Got upgraded to Executive Class on this 5 hour flight. Very nice. I started this morning at our families cabin, about 200 kilometers drive from St John’s. I flew to Toronto and had to make a connection at Pearson Airport. As I approached the gate I heard them call my name and when I got to the desk, they exchanged my boarding pass for a ticket to Seat 2C. Yes b’y. Maybe I should be drinking. Hmm. Don’t think it would be a good idea. Need the clear and sober headspace to face all that is to come.

Let me first say that I am happy and delighted beyond my mind to be heading out on this tour. I am practically giddy with excitement. But I confess to being a bit nervous and a bit overwhelmed by the sheer volume of things to remember, consider, plan for, etc. There is, as you can imagine, a pile of new lyrics to remember and new melodies to deliver. There are new chord combinations to play and new pedals and buttons to push at the perfect time. There are new harmonies to sing and new harmony singers to sing them with. There are new sounds to mix and new problems to solve. New questions to ask and hopefully answer on time. I have every confidence in the world in the band, and the crew guys to pull all this off in a spectacular fashion. It’s me I’m not so certain about, but I look forward to giving it a real serious go.

Of course there’ll also be new jokes to tell and hear from a new team of people on a new bus with new stories to tell and new iPod Battles to wage. There are new hands to shake, shoulders to hug and faces to kiss. There are new victories celebrate and new missteps to learn from. New successes to cheer and new failures to bounce back from.

New. What’s so awesome about new, I wonder. Why does this whole thing thrill me so much? I don’t really like new clothes. I hate new instruments. I beat up new shoes before I’ll put them on. So what is it about all this new–ness that has me so wound up? I honestly could not say for sure. I just know that I can’t wait to get rolling and to make some awesome nights out for all of us. New nights with more songs to sing. That’s all I ever want, I guess. I suppose I’m not that hard to figure out.

Over at alanthomasdoyle on Twitter, I’ve been discussing doing a Twitter Request section in the middle of the shows. I was thinking that if you are at the gig and would like to hear something you’ve recently or always wanted to hear, this would be a great time to do it. Perhaps it could work like this. Come early enough to check out Dustin Bentall, who is awesome. Between Dustin and my set, just Tweet to me what you’d like to hear. Now you know the kind of thing we are talking about right? You know, maybe a GBS song that I wrote or whatever that you’ve never heard us play live. Or maybe one of the Crowe/Doyle Songbook tunes or one of the tunes RC and I wrote for TOFOG. Perhaps there are tunes you know I wrote for other artists or from a TV show or film or whatever. You get the picture. Don’t ask for something you would have heard me sing a million times or something I would not have a chance of knowing, I suppose. But use your discretion. I’d love to do whatever. Can’t promise the band will know these tunes but I’ll be happy to embarrass myself trying to recall the lyrics and chords. Should be fun, I figure.

Just looked at the SAT Map on the screen. Not even at Calgary yet. Jaysus, Canada is f*@king big. Even on an airplane. Hard to believe that the bus that is to pick me up in an hour or so will drive me and everyone else all the way back to Atlantic Canada in less than three weeks. With a few radio shows ad a corporate appearance or two thrown in the mix, we are planning to do 22 shows in 20 days.

Sorry, you probably know all this but, the CD is called Boy on Bridge. I’d be very grateful if you picked it up. The Tour starts tomorrow in Seattle. Love to see you at a show near you. The single and soon to be released video, (more about this later) is ‘I’ve Seen a Little’. I appreciate you requesting it on your fav radio and video stations.

The SAT Map says we are 62 miles from Lethbridge. There are mountains in the distance. That’s a good sign.

Many good signs today. Thanks for all of them..

Cheers,
Alan

I remember August 3rd, 1993, like it was yesterday. It was the day that GBS was to launch our first ever CD. Less than 24 hours previous, I held it in my hands for the first time. I stood outside the door of our frat-like house at 17 Suez Street in St. John’s and stared at the blues and whites of Scott Goudie’s artwork winding together under the Great Big Sea logo. I had never been so thrilled to hold anything in my life.

On the day of the launch we were all busy running back and forth to the space above Erin’s Pub on Water Street preparing for the show were to play that evening. We brought in a bigger PA than normal, had our friend Greg play percussion with us, and some of the gals and friends made food for a wee reception. It was a real group effort and one of the most satisfying days of my life.

