History and Romanticism with Charlie Zahm and Tad Marks

This year I decided to invest in some very local live arts and invested in a season series of tickets for the Old Brogue’s Winter Celtic Concert program. The idea was to support the local venue (literally a stone’s throw from the gallery) and introduce my daughter to Irish and Scottish folk music. The first two concerts were what I expected and it was fun to have live music in the cozy snuggery section of the Brogue whilst enjoying pub fare. However, on Sunday February 18, I was not ready for the soul that came from the third concert consisting of Charlie Zahm on guitar and vocals (and drum) and Tad Marks on fiddle. Upon walking in, I saw a couple of men in kilts, one with a frilly shirt. Okay, sit down and order a drink and some food. And then the songs started, and the room filled with some kind of tangible magic, almost like fog, that charmed not just me but everyone sitting in that room. Romantic and historical ballads pulling us to the far off Isles, with members of the audience chiming in with heart and soul accompaniment to Charlie, and I imagined that they had grown up with so many of these songs.

Then, when I heard songs about the Bluenose schooner and Newfoundland, I could not believe my ears. At the intermission, I took a bathroom break and on the way over to the ladies room I saw Charlie tending to his phone and I interrupted to give thanks for the Canadian references, explaining I was Canadian myself. Charlie was the friendliest soul, so enthusiastic to know where I was from. It was a refreshing conversation, as brief as it was, because it was just easy going and friendly. Relations between Canada and the USA have become strained over the years, or there’s just non-interest in the other. There were no politics in the exchange, just appreciation. Charlie had, at one point in his presentation shared his sadness at the loss of the late great Canadian musician Gordon Lightfoot, and I thanked him for that also. Then it was back for the second set. Charlie and Tad had by that time hit their stride and I could have stayed listening to their ballads or upbeat jigs for another couple of hours. Then as they prepared for what would be the penultimate song in this set, Charlie nodded at me, he announced that he would pay tribute to Mr Lightfoot with a rendition of Early Morning Rain. I hadn’t heard that beautiful piece since I saw Lightfoot in concert back in 2013, and Charlie sang it so beautifully and with such depth that I was moved to tears.

It's a funny thing to be a Canadian…my speech is just a little funny, I am polite and mild-mannered, and Americans sometimes know one Canadian or have one relation in Canada somewhere. But to experience an American artist singing about Canada or singing a song from a Canadian so reverently and authentically is not a daily event. It’s not even typical of a Canadian musician. In those moments of hearing the opening lyrics to Early Morning Rain, I immediately over at my 5 year old daughter, and I felt all the parts of my life join right there, and as I smiled into her eyes and she into mine, and my heart burst with so much joy that she was experiencing this and that I got to be there with her. I felt suspended in time, remembering the carefree days of my early childhood in Canada, wishing I could take her to see how I grew up in the early 1980’s. Life is complicated now and it was a luxury to be shocked back in time a bit with her beside me. And then at the same time I was very aware that I’ve lived here in the USA almost 20 years and in fact, I’ll be sworn in next week as an American, and there lies the poignancy. My national identity will be changing and I will be swearing allegiance to a new country. Yet this is not such a shock because I have been here for so many years already and it contains my daughter and everything I’ve worked so hard on for a large portion of my life. I owe so much to both countries, and by the end of the song, I felt enriched to have this Canadian heritage being celebrated by Zahm and Marks and how proud I am to be just a week out from adding American to my name. It is a luxury and I am so glad to still feel Canadian after all this time. Sometimes in all the commotion of our days and the years of working towards who we are trying to be, the rush of time can create distance and our hearts can get a little neglected. Sitting in the snuggery, I was reconnected with that which was, is yet to be, and always will be. What a wonderful world it is when you find an artist who shares an appreciation for your homeland, in your second homeland.