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Rume! NT wmmy UVUViT SNVSs V° NWY MMMAIg C O OOCC mol ‘ : E: become more intimate with his audilence, readity sharâ€" mother of a friend of hers," Keelaghan says. "A Japanâ€" As for the end result? 2 ‘ ing his thoughts, feeling and emotions. eseâ€"Canadian during the Second World War, they _ "I‘m ecstatic," Keelaghan says. "It was one of the "| think it reflects my growth as an individual," Keeâ€" came to take her away, and she just couldn‘t bare best experiences I‘vehad." ® ‘ laghan says of his songwiting candidness. "I‘ve finally being parted with her plano. She knew it would be _ James Keelaghan will be in concert at the Army, come to terms with being able to taik about how | feel, . auctioned off and she‘d never see it again. So she and Navy, Air Force Veteran‘s Club, 32 Gordon St. in ( without having to couch it in another character. Not her daughters took it down to the dock and did away . Guelph, March 24 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $8 at the . door. .0.....00.\.90.0.......O0.0.0QOO0.0.0......"{9... it‘s not surprising that Calgaryâ€"raised singer/songwriter James Keelaghan smagged a Juno last Sunday in the *roots" category â€" those who‘ve followed him since the release of his debut album Timelines in 1987, have known that it was only a matter of time before he‘d be receiving a collective national nod. But it seems appropriate, somehow, that Keelaghan‘s first Juno award comes as the result of his most recent, and most impressive, recording. My Skies, released last May, reflects Keelaghan‘s growth as a songwriter (not that he hasn‘t been topâ€"notch since he emerged on the Canadian music scene), and puts him head and shoulders above the rest. On Timelines and the followâ€"up Small Rebellions, Keeâ€" laghan established himself in folk/roots circles, inviting comparisons to the likes of Gordon Lightfoot and the late Stan Rogers for his balladâ€"like reflections of Canaâ€" gdlan history, sung with deep, velvety baritone vocals. And while the comparisons might still be there, My Skies contfimms that Keelaghan has come into his own. Rather than write about slices of life, Keelaghan has become more intimate with his audilence, readity sharâ€" ing his thoughts, feeling and emotions. "| think it reflects my growth as an individual," Keeâ€" laghan says of his songwriting candidness. *I‘ve finally come to terms with being able to taik about how | feel, without having to couch it in another character. Not By Deborah Crandall Cycle & Sport Ltd. that I‘ll do that all the time â€" not that there‘s not still some things that what I want to say through a historical character. But there are times when | want to say what I want to say, without having to have a character say it. Now, more often than not, /‘m saying it." But t?np:oces of writing openty about love, emoâ€" tions, and feelings is not without challenges. "It‘s a lot more difficult," Keelaghan says. "I have a lot more difficulty talking about the way that | feel about love than talking about the way I feel about politics. But it depends on the subject matter â€" sometimes the subject â€"will be better treated from a different point of view." Keelaghan proves that with Kin‘‘s Piano, arguably the most stunning, riveting cut on My Skies. in the song, Keelaghan looks at the intemment of Japaneseâ€"Canaâ€" dians during the Second World War. wiriting from the perspective of one who was there,â€" he tells the true story of Kirl, a Japanese Canadian who tossed her beloved upright plano into the sea, rather than have it confiscated after her interment and sold for a pittance. o *It‘s a story that my sister told me about the grandâ€" mother of a friend of hers," Keelaghan says. *A Japanâ€" eseâ€"Canadian during the Second World War, they came to take her away, and she just couldn‘t bare being parted with her piano. She knew it would be auctioned off and she‘d never see it again. So she and her daughters took it down to the dock and did away .IVH\I'IIV A:s BNOQTEL RALE/IGHaRNA . :snl k Â¥ IW Mcm4~.a-(s fUSA conconper 2290 King Street East, Kitchener Marinoni with it so nobody else would have It." Keelaghan had known for a couple of years that he wanted to write about the interment o6f Japaneseâ€" Canadians, but was searching for the right inspiration â€" the right manner in which to present his views. When he heard about Kir, the search was + Aswelosamehmmedau:lsvsmts, musiâ€" cally speaking, richer, fuller and more polished than his previous recording. That‘s partly due to the contribuâ€" tions of guest artists such as Stephen Fearing, Spirit of the West‘s Hugh McMillan and Vince Ditrich, and Colleen Eccleston. _‘ _ And it‘s partly due to the fact that Keelaghan knew when the time was right to give technical control of the album to producer Don Pennington. e e _ _ "It‘s partly because | abandoned control, | actualty let Don Pennington really produce it," Keelaghan says of the album‘s quality. "I was in a psychic state where was sort of at the end of my rope in terms of a lot of things â€" financially and emotionally. When I got out to Vancouver (to record), I said, ‘I want to play and I want to sing, and | don‘t think I can handle a whole lot 893â€"2963