The Spirit of Vimy

Easter Monday, April 9th, 1917 was the day that historians claim as the birthdate of a true and independent Canadian national identity. Canadian troops, under the command of Canadian General Arthur Currie achieved in battle what no other country’s army had been so far able to do: Capture the high ground of Vimy Ridge in northern France and wrest it away from the dug-in, well fortified and highly seasoned troops of the Kaiser’s land forces.

95 years later to the day Spirit of the West will wake up on French soil, shake the cobwebs from their jet-lagged brains and attend a ceremony at the Vimy Memorial commemorating this historically significant battle.
Later that day in the nearby town of Lievin, at ‘Stade de Couvert’ concert facility, Spirit will perform a show for 4000 Canadian students, all of whom will have attended the ceremony that morning. Along with Spirit will be Newfoundland’s “Hey Rosetta!”

The delight of performing in France will be tempered by our awareness of the significance of the date and the lives lost on the battlefield, brave troops from both sides and many nations. Our Canuck Great-Grandads almost certainly didn’t know that we would honour their memory so reverently nearly a century later, and they couldn’t have realized that their war, ‘the war to end all wars’, would be nothing of the sort but rather the first chapter in a new kind of all-out conflict that threatened the whole human species.

No matter one’s birthplace, origin, or point of view we can all agree that this battle represents the best and the worst of humanity and our only option all these years later is to learn well & deeply the lessons that spring forth from the worst things, focus intelligently upon the best ones, and swear solemnly amongst ourselves that, ‘on my watch this shall never again happen’.

Vince R. Ditrich on behalf of Spirit of the West

(image is of the painting ‘For What?’
By Frederick Varley – 1917
Canadian War Museum / Beaverbrook Collection)

 
As everything falls into place for this weekend’s shows –rehearsals, new merchandise (a new SOTW tee shirt!), travel schedules and making time to connect with old friends we are also looking forward to a trip, in April, to Vimy, France.
We will be performing on the 95th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, for a large group of Canadian students.  Every Spirit is extremely excited about this show, this trip and this adventure.  We will be sending you updates, photographs, and video of our time in France.  Come back and visit again soon!

Kendel Carson & Geoffrey Kelly

Spirit performances on 16 March at McPhillips Station Casino in Winnipeg and on 17 March at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver will feature special guest performers Matthew Harder (House of Doc) and Kendel Carson. We expect to have an extremely good time performing with these two brilliant talents – but accompanying this good news is a little bit of sad news:

Matthew Harder

Spirit Geoffrey Kelly became very seriously ill in January 2012 and required major emergency surgery. We are relieved and delighted to report that he will make, in time, a full and complete recovery but he almost certainly will not be able to perform in March. The rest of the band decided that the show must go on so we asked Kendel & Matthew to join us for those two shows. We are looking forward to seeing everyone, to having a bit of a musical adventure, and we are very grateful for the steadfast support of our long-time fans. But of course we will miss Geoffrey terribly; we wish him a speedy and full recovery.

Greetings for a very happy New Year to one and all!

We are coming to the end of a winter hiatus and look forward to hitting the road again in March. Our first two shows are will be in Winnipeg, at the McPhillips Station Casino on 16 March, and then we come back to home ice: The Commodore Ballroom in downtown Vancouver on 17 March, St Patrick’s Day. Tickets are going very quickly we are told, so please grab ‘em while you still can.

Other Spirit News: Vince Ditrich has been asked to appear on a panel of judges for ‘Variety’s Got Talent’ on February 3rd, at the River Rock Casino. Fellow judges will include Tamara Stanners of PEAK FM, Steve Darling of Global TV and Bruce Allen, the legendary music manager.
Hugh is at Celtic Connections Feb 3-5 with James Keelaghan, ready with woolies and travel mug.

We have some far-flung upcoming adventures to announce soon, in the meantime we wish you all the best for a prosperous and happy 2012.

I would like to take credit for Ben Kelly.

Ben Kelly is the drummer of Fish & Bird who are opening for us at the Commodore on March 17. Ben is also the son of Spirit Geoffrey Kelly.

Ben was born a drummer, so it’s no surprise to see him playing professionally now that he’s in his twenties. But given that he received his first serious snare

"santa ith ENORMOUTH"

drum from a jolly red & white clad man, ostensibly Santa Claus, but with a voice that sounded exactly like mine, imitating Long John Baldry (“Miss Bartender Elf….Santa’s feeling a bit parched….”), I feel some sense of having had a hand in his current career trajectory. I certainly had a direct hand in teaching his sister Maeve  how to raid a band’s beer rider…So I officially claim some seminal responsibility for Ben and the noises he emanates professionally.

Ben builds a rhythmic structure for Fish & Bird that only a great musician could envision and perform; he controls the kit with power, dexterity & imagination.

I am delighted that F&B will be appearing with us and I look forward to jealously vandalizing Ben’s drumkit in some petty and small-minded way.

