Fearing and White
Where: Mary Winspear Centre
When: Saturday, 8 p.m.
Tickets: $25 (250) 656 0275 or deepcovefolk.ca
Andy White discovered the eighth wonder of the world on Saltspring Island.
A few years ago, the Irish singer-songwriter visited the island to write songs with his friend Stephen Fearing. Taking a coffee break at the Treehouse Cafe, White bumped into a Saltspringer carrying a homemade contraption — a kaleidoscope-like thing held together with rubber bands.
He placed it on White’s head, explaining it was “the eighth wonder of the world”.
Said White: “I went back to the guys and they said, ‘What happened?’ I said I was accosted by a hippie.”
He ended up writing a song about the experience. Eighth Wonder of the World appears on Fearing and White’s new album, Tea and Confidences. The harmony-driven tune, propelled by chiming guitars, begins: “I was accosted by a hippie/He promised me the eighth wonder of the world/Things got kind of trippy/As the rubber bands unfurled.”
The song goes on to describe sexual exploits with models and poets who speak in falsetto voices. (White says he treats the truth with “poetic licence.”)
Eighth Wonder of the World exemplifies White and Fearing’s shared sense of fun. Each grew up in Ireland — Vancouver-born Fearing was raised in Dublin, while White (who now lives in Melbourne) is originally from Belfast.
“We’re Irish guys having a laugh,” White said from a tour stop in Grand Forks. “A lot of the humour, I hope it comes through on the records.”
As well as being a solo artist, Fearing’s a member of roots-rock band Blackie and the Rodeo Kings. Cambridge-educated White’s credits include releasing a 1995 album, Altitude, with Tim Finn of the Split Enz and Liam O Maonlai of The Hothouse Flowers.
Fearing and White first met at the Winnipeg Folk Fest in 1998. They became fast friends, meeting annually at Fearing’s Guelph, Ont., home to write songs together. They also formed a band.
“It was sort of a busman’s holiday band for me. We put it together for s--ts and giggles,” Fearing said.
The duo’s debut album, Fearing & White (2011), showcased songs created over a decade. Tea and Confidences was composed much more quickly. The pair had one intense songwriting session in Halifax (where Fearing now lives), followed by a four-day stint on Saltspring Island.
“It was like this write-a-thon. It was very intense and very exciting. We ended up walking away with 11 songs,” Fearing said.
Tea and Confidences was recorded at a Guelph studio with drummer Gary Craig, harmonica player Jeff Bird and drummer Ray Farrugia. For this tour, White (switching between 12-string guitar and bass) and Fearing are joined by drummer Kent Macrae.
The music on this tour is a little more hard-rocking, says Fearing, who alternates between electric and acoustic guitars. Prior to Saturday’s show at the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney, Fearing, White and Macrae will perform at The Haven on Gabriola Island on Thursday and the Errington Hall on Friday.
White’s first album was released on Stiff Records, the legendary punk and new wave label. He and Fearing, both in their early 50s, spent their formative years on different sides of Ireland’s border listening to the same music on the BBC’s Top of the Pops.
“You’d literally have Abba at No. 1 and the Sex Pistols at No.2,” Fearing said. Another youthful connection between White and Fearing was “The Troubles,” that is, the ongoing fighting in Northern Ireland.
Said Fearing: “Andy was living in the middle of it. I was living outside of it. But still, it’s only a hundred and something miles to the north, and it’s on the news every night. This constant thing that the whole country was watching.”