51. When We Wake with Dave Gunning

About this episode

Andrew Shaver interviews Nova Scotia songwriter Dave Gunning about his unique outdoor recording process for his album 'Field Notes'.

My guest today is one of Nova Scotia’s finest songwriters, and one-time touring bass player for Stompin Tom Connors , Pictou County’s Dave Gunning . His new album Field Notes wasn’t recorded in a traditional studio at all. It was captured outdoors in Australia, under a gumtree, with one microphone on Dave and two more pointed at the birds (kookaburras?). No isolation booths. No endless second-guessing. Just voice, guitar, and whatever the day decided to offer. On one track, Angels' Share , a bird chirps perfectly in key during the instrumental and stops as Dave starts to sing again. The kind of magic you can't recreate in a studio. We talk about the decision to record this way and the leap of faith he took by travelling to the other side of the world to do so with producer Mark Lang . We talk about co-writing Vincent Coleman with his dear friend, the late Bruce Guthro . And we get into the time Stompin’ Tom Connors hired him after what might be the most unconventional audition in Canadian music history. Wanna get in touch? Send an email to ⁠⁠ whenwewakeradio@gmail.com⁠ ⁠ Or find me on Instagram ⁠ @whenwewakeradio ⁠ & ⁠ @theandrewshaver ⁠ ⁠ When We Wake with Andrew Shaver ⁠ is…

People in this episode

Host: Andrew Shaver

Guest: Dave Gunning

Topics covered

• songwriting
• music production
• outdoor recording
• Canadian music
• co-writing
• auditions

Keywords

• Dave Gunning
• Field Notes
• outdoor recording
• Stompin Tom Connors
• co-writing
• music production
• Nova Scotia
• Australian birds

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Field Notes, Angels' Share

Places: Nova Scotia, Australia, Pictou County

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