Ron Sexsmith

This is for all non-EC or peripheral-EC topics. We all know how much we love talking about 'The Man' but sometimes we have other interests.
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Otis Westinghouse
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Straight down to Fopp on release day, reliving the teenage magic of buying it the day it hits the shops.

First listen, hmmmm, some really great song, but is Bob Rock trying to sell Ron to Michael Bublé's fans a little too much? Part of me worries he's trying too hard. I predict I'll revise this once the songs start to work their magic, pretty well all his records have needed several plays. Let's see. It's certainly pretty slick and classy. Some lovely songs.

My youngest boy is called 'Michael', so 'Michael and His Dad' is like Ron's counterpart for me to Elvis's 'My Three Sons'.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by johnfoyle »

http://blogs.canoe.ca/ent/music/costell ... thumbs-up/

Costello gives new Sexsmith disc the thumbs up

jane.stevenson - March 2nd, 2011

Ron Sexsmith’s new album, Long Player, Late Bloomer, got the thumbs up from fellow musician and longtime supporter Elvis Costello way back in early 2010 before the disc’s March 1 release this past week.

Toronto-based Sexsmith played the Bob Rock-produced disc for Costello in his Vancouver home office – he’s married to Nanaimo-born jazz singer Diana Krall – just before the two men were part of the Neil Young Tribute during the Winter Olympics at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

“He told me it sounded like I was holding my head up for the first time,” said Sexsmith. “And I thought that was cool when he said that. I kind of see what he means ‘cause I think in the past, I was always afraid to call too much attention and this is not a shy record. It kind of comes crashing through the door, which is kind of part of again Bob being a real cheerleader and trying to get me out of my stubborness, my shell, sort of nudging me a bit, and keeping the tempos up, and everything.”

Sexsmith said the duo listened to half of the record at Costellos’s house.

“And then the car came to pick us up and we listened to the rest of it in the car,” he remembered. “So when we got to the venue there was still two more songs to go so he asked the driver to drive around the block a few times. So he’s been a real friend to me that way. He’s really been really good, just at advice. If I have a bunch of songs and I don’t know if they’re any good, I could send them to him and he would give me his two cents.”

Sexsmith’s cross-Canada tour kicks of March 3 in Kingston, Ont, and wraps up April 21 in Toronto.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

johnfoyle wrote:way back in early 2010[/b]
Don't recall if it said what month we were in during the recording, but was it really recorded ahead of last Feb when the above show took place? A whole year to get released? Sounds impossible.

Good doc. I watched the 12.45am airing, so wasn't fully there at times, and missed the end of it, but it was very touching and intimate. Loved the shots of his mum taking photos of the tv when he won a Juno award.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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Did anyone record the documentary on to DVD? Please PM me if you did.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Who Shot Sam? »

Listening to Cobblestone Runway again tonight. God I love this album.
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ReadyToHearTheWorst
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by ReadyToHearTheWorst »

Our Ron is all over the map April - July, including many places of convenience for folks hereabouts, eg London, Gateshead, Dublin, Cambridge et seq.
http://www.ronsexsmith.com/tour/
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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I could kill the bugger - he goes and announces a Junction date here in Cambridge on the very night I'm playing a gig myself! Actually my event was originally scheduled for the next day and they went and moved it. Doh! Oh well, I'll see him at the Barbican next Saturday,so mustn't grumble, but it would be nice to see him in a fuller Junction. I saw him touring Time Being there, which for my money is a significantly better record than LPLB, which I find hard to love as a whole in the way I do most of his, and there were 2-300 people only, in an 850 capacity venue. He wrote afterwards that it just wasn't viable for him to tour with three other musicians for such numbers. I hoped he might come solo and play the smaller Junction 2 adjoining room, where Lloyd Cole does his solo shows, but now he's got the wind in his sails and he's back in the main part.

I've been watching the growth of interest fllowing the excellent Love Shines film screening on BBC4 and the promo LPLB justly received with lots of enthusiastic newbies on his site's community saying 'can't believe I hadn't discovered him before now'. Very pleasing to see this, as the film unflinchingly shows the sense of his being fed up with being revered but just not damned successful enough.

It's a shame the Sage is so far away as I would seriously love to visit that venue. Hope you make it and enjoy the show.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Ron at the Barbican was sublime. Probably the show I've enjoyed most of the 7 or so I've seen. My extended thoughts are on his site's community, but all I can say is don't miss a chance to see him if you're at all interested.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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Glad you enjoyed it will have to read your comments. I wish he were around here in the coming months-would take him over a tired spinning book anyday.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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Ron's site has just started a series of track-by-track album commentaries written by Ron himself.
The series is supposed to cover all of his albums.

Here's the first album :

http://www.ronsexsmith.com/music/discog ... smith.aspx
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Jack of All Parades »

Very much enjoyed that. Thoughtful understated notes just like the songwriting- what a surprise! Thank you for sharing that information.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Fabulous. Great to have these. Looking forward to all the others. Am checking out Little Jimmy Scott as I don't know him. Can kind of see the comparison.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Natasha »

What a coincidence. I just started to listen to this guy's music and found this topic. Do you guys recommend me any particular song/ album?
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Otis Westinghouse
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Elvis was a big supporter of him early on and they've also toured together. For me it's almost all brilliant, but I would side with the very common view that his eponymous debut is the one to start with. It opens with his classic 'Secret Heart' (covered by many, including Rod Stewart!), and contains some of his most loved songs (Speaking With The Angel, Galbraith Street, etc.). Other particular favourite albums for me are Cobblestone Runway, Retriever and Time Being, but all of them have strong things to recommend them, e.g. his second album Other Songs with the sublime song 'Strawberry Blonde'. For me he's up there with Lloyd Cole as one of the true greats of my lifetime, both sharing a magnificent songwriting ability, extending to words that don't leave your head, and unforgettable voices.

