Yep, I fly out of the fog tommorrow. What a long and exciting past two weeks. I bought my first Bodhran, and had the great pleasure of playing alongside some of the GREATS in the Irish/Newfoundland Trad. Music scene, Colin Carrigan, Graham Wells, Billy Sutton and Daniel Payne to name a few. Another instrument under my belt! I think it's time to get a Kalimba as well... or "thumb piano." It has been an inspiring while spent here on the Rock. Music every night!! Not just singing for my supper but listening to some greats, it was a pleasure to listen to the amazing Andy Irvine, from "Planxty" up close and personal, can't get any better!! It may have rained every day, but I guess most of Ontario & Quebec has been wet all summer long...what's in a raindrop anyway? Water, which dries and gives green a chance to grow, and we need green for air, so it's not really such a bad thing??? As for plans back on the mainland, I have a few gigs lined up: The Black Sheep Inn on the 21st with Little Miss Higgins and T Nile, Nathan Philips Square on the 27th in Toronto, and Music on the Mountain Festival in Picton on September 7th. IF you would like to hear a radio interview, featuring MOI, check into K-Rock on the 17th of August at 11pm. It's a show called "Under The Influence" and deals with Artists and Influences... my tunes as well as a few favourites of mine!! Go to www.k-rock975.com Hope all is well and I'll be back soon!!! xox
Foggy Daze & a Wine Stained Wedding
Here I sit, listening to the fog horn out over the narrows in St. John's Newfoundland. Everything is slower here, except for the jigs and reels. I must apologize to the readers out there who missed last weeks weblog. I've been lacking in one thing here on "The Rock" and that is: sleep. It's amazing what you can do with your eyes open. Thank you visine. This has been one of the busiest weeks for me, a very close friend just got married... on the streets of St. John's no less!! We decked up the place, flowers, lace, red carpet... you name it. One thing these newfs really know is how to throw a wedding. Seven days of deliverance, divinity and debauchery. Thank you Undrea and Bart. The skies have been mostly grey with rain and wind, but there's something about being here, something special that you don't really notice the lack of sun. The houses here are all bright and colourful, I'm talking crazy combinations of colour, like royal blue and orange, light pink with red, peach and olive green.... so many, and these houses are perched on the many hilly streets all joined together... it's quite eye-catching indeed. Today is my first day off, I had a smashing gig last night at The Grapevine, I LOVE St. John's and you never know, one day I might live here again (staying away for the winters mind you!!) THis weekend I play at The Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival. It is going to be a splendid performance, one that I will share with Ron Hynes, Blair Harvey, Colleen Power and Amelia Curran. What an honour to be on stage with these amazing musicians for a song circle. You have no idea. Maybe google them if you don't know their music. Be inspired by some East Coast (real East Coast) talent. In the meantime, my next mainland gig is on the 21st of August at The Black Sheep Inn and then in Toronto at Nathan Philips Square on the 27th of August. Hope some of you can make it... LIfe is good. Treat it well. Love Lindsay
Five days of Moon.
Yeah, it seemed as though the Moon was out every night up at the Lake, in it's full sometimes orange glory. I was away from phones and computers, and what a strange world without them. It's quiet. Except for the trees and the bees and the water rushing....there isn't much noise at all. What a world we live in, where natural sounds are almost extinct, what with the never-ending hum of the computer or the fridge. I guess one day we shall have to go back to listening to the sounds of nature over a nice warm fire, our gardens blooming in the backyard. In the meantime the modern day beeps and sounds will be the music to our ears with the occassional symphony of sound in the background, at the cottage. One feels quite small in all that quiet... sometimes it's the voices in our head that become loudest, and that's when I pick up the guitar and start to sing. Whatever I do or see or hear, one thing is for sure, Music wins every time. I head to Newfoundland very soon for a few weeks of sun (?) surf, rain, song, festivals, friends and fish, fresh fish ooh laa laa..... What will you be doing?
Barefoot Blues all the way!!
