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July
15, 2006
Canyon
follows up on gold with new release
By
Kevin Adshade
The Evening News
The
sophomore jinx doesn't worry George Canyon – not when
his country music career already has taken him further than
he ever thought possible.
"If it all ends tomorrow, I've got no regrets," said
the Pictou County-born country star, who now lives on a ranch
outside Calgary.
"Whatever the good Lord blesses me with, is what will be."
Canyon just released Somebody Wrote Love, his second major label
album; the title track is the first single off the CD.
Formerly known as Fred Lays, Jr., Canyon shot to national fame
on the strength of his runner-up finish on the reality-based
Nashville Star TV series in 2004.
He swiftly took advantage of that good fortune; his major label
debut, One Good Friend, went straight to #1 on the country music
charts in this country, garnered him Juno awards, four Top 5
singles, #1 videos and a place at the top of Canada's music
landscape.
And, not to mention that gold record on the wall for One Good
Friend, signifying 50,000 copies sold in Canada; considering
that he can remember playing to virtually empty bars, wondering
if he'd ever realize his dream of music stardom – that
gold record must look pretty good to the kid from Hopewell.
"It does, I tell you what," Canyon with modesty. "I'm
honoured to have that. I feel like I've been given way more
than I ever dreamed of having. But really, I'm the same guy
I used to be – I just play bigger shows."
Somebody Wrote Love took six weeks of 16-hour days to record,
with Canyon serving as co-producer. "This record is representative
of who I am as an artist – it incorporates a lot of different
styles," said Canyon, who grew up listening to folk, country,
rock, and R&B in Pictou County.
"If it does as good, or as better as (One Good Friend),
that's great. If it doesn't do as well, I can't put the blame
on anyone – we've all worked really hard."
One Good Friend was recorded quickly two years ago to capitalize
on Nashville Star – the fickle world of show biz doesn't
allow for much down time. But, he had more time to work on Somebody
Wrote Love, which combines traditional country elements with
bits of other genres.
Canyon, currently in the midst of promoting Somebody Wrote Love,
already has a slew of dates set up between now and November,
most of them in western Canada. His fall tour will see Canyon
as a headliner (Dave Gunning will be joining him for about 44
shows this fall, over an eight-week span).
Being a headliner comes with its own pressure, but Canyon is
ready for it. "It's great. I do feel a bit of pressure
from that, but at the same time, it's exciting, too. "
Gunning echoed Canyon's sentiment; his longtime friend hasn't
changed since his sudden success.
"I've known him for 20 years. He's one of my best friends,"
said the Pictou County-based singer-songwriter.
"He
hasn't changed at all – he's still grounded. People see
him on stage and they see a serious cowboy, but he's actually
a reality funny guy.He's quite a prankster – just fun
guy to hang out with."
Canyon isn't scheduled to perform in Pictou County in 2006 –
he has an appearance at the Metro Centre (Oct. 26) later this
year, as well as a makeup date in Antigonish (Oct. 25) that
was cancelled at the last minute during his 2005 Christmas tour
– and his management felt that holding a concert in Pictou
County this year would over-saturate the market.
But he vowed he'll hold to concert here in 2007. "We're
kind of hoping that everyone back home will come to Antigonish
this year, or come to the Metro Centre. Or, they can go to both
of them," he joked.
"We'll have a big party."
kadshade@ngnews.ca
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