Today is May 15th, 2012. Almost 19 years later and I am lucky enough to have a very similar day. Only a day or so ago I held the Boy on Bridge CD in my hands for the first time. I sat in a talk Radio Station and very nonchalantly, one of the hosts slid it across the desk to me. It took me back a bit, I confess, as I was not expecting to see it. Wow. What feeling. My own face staring back at me with my name written across it. My own CD. The 14 year-old me would not believe what I was seeing. Jaysus, the 42 year old me hardly believes it.

Today has been, in many ways quite a different affair from the running about of the GBS gig back in 1993. Today, I spent most of the day performing on National TV and Radio and being kindly whisked to and from interviews by a Publicist from a Major Record Label, and rushed to Pearson Airport to just barely catch this Air Canada Flight to Halifax, where I’ll do it all again tomorrow. What a thrill ride.

Though, I have to say, in many other ways, this day is more similar to that day almost 19 Years ago. Primarily in that it comes not a result of my efforts, but as a product of many people pulling together to make this wonderful day happen.

I’d like to thank Marcus and the publicity team at Universal and my long suffering Tour Manager, Andy Robicheu for putting the last few days of press and public appearances together. I am really grateful to the folks making up the new AD Band, namely Cory, Kris, Kendal, Shehab, and Todd. They have all or in part played with me this week on TV and Radio to help me promote the new tunes.

Many more people helped make me make this CD. I thanked many of them in the credits and liner notes for the CD. If it is cool, I’d like to re-print those notes here.

Recorded in 2011 in all kinds of ways in the most likely and unlikely places. I sang on all the songs, and played stuff I know how to play like guitars and mandolins and percussion. I also played things I am kind of learning how to play like banjo, piano, and accordion. When the situation demanded it, I also wound up playing some stuff I am terrible at, like cello and dobro.

The Hawksley Sessions

Recorded in three places. First, in the spare bedroom of Hawksley’s Toronto apartment, then in the converted garage near his place in the snowy beauty of wintry North Ontario and finally, at the Blue Rodeo cool Woodshed Studio in Toronto.

The Woodshed Sessions were engineered by Stew Crooks.
Sorry, Northern Plains, and Love while Love’s Awake, were written and produced by Hawksley Workman and me. Stu Young mixed these tunes at LoudMouse Studio in Toronto.

Performers
Hawksley on guitar, drums, keyboards, harmonica, backing vocals
Todd Lumley on piano and Hammond organ
Derrick Bradey on bass
Jean Martin on drums
Jessie Zubot on violin, viola, and mandolin
Special thanks to Jim Cuddy for the Guest Vocal on Northern Plains.

The Sampson Shack Sessions

Recorded in a massive awesome studio called The Tracking Room and a shack behind a rental property near Gordie Sampson’s house in Nashville. I might have done some stuff in Room 327 of the Comfort Inn Hotel on Demonbreun Street, at LoudMouse Studio in Toronto, and in my basement studio at home.

I wrote Where the Nightingales Sing with Gordie and Kelly Archer, I’ve Seen A Little with Gordie and Troy Verges, and My Day with Ryan Tyndall. I wrote Break it Slow.

The recordings were engineered by Dave Salley and Gordie, and produced by Gordie and me. Stu Young mixed these tunes at LoudMouse Studio in Toronto. Spencer Crewe and/or Mark Neary probably helped me engineer some of the overdubs at my place.

Performers
Gordie on guitars, mandolin, banjo, accordion, percussion, piano, Hammond organ,and backing vocals
Tom Bukovac on guitars
Ethan Pilzer on bass
Shawn Fichter on drums
Mike Johnson on pedal steel and slide guitar
Jason Mowery on fiddle and dobro
Tom Power on banjo
Greg Hawco on percussion
Maureen Ennis on Backing Vocals
Special thanks to Kelly Archer for the guest vocal on Nightingale and Holly Williams for the guest vocal on Break it Slow.

With Russell and Colin in The Warehouse

Recorded at The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, a hotel room somewhere, (I can’t recall but it had a Pepsi machine right outside the door, I can hear the buzz of it on one of the backing vocal tracks) and back home in my basement studio.

Testify, Lover’s Hands, and Where I Belong were written by Russell Crowe and me, and produced by me as well. Stu Young mixed Testify, and Where I Belong, at Loudmouse Studio in Toronto. I mixed Lover’s Hands in my basement studio at home.

Engineered by Mike Fraser, with assistance from Eric Mosher.

