While itB次元官网网址檚 no secret Nanaimo bluesman and legendary guitarist David Gogo has worked on many albums over the years, his latest may just be his favourite one yet.
B次元官网网址淚 think the biggest thing was I got myself out of my comfort zone,B次元官网网址� Gogo said.
Accolades for the award-winning musician include the Maple Blues AwardsB次元官网网址� Guitarist of the Year in 2002 and 2004; Western Canadian Music AwardsB次元官网网址� Blues Recording of the Year in 2012; Great Canadian Blues AwardsB次元官网网址� Best Canadian Blues Musician in 2004; and West Coast Music AwardsB次元官网网址� Musician of the Year in 2000.
For his 17th studio album, the bluesman travelled far from the comforts of Nanaimo B次元官网网址� far from his guitar collection and local supports B次元官网网址� and wound up in a recording studio built inside a 140-year-old farmhouse on the outskirts of Cobourg, Ont. Gogo said the farmhouse provided the perfect, distraction-free atmosphere he craved.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not like a regular studio where the clockB次元官网网址檚 ticking B次元官网网址� It was just fantastic. A lot of really spontaneous playing and keeping a lot of first tracks,B次元官网网址� he said.
The studio was called Ganaraska Recording Co. and had its own guitar collection. And except for one song where Gogo plays his own, the studioB次元官网网址檚 collection is heard being plucked and strummed throughout the album.
Playing with the bluesman throughout Yeah is his friend and collaborator Steve Marriner; former member of Sheepdogs and co-owner of the recording studio Jimmy Bowskill; and veteran drummer Gary Craig who has played with Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, Tom Cochrane and Bruce Cockburn.
While Gogo said he considers his previous album, 2021B次元官网网址檚 Silver Cup, as an acoustic home-recorded product of the COVID-19 pandemic, he sees Yeah as the celebration that followed to B次元官网网址済et out there and rock some more.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淭he album itself was just a real thrill and I donB次元官网网址檛 think IB次元官网网址檝e ever worked on a record where things were just so happening and so spontaneous,B次元官网网址� he said.
The focus track is a song called Diamonds in the Rough and was inspired by someone who B次元官网网址渞eally floats his boat.B次元官网网址� And for local listeners, there are also plenty of references to be picked out. The song Moose Hall Brawl, for example, is based on actual events at the south Nanaimo lodge, and the tenth song, Ballad of Bad Boy Billy, is dedicated to a friend of GogoB次元官网网址檚 who died last summer.
B次元官网网址淚 decided to write a song for him, and from what IB次元官网网址檝e heard from people who knew him, they think itB次元官网网址檚 quite a tribute,B次元官网网址� the bluesman said.
The 10 tracks that account for GogoB次元官网网址檚 latest project are already available on streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music, but wonB次元官网网址檛 be available for CD purchase until July 5. And although it has only seen an online release so far, Gogo said heB次元官网网址檚 pleased with how well the album is already doing. Earlier this month, the bluesman heard a radio station based in the U.K. had featured Yeah as album of the week, and that a few other stations in the Netherlands were also playing it.
B次元官网网址淚t blows my mind. The record has only been streaming since [June 14] and weB次元官网网址檙e already getting reviews and air-play over in Europe. ItB次元官网网址檚 a whole different time than when I started out in this business,B次元官网网址� Gogo said.
For much of the summer, he will circulate through festivals like the Lighthouse Blues Festival in Ontario, the Blues dB次元官网网址檒a Baie Blues Festival in New Brunswick and the Donnacona Blues Festival in Qu茅bec, while squeezing in B.C. performances when he can. To date, Island venues include the Parksville Museum on July 18 and the Nanaimo Summertime Blues Festival on Aug. 8.
Gogo did, however, mention that heB次元官网网址檚 been toying with the idea of holding a pop-up album release show at one of the second-hand record stores in Nanaimo. Plans have yet to be solidified though.
More information on the bluesmanB次元官网网址檚 touring schedule, or to pre-order Yeah on CD, can be found at .
