…About 10 years ago, I went on a solo road trip from Ontario to Alberta and back. That was such a profoundly life-changing experience for me, it took me a few years to process those emotions enough to start expressing them in a meaningful way.

This year’s new recording of “A Canadian Christmas” has been an equally (if not more) profound experience for me.

The youngest person singing on this recording is only 4 years old. The oldest is 81. It’s still a little surreal and overwhelming for me to listen to all of these voices and watch all of these faces perform music that was composed for them to enjoy together. Many of the singers and instrumentalists on this recording are friends of mine, but many are people who I’ve never met in person. We were all just brought together by this music and the desire to create something special for Canadians to enjoy every December.

“Hope” doesn’t pay the bills for anyone, and not being able to see most of our loved ones in person has made this year difficult for a lot of people, especially during the holidays. I don’t want to dismiss any of the losses or struggles that anyone has suffered during this worldwide crisis. The goal of this project was never to ignore any of that. But nothing has brought joy into my life like music has, so I just desperately wanted to make the best of this unique opportunity to bring Canadians together with something we could all share and be proud of when we remember this “time so often wrought with fear”, when “the world’s despair consumed our thoughts”.

We’re almost a year into a global pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, yet more than 160 Canadians took the time to learn, practice, and record a song by someone who most people have never even heard of….and at a time when most people are too exhausted to even think about doing something like this, they all made it sound like an old holiday classic that’s secretly been around forever.

I’m sorry that I have no words to sufficiently convey the everlasting gratitude that I feel for everyone who helped with this project. So, I will quickly say a simple “thank you all so much” to all of them, hope that they’re all proud of the work they did on this, and let them (and the rest of you) experience the magical results of their generosity and artistry…But watch it a few times, because there are little moments throughout the video for you to enjoy.

(p.s. EXTRA gratitude to Marc Koecher of MK Soundworks & MK Photographics. Marc has worked on this song more than almost anyone since the first time I played the MIDI instrumental demo for him back in early 2017. None of this would be possible without his work and expertise. He’s VERY good at his job, if you need an audio engineer, photographer, or videographer, Marc is a master of all trades and jack of none. Additional thanks to Byron Pascoe of Edwards Creative Law, and Tereza Olivero & Clare Johnston of ACTRA for providing some last minute but crucial behind-the-scenes assistance with paperwork that helped us release the video on time.)