It’s been a while since I was last in the Recording Studio, but after several challenging years, I’m happy to say that I was able to get back in and record a new Single with my Friend/Producer Jarome Matthew, back in June.

     The track is called “Why Can’t I Forget You?”, and both the music and lyrics were written by Jarome, as he knows I have had a hard time dealing with several losses over the past few years. In my Family, we lost both our Sister and Mother ( only 5 weeks apart ) a few years ago, then our Dad, last year. To say that these deaths left us devastated, would be a huge understatement. It makes you feel as though the rug has been pulled out from under your feet, and like your World no longer makes sense. Some losses in Life hit harder than others, of course, depending on the relationship, and the circumstances. I now feel as though my Life is divided into a “Before” and “After”.  Many People say “Time heals all wounds”, but Anyone who has lost a Loved One knows, this is simply not true.

     Whether you have actually lost a Loved One, or been through a painful breakup of a Relationship, this song speaks to that feeling of just not being able to “let go”, or “move on” in Life. I think it is something most of us can relate to. Grieving loss of Life ( or Love ) has no time limit. I find it sometimes feels as though Someone pressed the “pause” button, and you simply cannot go back to feeling many of the things you could before. We may want to move forward, so we can try and “live” again, but it is not always that easy… if only the painful wounds of the memories didn’t feel so raw and real. Jarome’s thoughtful lyrics certainly resonated with me.

     Jarome and I had a lot of fun spending the Day together, and recording the new song in his Vancouver Studio. It was great to finally be able to get together, as he had been away in his Beijing Studio the past few years.  My Husband snapped a few photos for us.

     The song will be released next week, and I’ll announce it with another post then.

     The past 3 or more years have been very different for most of us. I don’t think any of us thought our lives would be altered so much, or that we’d experience living through a Pandemic. It certainly changed almost every aspect of our everyday lives, and taught us a lot of things. Although things will never be the same again, it is finally starting to feel like we are getting closer to being able to experience some semblance of “Life” again.

     One of the hardest things about the Pandemic for me, personally, was not being able to sing, dance, or hug People.  All of these things make me feel happy, and bring me joy. Not being allowed to do them for such a long time was really hard for many of us.

     I didn’t sing for over 3 years, but this year, I am happy to say that I have been making up for lost time. A few of us that used to sing together with The Funtastics for several years ( mostly putting on Fundraisers for the local Seniors’ Centre etc. )  formed a smaller version of the group in the Spring, and have been putting on hour-long Shows at local Care Homes. We have done 3 so far, in March, April, and May, and have been invited back for a couple more, soon. This has been a great way to get back into it, and it has probably been one of the most rewarding things I’ve done in a long while. I love to sing the “Oldies”, so this is the perfect Audience for it. There is something so special about seeing People seemingly “come alive” when they hear beautiful songs that truly mean something to them. It is so amazing to watch their eyes light up, and witness the big smiles forming on their faces. Many sing along, sway in their seats, and those that can, even get up and dance. Ah, the transformative power of music!

Singing at the Care Home

     In June, I performed with 15 other Female Vocalists in a special concert honouring The Legendary Ladies of Jazz, to kick off our local Jazz Festival. That was quite an experience with an amazingly talented and uplifting group of wonderful Ladies. Also in June, I was finally able to get back into the Recording Studio and record a new Single. ( more about that in my next blog post ) 

     I had really missed being able to perform, and am so glad that we are able to, once again. I think most of us can agree that a Life without music is not a whole lot of fun. I am so grateful to all the fantastic loving and supportive People in my Life who continue to give me opportunities to sing – there really is no other feeling quite like it.

I’m so excited to finally release my first original song that I’ve been working on for a few years now!
You can hear it below and download it on iTunes right now!

As I mentioned in my last blog about the process of creation, this “sassy plea to unfaithful lovers” was written by Darryl Kromm of Canadian hit 80’s synth pop band Strange Advance.
Guitar was performed by my long time friend  and amazing guitarist, Erol Sora.

With the aim of creating the perfect 80’s inspired pop song, I looked to my producer Jarome to create something that would fulfill a long time goal of an original song that would combine the inspiration of my youth. Rather than try to create a copy of the great 80’s pop songs, Jarome looked to colleague and friend Darryl Kromm who already wrote some of Canada’s best loved and known 80’s pop songs.

Reworking Darryl’s upbeat yet dramatic account of the abandoned lover, Jarome created a modern ‘future disco’ musical arrangement to the 80’s inspired lyrics to create a cool fusion of two musical worlds.

Written and recorded in Vancouver, Cool & Careless was produced in Vancouver and Beijing, and mixed in Jarome Matthew’s new Beijing studio.

It’s already on iTunes, and it will also be available on your favourite online music store very soon.

I look forward to hearing what you think!

     Hi, It’s Heather, singer, musician, and this is my very first blog post! I can’t say that I’d ever imagined writing a blog about myself, but on the advice of my dear friend and producer, Jarome Matthew, I’m going to give it a try.

     So, welcome, and thanks for taking the time to check it out. My intention is to speak freely and openly about my experiences in the music industry over the past few years, both good and bad, and to keep you updated as to what I’m working on currently.

     Many of you have already seen me perform live at various local venues, and have heard and purchased my debut CD from 2005, I’m Beginning To See The Light. I would like to take this time to publicly thank all of you that have supported me from the beginning of that project, your positive feedback, and words of encouragement have been a vital part of my journey. Without all of you, I may not have been able to stay strong through the more difficult times, and believe me, there have been a few of those, but I’ll get into that another time.

     For now, I’ll just say that I’m glad you are here reading what I have to say, and I’m very excited about what 2008 has in store for all of us. Happy Holidays to all of you, and I’ll write again very soon!

You can subscribe to my blog to be informed about new updates and music.