For the Sake of the Song
THE SONGS
1. Colorado Girl – Townes Van Zandt
2. Tomorrow is a Long Time – Bob Dylan
3. Pastures of Plenty – Woody Guthrie
4. Sit Down Young Stranger – Gordon Lightfoot
5. Who by Fire – Leonard Cohen
6. The Partisan – Anna Marly
7. My Skies – James Keelaghan
8. Long Afternoons – Paul Siebel
9. Lucky Man – David Francey
10. I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – Tom Waits
11. The Partisan – Alternate Mix
12. I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – Radio version with Emma LeBlanc
About The Songs
I never set out to make another record. Would have bet the farm that I would never make music again. My first kick at the can was a vinyl LP called First Time Since August, which I released in 1984. In fact, I have not played guitar in close to 30 years, and had given up entirely on singing as well. I first decided to record a song again while working on an album of spoken word poetry with Chris Corrigan, who produced this record and played guitar on all the tracks. I had been thinking about covering Bob Dylan’s Tomorrow is a Long Time and one day, we just did it. To my genuine surprise, it turned out pretty good, so we did another, Colorado Girl, which I also thought sounded okay. By this time I was enjoying the process so much, I decided to make a whole record of cover songs, songs that for the most part had been with me for a very long time, some close to 50 years.
The concept I came up with was that we would record songs by great writers, but not their most popular releases. If I was going to try to breathe new life into some older songs, I reckoned, I would choose some of the more obscure ones that I really loved. I’m guessing that unless you are fan of the singer-songwriter genre from days past, that many of the songs on this record will be new to you, and that really, is the whole point. I made the record simply for the joy of making music again after three decades, with the aim of trying to breathe new life into some great songs that for most part are not widely known. (Certainly, some of them are quite famous.)
I have been fortunate to work with some of these artists as a booking agent, and some of them I am lucky to call friends. Others, like Woody and Leonard, are artists who have had a profound impact on my life. I do not expect to break any sales records with this album. I made it, rather, as the title says, for the sake of the songs, for the simple joy of creating music. These are songs that deserve to be sung.
Colorado Girl – Townes Van Zandt was one of the great American songwriters of his day. His life was even more of a marvel than his songs were, and he knew, intimately, the downtrodden and marginalized people he wrote about. Why this isn’t one of his more famous songs I can’t say, but it is absolutely brilliant in its simplicity. Townes always goes straight for your heart.
Tomorrow is a Long Time – I think Dylan wrote much of his best material before he ever picked up an electric guitar, and before the drugs and all the crazy imagery that I also love, but largely, don’t understand. This was one of the first songs I ever performed for audiences, and one I learned when I was still in high school. Even though I had not sung it in 30 years, I remembered all the words.
Pastures of Plenty – Where to even start with Woody Guthrie? It was after reading his autobiography, Bound for Glory, that I decided that being a troubadour and itinerant worker was the coolest thing a person could ever do, and it set me on a path of hitchhiking and busking that lasted years and covered tens of thousands of miles. Pastures, I think, is one of his greatest songs.
Sit Down Young Stranger – Gordon Lightfoot’s music was in our home as early as the late 60s. I would have learned this song around 1975 when I was still in high school, so it has been with me some 45 years. It is also a conversation I had with my own parents numerous times back in my hitchhiking days. I was never lucky enough to work with him, but I have a very fond memory of having Dinner with Lightfoot and Sylvia Tyson in 2008 at a Pete Seeger show in Toronto.
Who by Fire – I started listening to Leonard Cohen when I was 16, and this was one of the first of his songs I knew. I became a huge fan, more of a disciple, and I never stopped listening and reading, and got to see him perform twice. He was the greatest songwriter of his time, period. Cohen identified very strongly as a Jewish man and Who by Fire is based on the Hebrew Yom Kippur prayer, Unetanneh Tokef.
The Partisan – Many people will know Leonard Cohen’s version of this song, but it was written by Anna Marly, a Russian-born French singer-songwriter whose father was killed in the aftermath of the October Revolution. Chant de Partisan became the unofficial anthem of the French Free Forces in WWII and was proposed as a new national anthem at the end of the war. Cohen learned it from a songbook at summer camp when he was just 15-year-old.
