It doesn't happen often but Joe Fournier's Three Chord MacGyver isn't just an enigmatic title, it's an irresistible collection of music.A major part of its instant attraction comes from its simple honesty. Fournier hasn't removed himself from his audience or hidden behind a raft of studio trickery, Three Chord MacGyver, is Fournier songs, Fournier's guitar and Fournier's voice, raw and from the heart. However all this homely charm can't mask how insightful a writer Joe Fournier is, and when he opens up his soul, as he does so beautifully on Words I Should Have Said, it's done with an unbreakable backbone of dignity. Joe Fournier doesn't do outpourings of emotions, he sings simple truths.                                                                                                                           - Michael Mee / net rhythms


In a crowded Söråkers Folketshus, Joe Fournier warmed the autumn darkness. He and his band, the Busted Flats, played a beautiful mix of songs with a nod towards the new album, Truth & Twang. Joe Fournier  has been compared to John Fogerty, Johnny Cash, even Bruce Springsteen, but Joe has a very distinctive style in which he deftly mixes a cocky, rough hewn sound with finesse, love and generosity that goes straight to the heart.
                                                                                                                                                                               - Sundsvall Tidning

The first appearance in Birmingham of Canadian singer Joe Fournier teamed him with festival favourites Tipitina, whose New Orleans-inflected music chimed well with Joe’s blend of roots music in a sort of American not-so-grand tour. Returning from a tour of Sweden that left him with one hour’s sleep in two days, Joe formed an instant rapport with Tipitina, adding his inimitable guitar sound to their final Breaking Up The House. In his solo spot Joe took in such country classics as Hank Williams’ Lovesick Blues as well as sardonic commentaries on the human condition, all delivered in his direct personal vocal style - a highlight of the 2010 Blues and Jazz festival.
                                                                                                                                                                                  - Birmingham Post

Joe Fournier is often likened to John Fogerty, but it's a bit misleading in my opinion. I see him more as the ultimate intersection of Dave Edmunds and Bruce Springsteen. He moves easily between rock, pop, country and swampy blues. He sings from the heart and the lyrics are absolutely wonderful. Do not miss Joe on his tour this April.                                                                                                                                                                         - Nojesmagasinet

Joe Fournier has a genuine eye for detail and storytelling that doesn’t get in the way of a decent riff. ‘Dirt Road Joyride’ is a slap in the face with a rolled up copy of ‘No Depression’, with riffs and lyrics as sharp as a broken beer bottle. It’s a shame Fournier is hidden away on a Swedish label - he’s powerful enough to make a noise in his homeland.                                                                                                                                                                  - AmericanaUK

Fournier simply plays American music with soul and sincerity, just a man, his roots and his songs. “Dirt Road Joyride” is Joe’s fourth album and he plays almost all instruments on it, just helped for a couple of songs by a dobro and a fiddle player. The songs are very well crafted with melodies that hook you from the start. There’s also plenty of humour in his songs and if he can make you laugh one minute, he’s able to make you cry the next. You just have to know that Joe Fournier is the real deal.                                                          - Jumpingfrom6to6 Magazine

There aren't many singer/songwriters I would mention in the same sentence as Fred Eaglesmith, but Joe Fournier is one of them. Originally from Ontario (like Eaglesmith), Fournier recorded this CD in the “Eight Track Shack” studio he built in Nova Scotia whee he played most of the instruments and mixed it himself. Joe makes music “without all o' the dirt knocked off it.” It's funky, country soul, folk, rock and blues, with stories that will make you laugh, cry and cringe, sometimes all in the same verse. Fournier's off-kilter world view is spelled out in songs about dirt road joyrides, fast cars, rough lives and drunken wedding brawls. There are too many great lyrics to mention more than a few, but a line in “Bad Record Collection” sums up his music. “Baby's got a bad record collection/what she needs is a double injection/of shit kickin', swamp rockin', gut bucket, Springsteen in a bath tub, woo hoo rock n' roll.” It's not all like that, though. On “You're Still Everywhere,” he strings together a melody that would fit right in on a Tom Petty record. If you like great songwriting and music that's slightly cock-eyed with the rough edges intact, put this one on your list.                                                                             - Freight Train Boogie

Truth and Twang bolts immediately with the irrepressible 'Tiny Mine'. The stomper sets the pace and Fournier never relents. Even on the slower numbers, for example the mournful Around To It, Fournier's bark bleeds emotion. Drop the Bottle, Grab The Throttle, a '50's rock n' roll inspired number eases itself into pole position as the album's standout track. Within two seconds, the toe tapping in uncontrollable and far too contagiously hip-shaky to be safe driving music. Closing with the uncontainable This Guitar is a note of genius. It makes pressing play to start it all over again irresistible.                                                                              - Maverick Magazine

Whiskey soaked bar brawls, swapping bawdy stories on the back porch, pushing an old beat up pickup down a country road alongside the swamp - these are the images conjured by the wonderfully raucous songs on Whiskey Stars. The production of the album is totally professional, but that doesn't take away from the raw, ragged hangdog fun of it. The lowdown baritone guitar tones vividly evoke the blues."Deluxe Ride" has a loose, wild, slow-mo rockabilly flavor, while "Almost Got it Made" name-checks Creedence Clearwater Revival outright. "Darlene Don't" is reminiscent of the moody, nuanced work of latter-day Elvis Costello.It's great to come across an album that hits just the right amount of nostalgia, yet tells new stories and brings new sounds to the fore. This is great, country fried rock and roll, done right. Damn right.                                                                             - CD Baby

This brilliant ragged roots rock is stuff that very few people do anymore. As with the best authentic roots rockers, you get a little country, roots, rock, and some intelligent, and hilarious lyrics all rolled up into a nice little package. This is one of 2004's best releases.                                                                                                                     - Amazon.com

Upon first hearing Joe Fournier’s debut CD, Raw Sugar Shed, you marvel at his talent for writing a great song. When you discover that Fournier recorded the album himself and played all the instruments, you know you’re onto something special. Having moved to Nova Scotia from Ontario about a year ago, Fournier set up a makeshift studio (dubbed the Eight Track Shack) to finish some half-written songs - just as a fun project. But after being urged by friends to send out copies of his CD, Fournier started getting some very favourable press and radio spins in Europe and airplay down in Texas. Each song on Raw Sugar Shed is a little nugget of craft, attitude and emotion, from the irreverent broadside “Country Music’s Gone To Hell” to the twangy two-stepper “All About Irene”, and the Orbison-like balladry of “Everything” and “New Girl In Town”. So far he hasn’t had much response to his music in Canada. Hopefully that’ll change soon, because, as our European and Texan friends have already discovered, a songwriter as good as Joe Fournier won’t be kept in the shed for long.                                        - Canadian Musician