"Dan has written about 1300 (1500 actually) songs so far in his career here in Winnipeg, Canada. So I had to let you guys see him in action again at his latest concert. More info about Dan is available from his website: www.danfrechette.com"
Have you ever been struck by a song and needed to hear it over again and louder to catch every nuance? Songs that signal an arrival of new plateau in understanding or a new direction or philosophy? Rambling Dan Frechette has been crafting hundreds of such songs for many years in the prairie city of Winnipeg and Pinawa, Manitoba respectively. With over 1500 songs to his credit Rambling Dan is a master of songcraft not found often in the young crop of musicians and artists.
His music conjures the many eras and histories of popular song before his birth 35 years ago. His abilities as a performer and a self-taught multi-instrumentalist adds a multi-faceted essence to his songwriting. His voice harkens to the sound of edgy Americana and the storied history of the past starting from 40 years ago. A pen to paper has produced new songs for the generations such as “Money in the Wind”, “Who Will Take My Place?”, “You Don’t See It”, “My Canada”, “Sweet Ukulele Haley”, “Dance and Play”, “My Bride and I”, “Baby Lemonade”, “King Of Spades”, “Mists Of Down Below” and “The Drunkard”, “Internet County Jail Blues”, “Hell In A Handbasket Blues”, “TVZ Blues”, “The Days Of Old Times” and “Some Kind Of Phantom”. Songs of this caliber are not so common in the modern day, with gadgetry and fashion distracting from the core quality of the popular song.
Armed with a harmonica and any number of instruments, Rambling Dan Frechette performs with passion and conviction. His songs and performances are subdued but contain a certain power that eventually presents itself later when people who have seen him find themselves unable to forget songs he sang that are now part of the fabric of their life. Songs that speak to the deeper philosophical trials of humanity and the politics of time, greed, and pathos. Songs that grow on you and as Woody Guthrie said “songs to grow on”.
With three studio albums to his credit Rambling Dan Frechette suffers the curse of the troubadour, forever performing for small or large audiences wherever he can, slowly building a reputation as a fine tune-smith and performer. Everyone who listens becomes a fan. Frechette himself says, “I’m only ever as good as the connection I have with the audience.”
Frechette has genuinely spanned a number of genres in his tribute to his muse. A folk album with echoes of early Bob Dylan protest song, a bluegrass album with storytelling and performances on a number of bluegrass instruments, a blues album that made use of Rambling Dan’s edgy singing and blues prowess. His songs have been covered successfully by other artists including Ireland’s Dervish and also The Duhks. Rambling Dan continues to tour in his Toyota Corolla and with a tongue in cheek calls his record company “Corolla Trunk Records”. He shuns the typical music industry trappings and protocol, preferring to keep his career and outlook simple. He has had a manager in the past (Mitch Podolak, founder of Winnipeg Folk Festival among others, and Home Routes) and a major publishing deal (EMI in Toronto) but with these experiences prefers to stay true to his passion and create timeless music.
A veteran Winnipeg-based tunesmith, this is his 5th album but his first blues one. His earlier forays included folk & bluegrass (a song covered by The Duhks) and an NFB animation feature, totaling some 1200 songs. He didn’t want to do a blues album until he was ready and now it seems, the time was right. He has dispensed with the trappings of the music business: agents, managers & such and just travels in his Toyota Corolla, connecting directly with his audience wherever he goes. Perhaps not surprisingly, this attitude is reflected in his songs. “Internet County Jail”, for example, laments that people spend so much time at their computers they’ve forgotten what it’s like to be outdoors – a conclusion he arrived at after 8 years at the keyboard. He has assembled a stellar band for some of the songs on this disc, however, with fellow Winnipeger Scott Nolan producing (and playing bass, drums & harp). “They Call Me Crazy” is a smart little rocker about an outsider defending himself. It’s a grand way to open, with Jeremy Rusu contributing some rollicking piano. “(Give me a) Break From The Blues” slows things down a little, with Frechette on slide. He picks up his National Steel for “City Blues” a re-worked “Walking Blues” about how bad life is in the city, fortunately saved by some evocative images. “Hell In A Handbasket Blues” is a rather better song about the state of the world today than Layla Zoe’s “Black Oil”. He borrows the tune from Bob Dylan’s anti-war song, “John Brown”, which gives him a solid structure for his succinct, end-of-the-world verses. This one bears repeated listening. Another highlight is his “Nothing To Lose But The Blues”, he says ‘keep the hard times coming.’ Almost as good is the penultimate “Hard Times You Must Have Had”. After two minutes, there’s a hidden “Paternity Blues”. It’s a straight twelve bar, with Frechette on twelve string guitar, harmonica and bile over a recently departed girl friend – a very good song but it might be a little too real for radio. I hope he doesn’t wait five albums to do another one of these. His web site is www.ramblingdan.com.
Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find money cannot be eaten.
~ Cree Prophecy
2 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First)
lemonade kid
Posted - 15/10/2012 : 22:07:37"One of the single greatest folkin' tunes you might have never heard"
Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find money cannot be eaten.
~ Cree Prophecy
Joe Morris
Posted - 15/10/2012 : 21:55:46 "in the sad town cold iron hands clap the party of clowns outside"
