I write a lot of songs at 2 in the morning when I get home from a show. Typically inspired by the night, or folks at the show, my night cap consists of a whiskey on the rocks and either some recorded airing of Austin City Limits, or some old country on vinyl. I do try to treat my writing like a trade though, so I have weekly writing sessions. Wednesday mornings - first thing, I head to the woods where I have friends who are gracious enough to let me write in their cabin. It is a hand built log cabin heated by a pot belly stove. Growing up on the border of Prairie and Canadian Shield, Gordon Lightfoot's Song For A Winter's Night always captured my imagination. I thought this cabin was exactly what he was referring to. I decided to write a song about the cabin itself. At the cabin, I arrive early - ok, musician early so like 11 am, I then split wood and put it in the stove...and wait for the room to warm up. One day I want to record an acoustic record there. Songs from the Cabin. anyways, in trying to describe the scene of the cabin, and the warming stove, I tried to capture the imagination of the listener by drawing them into the cabin. "Shut the door, ain't exactly air tight"...then I wanted to illustrate the scene of the wood stove - I tried using washed up honky tonk singer as a descriptive mechanism for the stove, but it didn't rhyme, so I switched it to Old Colony Mennonite. So when I say "drop a match, into the old colony Mennonite" I am not lighting an old lady on fire - it is the stove I am referring to. The photo is a picture of the "Kerosene lamps, light the way at night". Thanks so much friends for letting me write in your cabin - you are such a support of my music, and I appreciate it so much.
QB