Last week, I had the delight of meeting Ian George as her was a guest on the Mostly Minnesota Music radio show. I enjoyed him as someone who seems to have very good luck and the wherewithal to do something with that good luck.
He recorded his latest (first) solo CD in Paris at the studio of Matthieu Chedid, a very famous French musician. They met through a mutual friend. They got along well. Chedid offered Ian use of his studio while he was on holiday in August. Ian somehow whipped together a very international band and set to making a very unique CD.
There is a great sense of place in the music – whether that place is Gitche Gumee, Shenandoah or L’etang-La-Ville. Somehow in the expressing details of each, the specific of the unique make the music universal. L’etang-La-Ville is an instrumental piece but still there’s a sense of place. When I hear it, I think of a church near where I lived in Dublin. Ian said it was recorded near a church in France. The majesty of the Icehouse was a perfect backdrop to so many of the songs.
Ian has an easy way about him in person – on and off stage. It was fun to hear more stories from the stage of buddy songs and traveling and the historical roots of Shenandoah. The band that he gathered for the show was tight and talented. The music is a hybrid of techno-folk-classical. It’s rich music with a natural sophistication.
Also I got to meet Ian’s daughter at the show. She is about 7 years old. She walked up and said hello. We talked about our neighborhood. She is the best front person I’ve ever met!
Mostly Minnesota 