Blues Over Yonder

In 1971 when I worked as an inside worker for the Post Office on the late shift, there was no cover charge after 11:00 P.M. at the Colonial Tavern on Yonge Street. Here, with some fellow workers, I was able to catch Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, James Cotton with Matt Murphy, Chuck Mangione, T-Bone Walker, (whom I jammed with on a Sunday matinee) Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Otis Rush, and many more. I sat down with these icons in between sets and listened in awe to stories about their lives.

As I developed a repertoire on guitar and harp, learning 12-bar blues, I began writing and recording songs, and more than fifty years later in 2022, I had the good fortune of meeting Eddie White formerly of Fathead, who turned me on to Terry Martell, Teddy Leonard, and Al Lerman, who co-founded Fathead. (Al gave me harp lessons back in the late seventies) I brought in Joe Agnello on bass whom I worked with in 2010, and Martin Aucoin on keys, whom I first recorded with in 1983. On September 20th and 21st, 2022, live off the floor at Loud Mouse studio, the recording commenced. In 2023, guitar overdubs as well as fiddle and mandolin were done by Bruce Nasmith who did yeoman’s work for me on my Spirit Guide album in 2013 and the What Goes Around album in 2022. I also had the good fortune of bringing in Roly Platt for overdubs on harp whom I was introduced to through a mutual friend.

Bruce Nasmith, John Watson and Wayne Brauer at Wayne’s studio.

Spirit Guide

Minor Details

What Goes Around

This album takes me back to 2005 when I began recording with Steve Shelski in his home studio, which took five years to complete. (Minor Details) At the time, I was a novice singer as an artist, and unfortunately when the high-end mic became inoperable, after a few songs, Steve switched over to an SM 57, which was an inferior mic to record vocals on. Years later, not only was I unhappy with my vocal performances on most of the tracks at the time, but I was also unhappy with several of the guitar tracks, so I re-recorded seven of twelve original tracks, and chose the strongest songs to redo. Track # thirteen was recorded at Metalworks studio after the original twelve tracks. I took the new recordings to Noble Street Studio to my old friend, Henry Gooderham, in 2021, and mixed the re-recorded tracks down with Kevin O’Leary. From there, I went to João Carvalho for mastering, who I got to know as a friend in 2013, when he mastered my Spirit Guide album. All the vocal tracks on What Goes Around were recorded at Songwork studio in Ajax with Wayne Brauer, who I met at Hugh’s Room in 2010, when I performed my new album at the time, Minor Details. We’ve been close friends ever since. Wayne was also instrumental in salvaging my video, I Am An Eagle, which is on YouTube.