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Vancouver threw a 125th birthday party on the weekend with free concerts in Stanley Park, and my previously admitted musical crush on Dan Mangan was solidified. He closed out the weekend with a packed show and came across as genuinely grateful for his home town’s support and thrilled at playing to an adoring crowd of thousands in the spectacular setting.

Check out the crowd on the last chorus of the last song of the night, his biggest hit Robots:

Onstage with him is Mayor Gregor Robertson as well as musicians who had also played that weekend, including Said The Whale, Aidan Knight, Hey Ocean, and others.

Earlier, before plugs for next weekend’s Folk Festival and a Save the CBC pitch, Mangan had given the spotlight to Aidan Knight, bringing the younger singer onstage to sing his single Jasper while Mangan sang backup. (Vid is from another performance. It’s not a great summer here but there’s no snow.)

While what I’ve heard live of Mangan’s upcoming album, Oh Fortune, indicates his previous, Nice, Nice, Very Nice will likely remain my favourite, add his support for causes such as homelessness and cystic fibrosis to his generous musicianship, and Mangan remains a worthy musical crush.

Full judgement on the album will have to be reserved until it’s released September 27, but here’s a couple of acoustic versions of two of the most memorable songs I’ve heard from Oh Fortune – I especially love the title track: