It’s time for a Parade

Text and video by Mike Parker

On last week’s show, local musician Clinton Charlton came into the studio for a chat with host Mark Leger.

Charlton, 36, is the former front man for the roots-based band Carousels. But he has released his first full length solo CD entitled Parade and is holding a release party Thursday May 28 at the Blue Olive on Rothesay Avenue. Joining Clinton will be the  alt-country queens The Reckless Sweethearts. The fun starts at 8pm and tickets are $7 at the door and $5 in advance.

You can watch a clip from the interview and listen to Charlton perform here. The full interview can be heard in our podcast section here, where the two discuss Clinton’s musical influences, the challenges of being a performing singer-songwriter and his rapidly growing obsession with collecting guitars (he has 17 in various stages and different vintages).

Be sure to listen to Serf City every Thursday evening from 6:30 to 7:00 pm on CFMH 107.3 FM, where you can listen to interviews with the city’s musicians, artists, politicians and other rebels with a cause.

Dry Tinder: A new poem by Clyde Wray

Introduction by Mike Parker. Poem by Clyde Wray.

If you’re single and dating in Saint John you’ve probably had that moment – the uncomfortable Reggie’s moment.

It goes something like this. You stroll into the Germain Street restaurant one Saturday morning – it can be any greasy spoon, really; but this is Saint John and Reggie’s is the diner of choice for local hipsters – where you bump elbows with The Former Girlfriend and Her New Boyfriend, sharing a post-coital breakfast. Coffee in hand, shifting your weight from foot to foot,  you smile and  mumble a few polite words. How is the job? It’s wonderful to see you. Are you still in that apartment?

The spoken text is feigned indifference. The unspoken subtext tells a different story and one that most people rarely voice. So after a few moments of uncomfortable chatter, you mutter an excuse, fumble through a hug and walk out the door.

Moments like these are awkward ones. But they’re human moments also and they reveal a painful truth: Love – or is it lust? – is rarely extinguished. It smolders on despite how deeply we try to bury it.

A gentle awakening

Video and text by Mike Parker

Last Friday, local musician Andy Stevens performed at Backstreet Records, as one of the performers taking part in the weekly For the Sake of the Song concerts.

Stevens was the front man for the local prog rock band Born Under Satellites. But on Friday, he was performing solo to generate a bit of buzz for his upcoming CD Awakening, scheduled for release this fall. You can watch the musician perform the title track below.

Everyone loves a Parade

Saint John singer-songwriter Clinton Charlton joined ‘Serf City’ for a chat on this week’s show. Good sport that he is, Charlton also played a couple of tunes from his new record, ‘Parade’, even though he was battling a nasty cold. The following commentary, inspired by a story Charlton tells about his father, kicked off the May 21, 2009, episode of ‘Serf City’ radio, which airs Thursdays at 6:30 pm on CFMH 107.3 FM. Listen to the commentary plus the interview and performance by Charlton here.

By Mark Leger

In the corner of my living room, behind a CD rack and an old, worn-out chair, sits a guitar – out of tune and coated with a layer of dust. I bought it in a moment of inspiration three years ago, thinking I’d learn to play it – for real this time.

I first bought a guitar 20 years ago at university in Halifax. I took lessons with a friend, and learned some finger-picking exercises, half-a-dozen chords and a few songs. In the music department at the university, there was a beginner course in guitar. When I went to the department to sign up, the instructor told me to play a little for him. I strummed some chords and did some finger-picking exercises. He grimaced and rather unkindly told me I should take up something else – anything other than the guitar.

Picture worth a thousand words: A working harbour

Text and photo by Mike Parker.

What: Fishing boats moored at Harbour Passage.

When: Sunday afternoon.

Where: Long Wharf, Harbour Passage.

Why: For as long as most residents can remember, local fisherman have been using Long Wharf as a convenient spot to tie up their boats. Now, Irving Oil plans to construct a new headquaters on Long Wharf. The project is currently waiting for federal approval but if it moves ahead then the area will be developed for cruiseship passengers and the public.

A fat poem

It’s Wednesday and that means a new poem from Saint John poet Clyde Wray. This week, the poet turns his attention to the guilty psyche of a crooked man and the often funny protestations of innocence.

If you would like submit a poem, a pic or a story idea then drop us a line at mikeparker@coalfish.ca

Jessica Darrah: At Backstreet Records

Text and video by Mike Parker

Last week, singer Jessica Darrah stopped by Backstreet Records to perform a few songs, as part of the For the Sake of the Song concert series.

Darrah, 24, first began singing in her bedroom and has only recently been taking to the stage. She was on her way to Boilerworks in Market Square, where she was performing for the evening but she graciously agreed to perform a few songs at Backstreet first.

Drive less, he said

The following commentary kicked off the May 14, 2009, episode of ‘Serf City’ radio, which airs Thursdays at 6:30 pm on CFMH 107.3 FM. Listen to the commentary plus an interview with cyclist Joe Godin here.

By Mark Leger

We finally got rid of our second car this week – nearly three years after we realized we didn’t need two because we lived uptown and could walk almost anywhere for mostly everything we need. The truth is, though, we still used the second car a lot. I teach in Fredericton. I’m a student at UNB. We shop a lot at the Superstore and on the east side. Our families live in Rothesay and Hampton. We have a cottage in Brown’s Flat.

It’s also not a very bike or pedestrian friendly city. It sprawls east-west and is hilly north-south – really, really, hilly. You should trying biking to UNB from uptown, if you don’t know what I mean. The public transit system is ok, but certainly not like big-city Toronto or Montreal, where you can hop onto subways and buses at every turn.

Nonetheless, there is a world-wide movement afoot to reduce and possibly eliminate the use of cars. Last night I was reading the spring edition of This Magazine, a national culture and current affairs magazine based in Toronto. The cover story, called “Traffic Jamming,” is about how cities are trying to curb car use.

An illuminating performance

Text and video by Mike Parker

Maybe it is me but it seems like Saint John is suddenly wealthy with talented people who are taking their place on center stage.

On Thursday, Jessica Rhaye launches her new CD Good Things at the Blue Olive. I’ve listened to the CD at least a dozen times since she gave me a copy a few weeks ago and it features some of the musician’s strongest work to date. So you know that the show at the Blue Olive is bound to be a memorable one.

Get out: Our listings of events

Looking for something to do this Victoria weekend? We have you covered. Check out our events listings for all the happenings around town this holiday weekend.

East coast country artist Kim Wempe performs at Sessions Cafe in Rothesay Saturday evening. The show begins at 8pm. Photo credit: Kim Wempe.