Vince Ditrich

Related show

• : Spirit Of The West
• SOTW St. Pat’s 2012
• Date: Saturday, March 17th 2012
• Time: 8:00pm
• City: Spirit Of The West in Vancouver, BC
• Venue: The Commodore Ballroom
• Address: 868 Granville St.
• Country: Canada
• Admission: $44
• Age restrictions: No Minors
• Notes: Special Guests: FISH and BIRD
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

John Mann will be supporting singer/songwriter Melanie Dekker on some of her European Tour, March 20 – 31. Melanie’s complete tour itinerary is available at: http://www.myspace.com/melaniedekkermusic/shows.

Here’s a short note from John talking about his activities:

Hi All
It’s been a while since I’ve written something for the site.  I’ve spent the last 3 months in a production of the musical Blood Brothers at The Arts Club Theatre in Vancouver.  It was a great cast and I  enjoyed playing the part of the Narrator as well as the roles of The Bus Conductor, 2 different teachers and The Milkman. The show ended on New Years Eve.
Lately I’ve been holed up at home in Vancouver writing songs for an upcoming solo album and endlessly walking my dog Mimo.
The good news is I am going to be touring in Switzerland and Austria in support of Melanie Dekker, a fellow Vancouverite.
It has been close to a decade since I’ve performed in those countries with Spirit of the West and I’m desperate to get back there and taste that fantastic beer again.
If you would like to find out about my solo stuff you can go to my website at www.johnmann.ca
Cheers to you,  John

Here are the tour dates John will be involved in:

date of concert  March 20th 2012  with John Mann
venue name      Kruez Obermarchtal
address             Mühlweg 1, 89611 Obermarchtal, DE
website             http://www.kreuz-obermarchtal.de

date of concert    March 22 2012 with John Mann
venue name         Bärechäller Aarburg
address                Städtchen 16, 4663 Aarburg, Switzerland, CH
website                http://www.baerechaeller.ch

date of concert  Friday March 23rd 2012  with John Mann
venue name       Alti Moschti
address          Moosstrasse 1 , Mühlethurnen Switzerland 3127,
CH
website              http://www.alti-moschti.ch/

date of concert Saturday, March 24th, 2012, with John Mann
venue name Sous sol
Address Rue de Lausanne 91 ,Fribourg Switzerland 1701
website http://www.s-sol.ch

date of concert  Sunday March 25th 2012  with John Mann
venue name       Hotel Murten
address              Bernstrasse 7, Murten Switzerland 3280
website              http://www.hotelmurten.ch/index.php?page=166

date of concert  Tuesday March 27th 2012      with John Mann
venue name       Komma
address              KR.Martin Pichler Strasse 21a  , Worgl  Austria
6300
website               www.komma.at

date of concert  Thursday March 29th 2012  with John Mann
venue name        Blue Garage
address              Hinterleitenstrasse 40a Frauental/Steiermark
Austria 8523
website              www.bluegarage.at

date of concert  Friday March 30th 2012  with John Mann
venue name       Die Bachschmiede
address              Jakob Lechner Weg 2 – 4 ,Wals-Síezenheim,
Austria 5071
website               www.diebachschmiede.at

date of concert.   Saturday  March 31st 2011   with John Mann
venue name         Musikcafe Zugspitzsaal
address                Hauptstrasse 27, Ehrwald, Austria 6632
website                http://www.musikcafe.at

date of concert   Tuesday April 3, 2011  with John Mann
venue name        Cafe Spielplatz
address             Münsterplatz 12 Schwabisch Gmünd, DE, 73525
website               http://www.cafe-spielplatz.de

date of concert April 4, 2012 with John Mann
venue name Alte Piesel Charity concert
Address Diorolfstr. 7, 36093, Fulda Dirlos, DE
website http://www.altepiesel.de/

To our incredibly supportive fans in the USA, UK, EU and a many other countries: We are absolutely delighted to announce that ‘Bulembu’ is officially available on iTunes globally! Please visit iTunes and download now! Thanks for your patience and we hope you enjoy the track.

Watch the slideshow

Bordered by South Africa and Mozambique, the Kingdom of Swaziland has been inhabited by humans since pre-history. Populated principally with the descendants of the southern Bantu people who arrived probably in
the 15^th century in a migration from Central Africa, the country is, for all its physical beauty, being ravaged by the highest HIV/AIDS infection rate in the world. Swaziland is in the teeth of a crisis.

The town of Bulembu was once the site of a chrysolite (asbestos) mine with a population of 10,000. Eventually the mining company, as well as subsequent mining companies, went bankrupt and left Bulembu a ghost town with as few as 50 people remaining.

Simultaneous with this was a massive increase in the incidence of HIV/AIDS in Swaziland. Statistics reveal that in ten years the infection rate grew by a staggering 900%. Nearly 40% of the population is now infected.This has left an entire generation of children orphaned and vulnerable.

