Ray Bonneville is a gifted storyteller and a musician who has crafted a style of folksy blues that is unmistakably his own.

His music displays a strength and discernment that many artists never attain, and the strength of his songs reflect a life well-lived.

On April 12, he鈥檒l be bringing his singular style to Victoria in a show that reflects the poetry of a life characterized by hard living and deep feeling.

鈥淚鈥檓 just interested in telling a story with a hypnotic groove,鈥� Bonneville says. 鈥淢y music is simple, but I think it works because it鈥檚 honest. I have to believe my own story. I write what I believe, and I believe what I write.鈥�

And Bonneville has a lot of life to be honest about.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been said that there鈥檚 two kinds of music. Music you like, and the kind you don鈥檛. I try to make certain that I鈥檓 playing the first kind.鈥�

He left home when he was 16, escaping an ever-contentious relationship with his father who he describes as 鈥渘ot a gentle man.鈥� He was expelled from school and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps just in time for the Vietnam War.

When he returned from Vietnam he worked as a cab driver, a flight instructor, a bush pilot, and, well, more jobs than most people would ever imagine.

But during all of that time, Bonneville was a musician, although he鈥檚 still self-deprecating when it comes to that part of his life.

鈥淚 never studied music...I learned no theory or anything,鈥� Bonneville says. 鈥淚t was like, early on, I learned the chords on page one of book one of a guitar book and I鈥檝e been making a living playing those chords ever since.鈥�

Of course, that鈥檚 not really the case. The honesty in Bonneville鈥檚 songs more probably stems from the fact that he鈥檚 allowed an organic evolution of his music.

鈥淲hen I began I was doing covers of George Jones and Hank Williams Senior, Mississippi John Hurt and Lightnin' Hopkins,鈥� Bonneville recalls. 鈥淭heir music was real, and they weren鈥檛 afraid to show people who they were. That鈥檚 the kind of music that inspired me.鈥�

Bonneville took that inspiration and, when he was 42 years old, decided to write his own music.

鈥淚鈥檇 already been performing for 25 years by then and I鈥檇 been influenced by everything I鈥檇 ever heard. But I wanted to tell my own story, and I was at a place where I had something to say,鈥� Bonneville says.

His 2023 release, On the Blind Side, his 10th album, illustrated that fact.

The album leaned into the autobiographical introspection while maintaining the imagery and rich character portraits that have characterized his work. But far from being world-weary, Bonneville鈥檚 music still has the capacity to bring out an optimistic viewpoint of life with songs like Lucky Moon.

鈥淧erforming music is about taking chances. People come to see you and it鈥檚 like they鈥檙e watching a high wire act without a net,鈥� Bonneville says. 鈥淵ou want to take chances ... be human ...breath. The music has to be human.

鈥淎nd I don鈥檛 worry about making mistakes," he adds. "

I used to be mortified if I made a mistake while playing, but I realized that those are the things that make the music real. These days if I make a mistake, I might just repeat it just to show that I can,鈥� he says with a chuckle.

For Bonneville, music is quite simple.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been said that there鈥檚 two kinds of music. Music you like, and the kind you don鈥檛. I try to make certain that I鈥檓 playing the first kind.鈥�

Bonneville will be appearing all around B.C. in April with Vancouver Island performances at  and in Greater Victoria at the Oak Bay Recreation Centre April 12 鈥� find tickets for the Oak Bay show at .

Next up are stops at  and in .