James Gordon February Newstuff

Hi folks

Look at me, I appear to be relaxed and having fun! Sometimes this job of mine DOES have its perks.. That's me in one of my favourite surroundings, a boat, with one of my favourite people, my songwriting partner Katherine Wheatley, in Florida! Katherine and I were invited there by our good songwriting friends The Laws to do some co-writing at their lovely winter lodging in Fort Myers. We wrote up a bunch of songs together, got some r and r ( and I don't mean reducing and recycling), and even got to go on a canoe ride where we saw three alligators and a million dead fish killed by the coldest winter Florida has EVER had! Still warm by Canadian Standards.. and today as I write to you from the interior of British Columbia, heading up to 100 Mile House, I'm grateful for that respite from the winter. In this picture, we're on a songwriter's boat cruise off Captiva Island... Just over my shoulder is Otar "Bighands" Johanssen, who is, believe it or not, a country star in Norway! He speaks in a thick Scandinavian accent and sings in a convincing Texas drawl which enabled him to rhyme "town" and "gone" in a song. Beside him is Joe Sun, a great character and a Nashville veteran who had a hit with "Old Flames Can't Hold A Candle to You"!  Over Katherine's shoulder is a mandolin player who had been indulging a little too much in the refreshments offered on board.

February is short like me, but pretty darned busy.

( oh, speaking of short, I had a life-changing event recently at my favourite hometown clothier "Buds".... seeing a sale sign, I wandered in for my once-a-decade clothes-shopping expedition. The clerk looked me over, directed me towards a sale section, and said "you are not a small man, you are an extra-large boy! I've had a whole new attitude and wardrobe too. I just have to cut the feet out of these pajamas. )

Here's my schedule... hope you can join me for one of my CD release concerts this month.. "My Stars Your Eyes" is now available online from iTunes or from www.borealisrecords.com. Check it out! I'm thrilled with the early reviews.  

Thursday, February 04, 2010

Friday, February 05, 2010

Saturday, February 06, 2010

Sunday, February 07, 2010

Monday, February 08, 2010

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Thursday, February 11, 2010

THERE... that should do it!  Thanks for reading this far! And please check out my website www.jamesgordon.ca for more details... and to check out my new CD! 

favourite sign of the month: saw this just today heading up through the mountains.. "Bushnell Rabbit Farm" "Fresh Eggs"

- I'm presuming those would be Easter Eggs?

Below is my Tale of the Month:  talk to you in 30 days or so

Cheers

James

Today I am leaving Hope behind. Hope B.C. that is. I'm staying just a block from my beloved Fraser River in this time-forgotten gold rush town. Regrouping after a few shows in the Vancouver area before heading up  up up through the mountains to Hazelton where I start a series of house concerts. A large sign at the edge of town heading north says Ôvehicles must have snow tires or tire chains beyond this point"-I had neither, all because of the Olympics. Knowing I'd be heading into blizzard country in February, ( what was I thinking?)- I tried to reserve a 4-wheel drive or at least snow-tired vehicle when I landed at the airport in Vancouver. They just laughed at me. "Ha ha" they said. Every snow-ready vehicle in the city has been booked out for months by Olympic-nuts convinced that they will be driving through deep snow. (No sign of that around the Olympic site yet!)  They DID offer me a giant pickup truck. Me and the truck stared at one another for awhile, but it's 8 gas-guzzling cylinders made me realize that I might make it through the snow, but I'd be broke in the process. The big black truck looked kind of evil. "Wimp" it snarled to me, as I tried to decide. It looked like if I climbed into it I'd be tempted to trade the guitar for a chainsaw. Beside the monster was the only other vehicle available, a tiny city-style Nissan Versa, which sounded vaguely musical to me, though here in Hope the locals think it's a HOPELESS situation thinking I'll navigate the mountain passes in it. 

Something had to be done, so I now have tire chains to make the car a little more confident, and for myself I visited the local native craft store for something to carry my spirit up Highway 97 without fear. I was drawn by a sign in the window that said "free stories with every purchase". My kind of store! The proprieter, a wise woman named Chi Chi, directed me towards a Tiger's Eye stone, which, she claimed in the free story that went with it, would help to focus my mind, bring me good luck, safe travelling, protection, help to clear perception and insight and soften stubbornness. All this if carried in my right pocket.  All for 2 dollars! The tire chains cost 40 dollars. My money is on the Tiger's Eye to get me through!