Setting S.A.C. Sights on Sites, Winter... · Setting S.A.C. Sights on Sites, ... Alberta's Joni Mitchell on the world of pop- ... "Both Sides Now," "Help Me," "Woodstock"

EDITOR Nick KrewenMANAGING EDITOR Beverly HardyLAYOUT Lori VeljkovicCOPY EDITOR Leah Erbe

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STAFFExecutive Director Don QuarlesManager of Operations Beverly Hardy

BOARD OF DIRECTORSPresident Haydain NealeFirst Vice-President Shari UlrichSecond Vice-President Eddie SchwartzSecretary Christopher WardTreasurer Sean HoseinPast President Stan MeissnerDirectors Erin Benjamin, John Capek,Lisa Dalbello, Lennie Gallant, Bill Henderson, Marc Jordan, Dan Kershaw

ADVISORY BOARD Jann Arden, RandyBachman, Tommy Banks, Liona Boyd,Tom Cochrane, Richard Dodson, RikEmmett, Micky Erbe, Roy Forbes, DavidFoster, Alan Frew, Dan Hill, PaulHoffert, Paul Janz, Ron Hynes, RonIrving, Arnold Lanni, Geddy Lee, MikeLevine, Colin Linden, Rita MacNeil,Sarah McLachlan, Murray McLauchlan,Dean McTaggart, Frank Mills, BenMink, Adam Mitchell, Gerald O’Brien,Gary O’Connor, Declan O’Doherty, BlairPackham, Dave Pickell, Raffi, CyrilRawson, Sam Reid, Tyler J. Smith, IanThomas, David Tyson, Sylvia Tyson,Valdy, Jim Vallance, Nancy White

Executive Director’s Message

As fall fades into winter, I'm extremelypleased to announce that a number of dif-ferent S.A.C. programs will be warming up

songwriters as we head into the colder months --some familiar, some new and all of them anopportunity to encourage your creativity andsharpen your business acumen.

First, I'm very pleased to announce thatSongposium 2.0 is taking place in five cities acrossthe country, targeting the urban, country and popmusic fields.

Featuring some amazing industry professionalsincluding Jully Black, Steve Wilkinson, DerekBrin, John Capek and our own Haydain Nealeamong others, Songposium 2.0 will be visiting theHoliday Inn on King in Toronto on November 25-26; the Metropolitan Hotel in Vancouver onDecember 2-3; the Fairmont Palliser Hotel inCalgary January 13-14, 2007; the Holiday Inn inGuelph on January 20-21 and the DeltaBarrington Hotel in Halifax on February 3-4.

Bluebird North will also be visiting five citiesincluding Edmonton on January 19; Ottawa onJanuary 27; Halifax on February 2; St. John's onFebruary 9-10 and Whitehorse on February 16.

Look for announcements for these great pro-grams on our www.songwriters.ca website andplan to attend. Better yet, bring a friend!

It's also my great pleasure to announce a brandnew program called Bluebird In The Schools -- anopportunity for young people to get exposed togreat Canadian songwriters.

We hope that Bluebird In The Schools willoffer a window into the School Alliance ofStudent Songwriters program that is alreadyin many schools across the country(www.sasscanada.net).

On a personal note, I'd like to thank those ofyou who called to welcome me in my new post. Ihave spent recent months getting to know someof you either by phone or in person at events orhere at our Toronto head office. I have also spenttime meeting with music industry folks, gettingaccustomed to the lay of the land and learningmore about the Songwriters Association ofCanada's goals and future plans.

In early September, S.A.C. president HaydainNeale and I were in Ottawa and met with severalofficials from Heritage Canada, including thoseresponsible for developing copyright policy. Asyou may be aware, the Federal government is inthe process of reviewing copyright law and is hop-ing to table new legislation soon.

As a creator-driven group, our hope is to haveour voice heard loud and clear in terms of speak-ing for songwriters on the important issues. Inspeaking to songwriters, the common interest isto encourage digital distribution, as it is a fantas-tic means of distributing music.

The caveat here is that most writers would pre-fer to find a way to monetize the system so thatthey can be compensated fairly for downloads oftheir music. The manner in which the world lis-tens to music has evolved and both the industryand the legislation need to keep up with thetimes.

Having a strong volume of music available dig-

itally is an advantage for those who want to ensuretheir music is “out there” for the world to hear.

The S.A.C. was also present at a number ofimportant conferences. The first, Copycamp,involved a three-day session in TorontoSeptember 28-30 that exposed all types ofcreators to various copyright challenges andoptions facing the world today.

The other was the Future of Music PolicySummit, held in Montreal during the POPMontreal festival October 5-7. Both events offeredexcellent information on directions the musicindustry is taking and are events that anyone seri-ous about their craft should try to attend. I rec-ommend checking out websites for informationon these past events (www.copycamp.ca andwww.thefutureofmusic.org )

I was also fortunate to attend the OntarioCouncil Of Folk Festivals (OCFF) conference inOttawa from October 12-15. The S.A.C. spon-sored three events, with Blair Packham hosting afantastic demo critique panel called "Hey BigEars!" Blair also did a fine job of lining up thetalent for the post-midnight songwriter show-case at the notorious S.A.C. Pajama Party.Thanks to those of you who came decked outin your best PJs.

The third event was the Estelle Klein Awardinterview with this year's recipient RichardFlohil, conducted by songwriter / media per-sonality / S.A.C. Board member ChristopherWard.

On a final note, some of you have been help-ing to beta-test our website and we appreciatethe extra effort in helping us work through thekinks. If you haven’t yet done so, please visitwww.songwriters.ca and have a look around!

We are working on a Members Communitypage called SongPage that will allow you toupload MP3 files of your songs, copies of yourlyrics, and also encourage you to interact withother songwriters.

This will enable them to know about yourstrengths as a writer and inform them of yourcurrent successes (CD releases, song cuts, demosor events.) This promises to be a great co-writ-ing and collaborative meeting place. We'reanxiously awaiting its launch!

I look forward to seeing you at S.A.C. eventsthis coming year and hope that you will takeadvantage of our member benefits!Don Quarles

Setting S.A.C. Sights on Sites,Sounds and Songposium

2 Songwriters Magazine WINTER 2007

PJamSession:Executive

Director DonQuarles andOCFF Songs

From The Heartcontest winnerAna Miura com-pare fashions at

the S.A.C.Pajama Party.

Features

ROSSI REIGNS SUPREMEA Publisher’s Rock Star: Supernova Diary By Keith Carman

9

ALEXISONFIRE HEATS IT UP!The Only Band Ever Breaks Down The Creative Process By Karen Bliss

11

MUSICAL EXPLORERk-os Plays It By Ear By Nick Krewen

13

IMMACULATE CONCEPTIONAlan Parsons, Neverending White Lights andMeligrove Band Go Topical By Shallima Maharajand Nick Krewen

17

WORKSHOP TESTIMONIALSharing Ideas Is A Good Thing By L.C. DiMarco

18

BLUEBIRD NORTH19

CANADIAN SONGWRITING HALL OF FAME INDUCTEESJoni Mitchell, Jean-Paul Ferland and Wilf Carter Make The Grade

4

5 DRAWING FROM THE CREATIVE WELLSTalented Brothers Make International Impact By Kerry Doole

8 A PUBLISHING PRIMERLegal Beagle Gives Songwriters The Skinny By Paul Sanderson

13

PHOTO: GREG PLANTE

17

COVER PHOTO: JEREMY R. JANSEN

PHOTO: DUSTIN RABIN

Contents WINTER 2007 Volume 9 Number 3

PHOTO: PIERRE MILLETTE

19

4

CSHF AWARD PHOTO USED BY PERMISSIONOF THE ESTATE OF ELIZABETH WYN WOOD.


Montana Slim is in!

So is the most influ-ential female singerand songwriter of

the 20th and 21stcenturies; a prolific

French-Canadian iconand a song that's beencovered by over 400artists ranging from

Ella Fitzgerald and Peggy Lee to NRBQand Oscar Peterson.

Joni Mitchell, Jean-Pierre Ferland, the lateWilf "Montana Slim" Carter and the Blood,Sweat and Tears classic "Spinning Wheel"are among the 31 announced inductees tothe 2007 Canadian Songwriters Hall OfFame (CSHF) gala ceremony, co-sponsoredby the Songwriters Association Of Canadaand scheduled for January 28 at theToronto Convention Centre.

The show, to be co-hosted by Andrew Youngand Sophie duRocher, is an annual bilin-gual celebration of Canadian songs andsongwriters who have had a resonating cul-tural impact both at home and abroad.

There's no argument regarding theresounding weight of Fort MacLeod,Alberta's Joni Mitchell on the world of pop-ular music. As an innovative singer, poet,guitarist and painter whose phrasing,imagery and sense of arrangement is asunique as it is life-altering, it would be toughto find someone who hasn't been influ-enced by Mitchell, 63.

A Companion of The Order of Canada anda Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame member amongher many accolades, Joni Mitchell will beinducted along with a handful of popularsongs from her canon: "Big Yellow Taxi,""Both Sides Now," "Help Me," "Woodstock"and "You Turn Me On, I'm A Radio."

Montreal-born Jean-Pierre Ferland, 73, hashad his songs covered by Ginette Reno,Céline Dion, Nathalie Simard and ClaudeDubois among others, but his own hit "Jereviens chez nous" and his 1970 albumJaune helped change the course of theQuebec music scene.

