Hello and Welcome to Yellowjacket!
Howdy Folks!
Life is good: on September 12th, "Let's Frolic" by Blackie & the Rodeo Kings hits the stores, so I'll be donning the hat of my B&RK alter ego to tour for a while. You can check out www.rodeokings.com on September 12th when that site gets a complete revamp in celebration of the new album.
Meanwhile, the photo galleries are upon this site, featuring your photos and mine and those of photographers whose paths I cross as I criss cross the countries. There's lots of cool stuff to interact with and look at in the Community section, and many music clips on the music section.
Check out the links to Maplemusic for your very own copy of Yellowjacket! In stores now! Ask your station why they're not playing it yet!
STEPHEN FEARING RELEASES EIGHTH CD ‘YELLOWJACKET’ TODAY INTERNATIONALLY FEARING TO EMBARK ON UK TOUR TO COINCIDE WITH EUROPEAN RELEASE.
Toronto – April 11, 2006 – Canadian born, Irish bred Stephen Fearing is one of the most literate, stirring and emotionally charged singer/songwriters on this planet. Today True North proudly releases YELLOWJACKET, Fearing's eighth solo CD. Fearing is about to tour the UK for the fourth time supporting the release of his record. This beautifully penned eleven song disc was written by Fearing and features co-writes by Josh Finlayson and Tom Wilson and was produced by Stephen Fearing, his first production credit.
Stephen Fearing is a passionate singer/songwriter and one-third of the JUNO winning power trio that is Blackie & The Rodeo Kings. For his seventh release on True North he treats us with his tales featuring stunning guitar work and his thought provoking intimate vocals. A stand-out performer and unique storyteller who draws on numerous musical influences including contemporary acoustic, roots, traditional folk, celtic, country, blues, gospel and jazz. His amazing guitar playing is coupled with a strong voice that can project sudden power.
"Fearing's innate ability to pen a beautifully rich and communicative song stirs the soul in a way only a few others (Ry Cooder) can." NOW Magazine
"Stephen Fearing has often been called the Richard Thompson of Canada, which is a compliment to both men. He is a gripping solo artist and an acoustic wonder, rare. His songs are superlative, and whether penned solo or with his growing number of partners you always hear his voice in the song.” Puretracks.com
“A Stephen Fearing show is a rosary of rough gems that seem to be tumbled and carved right before your eyes, and no matter how long the cord, it’s always too short.” Pamela Murray Winters – WASHINGTON POST
In January 2006 Blackie & The Rodeo Kings recorded 29 songs. They are being mixed and produced by the most sought after Canadian music producer today, Colin Linden, for a September 12, 2206 release titled “Lets Frolic”.
April 2006 - It has been 20 years since songsmith Stephen Fearing released his self-titled debut. Over the following two decades, he has built up a very loyal and committed international audience, one sure to be delighted by his beautiful new recording.
Yellowjacket is Fearing's eighth solo album and as always it features a potent combination of powerful and affecting lyrics, pure vocals and masterful musicianship. Yellowjacket also marks something of a breakthrough in Stephen's approach to recording as he assumes the mantle of producer for the first time since his early albums. The result is a relaxed fluency vocal and guitar work and a unique sonic palette, which make this album distinctly different, again, from his previous releases..
Over the course of his career, Fearing has been able to learn from some of roots music's finest producers. English folk star Clive Gregson (Any Trouble, Gregson and Collister) produced his acclaimed 1989 album, Blue Line; Steve Berlin (Los Lobos) was on hand for 1994's The Assassin's Apprentice (a disc featuring fans Sarah McLachlan and Richard Thompson), whilst Stephen's close friend Colin Linden manned the console for 1997's Industrial Lullaby, 2000's So Many Miles - LIVE and 2002's That's How I Walk (which Fearing co-produced).
To record Yellowjacket, Stephen set up shop in the Guelph studio of noted musician/producer, Scott Merritt (Fred Eaglesmith), who engineered and mixed the sessions. Together, they have crafted a richly diverse collection of songs. These range from a rollicking guitar “march” that could have been written by John Phillip Sousa and Dr. Seuss (“Whoville”), to intricately arranged pieces featuring strings and female backing vocals (“Yellowjacket”, “Like Every Other Morning”), poignant ballads suffused with Salvation Army-style horns (“Johnny's Lament”, Love Only Knows") to full band workouts reminiscent of Blackie and The Rodeo Kings (“One Flat Tire”)
This diversity also reflects changes in Fearing's perspective on songwriting, and his ongoing experimentation with co-writing. “Writing songs with another person allows you to be a little more objective, a little less critical and a lot more productive and surprisingly, I've found that it really informs the material I write on my own”.