Looking forward to seeing him soon In Norwich. Second time this year and something like 8th time in total.

You won't be disappointed!
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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I would whole heartedly echo Otis's recommendations with an added encouragement for his latest album "Long Player Late Bloomer". It is filled with his gorgeous voice and some telling songs about being a striving songwriter in today's world. I was only fortunate to see him once and that was as an opening act for Squeeze a few years ago. He held the audience captive with his songs, his voice, and his guitar. It was most impressive.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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Fuller version of the story above re EC and LPLB to be found here in the excellent 'short sleeve notes' Ron's now completed for all his albums:

http://www.ronsexsmith.com/music/discog ... oomer.aspx

"When the album was first mixed, I was out in Vancouver playing another one of Hal Wilner's Neil Young Tribute concerts, this time during the Olympics. Elvis Costello was also on the bill and so he invited me over to his place for lunch and to hear the new record. So anyway, after lunch we were upstairs listening to LPLB on his stereo. We had only gotten as far the song "Heavenly" when the car arrived to take us to the concert. Elvis asked the driver if we could finish listening to it on the way to the theatre which we did, but when we got to the stage door, "Love Shines" was only halfway through so once again he asked the driver if we could just drive around the block a few more times until the CD was over.

Well we pulled up to the stage door just as "Nowadays" began and the two of us sat in the dark back seat listening to it, and though it was dark he seemed rather moved by it. All he said was "Oh, Ron."

The next day he emailed and wrote that the last song really got to him and that with this new record it seemed like I was holding my head up for the first time. I can't tell you how much it meant to hear that. He was one of the first people to champion my debut album and ever since, he's always been somebody I could go to for advice or if I was unsure about a batch of songs. So if you're reading this... thanks, E.C!!"

Nice to hear that EC endorsement, especially as this song is my favourite on LPLB and blew me away both times I heard it live. As ROn also says here: "on this current tour, I've noticed that people seem to really respond emotionally to it whenever I play it."
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Jack of All Parades »

He has a 'gentle' take on his work-just like in the music.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by little martinet »

Thought I would come out of lurking in the shadows to share this news - anybody notice this today?!
via Ron's fb page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ron-Sexsmith/33844192632 :

"BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: On March 7, 2013, Ron Sexsmith will return to the UK, following the release of a new album, to perform at ROYAL ALBERT HALL. Tickets go on sale to the public at 10 AM GMT on Friday March 30, 2012 through the RAH box office.

We are giving the tried and true Ron fans a chance to purchase tickets early. At 10 AM GMT on Wednesday, March 28, 2012, tickets will be available on pre-sale."

Link to presale: http://www.artistticket.com/linkage.asp ... perpage=50

Nice to see him playing such a lovely venue!
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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Nice one! Thanks for this. Can't complain they didn't give us a chance to get tickets well in advance! Will the world still exist then? Will I? Will Ron?

Next album well overdue by then (given that he recorded LPLB in 2009, mostly, I think). How lovely to see him there. Last time for me would have been hearing EC singing 'That little martinet...' etc. on the BY tour in '94.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Two tickets for the Arena. Lovely.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by invisible Pole »

Yipee! New album, Forever Endeavor, out on February 5th.
You can listen to one of the songs here:
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/ ... e-20121115
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Excellent. Curious inclusion of 'u as penultimate letter in many sources, inc. on Rolling Stone, tho0ugh both are used there. Do Canadians use the 'u'? I wouldn't have thought so.

Song sounds nice, looking forward to the full thing and more than anything else seeing him in the Royal Albert Hall. Hope he has a good turnout. barbican was full last spring, but RAH is twice the size.
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Poor Deportee »

My goodness, yes, Canadians use the 'u.' Or at least the literate ones do. I do get tired of hacking up student papers, adding the 'u' in pencil to words such as 'favour.' 8) Then again, this is a minor issue compared with the routine massacring of apostrophes, semi-colons, and the mind-numbingly relentless abuse of 'there' as 'their.' I'm no grammar Nazi, nor is my own grammar invariably above reproach, but come on - aren't we supposed to be homo sapiens?

Anyhow, if Ron declines to use the 'u,' I will be irked. Mildly so, but irked just the same!
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

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Lovely trope in that tune. I like how he dispenses with the traditional 'love's arrow' and takes a decidedly more abrupt tack-aiming a fire arm at the 'whites of their eyes'- that jars effectively with the placidity of the tune itself. Also like the notion of throwing up hopes to the heavens. Nice contrast to Dylan's current command that 'if you see me pass by, put up a prayer' despair. Not certain if I hear late sixties Rod Stewart in there- need that mandolin and pedal steel. Something to look forward to as winter deadens my soul.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Re: Ron Sexsmith

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

I was interested in that ref. Rod's a bit of an embarrassment these days, and Ron has often sounded slightly baffled when referring to him recording Secret Heart ('even Rod Stewart's recorded it' kind of thing), but those early classics were magnificent songs and I can hear some of that directness coming through. A lot of his references go back to that era of good, honest, classy songs, e.g. Gordon Lightfoot or early Elton John (I like his account of being over-awed by meeting the latter and being widely championed by him when he used to have posters of him on his teenage wall). Far less the art-school tradition of rock where a lot of the music I love comes from, and there's a fine line sometimes between the classic songwriter school and MOR dullness, but Ron always has an edge of quality and uniqueness in his words (as you reflect here) and tunes and certainly his voice that places him in his own unique category.

Apols for forgetting that the 'u' is intact north of the border. I do recall learning that a long time ago now. Fully explains the split in refs to the title I've seen, with the 'u's winning, indicating this will be on the cover, but let's see!
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