Along with his Grand prix du festival dudisque-winning "Je reviens chez nous,"Ferland's "Le Petit Roi" (written with MichelRobidoux), "T'es mon amour, t'es mamaîtresse" (written with Jean-Pierre Lauzon),"Ton Visage" (written with Paul De Magerie)and "Un peu plus haut, un peu plus loin" willaccompany him into the CSHF.

Along with Bob Nolan and Hank Snow, PortHilford, Nova Scotia's Wilf Carter (1904-1996) put Canadian country music on the

map. A first-class yodeler who was intro-duced to Canadians through Calgary radiostation CFCN in 1929, and found audiencesin the U.S. -- where he was known asMontana Slim -- and Australia.

A Canadian Country Music Hall Of Famer,"The Father Of Canadian Country Music"will be inducted into the CSHF along withhis songs "My Old Canadian Home," "MySwiss Moonlight Lullaby" and "There's aLove Knot in My Lariat."

Born in Surrey, England and raised inWillowdale, Ontario, David Clayton-Thomas was lead singer of Blood, Sweat andTears when he penned "Spinning Wheel,"which topped the Billboard AdultContemporary charts and peaked at No. 2on the Pop charts, helping the band sellover 10 million albums of its self-titleddebut worldwide and earning a GrammyAward for Best Arrangement AccompanyingVocals. Written, according to Clayton-Thomas, in 15 minutes, "Spinning Wheel"was the first self-penned hit of many forBlood, Sweat and Tears.

Other inducted pieces of Canadian goldinclude Sylvia Tyson's "You Were On MyMind," -- the first song she ever wrote --"Dans nos vieilles maisons" by MurielMillard; "How About You?" by Ralph Freedand Burton Lane; Marc Hamilton's"Comme J'ai Toujours Envie D'Aimer;" "Descroissants de soleil" by Jean Robitaille andLee Gagnon; "Je ne suis qu'une chan-son" by Diane Juster; GeorgesLangford's "Le Frigidaire;" and"Paquetville" by Lise Aubut and ÉdithButler.

Broadway and Hollywood movie lyri-cist Raymond B. Egan, who co-wrotesong inductees "Ain't We GotFun?" (written with GusKhan and RichardWhiting) and "SleepyTime Gal" (writtenwith Joseph R.Alden, AngeLorenzo andRichard

Whiting) is also a Pioneer Inductee; as isthe 1842 Acadian anthem "Un CanadienErrant," written by Antoine Gerin-Lajoie.

The 2007 Canadian Music PublisherAssociation (CMPA) Legacy Award recipi-ent is St. Stephen, New Brunswick nativeHenry Burr, who recorded under a dozenpseudonyms, co-writing "Stand Up andSing for Your Father" and "Old-time Tune."Between 1903 and 1922, Burr recorded 16No. 1 hits including "In The Shade of TheOld Apple Tree" and one of the firstrecordings of "When You And I WereYoung, Maggie," co-written by CanadianGeorge W. Johnson.

Meanwhile, Sam Gesser is the recipient ofthe Prix Du Patrimoine Frank Davies 2007.A Montreal-based folk music impresariowho has produced more than 100 recordsby Canadian artists, Gesser, 76, a Memberof the Order Of Canada and active concertpromoter, is also responsible for recordingthousands of singers for Allied/FolkwaysRecords.

Though performers are still to beannounced, tickets for the 4th Annual Galaat the John Bassett Theatre range from $50to $175 and are available through the CSHFwebsite at www.cansong.ca.

Founded in 1998 by noted music publisherFrank Davies, the CSHF is a national, bilin-

gual and apolitical non-profitorganization dedicated to

preserving Canada's richsongwriting heritage.

The CSHF held its firstannual gala in 2003, andwith the upcoming cere-mony, will have induct-ed 78 songs, 22 song-writers and 10 LegacyAward recipients.

CSHF INDUCTS MITCHELL, FERLAND,CARTER AND "SPINNING WHEEL"

PHOTO: COURTESYWARNER MUSIC

CANADA

PHOTO: COURTESYCSHF

Greg WellsBorn and raised in Peterborough,Ontario, the Wells brothers Greg andRob -- sons of a United Church minister-- have followed very different paths toattain their individual achievements.

Greg, 37, left the family home at 17 toattend Toronto's Humber College tostudy music. He played keyboards for KimMitchell and secured a Canada Councilgrant to study with composer andarranger Clare Fischer in Los Angeles.Once in L.A., impresario Miles Copelanddiscovered and commissioned Greg torecord his first and only album under thepseudonym Silas Loder. Copeland alsoinvited Greg to attend his annual song-writing retreat at his 14th century castle,Chateau Marouate in southern France,where Wells teamed up withCarole King and Mark Hudsonto write "The Reason," coveredby Céline Dion on her albumLet's Talk About Love and sellingover 31 million copies world-wide. Another year at the sameevent, he met King's daughter,Louise Goffin, and the now mar-ried pair have two childrentogether.

Initially signed to Rondor Musicon the strength of an Aerosmithcover ("Fall Together" -- availableon the Japanese edition of NineLives), Greg has been part of theEMI Music Publishing roster thepast three years.

Rob WellsRob, 34, is a late bloomer on the song-writing scene. He initially learned pianothrough osmosis as Greg and his motherJudy were constantly tickling the ivories.Rob took a year of lessons from Mom,but learned mostly by ear, joiningnumerous bands and eventuallyenrolling in Toronto's Etobicoke Schoolfor the Arts, which exposed him to arecording studio for the first time.

Employed for three summers as a per-former at Canada's Wonderland themepark, Rob got married at 21 and decidedto temporarily forego music as a profes-sion in favour of computer animation.He kept his hand at songwriting, andscored his first Canadian Top 10 hit in

2003 with "What Went On" byVancouver's Hip Joint featuring CraigSmart. The real momentum began whenRob participated in numerous CanadianIdol songwriting camps, co-authoring"Alive" and "Let It Go" for Calgary'sMelissa O'Neil.

In February 2005, Rob signed with SonyATV Music Publishing Canada. Sincethen he's written and produced threesongs on Nick Lachey's What's Left Of Me,including the singer's current single "ICan't Hate You Anymore," and will becontributing two songs to the nextBackstreet Boys album.

“The Reason” — Céline DionGreg: I am forever indebted to MilesCopeland. I initially came to LA to get arecord deal and a cassette tape of the

first few songs I ever wrote wound up inMiles’ hands. We made the Silas Loderrecord really fast for I.R.S. Records. Milesneglected to mention that it was goingbankrupt at the time, so a few thousandcopies were released before EMI put alarge padlock on the door. The recordtanked, but Miles started inviting me tohis songwriting retreat at this castle heowns in the southwest of France.

When I went for the first time, I didn’treally consider myself a songwriter. I felta bit lost there and I had to be convincedto go back the next year. That's whenthings really kicked in: I had a blast. Imet so many kindred spirits and really feltthat songwriting was what I was supposedto be doing.

The first day on that trip I met CaroleKing. We were put in a room with MarkHudson to write a song. We wrote a songcalled "The Reason;" Céline Dion endedup recording it. I spoke to her producerGeorge Martin on the telephone, and allhe wanted to do was thank me for help-ing write the song!

The truth behind that song was that bothMark and I had cuts on Aerosmith's NineLives album. Mark said they were lookingfor a big power ballad. After writing it,we cut the demo as if Aerosmith wasrocking out. It couldn't have soundedfurther removed from something you'dimagine Céline would consider, or so wethought. Although Steven Tyler appar-ently loved it, Aerosmith passed on it.However, Céline liked the aggressiveaspect of it and at the end of the demo

Mark is doing these highSteven Tyler nuances that sheactually does on her version. Itwas a Top Five single through-out Europe, though never asingle in North America. It waslike winning the songwriters’lottery: Hardly anyone eversells 31 million records!

I've been to the castle seventimes, and my third time back,Carole brought her daughterLouise. She’s now my wife. Wehave two boys and Carole ismy mother-in-law, so personal-ly it has been huge.

I’ve learned so much fromwatching guys like Paul

Brady, Desmond Child, Mark Hudson -- I’ve met Peter Murphy from Bauhaus,Belinda Carlisle, Hanson, TheBuzzcocks' Pete Shelley: there is some-thing magical about being there.

“Let It Go” — Melissa O’NeilRob: Our dad passed away from a seriousillness in August last year, which was reallyheavy on our family. The two of us usedto talk late at night at the hospital: we'dtalk about his family and how he had adisagreement with one of his sisterswhere they never really came to terms.Dad got quite depressed and vowed, "I’mgoing to write her a letter to tell her howmuch I love her," but he lost the strengthto do that. Soon he passed away with all

In this series of articles, we will talk to some successful Canadian songwriters who make a living at their craft, to hear their behind-the-scenes stories abouthow their songs first came to the attention of some big artists, as well as what they've observed about the business of songwriting. In this issue, Kerry Dooletalks with Greg Wells and his brother Rob, a rare Canadian fraternal success story whose combined credits include Céline Dion, Rufus Wainwright, NickLachey, Backstreet Boys. Canadian Idol Melissa O'Neil, Natasha Bedingfield, Lindsay Lohan, Aerosmith and Ms. "That's Hot" herself, Paris Hilton.

It’s all aboutconnection…

GREG

WEL

LS

ROB WELLS

WINTER 2007 Songwriters Magazine 5

of this inside him.

I wrote "Let It Go" with Rupert Gayle andAlonzo. We'd all shared similar personalexperiences, and we wanted to write asong with the message, "Don't sweat thesmall stuff."

