Just got back from Country Music Week, and am still suffering a little from the lack of sleep! Saw about 30 acts, attended numerous seminars, and enjoyed some all-night jamming! I particularly enjoyed seeing Patrick Dorie (cool young songwriter in the roots vein), Libby McGrath (great singer/songwriter who actually solo-debuted a new song at the rising star showcase – gutsy!), and Ryan Cook (an east coast roots musician – also a wicked sense of humour). Also I really enjoyed seeing old friends like Wendell Ferguson, Shane Chisholm, Jimmy Whiffen and Quentin Reddy… as well as meeting many new ones! NOTE TO FANS: Did you realize you can attend CCMA’s? Next year they are in Saskatoon…If you buy a Songwriter’s Showcase pass like I did, for about $60 – $80 you can see a TON of the top country acts in a really short amount of time, and be totally up on all the who’s who in country music! It works out to about $2 per act — Zowie!
This time I really felt like I was starting to understand the ins and outs; and was on track with my approach heading into the next album. I’ve got a bunch of stuff to record, but I am still holding off production until I create a few “magic” tunes that can work on a commercial level! I got Ralph Murphy’s Book on Songwriting, and am already finding it packed with gem information… I also came away with a bunch of new ideas for getting my music out there.