Tag Archives: rock

Without a Hockey Game

Without a Hockey Game

Last fall, CBC had another contest for the “next great hockey song”. Always up for a bit of fun and a challenge, I wrote this song and got a few friends together at the studio to record  it one evening, and ended up as a collaboration between some good friends to bring life to an original song celebrating growing up in Canada and our national pastime! Thanks to all for contributing to the arrangement, and to Mo for providing the studio space to make it happen!

Even though we didn’t win the contest, we are happy to contribute to the energy that has come out of it in support of  The Hockey Project, an initiative started by fellow musician and contest entrant Larry Pegg, who is trying to raise awareness for mental health and suicide prevention issues through music and hockey, after losing his teenage daughter to suicide.

Here’s the lyric sheet so you can sing along!

Without a hockey game

From all the mornings tying laces before the crack of dawn
To sleepless nights before a game, anticipation going strong
The sound of the Zamboni doing laps around the rink
Clouds of breath in frozen air, the puck’s resounding clink

For every Stanley Cup won on asphalt with a ball
Where everyone’s a hero, one goal will win it all
Whoever puts it in the net will be a superstar
Only interrupted by the goalie calling “car”

No matter how old I become, it always stays the same
It wouldn’t be a Saturday without a hockey game

Hurry up and don’t be late, ‘cause I’ve been waiting all week long
Got the boys all coming over, going to cheer the home team on
Hurry up and drop the puck, we’ve got our favourite sweaters on
Cold ones in the cooler, yelling all night long

For every generation knows, the names we yell may change
It wouldn’t be a Saturday without a hockey game

To every kid that’s ever grown up north of 49
The sound of blades on ice is music that we all can recognize
From games of shinny on a pond to arenas under lights
Once the puck drops it’s the same sweet ballet every time

So now that I’ve got my own kids, the cycle starts again
To early mornings, strong hot coffee warming parents’ hands
Another generation’s turn to love the game we share
That brings us all together, no matter when or where

Whenever there’s a game on, no matter who may play
It wouldn’t be a Saturday without a hockey game

No matter if you’re young or old, it’s always been the same
We couldn’t call it Canada without a hockey game

What would we do on Saturday without a hockey game?
We couldn’t call it Canada without a hockey game

We couldn’t call it Canada without a hockey game

Playing on the track:

Dennis Green – Guitars, keyboards

Lyle Longridge – Vocals

Annabelle Addems – Vocals

Bruce Baker – Bass

Steve Piana – Drums

Punk Chocolate

Punk Chocolate

This is a funny little tune. After a great afternoon of conversation and an event with the regional sales manager for Barry-Callebaut, I was riding the bus home and this song idea popped in my head. An homage to chocolate from the chef`s perspective. For most of us, we try everything new that comes out, but often return to the favourites we have used over the years. Mark is a fan of 70`s and 80`s punk and rock, so I thought a Ramones – Sex Pistols vibe would be a good choice, and I wanted to give a shout out to three of Vancouver’s finest chocolate and pastry wizards who are his local brand ambassadors/promoters!

Here are the lyrics:

Feeling like you need a little fire in the soul?
Take some beans, ferment them, roast them nice and slow
Press them to extract the liquor, conching takes some time
Building up those flavours as complex as vintage wine

Some sugar, some flavour get you almost all the way
For purists there’s no lecithin, to each his own I say
White or milk is creamy, but the darker you can get
Bittersweet sensations fill the craving good as sex

Some swear by Valrhona, Lindt or Cluizel
Others want a fairly traded boutique taste or smell
For me, I’ve tried them all, but always seem to go
Back to what I’ve used forever, Greg and Peter know

Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Ask Chocolate Mark, he’s always in the know
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut

Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Chocolate Mark will tell you all you need to know
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut

When chocolate hits your fancy, don’t eat that compound crap
Full of oil and garbage, without all that classic snap
Chocolate’s more than powder, and should be delicate
Needing careful handling to make it exquisite

Properly in temper, like a woman it can be
All that you can handle, but impossible to leave
An open canvas waiting for creativity
From those who treat it well and with some dignity

Some swear by Valrhona, Lindt or Cluizel
Others want a small plantation’s special taste or smell
For me I’ve tried them all, but always seem to stay
With what I’ve used forever, just ask Christophe and he’ll say

Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Ask Chocolate Mark, he’s always in the know
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut

Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut
Chocolate Mark will tell you all you need to know
Callebaut or Cacao Barry, Cacao Barry, Callebaut

Now that’s chocolate
Real chocolate
Good chocolate
Punk chocolate!

 

Friday night with the boys

Jam #1576

Last weekend I had the pleasure of getting together with a couple of old friends, band-mates from my high school days that I hadn’t seen in over 20 years. We set up some time in the studio along with my current band-mate and guitar counterpart Mo, and had planned on a good long jam. At the last minute, Mo’s son’s band got a call to fill in at a gig and needed to take most of the drum kit with them, but they brought in a few replacements from an old kit, leaving us with just enough hardware to scrabble together a minimalistic rig. My drummer friend Chris, always an easy-going fellow, adapted easily enough and between the four of us – Me, Mo, Chris and Lyle we put together a solid hour of improv.

This was my favourite jam of the night – a bit of everything – some melodic soul, a bit of power, a few vocal musings by Lyle, and some interesting beats and rhythm changes.

While my guitar gently weeps (instrumental)

While my guitar gently weeps (instrumental)

One Tuesday afternoon at the end of a business day, I received news that a colleague in Ottawa was retiring and his co- workers had asked that everyone who knew him could send a farewell message at the same time – noon eastern that Thursday, and that every message should have a creative spin to the message that somehow involved the Beatles, Bryan’s favourite band.

I mulled it over and came up with a plan, and given my busy Wednesday didn’t get a chance to sit down and actually start putting my idea together until about 10:30 at night. I pushed hard until 3, and this is the result that appeared in his inbox the next morning.

I have tried to keep as much feel of the original together through the rhythm and melody lines, and then added my own flavour on the lead parts. I ended up using three guitars: steel string for strummed rhythm, hollow body electric for picked rhythm and melody, and my trusty Baretta for the lead work.

Hello, Tammy!

Hello Tammy

On New Year’s Eve, 2012, I was playing with my new iPad mini and exploring Twitter, when I saw a tweet from well known Canadian author Douglas Coupland, stating that he was going to nickname 2013 “Tammy”. I was at the time beginning to play around with the capability of the mini as a recording device using the GarageBand app, so spent the remainder of the evening and much of the first few hours of 2013 writing and recording a fun little tune, that ended up being somewhat “soundtrack-esque”

A great experiment, fully created, recorded, mixed, and posted on a little tablet one night!