The abandoned town was purchased by not-for-profit Bulembu Ministries Swaziland with the intention to turn it into a safe haven for children who would otherwise be left to survive or perish completely on their own. Bulembu International of Vancouver has acted to assist BMS by raising money, giving guidance and bringing the town to the attention of generous donors worldwide.

In 2010 Spirit of the West’s John Mann visited Bulembu to see its workings first hand and experience what the town has become under the leadership of people with vision. He left a changed man.
His head filled with memories of spending mornings holding babies, singing to them, of conversations with remarkable new friends, of the amazing environment that had been provided for children who would likely otherwise be abandoned, John was moved to do something more.

He decided to write a song, a musical tribute, to the town and inhabitants of Bulembu. He asked his Spirit of the West band mates to join him in recording it. Spirit’s Vince Ditrich volunteered to produce the track, and with very little ado the team was off and running.

While tracking the song at The Armoury Studio in Vancouver John mentioned in passing that the ultimate achievement would be to get the kids of Bulembu to sing on the track. This was more easily said
than done — they live thousands of miles away; the challenges that stand between the artistic wish and the technical achievement are often great.

Luckily John was due to return to Bulembu for a second time shortly after the recording session. A plan was devised that might just succeed in capturing the beautiful singing of the Bulembu Childrens’ Choir, which could then be brought back to Canada and blended into the final mixed version of the song. John Mann, for all his many talents, skills and charisma, is not by any stretch a recording engineer so the setup needed to be simple and foolproof. It should be noted John took great pains to learn the steps required to capture the singing of the choir.

Job Madembo, the choir director, and his assistant Emelia Mutamiri, did yeoman’s work in interpreting what and where the choir would sing.

Richard and Vince at The Armoury

They kept the singers in time and on pitch, which producer Vince Ditrich feared would be the biggest challenge of this
“seat of the pants” style of recording capture. The music John brought home was “flown” into the existing song by Vince and his faithful and exceptionally talented production cohort
Richard Sera; to everyone’s delight it became a seamless collage of musical performance done on separate continents!

What had begun as a song in tribute has now become the theme song of an International organization.

Steve Blair of Warner Music Canada

Spirit of the West has enjoyed a long and warm relationship with Warner Music Canada, having released nearly every one of their albums on Warner, or labels directly affiliated with Warner. Long time A&R representative (now VP of Artist Services) Steve Blair, whose history with Spirit goes back to the late 1980s when he was the band’s booking agent, agreed over a pleasant dinner one evening to release the song Bulembu. This occurred before the song had even been recorded. Steve Blair is a man with a sharp mind and a big heart, and is one of the rare music industry types who also factors the human equation into his decision making, not merely dollars & cents. His imprimatur upon the project gave it a heft that it otherwise would not have enjoyed. Spirit of the West thank him for his perspicacity and generosity. His team at Warner, particularly Steve Waxman, have given of themselves to bring the song to you with a remarkable amount of thoughtfulness & energy. In an era when the industry is said to be in decline and when most scurry for cover, these fine people stood up and gave of themselves asking not one penny in return.

It is a very simple matter for you to visit iTunes.caand buy this song, every cent of which goes to Bulembu International. The track will cost you 99 cents. This is a fabulous deal no matter how you slice it. Your support of this really excellent cause will make a very big difference to a lot of great kids. It will also make a lot of us big kids here in Canada feel pretty good, too.

Help Support Bulembu

Thanks for your support and generosity and the best of the season to you and yours!

NB: A number of photographs used throughout this project were generously provided by Dan Mangan from his private collection. Thanks Dan!

“Bulembu” Credits:

Performed by Spirit of the West

Composed by John Mann

Produced by Vince R. Ditrich

Mixed by Richard Sera at Art & Soul Studio

Recorded at: The Armoury Studio / Vancouver, BC, Canada

Engineered by Richard Sera

Assisted by Rob Montes

Session coordination and logistics by Mimi Northcott

Choir recorded live in Bulembu, Swaziland

Recording Personnel:

John Mann — Lead Vocals / Guitars

Geoffrey Kelly — Flutes / Whistles

Hugh McMillan — Bass / Cittern

Tobin Frank — Accordion / Synthesizer

Vince Ditrich — Drums / Percussion

Richard Sera — Hammond Organ

Featuring: Bulembu Children’s Choir under the direction of Job Madembo, Assisted by Emelia Mutamiri

Spirit of the West gives many thanks to Jeff Carter at FourSerious Creations for the logo and other graphic bits and bobs, James Trask and Thomas Gayef at Heart Development for backend/presentation structure and many pearls of good advice, and our own Vince Ditrich for reams of cleverly written prose! We’ve got ourselves a web 2.0 site at long last! Thank you to everyone involved in www.spiritofthewest.ca, the list is long and we are grateful. Cheers!

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