DAY 6 “Thoughts On The Albums” : SOME FOLKS KNOW (2012)

Musically it was a great document of the band, The Situation (James McKie, Dan Mock, Kyle Sullivan) I at the height of our musically powers. I think the timing and sound really clicked with all of us and I wanted to get it down on tape before we moved into another direction.

It was recorded in Hamilton, Ontario at Boxcar Sound, engineered by my buddy and fellow songwriter, Ben Somer. Again, I asked my good friend Tim Bovaconti to produce and play, especially since he knew the band and our sound so well. We had a few other friends, Aaron Comeau on piano, Ron Sexsmith on piano for the opener “Den Of Sin” (a song that came to me on one of my walks around the block) and a duet/co-write with popular Canadian artist Serena Ryder on “All Over Again” (recorded at Bovaconti’s studio). Boxcar Sound was a great spot, huge room, high ceiling, an old factory building. It gave the recordings a unique sound with lots of space.

Some of the songs I had kicking around for a while and were intended for ‘Some Folks Know.’ Songs like “Motel Letter Blues” and “Don’t You Fret” were written years earlier but I knew they didn’t fit on the previous albums ‘You, Me & The Horse’ & ‘Traveling Grey’ and they came alive with band on stage. “Old Soldier” started off in a Gordon Lightfoot vein but ended up a real barn burner. It’s a real band oriented record, and as close as we could come to a “country-rock” or “roots-rock” sound, whatever you wanna call it. To be honest, I don’t remember writing a lot of the other tunes, they sorta just came and were documented. “Picture Of You, Picture Of Me” is a personal favourite, very John Prine influenced after I had recently picked up his album ‘The Missing Years.’ “Pass The Time” is probably the song that reappears in the setlists the most. I have a connection to it, though when I first wrote it I didn’t think it was more special than the rest of them. One of my main memories during the recording was all of stomping on the studio floor during the choruses of “Midnight Ride.”

The front and back cover art was painted by Lisa Cote. That’s her parents on the front cover, her Father sadly passed away not long after. I think it’s a beautiful painting and a beautiful tribute to him. I never fail to think of that when I see the cover. Though another critically acclaimed album, it didn’t expand my fanbase too much, hence the title. As with all of ’em, I hope for rediscovery on a larger level someday.

‘Some Folks Know’ is currently available on Vinyl and as a download on Bandcamp, which will be waiving their share of revenue June 5th. Consider buying it on that day if you don’t have it already. Stream and listen now: https://jerryleger.bandcamp.com/album/some-folks-know

Source: Jerry Leger