Music Matters A round-up of new releases for producers, librarians, and anyone with an interest in music. July 24, 2014. vol. #14-28 CANCON: In the ADAM COHEN SCOTT PARSONS SPOTLIGHT...… CAROLE POPE MACKENZIE BLUES BAND ADAM COHEN – We Go Home – (Rezolute) - MAPL NIKKI W TERRY GOMES In the category of aptly named albums, we offer Adam ONDINE CHORUS THE DUHKS Cohen’s WE GO HOME, quite literally recorded at the THE WILLIE SONS various homes in which the singer/songwriter resided SISTER SPEAK during his Montreal boyhood. After wrapping up his PETUNIA most recent tour, during which he had road-tested several new songs, he anticipated an easy time in the INTERNATIONAL studio capturing these tunes for posterity. Instead, the JOHN HIATT studio sessions failed to capture the songs’ live magic. Finally, Cohen set up makeshift facilities in his various childhood abodes, including the Montreal residence of his father, legendary Canadian poet and singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen. As Adam told o.canada.com, “You pass by his hat hanging on the coat hangers and that telephone with enormous Researched and written by: buttons because he can’t see. The songs on this album chronicle Mark Rheaume conversations I’ve had with my old man (and) conversations I’d like to (416) 205-6984 have with my little boy.” Until 2011’s LIKE A MAN, young Cohen had [email protected] gone to great lengths to distinguish himself from his father. His 1998 debut album was a pop record strongly influenced by Peter Gabriel, U2, Published by: CBC Music Library Randy Newman, and Prince. Cohen even went the group route with Low Millions. Though well received, these efforts yielded only limited RADIO CANCON REQUIREMENTS commercial success, and Adam considered getting out of the music Category 2 = 50 % minimum business entirely. He was persuaded to give it another shot with LIKE A Category 3 = 20 % minimum See last page for more details MAN, on which he fully embraced his father’s sonic legacy. Continuing in this vein is WE GO HOME, which receives its official release in mid- Need a shortcut? See next page for a September. It yields spin-worthy selections in the title track, “Song of Me quick and easy five-day programming and You”, “So Much to Learn”, and “Love Is”. guide… www.adamcohen.com 1 OVERVIEW/QUICK & EASY FIVE-DAY PROGRAMMING GUIDE The songs listed below are among the more notable recordings profiled in this issue, in the form of a suggested five-day music programming guide for producers in a hurry. Each day’s list will be supplemented throughout the week by singles and selections from other sources, including the various streaming channels on CBC Music and songs currently in high rotation on CBC Radio 2. Intros and extros for all songs listed below, and those subsequently added to the list, can be found in the Content Factory Music folder in iNews for the corresponding day of the week. In addition, the tracks themselves can be found in Dalet. Go to Categories-English-Radio Syndication-Air (Download) and look for the corresponding day of the week. The songs and the intros and extros are added the day before the date listed below. Monday, July 28 “Some Velvet Morning” – Carole Pope (p. 3) “Oh, My Mother” – Petunia (p. 7) “Long Time Comin’” – John Hiatt (p. 8) Tuesday, July 29 “We Go Home” – Adam Cohen (p. 1) “Don’t’ Take Me Home Tonight” – Nikki W (p. 4) “These Dreams” – Duhks (p. 6) Wednesday, July 30 “Chicago Dream” – Sister Speak (p. 7) “Dembo Suckles” – Scott Parsons (p. 3) Thursday, July 31 “Hush, the Moon is Rising” – Ondine Chorus (p. 5) “I’m With You” – Willie Sons (p. 6) Friday, August 1 “Look Alive!” – Terry Gomes (p. 5) “Higher Road” – Mackenzie Blues Band (p. 4) 2 ATLANTIC SCOTT PARSONS – The Old Stock – (indie) – MAPL Based: P.E.I. Genre: “Rastacadian” – a mix of folk, blues, reggae, country, jazz, and rock The Lowdown: This is the singer/songwriter’s fourth album. Release Date: 2014 The Story So Far: Parsons is truly a music industry veteran. He has played in bands led by Daisy Debolt, Jenny Allen, and Gene MacLellan and released his debut album (under the project name Jupiter Wise) in 1993. He won an ECMA for African Canadian Recording of the Year for 2003’s NICE TO WEAR, for which he also earned a Music PEI Award. In addition, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. Over the years, he has performed at major music festivals across the country and has appeared on CBC shows like “Basic Black” and “Swinging On A Star”. THE OLD STOCK: All but two of the songs were written by Parsons for a play of the same name, which was first performed in Charlottetown in February, 2009. “The Old Stock” tells the story of the black history experience in Prince Edward Island from the 1780s, when Loyalists