There are parts in the opening versewhere it's like I’m talking to my dad andtelling him to be positive. We also want-ed to write a song that was stylistically likeFoo Fighters' "Everlong" or Billy Idol's"Rebel Yell" that would help fuel thatlyrical fire within us. Alonzo came in withthe name of the song and it explodedfrom there: I don't usually write lyricsunless I have to, but on that song it cameflowing from all three of us. We were allon the same page.

Initially, we wrote it with Rex Goudie inmind, but it went to Melissa.

It's always interesting to hear somethingthat is so personal to you on the radioand sung to the masses. It's also crazywatching 1000 screaming fans singing"Let It Go" along with Melissa and know-ing that it means something to every oneof them.

“Confessions Of A BrokenHeart (Daughter To Father)”— Lindsay LohanGreg: I'm proud of Lindsay Lohan's song"Confessions of a Broken Heart(Daughter to Father)" that I producedand co-wrote with Kara DioGuardi andLindsay. I know a lot of girls resonatedwith the heartbreak in the lyric, and aswe know, Lindsay's troubled story withher dad is all too public. Kara was execu-tive-producing Lindsay’s record and wehad blocked out some time to write.Lindsay had sent her some poetry and westarted going through it. There weresome particularly moving lines about herfather and that started us on the song. Iknew we had something when I camehome, played the initial demo for mywife Louise andshe was

in tears by the end. I hope some parentswatched that video and thought twiceabout acting out in front of their kids.

“Resolution,” “I Can’t HateYou Anymore,” “EverywhereBut Here” — Nick LacheyRob: Greg has been working with artistsof this stature for quite a while now, butit was one of my first ventures working ona big American record. Greg sent an e-mail to Teresa LaBarbara Whites -- A&Rfor Jive/Zomba -- saying "Here’s mybrother. I’d like to introduce you." Sheimmediately wrote me back, and we startedan e-mail conversation that progressedinto me actually flying down to L.A. andworking with Nick Lachey. Teresa wasalready a huge fan of "Alive" but Greg's e-mail got the ball rolling.

I spent four days in January with Nickand two other really good writers downin L.A. that I work with all the time —Lindy Robbins and Jess Cates. We werelocked up in the studio with him for fourdays. There was a very interestingmoment when, for nearly two hours, hesat down with us and talked to us aboutthe whole situation of his breakup withJessica Simpson, the separation, and hisrelationship with the whole Simpsonfamily, and that helped us write both "ICan't Hate You Anymore" and"Resolution." We basically went from thatroom right into the studio where thepiano was, and just started coming upwith the song. It came pretty quickly,thanks to that conversation."

Editor's note: Greg also placed a tune onWhat's Left Of Me that he produced:"Ghosts," co-written with Jamie Cullum andKara DioGuardi.

On writing lyricsGreg: I don’t really have the gene ofgreat lyrics. That one bypassed me. I’mdefinitely driving musically when I’m in aco-writing situation. However, havingdeveloped over the years a confidence

about what a good or bad lyric is, I'm agood editor and I often jump in.

But that is more like producingthe lyric rather than rolling

my sleeves up and puttingpen to paper. I’m reallygood at writing badlyrics!Rob: I'm sort of in thesame boat, thoughthere have been a cou-ple of times where I

have written a lot of thelyric if it is personal. I find

that if it is really personal, itflows a lot easier. There is a

song Melissa O’Neil had on theradio up here called ‘Let It Go,’ and

that was a real personal issue for me thatI wanted to get out. That one came real-ly easily, but I do prefer to sit back and letthose who do it really well do it.

On creative brotherly loveGreg: Whenever we finish a song, weMP3 it to each other and ask for criti-cism, good or bad. We always reach outto see what the other thinks. There's theoccasional bruised ego, but you'll knowyou'll get a candid answer from your ownsibling. Once Greg compared one of mysongs to a Dave Koz track...Greg: No, I didn't compare -- I just jokedthat you wanted Dave Koz to play sax on it.I have a perverse fascination with pop cul-ture, whereas Rob's musical taste — whichhas served him very well — has alwaysbeen considerably more mainstream. Rob: The very first record I bought was bySha Na Na. For some reason I really gravi-tated towards ‘50s pop songs and classicchord structures -- and that eventuallyblossomed into '80s and '90s Top 40 radio. Greg: Rob has a real innate understand-ing of the architecture of what makes apop song. For me it is more of a struggleto get to that place.Rob: The great thing about Greg is thathe can go in any particular musical direc-tion he wants because he's so well versed.Greg: It’s only in the last 18 months thatI’ve been considered for any poprecords. I was doing artier stuff likeRufus Wainwright and Otep - things I amreally proud of but that didn’t necessari-ly sell a lot of records.

About work/life balanceGreg: I used to work all the time, butbecoming a Dad made me realize thatalthough music, art and expression areamazing, life is way more amazing -- thegood and the bad. As corny as thissounds, the more life you let in, themore you have to talk about and the bet-ter your music becomes.

Rob: When I was first starting out, I wasgrabbing at anything and everything thatwas coming along. With a new family oftwo young boys, I'm trying to maximizemy time at home while trying to securegood projects that are musically satisfy-ing. So I am being very selective. I alsoget a lot of inspiration being with myfamily and spending time with them gen-erates tons of great ideas. Many of my lifeexperiences tend to play a part in thesongwriting process, so it's great beingable to have time with my family andreally enjoy what life is all about.Kerry Doole is a veteran Toronto-basedfreelance music writer who prefers themusic of Joe Ely to the music of J-Lo.

GREG WELLS ROB WELLS


BURT HARRISCopyright AdvocateSuccumbs to Cancer

The creativecommuni t ylost a good

friend on November2 when Vancouvermusic and entertain-ment lawyer BurtHarris passed away

following a long battlewith cancer.

"Songwriters, musiciansand recording artists all

owe Burt a debt of gratitude,"says Bill Henderson, songwriter,

recording artist, S.A.C. director, andfounder of The Collectors, Chilliwack, UHF and the ArtistRights Coalition along with Harris and Marc LaFrance.

According to Henderson, Harris is one of the primary reasonsthat the Copyright Act amendments recognizing and estab-lishing Neighbouring Rights and Private Copying actuallybenefit creators and artists.

"Burt and I and Marc LaFrance spent a few years trying toinfluence amendments to the Copyright Act that were beingmade in the mid-to-late '90s so that they would be supportive,in a real way, of musicians, recording artists and songwriters.

"As a result, a clause in the amended Copyright Act gave artistsand songwriters an opportunity to own the new rights beinggranted to them -- Neighbouring Rights and Private Copyingbeing the major ones -- instead of having the rights scooped upby record companies and publishers through nasty catch-allclauses that are generally found in their contracts.

"Without Burt's legal expertise, his ability to think and articu-late with great precision and his incredible passion for mak-ing a fairer working environment for musicians, this wouldnever have happened.

"That was just one of his many contributions to our culture."

Born in Drumheller, Alberta, Harris, who was 48, worked as aprofessional drummer for 15 years in the Western provincesbefore pursuing the bar and counseling artists on copyrightlaw, artist rights and music-related contracts.

He co-authored the 1994 Report of the B.C. AdvisoryCommittee on the Status of the Artist and prepared a 1996position paper for the Vancouver Musicians' Association onthe amendments to the Copyright Act.

Harris also contributed to the lobbying efforts of the Artists'Rights Coalition, focusing on copyright law from the per-former's perspective.

A founding board member of Music BC (The Pacific MusicIndustry Association), Harris was with the national law firm ofHeenan Blaikie from 1997-2000 before establishing his ownpractice in Vancouver.

An advocate for musician rights, he tirelessly promoted theartist's position in intellectual property, labour relations andoccupational health and safety. Harris was recognized for hisefforts in 2001 with a Volunteer Spirit West Coast Music Award.

"He was a great guy and it's very sad that he's gone at such anearly age," said Bill Henderson.

"His spirit will live on in his friends, family and in the com-munity of creative people that he so passionately and selflesslysupported."

In honour of his memory, the B.C. Foundation for MusicAssistance is starting up the Burt Harris MemorialScholarship Fund. Tax-deductible donations will be gratefullyaccepted at:

BC Foundation for Music Assistance501-425 Carrall St., Vancouver, BC V6B 6E3

For more information phone (604) 873-1914 or [email protected]


PHOTO: WARNER MUSIC CANADAFirst Echo:Winnipeg punk rockersPropaghandi are $5000 richer afterwinning the inaugural indie-driven,SOCAN-sponsored ECHOSongwriting Prize for the song “A Speculative Fiction.” Celebrating L-R are:SOCAN representative RodneyMurphy with Propagandhi membersTodd Kowalski, Dave Guillas, ChrisHannah, Jordan Samolesky andSOCAN representative DanKershaw.

What is a music publishing company?Some would say music publishing is “a phone, a computer andsome copyrights”. It can be more fully described as the “admin-istration, promotion, exploitation and protection of all themusical copyrights which one owns or controls.” The perform-ing rights (i.e., the rights to perform the work in public), whichare part of musical copyrights, are a limited exception to theabove definition. The performing rights society (SOCAN)obtains these rights, by an assignment agreement. Seewww.socan.ca for more information.

What is music publishing?Under the Copyright Act publishing is the “issue of copies” ofa work to the public. The issue of copies to the public impliestangible copies such as printed sheet music, rather than thelicensing of intangible copyrights.In practice, music publishing is the licensing and exploitationof musical copyrights, which are intangible. This could be doneby the songwriter, whether or not they have formed a publish-ing company.

What are the functions of a music publisher?Creative, promotional, business affairs and administration ofmusical copyrights.

