June 10th, 2019

A while back, I saw two young people in a gravel parking lot at a crossroads deep in rural Ontario. Other than their cars, the lot was empty. They were locked in an embrace as I drove by in a farm truck, and they hadn’t budged 30 minutes later when I was headed home.

Those people stuck with me.

May 16th, 2019

Time to air out some of the new songs that keep piling up. Colour Film will play a small ensemble show of new and unreleased songs on Saturday June 15 at The Pearl Company in Hamilton. Opening the show will be HarpAcash. Full details and ticket info are on the CONCERTS page.

January 15th, 2019

Remember this? They look happy because they’re warm.

November 16th, 2018

Everyone probably has a few songs that have affected them profoundly. “Village Green” by The Kinks is one of mine. Its clarity, beauty, and poignance are a deep well.

To mark the 50th anniversary of its release, here’s a version recorded with Dan Rodrigues and some local wildlife.

November 10th, 2018

To mark the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War, I’ve recorded an acoustic version of “Remembrance Day” with the choir at my daughter’s school. Thanks to the kids and choir directors for their enthusiasm, and as always, deepest thanks to all our veterans.

October 4th, 2018

My all-time favourite album is The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society. Its 15 melodic vignettes mix joy and nostalgia, polished songcraft and buoyant nonchalance to imagine a bygone world of childhood friends, motorbike riders, wicked witches, and flying cats. An innocent, hidden place full of the everyday magic of small towns and green spaces.

This November marks the 50th anniversary of its release. To celebrate, I’m organizing a concert on Saturday November 17 at which a host of Hamilton musicians will perform the record from start to finish, along with a few other Kinks favourites. Full details are on the CONCERTS page.

In keeping with the album’s exploration of the tension between “progress” and conservation, all proceeds will go to the Bruce Trail Conservancy to help with the preservation of the Fisher’s Pond Nature Reserve through the purchase of 87 acres of Niagara Escarpment forest, meadow, and wetland near Waterdown, on the border between Hamilton and Burlington.

I’ve loved this album for years, so I’m very excited to share it with an audience. If you’re not familiar with it, give it a listen. You’ll be glad you did.