This Friday (May 2) from 7-9 PM I’m playing at the opening reception for the Art Focus Artists’ Association’s Spring Art Show & Sale. The show takes place at Mabbett Hall (Port Coquitlam Community Centre), this Friday (7-9 PM) and continues this Saturday and Sunday (10 AM – 5 PM). There’ll be lots of terrific art to check out, so if you’re free this Friday, please drop by to say hi!
Put together this battery-powered electric pedalboard yesterday:
Tech 21 Fly Rig 5 + Korg DT-10 Tuner + Outlaw Effects Nomad = A sweet-sounding, ultra-light and portable, play anywhere pedalboard. #oldgearnewlife
My latest “Live in the Studio” video is a vocal version of “Love That Can Be Me” from my 2018 album Who Said It Was Easy? After moving from Toronto to Vancouver (well, Port Moody to be exact) in 2016, Who Said It Was Easy? was the first music I recorded in my then-new hometown. I’ve often thought about how a locale changes music (or even if it does). How would this tune be different if instead of recording the track in Port Moody, I recorded it in Frankfurt? Or Tokyo? No answers here, just questions. As always, thanks for listening/watching!
I don’t think it’ll come as a huge surprise that “Port Moody” (from my 2007 EP “5”) was indeed written for my current hometown of Port Moody. Now some of the music I write is specific and some more nebulous; “Port Moody” is somewhere in between. It really is about the feelings I had (and still currently have) for the area. But it’s also about the sky that can have stunning dark clouds, the incredible wildlife, and of course, the ever-present mountains.
I wrote “Port Moody” in a bedroom in my mother-in-law’s house in Port Moody and recorded the track back in my condo in Toronto. For this Live in the Studio video, I went back to the original recording to try to capture the overall mood for this now-over eighteen-year-old piece. I stuck mostly to what I recorded back in 2007, but there are a few minor changes to the guitar part.
As always, thanks for taking the time to watch the video, and I hope you like it!
Toronto in the late seventies/early eighties was an incredible time for music. Even for someone like me, who was a little too young to get into the clubs, there was so much great live original music happening. Got to see Yes at Maple Leaf Gardens, Kraftwerk at the Masonic Temple and the Police (and a bunch of other terrific bands) at the Police Picnic.
All of that was (obviously) amazing, but what really stands out to me was the Ontario Place Forum. For just the cost of getting into Ontario Place (I think it was something like $5), I was able to hear music SO many first rate bands/artists. Like who? How about Miles Davis, Pat Metheny, Chuck Mangione, UZEB, Michael Hedges and many, many more.
Which brings me to this “Live in the Studio” video of my tune “Summer in the Round”. For those of you who don’t know the Ontario Place Forum, it was an outdoor, covered venue that was built around a circular, revolving stage. Of course, being an outdoor venue, the concerts were held during the summer and the seating was festival, so it was first come, first serve. I would get to the venue crazy early to get front row seats (if they were available), and often I could listen to the bands/artists soundcheck. So… circular stage/venue, summer concerts… “Summer in the Round”… never said I was a deep thinker : )
This “Live in the Studio” version of “Summer in the Round” features Dave Patel on drums and Henrik Bridger on bass. The piece was originally on my 2009 EP “St. Joseph Street” which, in addition to Dave and Henrik, also featured the phenomenal Bill McBirnie on flute.
As always, thanks for listening/watching and I hope you like the video!
Just released a new single and video of the Christmas classic, “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”. The track blends my nylon string acoustic guitar with fretless bass (played by California-based bassist/composer Henrik Bridger) and is supported by an ever evolving orchestral meets jazz meets pop arrangement. Henrik also played upright bass and recorded both his parts in his own studio (with some great gear!) — so a huge thanks to him for all of his creativity and work!
“God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” is my third single release for 2024 following “Drivetrain” (April 2024) and “For All” (September 2024). I have a number of releases planned for 2025 as well as continuing my Live in the Studio video series — so stay tuned. You can listen to “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” right here by playing the video or you can check out the music on pretty much any streaming service (I put a couple links below). As always, thanks for listening/watching!
— Stream “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” —
This Friday (October 25) from 7-9 PM, I’m playing the opening reception for the Art Focus Artists’ Association Art Show & Sale . I’ve had the opportunity to play at previous opening receptions (thank you Art Focus for having me back again!) and it’s always been a great time! The show is being held at the Outlet, Leigh Square (McAllister Avenue) in Port Coquitlam this Friday (7-9 PM), Saturday (11AM – 5PM) and Sunday (11AM – 5PM). Hope to see you there!
Nice to be back at #1 on the ReverbNation Instrumental chart for Vancouver!
Happy to announce the release of my new single (and video), “For All”. I’ve always loved introspective, poignant ballads that feature a blend of acoustic sounds and synth textures. This track really is defined by that blend, with my acoustic nylon string guitar floating above a slow moving, rhythmic synth pad. “For All” is available right now on just about any streaming service (I’ve included a couple links below) and/or you can check out the music right here by playing the video. As always, thanks for listening/watching and I hope you like “For All”!
— STREAM “FOR ALL” —
There’s just something about contrast in music that I’ve always liked. On “Violet Skies”, from my 1997 self-titled debut album, I tried to capture some of that contrast. I put percolating percussion loops right beside programmed drum machine parts, played an ambient synth pad to compliment my fast strummed rhythm guitars, and I think just as importantly, I wrote a (mostly) slower melody that floats on top of the overall “up” vibe of the track. On this Live in the Studio version of “Violet Skies”, I went back to the album track and learned the solo pretty much note for note.
I have to give a huge thanks to my brother Randy for putting together this video. He’s been an amazing help in getting me (somewhat) up to speed on the videos that I’ve edited in the past and, with his stellar work on “Violet Skies”, I know I sure have a lot more to learn about video in the future. As always, thanks for listening and I hope you like the video!
Jamie Bonk 