Should a composer or songwriter have his/herown publishing company?The answer is probably yes, the cost is nominal: See film andtelevision rights below. If you have a catalogue of a number ofmusical copyrights, you might enter into a co-publishing oradministration agreement and receive the benefit of advancesagainst royalties and a music publisher’s expertise.

What rights are required when using music infilm and television?i) A synchronization licence to synchronize visual images

with music. This licence is granted by a publisher, or by theCMRRA (Canadian Musical Reproduction RightsAgency), which is a non-exclusive agent for publishermembers. See www.cmrra.ca for more information.

ii) If using an original recording you need a “master use”licence. This is distinct from the synchronization andmechanical licence usually held by a record company thatis required to make a contrivance (e.g. a record).

iii) Also to be considered are AFM musicians’ reuse fees, andpension and trust fund payments which are relevant to theabove-noted licences, and whether the writer’s moralrights are to be waived.

What royalties are payable pursuant toSongwriter / Publisher agreements?It depends, based on the type of agreement entered into, forexample, a co-publishing, sub-publishing or administrationagreement.

The songwriter’s and publisher’s share of net income in a

so-called “standard” songwriter’s publishing agreement are asfollows:

a) 50/50 of net income from performing, synchronization andmechanical rights;

b) 50/50 net income from unspecified uses (includes synchro-nization income);

c) 10.5% to 12.5% of retail (or wholesale) for print royalties.

Note: There are many other types of publishing agreementsand divisions in net income that may be applicable. Oneshould obtain skilled business and legal advice before signingany agreement.

What are some of the other relevant and specific terms of music publishing agreements?i) Net income should be defined.

ii) Foreign income which is subject to collection fees: e.g. 15-25% of gross income in given territory.

iii) ‘Reserve’ against returns – usually to protect the recordcompany and not really applicable in a publishing agree-ment unless print copies are made.

iv) The use of songwriter’s name and likeness.

v) An accounting and audit clause.

vi) Reversion of rights: e.g. for failure to exploit copyright orfailure to account and/or allow audit.

vii) Advances payable against royalties. For example, anadvance could be based on performance obligations suchas album releases and sales plateaus.

ConclusionThis is a complex legal area andsongwriters should get special-ized professional help. Theabove information is generalonly and in a specific situationskilled advice should beobtained.

Paul Sanderson is an entertainmentlawyer who entered private practiceafter having spent several years as aprofessional musician. He has practi-cal experience as a songwriter, gui-tarist, keyboard player, and is a pub-lisher and writer member of SOCAN.He is also the author of Musiciansand the Law In Canada, now in itsthird revised edition. © Paul Sanderson 2006


By PAUL SANDERSON

Written A Song? Want To Publish It?Here Are Some Tips.


By KEITH CARMAN

Lukas Rossi is a household name. Across the country, discussions about our newest star are

taking place around water coolers, in classrooms, at the localgym, and in bank line-ups. Six months ago you didn't knowwho he was. But after spending three nights a week with himfor the entire summer, we know him, we love him and we wantto see him when he hits the road for a world tour early 2007.

However, one question comes to mind: Where did Rossicome from?

Rossi is now celebrating his glorious victory, successivelydefeating 25,000 worldwide competitors to become winner ofCBS reality TV show Rock Star: Supernova. Now comes thewhirlwind career of writing, recording and touring the worldwith fellow Rock Star Supernova band mates Tommy Lee(Motley Crue), Jason Newsted (Metallica, Voivod) and GilbyClarke (Guns ‘N’ Roses) with the release of their eponymousdebut album -- although ex-Black Crowes bassist Johnny Coltis filling in for the shoulder-injured Newsted on the road.

Yet this is not the first time Rossi was handpicked fromthe throngs of universal talent. How did it come about that avirtual unknown took centre stagein the world of rock?

Thank his music publishingcompany. Working closely withRossi since 2003, EMI MusicPublishing Canada has diligentlynurtured this grassroots talent,incorporating their own raw mate-rials of time, funds and other pro-fessionals in order to ensure hissongwriting ability and prime set ofvocal chords did not go unnoticed.

Championed by EMI MusicPublishing Canada presidentMichael McCarty and BarbaraSedun, (vice-president, Creative),Rossi seemed a perfect fit in theireyes for Rock Star: Supernova.

“We really felt that he was apotential superstar, and all heneeded was the right vehicle to pluginto," says McCarty. "This showseemed like that vehicle to us."

Yet Rossi himself didn’t believe his place was on the real-ity TV program.

“Barb booked an audition for him in Toronto but he wasvery reluctant to go and missed it,” notes McCarty.“Eventually we got him to agree to go to the Vancouver audi-tion. It was a great opportunity.

"Reality-based music TV shows don't get the respect theydeserve. Where else have you heard and seen on a weeklybasis such smoking live rock music on primetime television?

"They are the new paradigm – your career starts off witha giant worldwide audience, and it is up to the artist to thentake advantage of that platform by making great music."

Some artists, McCarty notes, have transcended theirassociation with American Idol-type reality shows.

"Kelly Clarkson has successfully made the transitionfrom TV celebrity to credible pop music artist and there is noreason why Lukas can’t do so as well. He has the seriousmusic talent and drive, and all the other members of theband really see this as the next long-term chapter in theircareers.”

He just needed the exposure. Funding Rossi’s travelexpenses out of her own pocket on faith alone, Barb Sedun’sgamble confirmed another win for EMI Music PublishingCanada’s foresight concerning independent talent.

Rossi is not alone in receiving the strong hand of EMIMusic Publishing Canada assistance: Sum 41, Alexisonfire,Billy Talent, Three Days Grace, Moist, Gavin Brown, Len,Matthew Good, and a long list of others who you will be surelyhearing about very soon have all benefited from the compa-ny's expanded role in their careers.

With an inherent belief in their self-contained artistwriters, McCarty and Sedun work behind the scenes toensure their artists have the tools at hand to succeed at theircraft, especially in an environment where record labels are

investing less in gradual careerdevelopment.

In fact, the realm of EMIMusic Canada Publishing invest-ment runs the gamut from con-stant songwriting sessions in theirdowntown Toronto office (“in thespirit of Motown where talentwould breed talent, friendshipsforged and great songs written,”McCarty notes) to group field tripsfor writers and artists -- to evenfinancing tattoos and rehab costs,if it helps realize a career of songgeneration.

“We are partners in the own-ership of the rights to songs, asopposed to recordings," saysMcCarty. "Our job is to help makethings happen for the songwriters

and their songs, and then we try tomaximize their earning potential.

"We license intellectual property of the songs to recordcompanies, radio, video games, movies, ringtones, onlinedownloads -- anywhere to anybody who wants to use thesongs.”

The track record of EMI Music Publishing Canada-spon-sored acts speaks for itself: sales of 12 million albums in thepast 13 years, generating $100 million in wholesale recordlabel revenue.

The final word goes to Rossi himself, who co-wrote fivesongs on the new Rock Star Supernova album.

“I have a lot to thank EMI Publishing for. Before theysigned me my band had broken up and I was practicallyhomeless. Now I’m recording an album with my idols, stayingat Tommy Lee’s place and preparing for a world tour.

"I love these guys!”

NOVA HEART: EMI’s Barb Sedun and Mike McCarty sandwich TV champ Lukas Rossi


You can always build a better mousetrap.The same rings true for the craft of song-

writing, with one major difference: hopeful-ly, you'll avoid using an excessive amount ofcheese as bait.

The art of saying things a little different-ly was just one of the useful pieces of adviceoffered to aspiring tunesmiths duringSongposium 2.0, held November 25-26 atToronto's Holiday Inn.

The Toronto event presented a numberof Canadian music industry experts --Songwriters Association Of Canada presi-dent and jacksoul principal Haydain Neale;esteemed rapper and hip-hop producerChoclair; Universal Music Canada NewMedia marketing guru Janis Nixon and producer and engineer Byram Joseph, a.k.a.,Slakah The Beatchild -- doling out valuableinsight, analysis and insider experience tothose interested in gaining a foothold bothcreatively and professionally.

But Songposium 2.0 isn't just aboutcramming in words to fit your melodicphrase or having your music dissected by anaccomplished group of your peers: Nixon'spresence allowed songwriters to discover theavenues of Internet marketing, while Slakahoffered the 411 on some of the latest com-position-assisting studio gear and softwareprograms out on the street.

After all, these days it's almost as muchabout getting the word out as it is about cre-ating the words, as Haydain Neale noted in

his introductory remarks."The important thing to me is to broaden

the songwriter," said the S.A.C.'s Neale. "We want to be teaching the up and

comers how they fit in. Our job is to keepyou on the path so you don't have to bangyour head against the wall creatively."

Patrons who attended Songposium 2.0 gotthe best of both worlds. "The first day was oneof public seminars; the second was spent insmaller groups with mentors -- like the phe-nomenal singer and songwriter Jully Black --who provided valuable input concerning songarrangements, inspiration and answers toinquiries about music industry procedures.

"The addition of a second day toSongposium, where everyone gets to spendtime in smaller groups with these mentors,has been a huge success!" notes S.A.C. executive director Don Quarles.

As Quarles observes, however, you don'thave to be urban or pop to glean useful infor-mation that can be applied to your own career.

"Even though Songposium 2.0 has beenfocusing on genre-specific music, all partici-pants have been benefiting from the insightsof these great industry pros," he remarks.

Networking is also an invaluable aspectof Songposium 2.0: Not only do you estab-lish connections with self-contained artistswho have already navigated the obstaclecourse that is the music industry, but you'realso meeting potential collaborators andbusiness contacts.