“Collaborating opens up a whole other vista, it's like taking a walk outside of my own stuffy little brain”
Fearing's songwriting partner on four of the songs in this collection, is Josh Finlayson, from much-loved roots-rockers The Skydiggers. After one brief phone call they met at Fearing's home and immediately tapped into a rich creative connection, trading lyrics and melodies in an instantly productive “crazy rush of ideas”. This rapport is vividly illustrated on “Love Only Knows,” a tender portrait of a parent coming to terms with a child's burgeoning maturity - “Love only knows what happens now, Yesterday turns under the plough, Only a fool would not allow You to stand on your own.”
Yellowjacket's title song is a co-write with Stephen's close creative comrade, Tom Wilson. Spawned during a long drive in the rain from Nashville back to Ontario, a trek fuelled by 'yellow jacket' caffeine pills, it depicts a restless soul out there “following the big beat.” The protagonist is one of those young Jam-band disciples, a Deadhead perhaps, escaping some decaying Midwestern town and running out of youth.
As is customary on Fearing's records, the supporting musical cast is of the highest order. The list includes Dan Whiteley (Heartbreak Hill), Jeff Bird (Cowboy Junkies), backing vocalist Suzie Vinnick, Josh Finlayson, and Stephen's B&RK bandmates, Colin Linden, Gary Craig, John Dymond and Richard Bell.
The consistent quality of work produced over Stephen Fearing's two decades plus career has earned him a West Coast Music Award for Best Folk Music Recording and five Juno Award nominations as a solo artist and a faithful international fan base.
“BARK”. “It's wonderful to be able to work as a solo artist and to be active in such a powerful ensemble as The Rodeo Kings. These guys are my friends and there is no doubt in my mind that my continuing work with them influences my solo playing very deeply”.
With two more Blackie records on the near-horizon plus an ongoing collaboration with Irish singer/songwriter Andy White, Stephen has never been more prolific. In his own words, "Yellowjacket feels like a new beginning.”
Life is good: on September 12th, "Let's Frolic" by Blackie & the Rodeo Kings hits the stores, so I'll be donning the hat of my B&RK alter ego to tour for a while. You can check out www.rodeokings.com on September 12th when that site gets a complete revamp in celebration of the new album.
Meanwhile, the photo galleries are upon this site, featuring your photos and mine and those of photographers whose paths I cross as I criss cross the countries. There's lots of cool stuff to interact with and look at in the Community section, and many music clips on the music section.
Check out the links to Maplemusic for your very own copy of Yellowjacket! In stores now! Ask your station why they're not playing it yet!
STEPHEN FEARING RELEASES EIGHTH CD ‘YELLOWJACKET’ TODAY INTERNATIONALLY FEARING TO EMBARK ON UK TOUR TO COINCIDE WITH EUROPEAN RELEASE.
Toronto – April 11, 2006 – Canadian born, Irish bred Stephen Fearing is one of the most literate, stirring and emotionally charged singer/songwriters on this planet. Today True North proudly releases YELLOWJACKET, Fearing's eighth solo CD. Fearing is about to tour the UK for the fourth time supporting the release of his record. This beautifully penned eleven song disc was written by Fearing and features co-writes by Josh Finlayson and Tom Wilson and was produced by Stephen Fearing, his first production credit.
Stephen Fearing is a passionate singer/songwriter and one-third of the JUNO winning power trio that is Blackie & The Rodeo Kings. For his seventh release on True North he treats us with his tales featuring stunning guitar work and his thought provoking intimate vocals. A stand-out performer and unique storyteller who draws on numerous musical influences including contemporary acoustic, roots, traditional folk, celtic, country, blues, gospel and jazz. His amazing guitar playing is coupled with a strong voice that can project sudden power.
