Posts from — October 2008

Wow. I am in heaven. I’m staying at the “Shelter From the Storm,” a B & B just outside of Hamilton which puts up touring folks. What a neat spot. I am having the time of my life. I’ve been meeting and hanging with the most interesting and talented folks, including The Wooden Sky, Winter Gloves, You Say Party! We Say Die! Great Lake Swimmers and more…It’s been a blast. It’s nice to know that I’m not alone in living this crazy llifestyle.

I just wrote a new song, called, “Your Warmest Smile.” I took a video of it just by the barn, one of my favourite outdoor spots to practice at the Shelter. I was going to call it, “To Be With You” but changed the title as I didn’t think it was the right fit. When I perform it live, it will be looped but this is the basic version of the song when I don’t have electricity to work with.

I don’t want to leave this place. It’s too beautiful…

I played one of my bigger cd release shows at Quebec’s Black Sheep, my favourite music venue in Canada. What a magical experience that evening was. Sharing the stage with me were musician friends Andrea Simms-Karp, Mike Yates, Marie-Josee Houle, Lindsay Ferguson, Ha!Man and Victoria filmmaker Scott Amos. Performing with these talented musicians was pure magic. I kept getting goosebumps the entire time I was singing as I couldn’t believe what I was hearing behind me. It was amazing. We have such amazing talent in this country.

And then there was Victoria filmmaker and friend Scott Amos who wowed all of us with his short experimental films that he projected with my performance. A real highlight was performing “Alone,” with Andrea and Marie-Josee backing me up. And our improv piece that we all performed at the very end of my set was so much fun! I didn’t want the night to end. It’s getting me really excited to perform my Cameron House set in Toronto this Wednesday, when I will be fortunate to experience playing with Scott’s films once again. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see what Scott was projecting behind me for most of my set but I was put to tears when I experienced it through watching the videos my friend took of me through my camera. Wow. I wish he could be on the road with me all the time as it adds so much to the performance.

Here’s a little bit of the magic as I perform “Someday” at the Black Sheep. Scott Amos is projecting his films in the background.

It’s been a crazy amount of driving lately and I’m pretty tuckered out. I said good-bye to the Maritimes (after experiencing hurricane Kyle in Saint John NB) and then drove 15 straight hours to Wakefield Quebec, my favourite village, about a 25 minute drive from Ottawa. Why did the drive take so long you ask? Because I drove through Maine to save on gas costs and got myself good and lost in the mountains! Yikes. The colours of the trees were amazing though, bright red, yellow and orange. I eventually found my way but it was a tad scary at points. I have a pretty entertaining story of trying to cross the border into Maine. Let’s just say that it was quite the challenge.

So here’s some choppy video clips of various moments while I was hopping around Nova Scotia and PEI. I miss the Maritimes so much already, especially the comforting smell of the Atlantic. It’s a pretty special place. Thanks to all of you who went out out of your way to make my time in the Maritimes so special. : )