"It's great," says Thane St. Andrew, asongwriter who arrived in Toronto a fewyears ago from Calgary and was at Toronto'sSongposium 2.0.

"You can get pointers on what works andwhat doesn't because these people are in theindustry. Your friends and family can tell youthey love your songs, but it only goes so far.These people know the industry."

One of the emphasized components ofSongposium 2.0 is the Internet, an ever-increasing presence in our lives and an excit-ing frontier and to market your music.

In her informative and entertainingpresentation, Universal Music Canada's JanisNixon identified digital and mobile plat-forms as being chief areas of growth besidethe Web, outlining relatively inexpensiveways of branding yourself and building yourcommunity through websites, cell phonesand services like Puretracks.

Songposium 2.0 participants, also includeDerek Brin, Metty The Dirt Merchant,Kyprios, Vince Degiorgio, John Capek, LennieGallant, Steve Wilkinson and Chad Mitchell,and many of them will make repeat appear-ances through the remaining dates (Calgary,Jan. 13-14; Guelph, Jan. 20-21 and Halifax,Feb. 03-04.)

Whether it's a demo evaluation or pro-viding guidance, Songposium 2.0 panelistsare at your disposal to share their wealth ofknowledge.

In other words, they are there for you.

SONGPOSIUM 2.0 -- STRAIGHT TALK, NO ADDITIVES

DISTINGUISHED PANEL: At Songposium 2.0, Haydain Neale, Janis Nixon,Choclair and Byram Joseph field demo evaluations.

PHOTO: IRV KOCHMAN - SYSTEM 4 PRODUCTIONS

Check for January andFebruary Songposium 2.0

dates, details and locationsat www.songwriters.ca


By

KA

REN

BLI

SS

“It’s a five-person process.”Dallas Green, singer/guitarist of St. Catharines post-hard-

core band Alexisonfire approaches his songwriting meticu-lously, but says democracy rules when it comes to finalapproval.

“The songs go through the wringer before they come out.We play them and play them and play them until everyoneis satisfied with what they’re doing.”

Green is rarely satisfied with what he does. For a guywhose solo side project City And Colour has gone goldwith its first full-length, Sometimes, it is surprisingbut true.

“I struggle with writing a song ingeneral because I don’t have a lot offaith in myself,” Green admits. “Ialways think what I’m doing sucks.”

It doesn’t make a difference that allthree Alexisonfire albums have done well.

The band — known for its dualsinging-screaming vocals — wentgold with barely any radio play atall for its 2002 self-titled full-length album. The 2004 follow-up Watch Out! scanned 75,000units according to NielsenSoundscan Canada, and thebrand new Crisis was certified goldin a matter of weeks. Thatshould be validation enough.

“It’s just my personal opinionon everything that I write,” saysGreen, who says he has "mil-lions" of half-finished songsand would keep working onthem all if he could.

“A lot of it has to do withme listening to lots of musicand thinking that everything isbetter than mine. Why should I evenbother when this guy’s saying exactly what Iwant to say?”

Luckily for Green, he has four bandmates to go to forfeedback and approval — co-vocalist George Pettit, gui-tarist/vocalist Wade MacNeil, bassist Chris Steele and drum-mer Jordan “Ratbeard” Hastings.

“It usually goes through a huge process for me to even getto that point. Once I decide what I’m going to sing and Ishow the guys, I have usually come to terms that it’s okay,”Green says.

“Once you start believing that you’re awesome or thatyou’re the shit, your music will probably start to soundlike shit.”

Pettit is neither self-deprecating nor cocky when it comesto talking about Alexisonfire’s songs. Even with rock radio

finally on board for Crisis, he hasn’t heard any negativefeedback from long-time fans that have followed the bandsince its inception in 2001.

“I think in a lot of ways this album is maybe less palatableand a lot heavier than Watch Out!” says Pettit. “It’s definitelygotten very hooky. I think we’ve gotten better at writingsongs, but at the same time, I’m doing a lot more singing onthis record.”

Pettit is the rip-your-throat-out screamer in the groupusually heard in the more “chaotic” parts and Green is themelodic singer who usually handles the choruses and “pret-tier” parts; MacNeil has a rougher singing voice and can beheard on a few songs.

When a vocalist writes lyrics, usually he or she has themelody and hook in mind, so how does a screamerapproach songwriting?“I just know when I write lyrics that I’m going to have to

yell ‘em,” says Pettit.“Sometimes when I write lyrics, if

I’m writing a pattern, I’ll put on asong that has the pattern. For

instance, the ‘Charlie Sheen vs.Henry Rollins’ song (on TheSwitcheroo Series: Alexisonfire Vs.Moneen EP), those lyrics for thechorus that I wrote, they fit witha song called ‘State Trooper’ byBruce Springsteen.

“You can read the lyrics tothat song the same way he

sings them. It’s like borrowinga rhythm from another reallygreat writer, and then changingthe lyrics obviously. But some-times that helps me get a basictempo for the song.”

Pettit writes pages worth of lyricsand will change them several times,

before Green and MacNeil maketheir own contributions.

“Most of the time we’ll pick a topic. I’ll be like, ‘Yo, Dallas,I’m writing a song about burning mailboxes,’ or he’ll belike, ‘Yo, I’ve got this song that’s kind of about St.Catharines, about how downtown is going down,’” Pettitsays, referring to the Crisis songs “Mailbox Arson” and “ThisCould Be Anywhere In The World.”

“Then we’ll write our own bits and then when we cometogether as songwriters, we’ll change it again to make it fit.Most of the time we sing our own parts, but a lot of timeswe’ll collaborate on things or someone will make a goodsuggestion and we’ll change stuff from start to finish.”

MacNeil — who contributes vocals and lyrics to “Drunks,Lovers, Sinners And Saints,” “Keep It On Wax” and “BoiledFrogs” on Crisis — says their sound has definitely developed

PHOTO: MATT BARNES

L-R Jordan, George, Chris,Wade. Seated: Dallas


over the past four years.“Our first album has a lot of all-over-

the-place vocals, but there’s a lot moreall-over-the-place ideas in the songs.There’s not cohesive singing, which wetried to do a lot more on the lastalbum and definitely a lot with this.

“The three of us would sit down andtalk through the lyrics and figure outwhat we wanted to say and work allthree voices into it, or just work it outlyrically so it’s telling one story, asopposed to two songs going on at thesame time.”

The fierce rhythm section is particu-larly important in Alexisonfire. In fact,bassist Steele came up with the initialidea for the single, “This Could BeAnywhere In The World.”

“I think that’s very important, every-

one putting their own stamp on it,”says MacNeil. “Steele’s not happy withthings that are really simplistic, so he’salways forcing us to look at parts. Evenif it’s subtle, like we’re changing upthe timing for one part or lengtheningcertain parts or shortening them, he’snot interested in having things havingthings be all fours.”

Hastings, who joined Alexis last sum-mer, wasn’t on Watch Out! but made hismark on Crisis.

“With our last drummer, we’d belike, ‘Do you want to try this on thedrums? Do this for this part,’” saysMacNeil. "Whereas with Jordan wewould make suggestions and he woulddo something completely differentthat would blow us away. He’s not ashow-off kind of drummer but he has a

lot of style and it really comes out onthe new CD.

“‘Rough Hands,’ the last song, thedrumming is relatively simplistic, butit’s just brilliant the way it’s done and‘Mailbox Arson,’ the opening fill defi-nitely gives people an idea of how pow-erful the drummer is.”

Adds Green: “Jordan really helpedmake our songs more song-oriented,as opposed to just parts. He came froma band (Jersey) and background withchoruses. He would be like, ‘We needto do a chorus here,’ or ‘We need toput a bridge here to go into the bestchorus.’ I think the power and soliditythat he brings to the sound reallyhelped with the songwriting.

"It feels like we have a backbonenow.”

ClassifiedsEach S.A.C. member is entitled to one free classified per year. Additionalads may be purchased for $25 per 25 words. Contact us at 1-866-456-7664 [email protected]

Lyricist looking to collaborate, genre is Pop/Rock but notlimited to. Contact Kim@[email protected]

Published songwriter has extensive catalog of good coun-try material for your next CD project. Songs professionallyrecorded. Full production backing tracks available.Germain Brunet www.songu.com/members/germain E-mail:[email protected].

Kate Ashby-Craft's newest CD Love Is All There Is is nowavailable. This CD is a concept album. Lyrically, all twelvesongs explore a different dimension of love. Musically thisCD ventures into the genre of AC/Soft Pop with aLatin/country/folk flavour. For more information please visitwww.kateashbycraft.com

Songwriter and producer has CD consisting of eight songs.Good mix of music. If you are in need of a song for aupcoming recording session please contact me [email protected] so I can mail you my CD. Serious repliesonly please.

PHOTOS: CINDY FREYGeorge

Dallas

Wade


Fact or fiction: The existence of thelost continent of Atlantis has been

debated since the days of Plato. The quandary, of course, is

whether the island, reportedly locatedsomewhere in the Atlantic Ocean andfirst mentioned by the prominentGreek philosopher during his lifetimecirca 400 B.C., did indeed sink duringa volcanic catastrophe with itsadvanced civilization some 9000 yearsbefore he lived, or whether it was afigment of Plato's vivid imagination.

Attempts to turn up evidence of itswhereabouts have been fruitless, withtheories concerning its sunken ruinsranging everywhere from China'sSouthern Seas to the Caribbean.

Even if it exists, it may never befound, but the symbolism and hope ofwhat it represents -- the potential ofpossibility -- weighs heavily within theframework of Atlantis: Hymns ForDisco, the third innovative album fromhip-hop visionary Kheaven Brereton,a.k.a. k-os.