came here with their slaves, to the present time. Pick Tracks (in order): “Dembo Suckles”, “Jupiter Wise”, “What I Am”, “Is Sook Willin’” (note: it’s very short, but wonderful) Weblink: www.scottparsons.net ONTARIO CAROLE POPE – Music For Lesbians – (indie) - MAL Here’s a new EP from Carole Pope, who, while making her name in the ‘70s and ‘80s as the lead vocalist in Rough Trade, drew considerable attention for her sexually explicit lyrics and open lesbianism. In those days, many performers still viewed such honesty as career suicide, but MUSIC FOR LESBIANS shows how much things have changed, with Pope now proving to have been something of a trailblazer in this regard. Latterly spending a lot of time in New York, the British-born, Toronto-reared Pope also helped pave the way for the burgeoning indie-rock scene of the city’s Queen Street West district. Along the way, she picked up three Junos, including two for Female Vocalist of the Year. She kept a somewhat lower profile after the band’s 1988 break-up, belatedly releasing her first solo album in 1996. Her account of the glory days of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s in her tell-all book “Anti- Diva” in 2000 regenerated some of the sensational media coverage of earlier times. From the new disc, go with the one clean track “Some Velvet Morning”. Note: profanity on tracks 1 and 3. www.carolepope.com 3 THE MACKENZIE BLUES BAND – Slam! Bam! – (indie) – MAPL Born/based: Owen Sound Genre: Mix of blues, rock, and soul The Lowdown: This is the band’s second album. Release Date: 2014 More on the Story: Tara MacKenzie (vocals), Trevor MacKenzie (guitar), Joel Dawson (bass), and Mike Weir (drums) released their debut album BACK ROAD REVELATION in 2012, two years before earning a Maple Blues Award for Best New Group or Artist. In addition, the MacKenzies have reached the semi- finals at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN. They have also played shows and festivals across Ontario and beyond. Pick Tracks (in order): “Higher Road”, “Down With Love”, “Up! Up! Up!”, “On the Other Side” (fade at 4:30) Weblink: www.mackenziebluesband.com NIKKI W – Sad Generation – (indie) – MAPL Born/based: London Genre: Influenced by Metric and Lana Del Ray (with overtones of Sarah McLachlan at her most dramatic), describes her music as “pop music with cuts, tattoos, and honesty” The Lowdown: This EP is Nikki’s debut recording. Release Date: July 29, 2014 Producer: Gavin Brown (Barenaked Ladies, Metric, Lady Gaga) The Story so Far: Says the 16-year-old Nikki (whose sophisticated music belies her age), “I was eleven when I joined my first band. I was really into Joan Jett and AC/DC and Metallica. Then I got into punk, the Sex Pistols, the Ramones. And then it kinda just morphed from there, and I found my own sound.” Pick Tracks (in order): “Don’t Take Me Home Tonight”, “Transparent Hands”, “Darkness”, “Paper Boat” 4 TERRY GOMES – The Sand in My Shoes – (indie) – MAP Based: Ottawa Genre: Guitar-based smooth jazz with a Latin American flair Pronouncer: Gomes rhymes with “homes”. The Lowdown: This EP is Terry’s fifth recording. Release Date: September 2, 2014 The Story So Far: Gomes studied classical guitar and modern composition at the University of Ottawa. He graduated with an Honours degree and went on to teach guitar for a decade, in addition to performing in rock bands and in a flute/classical guitar duo (which later expanded to a trio with flute, classical guitar, and folk harp). His first two albums, GOMESONGS SIDE A (2006) and GOMESONGS SIDE B (2007), leaned toward country and pop before he took his music in a Sixties-inspired singer/songwriter direction. With last year’s SHH., he moved into smooth jazz and picked up spins on CBC and community stations across Ontario. THE SAND IN MY SHOES: Gomes wrote all five tunes and is backed by a small studio band. Pick Tracks (in order): “Look Alive!”, “On the Pier”, “Hide and Seek” Weblink: www.terrygomes.com ONDINE CHORUS – Towards a Little Light – (indie) – MAPL Based: Guelph Genre: Vocal ensemble Pronouncer: Ondine = “ON-deen” The Lowdown: This EP is the group’s debut recording. Release Date: 2014 Well, At Least SOME Good Came Out of That Awful Day: Ondine Chorus draws on the talents of Sue Smith (vocals), Tannis Slimmon (vocals), Shannon Kingsbury (vocals, harp), Tricia Brubacher (vocals), David Beattie (vocals), Robert Kingsbury (vocals), and Jeff Bird (bass, harmonica) of Cowboy Junkies and Tamarack fame. Most of the members were connected even before the group’s formation. Smith and Bird are married, and Smith and Slimmon had worked together in the Bird Sisters (about whom you can read more in a separate biography in the iO! portal, which also has bios of Smith, Bird and Slimmon as solo performers).