George Connell’s new 10-tune CD, Elephant in the Room, is a satirical, sometimes melancholic look at life’s moods and attitudes. Connell, who lives at Earl’s Cove, is the songwriter and singer on every track and he is accompanied by some terrific musicians and arrangements.
He will be launching his CD at the Sunshine Coast Botanical Garden on Mason Road in West Sechelt this Friday, Oct. 13, at 6 p.m. The title track points the finger at those who are prejudiced about gender, race and age and feel superior to others.
“It’s you who is the elephant in the room,” he sings. War mongers, armament dealers and dusty Spanish wine all come in for a verbal jousting. In Kitsilano Venus, he tells of “prosthetic bosoms under wire” and other fakery employed in the name of beauty.
The collection is an eclectic mixture. “Bring on Utopia,” he cries in one of the album’s songs. In another song, he advises the heartbroken to “let her go.”
Musicians on the CD include Garth Bowen, who splits his time between the Sunshine Coast and Richmond, and who did the lion’s share of recording work at his studio. He provided the mandolin, violin and guitar tracks and took care of the production and engineering. Raphael Geronimo, known to many as the band leader of Rumba Calzada, is on percussion and drums. Ben Appenheimer is on acoustic bass, Brett Ziegler on Nord organ and other keyboards, Joseph Abbott is the clarinetist, and Ryan Premack plays trombone.
Vocalist Katherine Penfold made an appearance on Highway of Tears, a lament for those missing and murdered Indigenous women. Terry Aleck (Coyote) allowed a recording of singing and drumming of his great-grandfather’s healing song to be used.
Admission to the CD release event is free. CDs and elephant T-shirts will be available with 10 per cent of all CD sales going to Uplifting Indigenous Families, a VanCity sponsored fund to help folks travel to hearings to testify and bear witness.
The recording is dedicated to the memory of the late folk singer Penny Lang, who many years ago used to babysit Connell in Montreal. The CD launch is a non-alcoholic event and everyone is welcome.