My Skies – I first met James Keelaghan at a folk festival in Jasper, Alberta in 1985 long before he was known, and we remain friends to this day. I heard him sing Stan Roger’s Lies at that festival and knew in that moment that he was going places, and in fact, asked him to form a duo with me. My Skies has always been one of my favourite Keelaghan songs, and I was pretty tickled to have him sing it with me.
Long Afternoons – I discovered Jerry Jeff Walker’s A Man Must Carry on in 1980 and to this day, it ranks in my top three all time favourite recordings, any genre. Much later on I had the great pleasure of working with Jerry Jeff as his Canadian agent. The imagery in this song, which was written by Paul Siebel, is so evocative, and Jerry Jeff’s delivery is masterful in its warmth and affection. A gem of a song that deserves to be better known.
Lucky Man – I met David Francey about 20 years ago and worked briefly with him as his booking agent. My first encounter with his music was hearing James Keelaghan cover Red-Winged Blackbird in concert and I recognized a great writer instantly. He has turned out an impressive body of heartfelt and often plaintive work, and none more beautiful, I think, than Lucky Man. Francey is a treasure.
I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – From his magnum opus, Closing Time, I first became aware of this Tom Waits song in 1982 when my cousin introduced me to it. That record showcased an artist at the very top of his game and every single song on it deserves to be called a masterpiece. We’ve all been that guy in that bar, and this song tore my young heart out. Even now nearly 40 years later, it still does.
THE SONGS
1. Colorado Girl – Townes Van Zandt
2. Tomorrow is a Long Time – Bob Dylan
3. Pastures of Plenty – Woody Guthrie
4. Sit Down Young Stranger – Gordon Lightfoot
5. Who by Fire – Leonard Cohen
6. The Partisan – Anna Marly
7. My Skies – James Keelaghan
8. Long Afternoons – Paul Siebel
9. Lucky Man – David Francey
10. I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – Tom Waits
11. The Partisan – Alternate Mix
12. I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – Radio version with Emma LeBlanc
About The Songs
I never set out to make another record. Would have bet the farm that I would never make music again. My first kick at the can was a vinyl LP called First Time Since August, which I released in 1984. In fact, I have not played guitar in close to 30 years, and had given up entirely on singing as well. I first decided to record a song again while working on an album of spoken word poetry with Chris Corrigan, who produced this record and played guitar on all the tracks. I had been thinking about covering Bob Dylan’s Tomorrow is a Long Time and one day, we just did it. To my genuine surprise, it turned out pretty good, so we did another, Colorado Girl, which I also thought sounded okay. By this time I was enjoying the process so much, I decided to make a whole record of cover songs, songs that for the most part had been with me for a very long time, some close to 50 years.
The concept I came up with was that we would record songs by great writers, but not their most popular releases. If I was going to try to breathe new life into some older songs, I reckoned, I would choose some of the more obscure ones that I really loved. I’m guessing that unless you are fan of the singer-songwriter genre from days past, that many of the songs on this record will be new to you, and that really, is the whole point. I made the record simply for the joy of making music again after three decades, with the aim of trying to breathe new life into some great songs that for most part are not widely known. (Certainly, some of them are quite famous.)
I have been fortunate to work with some of these artists as a booking agent, and some of them I am lucky to call friends. Others, like Woody and Leonard, are artists who have had a profound impact on my life. I do not expect to break any sales records with this album. I made it, rather, as the title says, for the sake of the songs, for the simple joy of creating music. These are songs that deserve to be sung.
Colorado Girl – Townes Van Zandt was one of the great American songwriters of his day. His life was even more of a marvel than his songs were, and he knew, intimately, the downtrodden and marginalized people he wrote about. Why this isn’t one of his more famous songs I can’t say, but it is absolutely brilliant in its simplicity. Townes always goes straight for your heart.
Tomorrow is a Long Time – I think Dylan wrote much of his best material before he ever picked up an electric guitar, and before the drugs and all the crazy imagery that I also love, but largely, don’t understand. This was one of the first songs I ever performed for audiences, and one I learned when I was still in high school. Even though I had not sung it in 30 years, I remembered all the words.
