Two years doesn’t sound like a whole lot of time, but so much can change over the course of 730 days.
And for Nanaimo’s David Gogo, things have changed since he released his last album, Come on Down, in 2013.
“Since the last album, [I have lost] a lot of people in the music business, whether they are famous or not,” Gogo said.
Among those who have departed are blues legends Johnny Winter and B.B. King, both of whom Gogo has played with.
“It happens at a certain point in your life where people start cashing in the chips,” Gogo said.
Next month the 46-year-old will release his 14th record, Vicksburg Call. The 10-track album contains songs mostly written by Gogo and was recorded in Nanaimo.
“I am really pleased,” Gogo said. “I think I am more excited about this record coming out than any of them.”
According to Gogo, the album, which will be released to Cordova Bay Records, touches on a number of themes including the different types of relationships that he’s had in his life.
“There is a lot of relationship stuff but from all sorts of different perspectives,” Gogo said. “We all have our ups and downs, and so this album talks about that a lot in more of a mature matter than I have in the past.”
The record features Gogo’s bandmates Bill Hicks on the drums and bassist Jay Stevens. Guest artists include The Harpoonist and The Axe Murderer’s Shawn Hall, who plays the harmonica.
The five-time Juno Award nominee says during the creative process he collaborated with his bandmates much more than he had in the past.
“It felt like much more of a collaborative effort from myself, the band and the record company than ever,” Gogo said. “[In the past] I was kind of the dictator telling everyone what they were going to do and suggesting what they play.”
The Western Canadian Music Award winner says while Vicksburg Call touches on serious subjects, it still has some “silly” songs.
“The blues is the blues,” Gogo said. “You can sing about happy things, you can sing about sad things, but it’s all the blues.”
The Nanaimoite says the writing on the record is some of his best.
“I am much more confident in my songwriting ability and I think these songs are some of the best songs I’ve written in my entire career,” Gogo said. “I don’t write as many songs as some people, but they tend to be keepers, which is good.”
David Gogo performs at the Moose Hall,1356 Cranberry Ave., on Friday (Aug. 21) at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15-$20.
Gogo will also be performing at Fascinating Rhythm on Sept. 5.
For more information, please visit www.davidgogo.com.
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