The Ottawa Bluesfest truly obliterates any pre-conceived notion that Ottawa is a "straight edged" town. (period!) Did you indulge? Idid. I walked, I ran, I hooted, I sang and I cried. Actually, to name every emotion is well, impossible! They musicians overwhlemed me, the Sun and the Moon inspired me, the food tantalized me, the people danced with me and the songs will stay with me forever. We, (my bandmates: Chris Hopkins, Armand Vienneau and Rob Rose) played a stellar show inside this year at The Barney Danson theatre. We were the organized chaos in the middle of it all!! Check out a video blog with Lynn Saxberg of The Ottawa Citizen and myself on Youtube...I was still feeling the highs of our Friday night performance, so excuse the fast-paced chatting!!! I am still waiting for some recorded video of our show, but soon I will upload some onto the net, and you can see (hear) for yourselves!! What an incredible 11 days of ridiculous running around from stage to stage to stage.... Martha Wainwright was beautiful, Jose Gonzalez was haunting, The Hip were rockin', Corb Lund was pure country and Feist was fantastic!!! Can't wait til next year.... in the meantime, my next shows are in St. John's Newfoundland where I will be a part of the St. John's Folk Festival and I'll play at a couple of great live venues; The Rose & The Grapevine. Hope to see you there!!! Don't forget, spread the word on this "Word of Mouth" campaign "Lindsay Ferguson Music" Forever!!!
Michael Franti, Feist, Gord, Jose, Rachid and More!!
What a blast it is this time of year, minus the MUGGY air!! It's OTTAWA BLUESFEST time!! The musicians that get hired are amazing. I have been trekking into Ottawa via Wakefield for almost a week, and every day so far, there have been gems galore!! Watching some old favourites and being introduced to some new ones has been keeping the fire STOKED within!! I have been rehearsing with a full band for my Friday Night appearance this year at the festival, and I am feeling GREAT about it. We are subtly rocking it out!! Perfect! The festival is along the Ottawa River, so there is usually a nice breeze, and the sun sets are amazing over there... but the sun is so HOT!!! For the first time, I used "spray from a can" sunscreen.. it's the BEST for this pale skin... didn't let any sun through, but it does feel a bit like an extra layer of skin!! As for Friday, there will be a FREE bus leaving from Wakefield to take all those country bumpkins into the city... should be a great ride... I'll let you know all about it. In the meantime, get refreshed and find some water to jump into!! That's where I'll be....
Canada Day, eh?
Good Morning!! I missed writing this wee note yesterday, as I was out getting debauched in the sun. I like to keep up with this "blog" (yucky word) every Tuesday, I should probably write more, in ALL aspects of my life... more songs, more letters and more, ahem, blogs. Of course, that's what we want, a little more of everything. Our desire to live. Perfectly put. I only wish that I had more discipline, how can I get more of that? I guess I just need more practice! Practicing discipline, practising guitar...a little more practice. Speaking of that though, I have been practicing with a band and it is going fantastically. In the past I have found it very difficult to sing in front of a full band, funnily enough, it's not easier for me with more people on the stage. Mainly because it's easier to hear what kinds of sounds are coming out of my mouth when I'm solo, you know, without the competition of a few amps and a drum kit. We had our first trio gig last weekend at a BLOW OUT show in Wakefield. It sounded great, now I just need to find a SUBTLE guitarist/keyboardist. I have my first practice with one (fingers crossed) on Friday. I'll let you know how it goes... the BLUESFEST gig isn't too far away either!! There will be a bus leaving Wakefield on the 11th of July, to take whoever wants to go see my show... for free!! So get on the bus gus and set yourself free.... xox
High in the Trees....
I'm housesitting in the trees, it's a glorious big Log house, with a screened in porch that has a day bed & a hammock. Pure delightfulness... all I can hear are the trees...it's a far cry from the big small city of Toronto and you can bet that I'll be writing some new songs... already got one in the works!! Last weekend I played a benefit for Muscular Dystrophy at The Bronson Centre in Ottawa. It was one of the BEST SHOWS I have ever seen, let alone been a part of. I can't believe that I am a part of such an amazing group of talented beings. It blows my mind that such talent is still starving for food and gas money...please visit the websites of some GREAT musicians that I had the pleasure of sharing some songs with, these are local Ottawa players who are all performing at this year's Ottawa Bluesfest~~ Shawn Tavenier, Ben Cooper, Anders Drerup, Eric Eggleston, Peter Voith, Tyler Kealey...all brillant... and if you want to be blown over, check them out this summer!! I too am playing at the Bluesfest, on the 11th of July with the full band... it should be a blast!! I can't wait!! But as they say, all good things come in time!! Coming up this weekend I will be playing a show with the Band at The Black Sheep Inn as part of a fundraiser for The Wakefield School, also on the bill is the very talented Royal Wood... it's going to be awesome and I greatly look forward to his performance... his tunes have a way of playing round in your head for days!! Hope to see some happy folks out there... we've been practicing!!! Lindsay xox
What a Rush...