Pastures of Plenty – Where to even start with Woody Guthrie? It was after reading his autobiography, Bound for Glory, that I decided that being a troubadour and itinerant worker was the coolest thing a person could ever do, and it set me on a path of hitchhiking and busking that lasted years and covered tens of thousands of miles. Pastures, I think, is one of his greatest songs.
Sit Down Young Stranger – Gordon Lightfoot’s music was in our home as early as the late 60s. I would have learned this song around 1975 when I was still in high school, so it has been with me some 45 years. It is also a conversation I had with my own parents numerous times back in my hitchhiking days. I was never lucky enough to work with him, but I have a very fond memory of having Dinner with Lightfoot and Sylvia Tyson in 2008 at a Pete Seeger show in Toronto.
Who by Fire – I started listening to Leonard Cohen when I was 16, and this was one of the first of his songs I knew. I became a huge fan, more of a disciple, and I never stopped listening and reading, and got to see him perform twice. He was the greatest songwriter of his time, period. Cohen identified very strongly as a Jewish man and Who by Fire is based on the Hebrew Yom Kippur prayer, Unetanneh Tokef.
The Partisan – Many people will know Leonard Cohen’s version of this song, but it was written by Anna Marly, a Russian-born French singer-songwriter whose father was killed in the aftermath of the October Revolution. Chant de Partisan became the unofficial anthem of the French Free Forces in WWII and was proposed as a new national anthem at the end of the war. Cohen learned it from a songbook at summer camp when he was just 15-year-old.
My Skies – I first met James Keelaghan at a folk festival in Jasper, Alberta in 1985 long before he was known, and we remain friends to this day. I heard him sing Stan Roger’s Lies at that festival and knew in that moment that he was going places, and in fact, asked him to form a duo with me. My Skies has always been one of my favourite Keelaghan songs, and I was pretty tickled to have him sing it with me.
Long Afternoons – I discovered Jerry Jeff Walker’s A Man Must Carry on in 1980 and to this day, it ranks in my top three all time favourite recordings, any genre. Much later on I had the great pleasure of working with Jerry Jeff as his Canadian agent. The imagery in this song, which was written by Paul Siebel, is so evocative, and Jerry Jeff’s delivery is masterful in its warmth and affection. A gem of a song that deserves to be better known.
Lucky Man – I met David Francey about 20 years ago and worked briefly with him as his booking agent. My first encounter with his music was hearing James Keelaghan cover Red-Winged Blackbird in concert and I recognized a great writer instantly. He has turned out an impressive body of heartfelt and often plaintive work, and none more beautiful, I think, than Lucky Man. Francey is a treasure.
I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – From his magnum opus, Closing Time, I first became aware of this Tom Waits song in 1982 when my cousin introduced me to it. That record showcased an artist at the very top of his game and every single song on it deserves to be called a masterpiece. We’ve all been that guy in that bar, and this song tore my young heart out. Even now nearly 40 years later, it still does.
THE SONGS
1. Colorado Girl – Townes Van Zandt
2. Tomorrow is a Long Time – Bob Dylan
3. Pastures of Plenty – Woody Guthrie
4. Sit Down Young Stranger – Gordon Lightfoot
5. Who by Fire – Leonard Cohen
6. The Partisan – Anna Marly
7. My Skies – James Keelaghan
8. Long Afternoons – Paul Siebel
9. Lucky Man – David Francey
10. I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – Tom Waits
11. The Partisan – Alternate Mix
12. I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – Radio version with Emma LeBlanc
About The Songs
I never set out to make another record. Would have bet the farm that I would never make music again. My first kick at the can was a vinyl LP called First Time Since August, which I released in 1984. In fact, I have not played guitar in close to 30 years, and had given up entirely on singing as well. I first decided to record a song again while working on an album of spoken word poetry with Chris Corrigan, who produced this record and played guitar on all the tracks. I had been thinking about covering Bob Dylan’s Tomorrow is a Long Time and one day, we just did it. To my genuine surprise, it turned out pretty good, so we did another, Colorado Girl, which I also thought sounded okay. By this time I was enjoying the process so much, I decided to make a whole record of cover songs, songs that for the most part had been with me for a very long time, some close to 50 years.
