Cochrane Valley Folk Club
Saturday, January 19, 2008 — Cochrane RancheHouse - 8PM
Acoustic, as the name suggests, is Juno-nominee David Gogo’s exciting new ALL ACOUSTIC Cd (ok, he did plug his 1915 Gibson acoustic into an amp on two songs!) and seventh album with Cordova Bay Records as part of the “Official Bootleg Series – Volume 2.”
The album features ten brand new tracks steeped in the blues, roots and folk tradition that have influenced David throughout his career. Recorded at his home in Nanaimo, BC in between his extensive tour schedule, Acoustic offers fans an intimate and personal look at the acoustic side of his talents as a singer, songwriter and guitarist. Acoustic spans the full spectrum of David’s career with songs like “Years Since Yesterday”, a Paladins tune he first performed when he was 19 years old and “As The Crow Flies”, a Tony Joe White song David indicates, “I first heard on a Rory Gallagher record. It’s funny how you get turned on to North American music through European musicians dating back to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.”
One of David’s five originals, “She’s Breakin’ Through” is pure Canadiana. Based on a true story and facts he researched through history books, David tells the tragic tale of his Great Grandfather, who was one of nineteen men killed in a 1915 mining accident in the Black Track mines in South Wellington, BC, near his home of Nanaimo.
Much of Acoustic was recorded with the 2002 & 2004 Maple Blues “Guitarist of The Year” playing his 1930 National Steel guitar but David also finally had the chance to capture the rich, warm tones of his 1915 Gibson acoustic. He even slipped in a little modern day 12-string guitar on his friend Ken Hamm’s beautiful original, “Intertidal Zone.” David added various percussion to the album, from banging on child’s toys, to a dilapidated drum kit that was kicking around the house. Check out Rick Hopkins’ (Colin James) unique piano sound on “Years Since Yesterday”, that almost feels like it was recorded in the ‘20’s. Rick May, an extremely versatile and talented performer (Taj Mahal, Ricky Lee Jones, Depeche Mode) added standup bass to the album and was as David describes, “the missing piece of the puzzle.” “He puts his heart and soul into every project whether it’s Michael Jackson or me!”
While David performed most of the work at home, he did make a trip down to Nashville, TN to write “All I Can Do” with one of the top roots songwriters in the world, Gary Nicholson. Gary has written award winning hits for the likes of Willie Nelson, The Dixie Chicks, Bonnie Raitt, Delbert McClinton and most recently Los Lonely Boys amongst many others. “The great connection with Gary was immediate”, states David. “It was like meeting someone who is really successful but very cool and talented and with similar influences.”
The impetus for Acoustic draws on his first acoustic Cd Bare Bones but was re-inspired by a couple of very successful acoustic performances that David played with Colin James and Colin Linden in Alberta in 2005. “People really like the acoustic show and as a player, it keeps things interesting and challenges you”, says David. He also truly enjoyed the time to reconnect with the two Colin’s and reflect on their crossing paths over the years.
Like a true troubadour, David is looking forward to hitting the road and performing solo in support of the new record and sharing his passion for the music with the world at large. With the wide range of material on this release, it will no doubt appeal to a vast audience.
“David is a great blues player. I like his style!” – Johnny Winter
“…a volcanic guitarist, quite mesmerizing when he attacks” - Toronto Star
“If there was a list of best guitar players in Canada, David Gogo would be on that list” - Winnipeg Free Press
** courtesy of http://www.davidgogo.com/bio-acoustic.html **
Permalink — Posted by David Neher on Jan. 14 at 12:02 PM