Some of the Story

“Daylight is Burnin’ ” was an expression we heard a lot as kids, mostly in reference to getting up and getting a job done, like going out to milk the cow. Cam and I had been working on Alone Together for a couple of years and all the different markers of time we keep track of just kept going by. Nothing was waiting for us. The fact daylight “was” burning became a frequent touch point in our conversations. I never thought the idea would make its way into a song, but it did. After finding a spot on the album, the point didn't matter as much. Or at least I don’t remember bringing it up as often. Something had been expressed through the song.

“Alone Together” began while playing in a slack key guitar tuning and singing into the trees on a warm summer evening, with the sounds of the nighthawks flying to the ground just up the hill. Those things naturally flowed together to create the easy laid-back feel and imagery of this song.

The vision for “Black and White 1912,” the third single from my forthcoming Alone Together LP (out on February 9th), was around for quite a while before it finally came out as a song. I could see the freighter with the team of horses going up the hill out of the town of Clinton, BC on the old Cariboo Road, but I didn't know the story. It turned into an interesting tale shaped around the recollections of an old cowboy from the time when motorcars started traveling the Cariboo Road alongside the BC Express Co. stagecoach and freight wagons.

The continual motion of being on the road can be addictive and the feelings that come with being away from home and family are hard to reconcile in a relationship.  The backstory for my song “Here and Now” is elusive…it could be about the life of a rodeo cowboy or a touring musician. Either one works, because there are lots of similarities between those two lifestyles. The characters in this song have been through a lot, and I don’t know if they are going to “make up the difference.”

The vein of the Fraser River, and BC's interior landscapes run through many of the songs on my new album, Alone Together (release date February 9, 2024). “All Costs” was the first song I'd written in years – the melody came from a recording I had archived a year or two before. 

After using up lots of pages in my note book, the finished song drew on several threads. One being the easy fate of the river flowing slowly downhill, contrasted with challenges that rural ranch life can bring in a relationship. Another thread was drawn from conversations and images  I had gathered while helping with recovery efforts in the ranching community, following the 2017 Cariboo and Elephant Hill wildfires. There was also the small but complex novel The Double Hook by Sheila Watson, casting around too. No coincidence that the book's narrative was set in the same area.

People often think some special things should be saved at “All Costs.” In love and relationships, that concept doesn’t always work so well. The harmony of “what was” can’t always be saved after a long period of hardship or misunderstanding.

I was pleased to work with my brother Cameron Dobb as producer for this album, who I have trusted as a collaborator for a long time. The artwork is special as well because it was painted by my niece, Tamara. I’m so grateful to have my family supporting me as I share my new music with the world.