jim’s wife, Rena. By serendipity, Greg Keelor, Jim Cuddy, and Donovan’s old friend Cleave Anderson (who had just joined the band) were sitting around the Bamboo discussing who they could get for bass. Since they all knew one another from the circuit, Donovan’s name came up and Cuddy recalled seeing his name in response to the ad. The threesome called from the restaurant and Donovan was rehearsing with Blue Rodeo the next day. Their first gig came six months later at Toronto’s Rivoli.
Donovan has continued to play with other artists despite remaining one of the three founding members of Blue Rodeo, playing with artists like Oh Susanna (co-writing two songs on her Sleepy Little Sailor album) and Justin Rutledge. His unique relationship with Greg Keelor is chronicled in the song, “Me & Baz” on Blue Rodeo’s Tremolo album. His predilection toward country music is ironic in that, in his own words, “I did not love country music (when I started playing it) — it was my parents’ music — but I had my Jimi Hendrix and King Crimson records at home to rock my world.” Bazil Donovan’s ability to pick up a guitar and bass and launch into a song from any genre — he performs an impromptu version of Randy Travis’ “Diggin’ Up Bones” on Blue Rodeo’s 2008 documentary, Blue Road — is what makes him the ultimate musician’s musician. He can play with any artists and make whatever style of music they may be delving into literally “rock.”
Donovan’s “solo” country career actually began when he was still in high school, playing on the country music circuit in Toronto. At the time, his girlfriend was a singer who was performing to make extra money to put herself through school. One night at one of her gigs, the band’s bassist — who was also an ambulance driver — got an emergency call just as the gig was starting. Donovan filled in for what became the first of many shows — soon after, he was working Queen Street regularly: three weeks at the Winchester Hotel, two weeks at the Claremont Tavern, a month at the Drake Hotel, and a month at the Parkdale Tavern. Eventually, for matinee shows, lead vocalists wouldn’t show up because of hangovers and Donovan began singing the cover songs, leading him to title his first solo album Matinee (a set of his best-loved cover versions).

The 501 East With Kyle Sullivan
2023-05-22 18:00 - 20:00

Yukon Cigar
2023-05-20 15:00 - 18:00
Yukon Cigar was lit in 2005. The idea? To take an earthy, hushed songwriting style and set it on fire. Now, after years on the Toronto club circuit (playing the likes of Cameron House, Castro’s Lounge, C’est What, El Mocambo, Rancho Relaxo, and the NXNE festival), mainstays Craig and Peter have taken to backyard parties and neighbourhood pubs, just two acoustics and a growing list of standards. With countless songs in the fire, here lies the promise of sweet sing-alongs to come.

Mike Daley & Charlotte McAfee-Brunner
2023-05-18 18:00 - 20:00
Mike Daley is a guitarist and singer based in Toronto. A professional musician for over 30 years, Mike has toured Canada, the United States and England and has recorded extensively in a variety of musical styles. He is a longtime member of Fraser/Daley with bassist Alec Fraser and is also proud to work with a variety of bands around Toronto including the Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation, the Travellers and others.
Charlotte McAfee-Brunner is an award-winning trombonist, bandleader and vocalist Charlotte McAfee-Brunner has been making waves on the Toronto music scene recently. Her bands include: Charlotte McAfee-Brunner and her Fireflies, Grapevine and Trombone charlotte’s Tiger Band. Accomplished in several musical styles, she continues to perform as a sideman with many other excellent groups in Toronto, infusing any room with an undeniable energy. She is a part of the Happy Pals, Combo Royale, Thomas Steele’s 10tet, Dennis Kwok Jazz Orchestra, The Magnolia Brass Band and has been featured with many other groups. With her heart-stopping vocals and compelling trombone solos, Charlotte McAfee-Brunner is a jazz musician and performer you won’t forget and is regularly featured in some of the hottest venues in town.

Will Whitwham
2023-05-14 15:00 - 18:00
Will Whitwham is one of Canada’s most prolific and talented singer/songwriters. As a founding member of the Wilderness of Manitoba, he has written and recorded five albums and three EPs. The group was nominated for a JUNO award. The Wilderness of Manitoba toured Canada, the US, the UK, the Netherlands and Germany including performances at the End of the Road Festival, WOMAD, SXSW and the Reeperbahn Festival.
He has also written and recorded two albums as Lake Forest, an EP for the Whateverly Brothers, an album for Pyramid Tropic, and collaborated with recording artists Martha Johnson, Eamon McGrath and Delhi 2 Dublin. The Wilderness of Manitoba was nominated for Sync Artist or Songwriter of the Year at the first Canadian Sync Awards during Canadian Music Week. Their songs (written by Whitwham) have appeared in such US television series as This Is Us, Elementary, Parenthood and No Tomorrow among others. Whitwham’s next project is an EP under his own name called End of Dreams.

Mike Daley & Eric Schenkman
2023-05-11 18:00 - 20:00
Mike Daley is a guitarist and singer based in Toronto. A professional musician for over 30 years, Mike has toured Canada, the United States and England and has recorded extensively in a variety of musical styles. He is a longtime member of Fraser/Daley with bassist Alec Fraser and is also proud to work with a variety of bands around Toronto including the Tom Waits Appreciation Congregation, the Travellers and others.
You may have seen Eric Schenkman onstage before thousands of fans worldwide with the Spin Doctors. He is one of the band’s not-so-secret weapons — a vital songwriter and virtuoso
guitarist who crafted the ‘90s band and co-wrote all five of their Top 100 hits. He also worked with Chico Hamilton, Carly Simon, Natalie Merchant, Noel Redding, Phoebe Snow and Corky Laing, among many other notable musicians.

Po' Boy Jeffreys & Calamity Jane
2023-05-07 15:00 - 18:00
Po’Boy & Calamity are a folk music duo who revitalize roots music through their energetic performance and unique style, whilst maintaining integrity and nostalgia through their use of traditional instruments.
