Watch This

The strains of “O, Canada” emanate from your television when you pop in the latest DVD Zoë/Rounder Records video compilation entitled Watch This. It could be called a Canadian alternative to MTV, and while the videos may lack Hollywood-style effects, at least the music captivates. The DVD includes concept videos by some of Canada’s best, such as the Cowboy Junkies’ Margo Timmins’ sultry singing on “I’m So Open.” Next is Sarah Harmer clad in green leather pants on “Basement Apartment,” followed by Bruce Cockburn strumming his guitar and singing “Open” in a post-9/11 New York City. Kathleen Edwards pouts through “Six O’clock News,” while the band Great Big Sea nearly drowns in its video “Sea of No Cares.” The Cash brothers (no relation to Johnny) turn urban skyscrapers into a light show on “Shadow of Doubt,” and the hilarious Grant-Lee Phillips impersonates clowns, Napoleon and Elvis during his “We All Get a Taste” video. For those of you wishing to catch a glimpse of Canada’s driving force behind the world’s best in the rock/folk genre, Watch This is an apt title.