"I've always loved mythology,"notes Brereton, hunched over a tableat a Toronto cafe one late afternoon,dreads hanging over his brow, betweensips of his caffeine-free beverage.

"I think it was my escapismas a kid: African mythology,Egyptian mythology, reli-gions, why things happen;things to explain why thingshappen -- and I loved thiswhole idea that Atlantis was acity that sank, but it's some-where there still.

"And then a friend of mine, SaulWilliams, who is a great poet and song-writer, was telling me that he had amovie script where a city suddenlysprings up one day, and the album'skind of based on that story.

"Imagine that one day on the coast

of Nova Scotia you see acity rise. What would thepeople be like? Whatwould be their culture?What if their culture wasso different that it madeeverything that you per-ceived about those peo-ple different?

"And that's whatAtlantis is about. It's notabout a city sinking. It'sabout a city rising."

As listeners of histwo previous albums,2000's Exit and 2004'sJoyful Rebellion, willattest, the Whitby,Ontario-born Breretonhas stretched the idiomof hip-hop so far beyondits parameters that somehave questioned his credentials.

Written and recordedin Toronto, Vancouver and Halifax,Atlantis: Hymns For Disco, is comparableto his other efforts in its abundance offlavours. The straightforward lexicon of"ELEctrik HeaT - the seekwiLL" isimmediately contradicted by the orches-trated piano balladry of "The Rain,"arguably k-os' tribute to James Brown's"It's A Man's Man's Man's World."

"FlyPaper" segues from comedy torock 'n roll anthem; "mirror in theSky" anchors itself on a reggae rhythmand accelerates to a Russ Klyne skaguitar line for "born to Run."

"Valhalla," which features a guestcameo by Sam Roberts, finds k-osspewing Dylanspeak phrasing andimagery, while "highway 7" keeps itbare and minimal, a strummed guitarat its epicenter.

Brereton both sings and raps --again, attributes he displayed bothduring Exit and Joyful Rebellion -- soto portray the Canadian of

Trinidadian descent as some sort ofurban scapegoat untrue to his museseems unmerited.

In response to his critics, Breretonchampions the philosophy of influen-tial New York MC Kris Parker, a.k.a.KRS-One, and says he's simplyexpressing his culture.

"KRS-One used to talk aboutsomething called 'edutainment,'where you could entertain people andeducate them at the same time," k-osexplains.

"Not educate them with your jar-gon, but your experience.

"That was also a common theme inhip-hop at the time: How do you makethese really fun songs but not makethem about partying all the time?

"So he was the first guy from thestreets who had this idea of makinghip-hop that kids could listen to, butwould still have a boombastic beat andmaybe a rebellious attitude towardssaying something.

DISCOVERINGATLANTISk-os EXPLORES HIS OPTIONSBy NICK KREWEN

PHOT

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"He also kept saying, 'Hip-hop isan attitude. Rap is something youdo.'"

For k-os, Atlantis: Hymns For Discois a personal platform to forwardthat assertion.

"I think this record, more thananything, gives me a great plateau tosay that," confirms Brereton, whorecorded over 30 songs for the proj-ect before settling on the 14 thatmade the cut.

"Hip-hop is an attitude -- likepunk rock, or Andy Warhol, or any-body with an attitude who expressesit through their art.

"My attitude will always be hip-hop because it was the music thatschooled me. You see elements ofgraffiti in here and I boom back to allthe beats, even if it's a rock beat -- it'skind of got these kicks and snaresand is sort of heavy.

"So those are the sensibilities ofhip-hop, but it's not rap. I'm not rap-ping that much on the record. MaybeI'm living in a dream world, but Ihope that people see that you cantake that attitude and do anything."

In fact, you won't find anyonepracticing this principle more overtlythan Brereton himself. The sophisti-cation of material delivered on Exit,Joyful Rebellion and now Atlantis:Hymns For Disco, is all the moreimpressive considering k-os, signedto Universal Music PublishingCanada, has no formal training andcan't read a note of music.

So when it comes time to create,k-os takes his cues by listening to others.

"First thing I do is I start gettingmy ass kicked by listening to thegreatest songs," says Brereton, who,as demonstrated by such hits as"Crabbuckit," "Crucial" and "DirtyWater," has a refined ear for melodichooks.

"Burt Bacharach - boom, you getslain! McCartney-Lennon, you getslain! Stevie Wonder, you get killed!Then I hear more current stuff likeThe Police, some of the JoeStrummer/The Clash stuff, reallyclassic songs."

Then he plugs into his four-trackrecorder.

"The first thing thatcomes out of me, I record,"he states. "Whether it's apiano lick, a guitar lick, alyric or -- (Paul) McCartneyhad this thing where hewrote down titles before heeven had songs, and'Valhalla' was a song titlebefore I even knew what itwas going to becomebecause it means 'Vikingheaven' and I liked theword -- I've tried all thosetypes of things.

"Anyway, recording is the firstthing I do."

A favourite instrumental tool ofBrereton's is the Ensoniq ASR-10 sam-pling keyboard.

"That, the guitar, a microphone anda four-track, that's what I brought on mylast tour. That's where I wrote 'Valhalla, 'black ice' and 'FlyPaper.'

"I like to sample things, play guitarover it and also use my four-track to putdown the scat ideas."

The "scat ideas" k-os employs -- amethod of wordless singing most oftenemployed by jazz singers -- allows him toget a general lyrical feel for his songs.

"The song is kind of built on ascat," k-os explains. "I write songswith scat words, and then write lyricsto the onomatopoeia -- the rhythm ofit. You get the rhythm that soundsbest over the song and then you writelyrics to that rhythm."

Co-producer Greg O'Shea alsohelps him fill in the sonic blanks.

"Greg can get any sound,"Brereton asserts. "So I play himsomething, he gets the sound andthen we start building. Once I've gota drum sound going -- again from thehip-hop mentality, the drum is thesoil -- and I think, 'Okay, now you'vegot to make big trees. Now you've gotto make cumulus clouds. Now you'vegot to make flowers.'

"Then I start to pick the othersounds -- I haven't really heard a har-monica with this type of hip-hop beat-- and then you can start messing withthings because you're approaching itfrom the ground up."

Brereton admits that he has noqualms about calling in the cavalrywhenever he requires.

"I know some people just writesongs on guitar, but me, I don't havethose skills," he reveals. "I can giveyou a couple chords, but then I'll getanother guitar player to come in anddo it better than me or we'll play ittogether. But for me, it all starts withsome kind of layered reality, just let-ting the thing build.

"Sometimes, I'll just start hearingthings in my head and take it fromthere."

Brereton says his arrangementsare tantamount to solving puzzles.

"In something like 'SundayMorning,' the whole song is reallybased on the acoustic breakdown inthe song.

"But what I find starting happen-ing to me -- and I'm putting this outthere for other non-trained musicianswho will do it by ear -- things just startfitting together," he explains.

"You play this guitar motif andthen you start playing these chordson keyboards on top of it. I don'tknow what key it's in, but maybethat's the key that I play in all thetime. Then I start singing and it's myregister.

PHOTO: JEREMY R. JANSEN


"I think subconsciously, you juststart figuring out what your voicesounds best with and your hands justnaturally go to these places. It's a real-ly weird thing, because a guitar playerwill ask me, 'Oh, what chord are youplaying there? A B-minor? And thenyou went to that?' And I'm like, 'Idon't know what I did. I just did it.'

"I think the untrained ear and eyein art don't stop to go, 'Is this going tofit?' 'Is this harmonically correct?'

"You just try it until you findsomething that fits."

Brereton says he heeds the wordsof late jazz pioneer Miles Davis toreassure his artistry.

"The greatest thing that any musi-cian ever said that I've read was MilesDavis, who said he learned everythingto forget it.

"So that gives a guy like me hope,"he laughs. "Because I don't know any-thing. So maybe I'm starting where heended."

Brereton recalls that his musicalonset happened innocently enough.The first instrument that intriguedhim to the point of action belonged tohis grandmother.

"It was a Yamaha Melodica thatyou blow through to play," he remem-bers. "I thought it was mystical. I'dwait until she was gone and then I'dopen it. I must have been 10 or 11;one day she was standing at the doorlistening and she said, 'Yeah, boy! Playit! Play!'”

Brereton experimented andadmits his first songs did little morethan amuse his family.

"That's when I decided I reallywanted to write songs, although instru-ments were things that I didn't want tolearn about from a book," he recalls."I just wanted to beat on them andplay on them. I still think I do the samething today."

Calling himself "a pretty insecure,weird species of a hip-hop guy,"Brereton's influences came from allover the musical map: Siouxsie AndThe Banshees, Kid Creole And TheCoconuts, Grandmaster Flash, KRS-One, punk, new wave, jazz -- and hisfather's albums.

"Linda Ronstadt right up toABBA, right down to Deep Purple and

Moe Koffman," k-os recalls. "I'd findthese Jose Feliciano records, all thesepeople from every culture. I thinkthat's why I can never judge music,because my Dad's record collectionwas like the United Nations."

After a lifetime of singing,Brereton, 34, says he fell into rap atthe age of 18 when the bland R&Bscene at the time disenchanted him.

"I basically switched my vocalinstrument to rap and then singingplayed the background. I think it'sfunny, because the success of thatcharacter of k-os has happenedbecause he's singing on his chorusand hooks.

"People in the hip-hop worldsays, 'He's not a real rapper becausehe sings.' I don't mind that, because Iknow I started singing first. I'm okaywith letting people hear that vulnera-bility in me."