"Fearing's innate ability to pen a beautifully rich and communicative song stirs the soul in a way only a few others (Ry Cooder) can." NOW Magazine
"Stephen Fearing has often been called the Richard Thompson of Canada, which is a compliment to both men. He is a gripping solo artist and an acoustic wonder, rare. His songs are superlative, and whether penned solo or with his growing number of partners you always hear his voice in the song.” Puretracks.com
“A Stephen Fearing show is a rosary of rough gems that seem to be tumbled and carved right before your eyes, and no matter how long the cord, it’s always too short.” Pamela Murray Winters – WASHINGTON POST
In January 2006 Blackie & The Rodeo Kings recorded 29 songs. They are being mixed and produced by the most sought after Canadian music producer today, Colin Linden, for a September 12, 2206 release titled “Lets Frolic”.
April 2006 - It has been 20 years since songsmith Stephen Fearing released his self-titled debut. Over the following two decades, he has built up a very loyal and committed international audience, one sure to be delighted by his beautiful new recording.
Yellowjacket is Fearing's eighth solo album and as always it features a potent combination of powerful and affecting lyrics, pure vocals and masterful musicianship. Yellowjacket also marks something of a breakthrough in Stephen's approach to recording as he assumes the mantle of producer for the first time since his early albums. The result is a relaxed fluency vocal and guitar work and a unique sonic palette, which make this album distinctly different, again, from his previous releases..
Over the course of his career, Fearing has been able to learn from some of roots music's finest producers. English folk star Clive Gregson (Any Trouble, Gregson and Collister) produced his acclaimed 1989 album, Blue Line; Steve Berlin (Los Lobos) was on hand for 1994's The Assassin's Apprentice (a disc featuring fans Sarah McLachlan and Richard Thompson), whilst Stephen's close friend Colin Linden manned the console for 1997's Industrial Lullaby, 2000's So Many Miles - LIVE and 2002's That's How I Walk (which Fearing co-produced).
To record Yellowjacket, Stephen set up shop in the Guelph studio of noted musician/producer, Scott Merritt (Fred Eaglesmith), who engineered and mixed the sessions. Together, they have crafted a richly diverse collection of songs. These range from a rollicking guitar “march” that could have been written by John Phillip Sousa and Dr. Seuss (“Whoville”), to intricately arranged pieces featuring strings and female backing vocals (“Yellowjacket”, “Like Every Other Morning”), poignant ballads suffused with Salvation Army-style horns (“Johnny's Lament”, Love Only Knows") to full band workouts reminiscent of Blackie and The Rodeo Kings (“One Flat Tire”)
This diversity also reflects changes in Fearing's perspective on songwriting, and his ongoing experimentation with co-writing. “Writing songs with another person allows you to be a little more objective, a little less critical and a lot more productive and surprisingly, I've found that it really informs the material I write on my own”.
“Collaborating opens up a whole other vista, it's like taking a walk outside of my own stuffy little brain”
Fearing's songwriting partner on four of the songs in this collection, is Josh Finlayson, from much-loved roots-rockers The Skydiggers. After one brief phone call they met at Fearing's home and immediately tapped into a rich creative connection, trading lyrics and melodies in an instantly productive “crazy rush of ideas”. This rapport is vividly illustrated on “Love Only Knows,” a tender portrait of a parent coming to terms with a child's burgeoning maturity - “Love only knows what happens now, Yesterday turns under the plough, Only a fool would not allow You to stand on your own.”
Yellowjacket's title song is a co-write with Stephen's close creative comrade, Tom Wilson. Spawned during a long drive in the rain from Nashville back to Ontario, a trek fuelled by 'yellow jacket' caffeine pills, it depicts a restless soul out there “following the big beat.” The protagonist is one of those young Jam-band disciples, a Deadhead perhaps, escaping some decaying Midwestern town and running out of youth.
As is customary on Fearing's records, the supporting musical cast is of the highest order. The list includes Dan Whiteley (Heartbreak Hill), Jeff Bird (Cowboy Junkies), backing vocalist Suzie Vinnick, Josh Finlayson, and Stephen's B&RK bandmates, Colin Linden, Gary Craig, John Dymond and Richard Bell.
The consistent quality of work produced over Stephen Fearing's two decades plus career has earned him a West Coast Music Award for Best Folk Music Recording and five Juno Award nominations as a solo artist and a faithful international fan base.
“BARK”. “It's wonderful to be able to work as a solo artist and to be active in such a powerful ensemble as The Rodeo Kings. These guys are my friends and there is no doubt in my mind that my continuing work with them influences my solo playing very deeply”.
With two more Blackie records on the near-horizon plus an ongoing collaboration with Irish singer/songwriter Andy White, Stephen has never been more prolific. In his own words, "Yellowjacket feels like a new beginning.”