Nowhere Is the Dreamer: Songs from a Gen X Canadian Youth, by Allister Thompson

Nowhere Is the Dreamer: Songs from a Gen X Canadian Youth

by Allister Thompson

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Armageddon_Speaking takes me back to my childhood getting from point A to point B with the radio on and family chilling in the car as i watched the lamp posts pass and imagined whole new worlds...

Tichounko Most powerful use of guitar is guitarists sitting by a campfire, playing & singing, and others around them singing along.

I’m from a country where tramping has strong roots and some of my fondest memories are connected with camps, campfires and the music around them.

Allister’s sensitive rendition of songs I didn’t know before brings back warm familiarity and inspires to listen to the originals and find out about all the similarities and differences.

Great playing & voice, 100% authenticity.

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1.	Boy Inside the Man (originally by Tom Cochrane and Red Rider, 1986) 04:59	info	buy track
2.	Dark Angel (originally by Blue Rodeo, 1993) 04:59	info	buy track
3.	Peace of Mind (originally by The Grapes of Wrath, 1987) 03:31	info	buy track
4.	One Day in Your Life (originally by 54-40, 1987) 04:02	info	buy track
5.	Mission (originally by Rush, 1987) 04:47	info	buy track
6.	Dream Away (originally by The Northern Pikes, 1990) 04:08	info	buy track
7.	38 Years Old (originally by The Tragically Hip, 1989) 03:36	info	buy track
8.	A Dream Like Mine (originally by Bruce Cockburn, 1991) 03:34	info	buy track
9.	Political (originally by Spirit of the West, 1988) 03:45	info	buy track
10.	Sky (originally by Crash Vegas, 1989) 04:10	info	buy track
11.	Because of Love (originally by Mae Moore, 1991) 04:19	info	buy track
12.	A Penny More (originally by the Skydiggers, 1992) 03:39	info	buy track
13.	King of the Past (originally by The Rheostatics, 1992) 04:44	info	buy track

about

This is the fourth of my “quadrilogy” of tribute and covers albums, and one that takes me right back to my beginnings as a teen in Canada.

I started playing guitar at age 14, when my mother demanded I get a hobby to stave off delinquency. Not sure that worked, but around that time my interest in music did blossom. Like most young people of the time, my early exposure was the rock music video programs, which in Canada were shows like Video Hits, Good Rockin’ Tonight, and the CHUM Countdown.

The Canadian music industry was really taking off at that time, with lots of exciting signings in all genres, including what would later be called ‘alternative’ music. I eagerly devoured all this music, in addition to other sounds from around the world. But what seeing and hearing Canadian acts from small towns and large cities around the country did was give kids like me hope that hey, if these people could make it and be successful, so could we.

So we dreamed of changing people’s lives through the songs we would write, just like Tom Cochrane and Blue Rodeo and The Grapes of Wrath, and so many others. Some of us went on to play in bands, like I did for many years in the clubs of Toronto, some got to tour, which I did briefly, and some ended up being singer-songwriters or expanding their interests to other forms of music — both of which I did.

Fast-forward more than 3o years, and it’s safe to say that material success and accolades firmly eluded me. But what this early passion translated to was a life of fun playing music with friends; getting to express my deepest thoughts in verse; the satisfaction of getting better and better at playing and singing; and eventually producing and recording my own music.

As they do for you who know them, for me each of these songs contains a memory: my first date with the person who would become my life partner was a Mae Moore concert at the Bathurst Street Theatre in Toronto; my band opening for The Skydiggers at McMaster University and thinking we’d hit the big-time; The Rheostatics’ Dave Bidini accidentally kicking my friend in the face from the stage; and so on.

This album takes me full circle and is a tribute to the dreams of that passionate young person who wanted to change people’s lives through music. I think if he could look forward in time, he’d be proud of me! And if you’re in the same situation, in this pursuit or any other, you should be proud of your achievements too.

credits

released February 9, 2023

Allister Thompson played and sang everything you hear in North Bay, Ontario, except for:
Sean Kelly - lead guitar on “Boy Inside the Man” and “Mission”.

All proceeds from this album are directed in solidarity to OUTLoud North Bay, which “supports the health and wellbeing of the 2SLGBTQA+ youth and allies of North Bay and surrounding communities, through workshops, professional services, collaborations, and a safe space.”
outloudnorthbay.com

Video for 'King of the Past': youtu.be/6lIs8nq_hNI

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Allister Thompson - The Gateless Gate North Bay, Ontario

This is the place to meet the psychedelic, progressive, ambient, and folk/rock music of Allister Thompson released under his own name and as The Gateless Gate, Sons of Birches, Twilight Fields, and Khan Tengri.

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