Of course, of paramount impor-tance to hip-hop is the lyrical content -- and k-os says Atlantis:Hymns For Disco picks up where JoyfulRebellion leaves off, displaying amore personal side.

"I knew that with all thesongs on this record, I couldno longer talk about thestate of hip-hop or whatevereveryone else is doing,"Brereton explains.

"'Crabbuckit' is about the crabs inthe bucket, you know? The songs thatspoke to me most about my own expe-rience were 'The Man I Used To Be'and 'Crucial.'

"Those two songs were really aman talking about his own experi-ence. All the other songs were reallyabout what the world is at or what theworld is doing to me, with kind of avictim mentality.

"So with Atlantis, it was aboutwhatever's really pissing me off orreally making me so happy. Like thesong 'CatDieseL,' where I just met thisgirl and I was so happy because a cou-ple of girls before her weren't payingme any attention.

"What's pissing me off? My firstgirlfriend that broke my heart -- Iwant to write about that, still, even

though when I tell everyone I'm overit, I'm not.

"Or the fact that everyone's talk-ing about ghetto this and ghetto that,or rich this and rich that. You knowwhat? The world is a ghetto. Andthat's how 'Valhalla' came to me."

Brereton also possesses anothercompositional ace up his sleeve: thateight-bar shift known as the bridge, or"middle eight."

"Music is all about the change, allabout the middle eight," he explains."Nobody's really doing this anymore --it's kind of a lost art.

"If you know where it's going tochange and go back into the song -- itdoesn't have to be chordal, it couldjust be a breakdown, or as in'Crabbuckit' and 'Crucial,' it could bea little section -- then the chorus canbe informed by that."

It's a method that has workedwonders for Brereton's career, withJoyful Rebellion scoring a double-plat-inum record in Canada, seeing himheadline summer amphitheatre con-

certs and international releases in theU.K. and the U.S.

Now with Atlantis: Hymns For Discopoised to continue the momentum ofk-os rising, Brereton is only looking inone direction: forward.

"I'm going to keep it going, lovelife and trying to get better at thiscraft of songwriting,' he vows."Because it is a craft - that's forsure."

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AB Rhonda BergerAB Ronnie GaffarAB Jean Greer McCarthyAB Ross HarperAB Murray HaywardAB Randy HowellAB Ron McNeillAB Angela NurseAB Michael PittonetAB Patricia PorizAB Charlie ScottBC Loyd BishopBC Dane DeVillerBC Kevin GardnerBC Ginette GenereuxBC Renee GeronimoBC Carol GurrBC Bonar HarrisBC Ray LasellBC Joe MockBC Stan MorrisBC Gail NoonanBC Mark PlimleyBC Lester QuitzauBC Ronald RauBC Pernell ReichertBC Bernadette SaquibalBC Mike TwiningBC Andrew WarrenBC Murray WildeBC Marie WillsonBC Jimmy ZeeNB Rick MacIntyreNB Jordan McElhinney

NB Brad WhiteNF Christina ClouterNL Larry BrentonNS Garth BennettNS Reeves MathesonON Choclair ON Frank AndersonON Sue BattleON Ty BayntonON Michael BebisON Jason BlackwoodON Vicky BolducON Kimberly BoyceON Shae CalhounON Kira CallahanON Jason ChapmanON Stephen CoganON John CollinsON Karen CooperON Aduron De RonovON James DelaneyON Cristian Di RoccoON Dian DoyleON Emmanuel ErskineON John FarragherON James FernandesON David FolkerthON Stephen FordON James GadonON Madeline GauthierON Godfrey GeorgeON Michael GibbonsON Sarah GroppON Stanley Hammond

ON Sarah HerburgerON Andrea HigginsON Ron HobmanON Keith HoldingON David HoughtonON Rhowan JamesON Cheryl JamesON Veronica JohnnyON Wayne JohnsonON Aurora JonON Levon KalalianON Courtney KingON Max LaytonON Mile LazarevskiON Bob LivingstonON Dave MacLeanON Kimberley MacLeanON Bernie MaisonneuveON Justin ManuelON Michael MaracewiczON Salvatore MarcelloON Donna MatthieuON Francis McCainON Antonio MonizON Alden Anthony MorganON Joshua MorinON Sue NguyenON Hedda NicolON Katie O’HalloranON Arlene PayneON Pablo PetrucciON Lorenzo PolicelliON Vojin RadenovicON Kavitha Ramachandran

ON Steven RaneON Joseph RessON John RiopelleON Santino RotirotiON Mike RouleauON Duane RutterON Grainne RyanON Wendy SamulskiON Judy SeabrookON Helen ShannonON Eejune SimON Rayna SlobodianON Philip SohanON Chris StaigON Dani StrongON Chris TaitON Sarah-Jean VillaON Joanne WasylishenON Ashley WeinhandlON Wendy WileON Kimberley WilliamsON Alton WillisON Tom SavageQC Martha CortezQC Paul DavidQC Alasdair GillisQC Reagan HicockQC Rachelle ManthaQC Mark SheppardQC Lori SingerQC Trever TrudeauSK Kimberly HallSK Ovide Pilon

Welcome New Members!The S.A.C. welcomes the following new members who have joined since August 11, 2006

SHARING IDEAS: THE WORKSHOP COMMUNITYBy L.C. DI MARCO

Warmth. Fireplace. Hot water. Jalapeno pepper. Fire.

I can feel the warmth of your skin as I lie next to youby the fireplace.

I said the wrong thing and now I’m in hot water.

My tongue is on fire but the jalapeno peppers areworth the painful quench.

I feel the warmth of the sunrays on my skin as Iremember your sweet kiss.

I remember your sweet kiss as I bathe in the warmth ofthe sunrays.

Writing a song is like poetry in motion. It’s more thanlyrics and music: We all have something to say, but we'renot always able to express ourselves to others.

Many great writers use fictional characters to convey theirthoughts. Visual artists awaken emotions with specificcolours and brush strokes. Poets choose verse styles.Songwriters choose eclectic lingo.

The eclecticism of style and presentation of a songdepends on the purpose of writing it in the first place.

It’s not about money: It's about connection.

It comes down to community. If the purpose of writing is tocommunicate, then our material needs to be universal,which, of course, is often the challenge. At this point, shar-ing our music with others may help the creative process.What better way to know if our song is reaching othersthan by actually performing it for an audience?

Performing for an audience can be intimidating for folkswho are exclusively songwriters.

This is where the workshop format becomes useful. It is ina group of peers that we can obtain honest feedback andadvice. If the purpose of writing a particular song is to‘build trust,’ then how do we proceed? Most importantly,has our choice of words conveyed its point?

Quite often, without even recognizing it, there is a songlingering in our minds. Our thoughts, feelings, experiences,all follow us in our musings.

We could be sitting on the bus and daydream a memory aswe look out the window. A woman could cross our paths,her perfume reminding us of our grandmother. A stranger’scologne could serve as a memory of a bygone Christmas.


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Some have argued it was Frank Sinatra; others say it was ThePretty Things.Whichever act truly pioneered the concept project -- where

the song cycle comprising an album is thematic, with eachcomposition staying true to its chosen subject matter -- hascertainly been responsible for some of the most beloved,enduring and commercially successful albums in contemporarytimes: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Tommy,Quadrophenia, The Wall, 2112, The Lamb Lies Down OnBroadway, Operation: Mindcrime...and the list keeps growing.

Canadian artists have also taken topical music to heart: inthis past year alone, Neverending White Lights and MeligroveBand are a few whose albums sport running themes.

Where to begin?As concept specialist Alan Parsons, whom the Songwriters

Association Of Canada presented earlier this year at CanadianMusic Week in Toronto, points out, having a premise in mindcan instill a project with purpose.

"If you know what to write songs about, it makes it easier topluck ideas out of the air that much more easily than with acompletely blank sheet of paper and not really knowing whatkind of song you're looking to write," explains Parsons, whoteamed up with session keyboardist and songwriter EricWoolfson to launch his studio-bound Alan Parsons Project with1975's The Tales Of Mystery And Imagination Of Edgar Allan Poe.

Motivated by his own engineering contributions to PinkFloyd's Atom Heart Mother -- and in particular, the phenomenalDark Side Of The Moon, still going strong with an estimated40 million copies sold, 1535 weeks on the Billboard PopCatalog charts and counting -- Parsons partnered withWoolfson to set American writer Poe's works to music.

"It seemed that Edgar Allan Poe was a good plan," allowsParsons. "His work had been always successful in cinema. Itseemed like a perfect vehicle for what we had in mind - a pro-gressive rock concept album.

"It was certainly designed to be my Dark Side Of TheMoon."

In adapting the material to music, both Parsons andWoolfson delved into the Poe library and tried to adapt sourcematerial both familiar and obscure.

"We both re-read a large slice of the body of Poe's workand we made discoveries during the actual album recording,"Parsons recalls. "We discovered 'To One In Paradise' and 'ADream Within A Dream,' so we just didn't go with the Poe"hits" as it were, like 'The Telltale Heart' and 'The Cask OfAmontillado.'

"To re-read works it was like, 'Oh, that will work reallywell as an ending song' or 'that would work really well as apoem.'"

For the Neverending White Lights opus Act 1: GoodbyeFriends of Heavenly Bodies, sole static member Daniel Victorrelied on his University of Windsor minor studies in WorldViews to inspire the ethereal, synth-infused soundscape thatthematically revolves around mortality and rebirth.

“I found myself already graduated and still seeking outinformation in books about world views and religion and spirituality,” Victor recalls.

