Lennie Gallant photo Stephen Pate
Lennie Gallant claims his latest album If We Had A Fire is his best work yet.
Recorded in St. Cecilia Studios on the outskirts of Halifax, the album holds 14 new Gallant songs, performed by the artist and the best musicians the East Coast has to offer.
For Stephen Pate’s review of If We Had A Fire, click the link
“This is the first project I’ve recorded so close to home since my debut album, Breakwater”, says Gallant. “It was great to be able to use players with whom I had been on the road, or jammed with over the years, especially my main road guys Sean Kemp, Brad Davidge, Jamie Alcorn, Adam Dowling and Kim Dunn. There was a great sense of camaraderie and the creation of something special going on in the studio environment. All the songs’ basic tracks were recorded live off the floor and almost all the vocals as well so we ended up with some great energy and, I think, some kind of magic that a more piece by piece recording would probably miss.”
Gallant says he is very happy with the way the songs turned out. “We had been playing some of these in our live show for a while and we’re anxious to get them down. Songs like “Tell Me A Ghost Story,” “Before we sell this Car,” “If We Had A Fire,” have been going over great in our concerts so we were really ready to commit them to disc.
As usual, I ended up writing like mad up until, and during the recording, so some songs were practically born during the process as well. It is great to have that blend of tried and true, and fresh outta the oven on the same album”
Those who have heard the new project say they are knocked out by the rocking energy of many of the songs and by the storytelling as well. Gallant has long been known as a killer spinner of tales in his past work and songs like “Emily’s Letter’s”, (a song of unconditional love and a shared secret), “The Ringer” (a mystical tale of recapturing a lost soul), and “Tonight I Drive You Home”, (a heartrending story that MADD will be sure to embrace) will more than satisfy those looking for that solid Gallant narrative and one-two punch knock out ending.
“Extraordinary Ordinary Life,” recorded with Symphony Nova Scotia, is a song about couples who have stuck it out for the long hall through thick and thin, and Gallant’s moving portrait of a seemingly ordinary relationship is sure to make even the most hard hearted take a deep breath. Count on this one being used at many an anniversary celebration.
His Song “Be The Change” was inspired by both Mia Farrow and Mahatma Gandhi and incorporates a choir of children including Gallant’s own 5 year old daughter. The album also includes several co-writes with some pretty prestigious writers including Gordie Sampson, Troy Verges, Gerald O’Brien, and Carolyn Dawn Johnson, who also sings with Gallant on the title song. Other guest vocalists include Rose Cousins and Coco Love Alcorn.
There is one song that Gallant says is his favorite co-write on the album. “I was on the road for a couple weeks and talking to my five year old daughter, Amelie, on the phone , telling her how much I missed her, when she said, “Daddy, you ‘re like the flowers in my heart, and I go there when you ‘re away” I said “What did you say?!! I couldn’t believe she made that up and so had to incorporate it into a song and, of course, give credit where due. The song is called “Flowers in My Heart,” and like so many other songs on this recording, it will find a place in the heart of any listener wise enough to seek out this latest offering from PEI’s premier songsmith.
(From official press release)