The concept I came up with was that we would record songs by great writers, but not their most popular releases. If I was going to try to breathe new life into some older songs, I reckoned, I would choose some of the more obscure ones that I really loved. I’m guessing that unless you are fan of the singer-songwriter genre from days past, that many of the songs on this record will be new to you, and that really, is the whole point. I made the record simply for the joy of making music again after three decades, with the aim of trying to breathe new life into some great songs that for most part are not widely known. (Certainly, some of them are quite famous.)
I have been fortunate to work with some of these artists as a booking agent, and some of them I am lucky to call friends. Others, like Woody and Leonard, are artists who have had a profound impact on my life. I do not expect to break any sales records with this album. I made it, rather, as the title says, for the sake of the songs, for the simple joy of creating music. These are songs that deserve to be sung.
Colorado Girl – Townes Van Zandt was one of the great American songwriters of his day. His life was even more of a marvel than his songs were, and he knew, intimately, the downtrodden and marginalized people he wrote about. Why this isn’t one of his more famous songs I can’t say, but it is absolutely brilliant in its simplicity. Townes always goes straight for your heart.
Tomorrow is a Long Time – I think Dylan wrote much of his best material before he ever picked up an electric guitar, and before the drugs and all the crazy imagery that I also love, but largely, don’t understand. This was one of the first songs I ever performed for audiences, and one I learned when I was still in high school. Even though I had not sung it in 30 years, I remembered all the words.
Pastures of Plenty – Where to even start with Woody Guthrie? It was after reading his autobiography, Bound for Glory, that I decided that being a troubadour and itinerant worker was the coolest thing a person could ever do, and it set me on a path of hitchhiking and busking that lasted years and covered tens of thousands of miles. Pastures, I think, is one of his greatest songs.
Sit Down Young Stranger – Gordon Lightfoot’s music was in our home as early as the late 60s. I would have learned this song around 1975 when I was still in high school, so it has been with me some 45 years. It is also a conversation I had with my own parents numerous times back in my hitchhiking days. I was never lucky enough to work with him, but I have a very fond memory of having Dinner with Lightfoot and Sylvia Tyson in 2008 at a Pete Seeger show in Toronto.
Who by Fire – I started listening to Leonard Cohen when I was 16, and this was one of the first of his songs I knew. I became a huge fan, more of a disciple, and I never stopped listening and reading, and got to see him perform twice. He was the greatest songwriter of his time, period. Cohen identified very strongly as a Jewish man and Who by Fire is based on the Hebrew Yom Kippur prayer, Unetanneh Tokef.
The Partisan – Many people will know Leonard Cohen’s version of this song, but it was written by Anna Marly, a Russian-born French singer-songwriter whose father was killed in the aftermath of the October Revolution. Chant de Partisan became the unofficial anthem of the French Free Forces in WWII and was proposed as a new national anthem at the end of the war. Cohen learned it from a songbook at summer camp when he was just 15-year-old.
My Skies – I first met James Keelaghan at a folk festival in Jasper, Alberta in 1985 long before he was known, and we remain friends to this day. I heard him sing Stan Roger’s Lies at that festival and knew in that moment that he was going places, and in fact, asked him to form a duo with me. My Skies has always been one of my favourite Keelaghan songs, and I was pretty tickled to have him sing it with me.
Long Afternoons – I discovered Jerry Jeff Walker’s A Man Must Carry on in 1980 and to this day, it ranks in my top three all time favourite recordings, any genre. Much later on I had the great pleasure of working with Jerry Jeff as his Canadian agent. The imagery in this song, which was written by Paul Siebel, is so evocative, and Jerry Jeff’s delivery is masterful in its warmth and affection. A gem of a song that deserves to be better known.
Lucky Man – I met David Francey about 20 years ago and worked briefly with him as his booking agent. My first encounter with his music was hearing James Keelaghan cover Red-Winged Blackbird in concert and I recognized a great writer instantly. He has turned out an impressive body of heartfelt and often plaintive work, and none more beautiful, I think, than Lucky Man. Francey is a treasure.
I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love with You – From his magnum opus, Closing Time, I first became aware of this Tom Waits song in 1982 when my cousin introduced me to it. That record showcased an artist at the very top of his game and every single song on it deserves to be called a masterpiece. We’ve all been that guy in that bar, and this song tore my young heart out. Even now nearly 40 years later, it still does.