“It was more about the interest of something that no oneknows anything about, but that humanity created these sortsof religions and rules along the way based on past teachingsand ideals and we follow them, but they’re still limited to thehuman mistake.”

In the case of Meligrove Band's epic Planets Conspire,songs like "Isle Of Yew" and "Our Love Will Make The World GoRound," suggest tunesmith Jason Nunes' romantic obsessionwas the fodder of this seemingly thematic Valentine.

But the singer/songwriter, who originally intendedPlanets Conspire to be a shorter EP called Headphones For HardTimes, says instead that it stems from artistic restlessness: acareer crossroads that found him contemplating whether heshould continue creating with Meligrove drummer Darcy Rego,bassist Michael and multi-instrumentalist Andrew Scott.

“I had all these heavy, heavy ideas at the time and I kindof thought I was wasting a lot of my time just being in aband,” explains Nunes, whose Planets Conspire is MeligroveBand's third album.

“I really thought I had to work on myself and my homeand my family and a whole bunch of things that were a lotmore heavy than playing songs that were on Let It Grow andStars and Guitars that really had no substance.

“So I just told Darcy and Mike, ‘You know guys, I can’treally do this right now. I’ve got to do other things.’

"It was weird because right when I was saying that, I wasstill writing and what I was writing, Mike and Darcy heard andthey were really into it.

"It just made sense to keep going.”The 10-track introspective, full of pop rock splendour,

engaging harmonies, booming classical instrumentation and aheart-on-sleeve account of life from the dismal lows to the victorious highs, served as sonic therapy to Nunes, harnessinghis curiosities, fears and experience.

In order to reach from within, Nunes had to step outsidehis musical composition comfort zone and trade his usual gui-tar for his parents' piano.

“I think the guitar became so familiar to me that I became

THEMATIC ALBUMS: WHAT A CONCEPTBy Shallima Maharaj and Nick Krewen


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too conscious of what Iwas doing," reasonsNunes. "When I sat atthe piano, I could behitting the same notesand I wouldn’t evenknow it. And I wasinventing all thesenew chords for myselfand I ended up teachingmyself how to replaythe guitar through thepiano.

“You have to kindof step out of every-thing otherwise you’retoo critical and tooself-conscious."

Rather than delivertheir music in Nunes' manner with a single voice, both AlanParsons and Neverending White Lights' Daniel Victor opted formultiple musical guests.

"It was a variety angle," says Parsons concerning the turn-stile approach that employedsingers ranging from The Hollies'Terry Sylvester, Arthur Brown(remember the 1968 hit "Fire"?)and John Miles to Colin Blunstone,Chris Rainbow, Lenny Zakatek andco-creator Woolfson.

"I think a lot of people stum-ble because they essentially havethe same sound from the begin-ning of an album to the end of analbum. We managed to hold the

interest by always having different singers on each song."Victor, whose 16-song self-written, produced and engi-

neered Act 1: Goodbye Friends of Heavenly Bodies includesappearances by Our Lady Peace’s Raine Maida, 311's NickHexum, Finger Eleven's Scott Anderson, Creeper Lagoon'sSharky Laguna -- and, on the hit single "The Grace," DallasGreen, both of Alexisonfire and City And Colour -- settled for amore organic method.

“It was half me going through my entire record collectionand essentially making a wish list of who I would like to seestep out of their band and do something interesting," Victorreveals. "The other half of it was a vocalist that came to mindas I was writing a song.”

The album unfolds in novel-like fashion with its own chap-ter divisions, broken into three sections.

“To me, 79 minutes of music is a lot for somebody to takein," he explains. "The songs are very long, you have differentvocalists coming in and out, you have a lot of different instru-mentation and it just seemed like a lot to interpret.”

Commercially, the multi-singer approach has served AlanParsons well, enabling him to score hit songs like "GamesPeople Play," "Time" and "Eye In The Sky," and sell more than45 million combined copies of such popular titles as Tales Of

Mystery And Imagination Of Edgar AllanPoe, I Robot, The Turn Of A Friendly Cardand Eye In The Sky before he and EricWoolfson split in the early '90s.

But when it comes to creating conceptprojects, Parsons says only one thingreally matters: your audience.

"Choosing concepts wasn't the chal-lenge so much as coming up withgood material and structuring them ina way that we felt was going toplease the listener."

How do we express such pleasantries and/or even sad-ness in a song?

There are various exercises to help the process. It involvesmore than the movement of our pens. It involves us actu-ally getting up and leaving the comfort of our homes.

Working through exercises such as starting with wordsthat convey particular emotion and build free thoughts issomething that can be focused on in a workshop. By set-ting up a motivational atmosphere, our musings are morelikely to exfoliate.

The individual singer-songwriter generally writes alone,but collaboration is a growing trend. But how do you meetlike-minded others?

The Songwriters Association of Canada has run work-shops, demo evaluation nights, seminars and other song-writing business-related events over the years. Of partic-ular value are the Regional Writers’ Groups.

As the co-ordinator of the Weston/Etobicoke WritersGroup, I’ve seen and felt the firsthand benefits of workingwith other peers. Amateur songwriters profit from thosewho are published and more experienced in the industry.

There are other reasons why creators value the workshopenvironment.

Paul Travydas finds that the "deadlines imposed by the

workshop have helped me to become more prolific withmy writing."

Popcycle, a Mississauga-based duo consisting of FabiolaVettese and David Franco, say their combined interest inS.A.C. workshops "is to fine-tune our lyrical and generalsongwriting and performance technique."

Randle Timmins from Williams Lake, British Columbia,appreciates the networking opportunities.

Some come for the camaraderie and others come readywith a newly completed song or one in progress. All of uscome to share our stories, practice some writing exercisesand discuss business challenges.

Over the next few months, S.A.C. will be working hard toimprove the formats of these workshops. The Regional WritersGroup Workshops are free to S.A.C. members. The Weston/Etobicoke chapter meets the first Saturday of every month.

Check out www.songwriters.ca for details.

If you are interested in becoming a Regional Writers’Group coordinator, please contact Executive Director, DonQuarles at 1-866-456-SONG.

L.C. Di Marco is LiANA, a Toronto-based singer-song-writer with three independent CDs to her credit. Checkout her latest effort I See No Rain at www.liana.biz andwww.indie-music-toronto.ca.

SHARING IDEAS... cont’d from page 16

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SSPPOOTTLLIIGGHHTTCoco Love Alcorn Peter Verity Lindy Greg Wyard

BBN No. 60 , September 19, HUGH’S ROOM, TORONTO PHOTOS: PIERRE MILLETTE

Emm Gryner Alcorn, Lindy, Gryner,Wyard

Dale Nikkel & Selena Martin

WithBlair PackhamBarney Bentall

Melanie DoaneJeremy Fisher

Jian GhomeshiSelina Martin

Danny Michel Justin RutledgeJenny Whiteley

and more

Jan. 19 EDMONTONJan. 20 CALGARYJan. 27 OTTAWAFeb. 2 HALIFAXFeb. 9/10 ST. JOHN'SFeb. 16 WHITEHORSE

TOUR 2007

Visit www.songwriters.ca formore info or call 1 877 456-7664Produced by Shari Ulrich for the Songwriters Association of Canada.

Where Writers Sing & Tell

GRAND PRIZEThe national winner will receive a prize package of:n $10,000.00 in cash (first runner up receives $2500.00 cash)n TASCAM 2488 24-track Digital Portastudion NEUMANN TLM 49 Professional Studio Microphonen 30 hours of mixing and mastering time from METALWORKS, Canada’s #1

Recording Studion $2,500.00 National Radio Promotion Package from dB PROMOTIONS

& PUBLICITY INC.n One Free Digital Radio Station Upload to any format of choice by RDR MUSIC GROUP

in conjunction with DMDSn Complete Website Design, One Year Web Hosting & Customized Enhanced CD Package

from J.E.T. MEDIA AND DESIGN

REGIONAL PRIZESEach regional winner will receive a prize package of:n GARRISON AG-500-CE Acoustic/Electric Cutaway Guitar with Solid Spruce

Top & 4 Band EQn SENNHEISER Studio/Live package including: E 865 condenser vocal microphone, stand, cable,

and HD 280 professional headphonesn 2 1/2" Carving Leather Guitar Strap with foam padding and garment leather backing

from LEVY’S LEATHERS LIMITEDn An all-expense paid weekend at the FAIRMONT ROYAL YORK HOTEL TORONTO – March 8-10, 2007n Delegate passes to CANADIAN MUSIC WEEK CONFERENCE & FESTIVALn A private seminar with some of Canada’s most successful songwritersn Opportunity to perform at the SONGWRITERS’ FESTIVAL - March 9, 2007 in Toronton All entrants receive a one-year subscription to CANADIAN MUSICIAN MAGAZINE

WHO CAN ENTERAspiring or proficient songwriters – self-published or unpublished – who are looking for a chance to get their material recorded and/or published.

HOW TO ENTERn Send a CD with a minimum of 1 song up to a maximum of 3 songs, along with a typed lyric sheet, your

name, address, telephone number, and email address to the closest participating radio station in your area. (Please write your name and telephone number on CD).

n The song must be original and not published or distributed prior to competition.n All entries must be received no later than December 22, 2006.

For complete contest details visit www.radiostar.ca or pick up an entry form at participating radio stations and music stores nationwide.

DANIEL POWTER – Award Winning Songwriter

Setting S.A.C. Sights on Sites, Winter... · Setting S.A.C. Sights on Sites, ... Alberta's Joni Mitchell on the world of pop- ... "Both Sides Now," "Help Me," "Woodstock"

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