Performers
Doug Elliot on bass
Geoff Hicks on drums
Daryl Havers on piano
Marcus Mosely backing vocals
Special thanks to Colin James on guitars and backing vocals on Testify and to Maureen Ennis for the Backing Vocals on Lovers Hands.

The Sean Panting Incident

Recorded mostly in a house on Mount Scio Road and in my basement studio in St. John’s, Newfoundland, but we added some stuff in a theatre dressing room in Long Beach, California, and on the beach just north of Daytona, Florida.

Light the Way and Perfect Excuse were written by Sean Panting and me. I produced them with Don Ellis. Don and Mark Neary engineered. Stu Young mixed Light the Way at Loudmouse, and I mixed Perfect Excuse in my basement studio at home and on Air Canada Flight 692 in seat 13C.

Performers
Sean on guitars and backing vocals
Don on bass
Adam Staple on drums and percussion
Paul Kinsman on Hammond organ and piano accordion
Scott Grimes and Keith Power sang backing vocals on Light the Way

Mike Post’s Place

The Rules Will All Be Broken and When We Go was written recorded and mixed at Post Productions by Mike Post and me with assistance from Brandon McCormick and Andrew Birkhimer.

Performers
Mike Post on piano and orchestration
Brandon McCormick programming

Photos by Vanessa Heins
Artwork and layout by Jud Haynes
Managed by Louis Thomas at Sonic Entertainment Group, Halifax, Nova Scotia www.sonicentertainmentgroup.com
Canada booking by Jack Ross at The Agency Group
US and worldwide booking by Brian Swanson at Monterey Artists

Please visit www.alandoylemusic.ca and www.greatbigsea.com or follow Alan on twitter @alanthomasdoyle.

Thanks to
-Bob and Sean and all the GBS cast, crew, and fans for allowing and supporting this indulgence. I would not be here without you all.
-Louis Thomas all the Sonic gang for long suffering my many whims and crazy ideas.
-Joel Stewart and Melisa McRae at Corus and John Vatcher, Rob Blackie, and Allan Hawco at Take the Shot and all your filmmaking peeps for being such a big part of this whole deal.
-David at Grant Thornton and David and Heather at RBC for keeping me in the black.
-Gordie Sampson for introducing me to Nashville’s finest.
-Hawksley and Jennifer for the bunk and best beef stew in the world.
-All Hands at Universal Music Canada for jumping aboard so quickly.
-Mike Post and team for donating so much time and talent.
-Russell Crowe for the collaboration, advice, and good times in both hemispheres.
-Scott Grimes and Keith Power for LA hospitality.
-All the folks who worked on great tunes with me that did not make it on this CD. I promise our songs will be heard.
-Mom and Dad, Kim, Bernie and Michelle and families for a lifetime of love.
-My beautiful wife Joanne and beautiful boy Henry for everything. Seriously, everything.

I will add to this the most Special Thanks of all, to you, Dear Readers, Followers on Twitter, Friends on Facebook, Fans and Supporters of every type. Just before I got on this plane the CD was hovering in the Top 5 CD’s in Canada. Wow. I am humbled and grateful by your response so far, and I ask one more time…

Who is Luckier than me?

Thank you. All of you.

Cheers,
Alan

Hey

My friend Stew in Aus sent me a note saying, Happy Star Wars Day. May the 4th be with you. I thought that was funny.

Just a few updates to let all hands know of some development on the website.

First of all you can now pre order the CD and receive show free bonus material for doing so.

Also you can view a short clip of the Boy on Bridge film featuring the making of Mutiny on the Dawn, the song I wrote and a few thousand of us recorded aboard BNL Ships and Dips Cruise. This is cool little preview of the film, which should document the making of the CD in the most likely and unlikely places. From the best studio in Nashville to a kitchen in Ferryland, Newfoundland. From the Duke pub, to Bryan Adams studio in Vancouver. From Mike Post Productions in LA to, you know, a cruise ship.

I have learned that a few emails have gone out from the website folks about some promo’s with a typo. The title of the project is not Boy on Bride. I believe that is a movie that was available in a hotel room I was in a while back and cost 15.95 to view. I cannot confirm this as apparently titles do not appear on the bill.

The CD I am about to release is called Boy on Bridge. Funny what trouble you can cause by omitting one g.

Stay tuned for more updates. Thanks for spreading the word.

Cheers,
Alan