This is the story of ‘Cape Spear’, a collection of Irish and Newfoundland songs and stories, telling stories of this wonderful and warm Canadian seafaring community and their heritage.
When long-time Canadian resident Patrick Sullivan visited Cape Spear on a sunny afternoon in 2006, a warm sea breeze and the vast blue expanse of the Atlantic Ocean evoked old feelings of growing up by the sea in Ireland.
Later, Patrick embodied those feelings in a poem. When his friend, Juno Award-winning musician and composer Derek Harrington, read it, he immediately thought he’d like to put music on it. Derek did his musical magic, and subsequently several of Patrick’s poems emerged as songs.
His friend Jan Peters in Newfoundland, listened to these early versions and suggested they make a CD. Derek then convinced his brothers Paul, famous in Ireland for his soft, lilting voice, and Richard Harrington to join him in performing his songs. Thus was born the album ‘Cape Spear’.
Patrick says he will never forget that Paul told him in the studio one day, how he loves to sing songs that tell a story, and that is exactly what Patrick’s poetry does. When Paul recorded the title track ‘Cape Spear’ and ‘Coffin Ship’, his evocative singing brought these words and melodies to life.
Derek has written most of the new material himself with the beautiful lyrics of Patrick Sullivan. The songs feature the voices of Derek, Paul, and Richard Harrington. It also includes two remastered tracks, ‘Bunclody’ and ‘Sally Gardens’ from an earlier Harrington Brother album, ‘Monto on the Rock’.
David Matheson, whose musical creativity contributed greatly to this CD, Norm Barker and Richard Uglow joined the team early on and got the tape going.
D’Arcy Broderick, Graham Wells and Mike Hanrahan also contribute the interpretation of Naomi’s Reel, written by Derek and named after one of the worst coffin ships to sail to Canada in 1847.
Like so many trips that start at Cape Spear, this one started there too. Along the way, he brought people together in friendship and remembrance.
