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The Rizdales perform "I Could Tell You Lies"

All the way from London, Ontario, comes one of the hottest husband-wife country singing duos since Bonnie and Buck Owens or Tammy Wynette and George Jones (or Bonnie Owens and Merle Haggard, or…). You see, it’s tough to make these comparisons without implicitly dooming the couple to a future of heartbreak and/or divorce, so let’s just live in the moment and enjoy the heartfelt harmonies of Tom and Tara Dunphy, the jubilant motor that drives this great Canadian quintet. A fabulous fiddler, Tara had been performing traditional Irish music since age three, but when she first saw handsome Tom in a London barroom singing a heartbroken song of palpable loneliness, there was nothing the red-haired Irish lass could do but fall in love with him, get married and form the Rizdales. In 2002, they released their debut disc Another Payday Night (Link Horn Records) and followed it up with 2004’s critically acclaimed Bar & Lounge. While it’s clear they know their classic country inside and out, it’s too easy to hide them under some geeky, “no depression” buzzword like alt-country, because their songs are so full of energy and life that it’s hard to imagine anybody with a pulse not responding with a grin as Tara sails through these cheatin’ lyrics: “I could fall in love with someone new/but I won’t let go of you/I’ll just roam a while/and then come home and smile.” This is the real thing, folks, and when they unpack the new tunes from their current release Pay What You Can, you’ll agree that they’re the most lovable male-female country duo since Dolly and Porter, or Loretta and Conway, or Emmylou and Gram, or Faith and Tim. Oh…wait…Faith and Tim aren’t really a country duo, are they?

saturday, august 12 at 9:30. Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst Street (874-7734). FREE