Drums, wires and more wires...

PQ laying it down.

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE SONG It’s Not Dark Yet, sung by Porkbelly Futures featuring Paul Quarrington with Rebecca Campbell and Chas Elliott, Stuart Laughton, Martin Worthy.

In Sept. 2008 Chas Elliott and I wended our way up to his cottage in the Kawarthas. Chas is the resident “Bon Vivant” in our band Porkbelly Futures and apart from playing the bass, he advises on all the finer things in life. Specifically, food and drink. The menu had been planned, so the talk on the way up was about wine. We were the advance team for the rest of the Porkbellys who were due to arrive the next day.

Adjacent to his cottage is a storage shed. It may have once been a garage of some kind but now it’s where they store the sort of things one finds put aside at a lakeside cottage. Children’s size cross country ski’s, a weightlifting bench with various weights, a rug, two slabs of drywall, a slalom water ski, a chainsaw and couple of old tires, an odd number of snow shoes and a table saw. We emptied out the shed and put its contents outside under the trees and covered it all with tarps and plastic sheets. Inside the now empty shed, we rolled out the carpet and proceeded to set up my drums, his bass gear and our portable recording equipment. Mics, stands, computers and cables were all connected. We did some level checks and waited for everyone to arrive.

The next day Paul Quarrington, Rebecca Campbell and Stuart Laughton rolled in with instruments, groceries and just the right amount of wine. You know how much that is… For the next four days we would be playing, writing, recording and experimenting. These recordings were going to be for our ears only. No one but ourselves would hear them and with that in mind we could truly let our guard down and be as bad or as brilliant as providence would allow. Not much thought was given to what we’d actually play on each song, although often there was at least a short discussion about song structure. I guess you could say that these sessions could be called “pre-production” sessions that would eventually lead to a new record. But truthfully we were just hoping to have some fun, find out more about each other musically and perhaps take Porkbelly Futures to places we didn’t think was possible.

We had done this a few times before and each time we had discovered something remarkable. On this occasion we had an assemblage of new songs, half finished songs and a notion to try a couple of cover tunes. We had talked before about doing some covers and it seemed to make sense that we should do at least one Dylan tune. Paul had chosen “It’s Not Dark Yet.”

At the end of the recording, as the strains of the final chord faded, I remember looking up and into the eyes of my bandmates. It felt, as the spell melted away, like we were slowly surfacing from some deep immersion. I can clearly recall turning and looking out the window to my left, through the trees and out onto the lake. There was a sense of calm and gratitude for the privilege of sharing such a moment with these gifted musicians and friends.

Dylan’s lyric “It’s not dark yet…but it’s getting there” hung in the air. And as Paul had sung those words, no one in that shed was aware that he was already gravely ill. Eight months later our dear friend would be given a fatal cancer diagnosis. Inspired by his courage and lust for life, we would climb aboard his bandwagon and go careening through the next eight months, at an ever frenzied pace. Straight at the precipice that lay ahead, January 21,2010, without letting up.

I believe there was only one take of this song. There’s only one on the hard drive and I think that if we had done another, we would have at least fashioned a proper ending for it. Oh well…

When I listen to this, I am transported back to that precious moment and at the same time, I find myself looking ahead. Looking ahead wistfully to what might have been. But also looking forward, as Paul would’ve done, to what might be. Oh the possibilities! But most of all, I feel love and gratitude.

So as you listen to this, if you find yourself dwelling on the past, cherish it. And if your eye sets upon the future, run headlong into it. And if you’re near someone you care for, tell them you love them.

MW

Porkbelly Futures photo by Lance Gifford

Paul was inspired to write this song after watching a game show in which the contestants must stand with their hand on a brand new pick-up truck. After hours and sometimes days, the last person standing with their hand on the truck, would win it. At some point early in the game, one fellow dropped out. When asked why, he said that he turned to the person next to him and saw the devil staring back. “When you look at someone and the devil is staring you in the face, it deals with you!!”

IT DEALS WITH YOU LYRICS

The law had me on the run
So I’d gone into hiding
I was out on the bum
Down by the railway sidings
I was makin’ the measure of a southbound train
I had my fill of pleasure, i had my fill of pain
When nothin’ works out like you want it to…
It deals with you

I was down by the river
Where the cool waters flow
I was hungry and shiverin’
I had no place to go
I took the rivers’ direction
I did not trust the wind
I was lead to reflection on the nature of sin
When the lord tells you ten things that you shall not do…
It deals with you….it deals with you
It deals with you….it deals with you

I was down in the valley
Where the devil met the christ
Both had asked for a talley
Of my virtues and vice
I was had a loved one but i had one no more
All the things that i have done, wore upon me like sores
You know that eternity is overdue
It deals with you…it deals with you…
It deals with you…it deals with you…

CREDITS

Composer – P.Quarrington
Publisher – Cordova Bay Music Publishing- Pork Belly Music
Martin Worthy-Lead Vocal-Drums
Rebecca Campbell-Harmony Vocal-Ac.Guitar
Stuart Laughton-Slide Guitar-Harmony Vocals
Teddy Leonard-Elec. Guitars
Chas Elliott-Bass Guitar
Megan Worthy-Harmony Vocals

Performed on the CD The Crooked Road released by Cordova Bay Records (Oct 19, 2010)
(Pre) Purchase THE CROOKED ROAD CD from Cordova Bay now!

