Written by Sally Cole - Features/Entertainment Writer for the Guardian
July 1, 2005
Sometimes when you hear a word or a line of the music you feel a little ping inside you because you can relate to what the songwriter is saying. Kevin MacKay’s debut CD is like that. Whether he's writing about love, loss, or praising God for his beautiful creation, he often touches something within the listener.
“Life is pretty difficult. And there are lots of things that come our way that are hard to deal with...I just hope that these songs can encourage other people wherever they’re at,” says MacKay who is launching his CD this weekend. Entitled Something More, it contains 10 original songs.
Whether he’s describing salt water breezes, red Island soil, many of his images have been gleaned from growing up near the ocean. As a youth, he spent many summers as a hired hand on lobster boats, near his home at Beach Point. “I know what it’s like to come in through the fog, and then finally see the light from the lighthouse at Beach Point. You’re lost until you see that first spot of light,” he says.
On an concrete level, he knows about life’s trials and tribulations. And if you listen closely, you might find one that relates to you. Whether it’s On a PEI Evening, which describes the joy of walking along a sandy beach or Forgive Me, where he talks about the importance of being real with God or Something More where he deals with the question of an afterlife, he knows the ups and downs of life.
Background:
For years Kevin MacKay played with the popular group, Jamie MacKay and the Great Beyond. But with this new CD, he’s establishing himself as a solo artist. This next step shows a growth and maturity in his music.
Recorded at Gordon Belsher’s “Studio of the Year” ECMA nominee 2005 & 2006, in Guernsey Cove, sessional musicians include: Buffy Andrews, violin and string arrangements; Jamie MacKay, ECMA nominee 2000, vocals; Gordon Belsher, bodhran; Melissa MacKay, harmony; Devin MacKay, piano; Jonathan MacInnis, former Jive King, ECMA award winner 2000, saxophone.