We all know that life can be a strange force at times. Good times, great times, unbelievable times, bad times, horrrifying times... all in the same day even. Well, the good news is is that I had a wonderful time during the North by North East festival conference in Toronto. It's walking around, meeting new people, new artists, new bands, new venues...all in the name of sound and music. Festivals such as these really make me feel stronger about what I am meant to do and how I am supposed to do it... just be me, and continue to sing. So I am flying high from great and overwhelming experiences when I find out that one of my very good friends was on the other side of the kite string... Her name was Niamh Canning, an old roomate of mine from Ireland. She too had a Lovely singing voice, one that will surely live on in her daughter Rachel. I did not mean to write about Niamh in this little weekly paragraph, but I suppose she has been in my thoughts for the past five days, and putting pen to paper somehow feels the right thing to do. I will miss her so much as she was someone with whom I could share pretty much anything with and get reasonable feedback from. It blows my mind when someone leaves this plane of existence... I mean she's right there in my head. I can still hear her laugh and feel her arms around me. Dear God, may these memories last forever. Anyway, thanks for letting me share and I'm certain I'll feel like writing more musical / life banter next time. In the meantime, I will leave on this note; I am participating in a benefit at The Bronson Centre, this Friday the 20th as part of "Wailing For Wheels" in honour of MS. THere are many other musicians performing and all for a great cause... maybe we shall see you there? Take good care, and make sure to stop and take a breath, and smell those roses.
Holy Bermuda!!
As I sit in the muggy air of Bermuda & listen to the tree frogs whistling away, I can't help but conjure up memories from my childhood. I was born here and lived here on this pink beachy island for four years. It's amazing how sound can flood your brain with instant memories... and at nighttime, the scent of all the flowers come together enticing you to walk over to any one bloom and stick your nose right in. Innocence reborn, time and time again. I played a show here as part of the Bermuda Folk Club, right under the moonshine and beside the sea. The most beautiful gig yet!! It beats a divey dark bar any day!! I leave for home, Canada, very shortly only to get back and submerse myself in the tales and sounds of North by North East... a great festival conference in Toronto. I'll write about that next week, in the meantime, don't forget to stop and smell the roses. Lxo
Sound.
I used to live on the west coast of Ireland. Over there they use the term "sound" to describe how they are feeling, if all is going accordingly & if the weather is fine. I took this expression home with me, a very short and easy way to say "I'm/it's or all" is sound. So when I was figuring out what I would like to name my album this word/expression came to mind! "Sound." it is!! Recently I met a the presdient of a distribution label, JMAC distribution and they are going to re-release my album, sometime this summer, distribuiting it across Canada. I am so chuffed about this (happy!!) and look forward to the tour that will get my new album heard. If you care to hear snippets of this wonderful creation, click on the play button to the right! If you wish to hear a live performance please check my schedule and come on down. I head to Bermuda to play a show tomorrow... I was born in Bermuda and can't wait to get back to my beautiful Island. I am an island girl at heart, surrounded by the sea is is truly where I long to live, in the meantime I am Loving Toronto. Most of my life has been spent living in small cities, towns and villages... it's such a great change being smack dab in the middle of all the mayhem. There are so many darn opportunities here, if you are ever thinking of moving into the big city, I highly reccommend it. The spring sun is lighting my way these days, it is so alive here. I can't tell you how much moving here has changed my spirit for the better. Sometimes change is all you need. And imagine that, it's the one constant thing in this crazy world we live in!! Yes!! Come see me sometime, I would Love to sing for you. That's a promise. Lxo