Porkbelly Futures Rebecca Campbell Recording in Creemore

I was determined to have a few Q/W songs on this album. So I wrote this song with a view to collaborate with Paul. I played it for him and asked him to write a lyric for the second verse. We were in the studio doing a demo of it. It took him 5 minutes….and it’s the best verse. Rebecca sings this song so well!

Listen to an excerpt of the song >> The Difference You Make (Excerpt)

Performed on the CD The Crooked Road released by Cordova Bay Records (Oct 19, 2010)

THE DIFFERENCE YOU MAKE

Composers – P. Quarrington-M.Worthy
Publisher – Cordova Bay Music Publishing- Pork Belly Music
Rebecca Campbell-Lead Vocal- Ac. Guitar- Percussion
Stuart Laughton-Pedal Steel-Harmony Vocals
Martin Worthy-Drums-Harmony Vocals
Chas Elliott-Bass Guitar
Teddy Leonard-Elec. Guitar
Chris Brown-Hammond Organ

LYRICS

Funny how the rain comes every time you go
First I’m standing in the sunshine
Then I’m standing in the shadow
Of a cloud that seems to follow me
It’s one I’ve come to know
The temperature’s falling
And the wind, it blows…

And when it blows I bend and bend
Til I feel that I might break
Oh you don’t know
The difference you make

Funny how the sun goes down
And disappears from sight
First I’m standing in the sunlight
Then I’m underneath the streetlight
The skies so full of shadows and clouds
It can’t even hold the moon
Morning ain’t arriving
Any time soon

And when it does I bend and bend
Til I feel that I might break
You don’t know
The difference you make
And when the storm is raging round my door
And the ground begins to shake
You don’t know
The difference you make

Oh, I don’t need to know that you’re here beside me
It’s enough to know that you’re somewhere out there

And when it blows I bend…

(Pre) Purchase THE CROOKED ROAD CD from Cordova Bay now!

Crazy Rain

This next year will be a year of “firsts”. This song imagines myself up north on a perfect summer’s evening, fishing for the first time, forever without my friend. I tried to invest it with meaning without being too maudlin. Paul said that he thought it was impossible to cast your line into the water and be a pessimist. “It’s an act of faith.” For me, fishing is a metaphor for how Paul lived.

CRAZY RAIN

Performed on the CD The Crooked Road released by Cordova Bay Records (Oct 19, 2010)

Martin Worthy-Lead Vocal-Drums
Rebecca Campbell-Harmony Vocal
Stuart Laughton-Pedal Steel-Harmony Vocals Teddy Leonard-Elec. Guitar Chas Elliott-Bass Guitar Chris Brown-Hammond Organ
Composer – M.Worthy
Publisher – Cordova Bay Music Publishing- Pork Belly Music

LYRICS

Verse:
A perfect day sittin’ by the river
the sky’s a sea of blue
A gentle breeze blows across the water
I feel the ghost of you
The glory of creation is laying out in all it’s grace
But there’s this crazy rain
Runnin’ down my face

Verse:
I cast my line out into the water
Just like we used to do
An act of faith, that’s what you said
Can’t help but think of you
The sun in splendor sinking down
All that’s fine and good is in it’s place
But there’s this crazy rain
Runnin’ down my face, down my face

Bridge:
What’s gone is gone, what’s done is done
That’s some folks point of view
But when you think you’re done with the past
It’s not done with you

Verse:
Twilight falls along the shore
The stars they spark and wink
I’ll just sit a little more
And think and think and think
About the mystery of creation
How the days can disappear without a trace
‘Cept for this crazy rain, still this crazy rain, oh this crazy rain

(Pre) Purchase the CD from Cordova Bay now!

Martin Worthy

For the longest time after his divorce, every song Paul wrote was about the dissolution of his marriage. Only Paul could write such a happy sounding song about being so sad…

Listen to an excerpt from the song >> Can’t Find My Way Back  (Excerpt)

CAN’T FIND MY WAY – LYRICS

Sitting in a bar, drinking in a bar
Wondering how the hell you are
My new best friends have all gone home
But that’s okay, I kinda want to be alone.

I can’t find my way back to you
Doesn’t seem to be nothin’ I can do
A hundred lies would all have to be true
And I can’t find my way back to you

Driving in a car, tryin’ to see how far I can go
On a single tank and a cheap cigar
Every town I pass looks a lot like my home
Feel like I’m livin’ in the twilight zone
I can’t find my way….

I’m in an old hotel, I like old hotels
Despite the way they look and the way they smell
Tomorrow may bring a small shaft of light
But if it doesn’t, ah hell that’s alright

I can’t find my way………

CREDITS

Composer – P.Quarrington
Publisher – Cordova Bay Music Publishing- Pork Belly Music
Martin Worthy-Lead Vocal-Drums
Rebecca Campbell-Harmony Vocal-Ac.Guitar
Stuart Laughton-Pedal Steel-Harmony Vocals
Teddy Leonard-Elec. Guitars Chas Elliott-Bass Guitar
Chris Brown-Hammond Organ
Megan Worthy-Harmony Vocals

Performed on the CD The Crooked Road released by Cordova Bay Records (Oct 19, 2010)
(Pre) Purchase THE CROOKED ROAD CD from Cordova Bay now!

Stuart Laughton and Porkbelly Futures during summer recording sessions in Creemore, ON July 2010

Like a lot of stuff Paul wrote, he would come at things from an oblique angle. This is about feeling like an anachronism. He was also determined to use the word “bull….” in every verse. He quietly produced this little gem at a rehearsal 2 years ago and it’s been a mainstay of the PBF set list ever since.

Paul Quarrington Tribute April 2010 Photo by Mark Tearle

After receiving his diagnosis, Paul and I drove home from the doctor’s in stunned silence. We sat in the back yard for a while and soon after, he vanished for a couple of hours. Just as I was getting concerned, he reappeared holding two very large bags with many bottles of Chateau Neuf, Amarone etc. He looked at me and said “No more cheap wine!!” This was written as the finale for his tribute this spring at The Opera House.

Listen to an excerpt of the song >> I Ain’t Leavin ‘Til the Wine’s All Gone (Excerpt)

I AIN’T LEAVIN’ (‘TIL THE WINE IS ALL GONE)

Performed on The Crooked Road CD released by Cordova Bay Records (Oct 19, 2010)
Composer – M.Worthy
Publisher – Cordova Bay Music Publishing- Pork Belly Music
Martin Worthy-Lead Vocal-Drums
Rebecca Campbell-Harmony Vocal-Percussion
Stuart Laughton-Slide Guitar-Harmony Vocals
Teddy Leonard-Elec. Guitar
Chas Elliott-Bass Guitar
Chris Brown-Hammond Organ
Megan Worthy-Harmony Vocals

LYRICS

I had a friend and he used to say
I ain’t leavin’ ‘til the wine is all gone
Seems like he told me just the other day
I ain’t leavin’ ‘til the wine is all gone
When the wine’s all gone, we’ll just open another
Keep the party rockin’ ‘til four
I think it’s high time, for drinkin’ only fine wine
Just promise me there’ll always will be more…..

You’d better be believing, this be no time for grieving
I ain’t leavin’ ‘til the wine is all gone
I ain’t gonna stop ‘til I’ve drunk the last drop
I ain’t leavin’ ‘til the wine is all gone
When the wine’s all gone, there’ll be a space at the table
An empty glass by the door
A few steps to the gate
And as it’s still swingin’ you might hear me singin’ for more

Pay no attention at all to that clock on the wall
I ain’t leavin’ ‘til the wine is all gone
The best epitaph is to hear you all laugh
I ain’t leavin’ ‘til the wine is all gone
When the wine’s all gone, we’ll just go to my neighbour
And we’ll knock knock knock knock knock on his door
We’ll tell the fella, (we’re) gonna raid his cellar
Then we’ll come back to mine and we’ll pour, more, more, more…..

(Pre) Purchase THE CROOKED ROAD CD from Cordova Bay now!

I have my own Darwin story. In 1991 I was in England studying the ‘natural’ or valveless baroque trumpet. England is a hotbed of ‘authentic’ instrumentalists, who play gut-string violins, wooden flutes and such, and near the end of my stay I heard Handel’s Messiah played by such an orchestra. This was in a nave of Westminster Abbey with the audience sitting on folding chairs. At intermission I noticed an inscription on the large stone slab under my chair. It was Darwin’s tomb. I had been engaged in a sort of ‘rear-view mirror’ approach to music-making on primitive historical instruments while five feet below me lay the author of The Origin of the Species.

The venue was small but it was packed with warm hearted, generous folks who like to have fun, live large and take their western hospitality seriously. Thanks for making us feel so welcome. We’ll be back any time you’ll have us!

The view from our accommodation. What a way to wake up!