By
Eric Lewis
Times & Transcript
Wednesday August 29th, 2007
Cape Breton multi-instrumentalist J.P. Cormier
says it is "imperative" that he speak
to country superstar Tim McGraw this weekend when
Cormier is one of several artists performing at
the Country Rocks The Hill concert headlined by
Tim and his wife and fellow country star Faith
Hill.
"I
have a great story for him that I'd like to tell
him if I get the chance to talk to him,"
J.P. says over his cell phone from a ferry travelling
from Nova Scotia to Prince Edward Island a week
before the country show.
"Back
in 1991, I was in Nashville working the studios,
and I decided that I was going to look for a permanent
road gig with a Nashville act -- not bluegrass
or old time, but country."
Early
in his career, J.P. made a career for himself
performing with the likes of Marty Stuart, Bill
Monroe, Earl Scruggs, Waylon Jennings and Vince
Gill. Guitar, banjo or fiddle, if it has strings,
chances are J.P. has mastered it.
He
continues, "So I asked a buddy of mine who
was pretty tied-in to what was going on around
town to look for me a gig. It only took him a
couple days, he found me two gigs."
One
was with the McCarter Sisters, a successful country
music trio at the time.
"I
loved their music, so wow, that was a great gig,
playing lead guitar for them," J.P. says.
The
other gig was with "this guy with a developmental
deal at Curb Records named Tim McGraw."
J.P.
asked his friend who this Tim McGraw was, and
his friend replied, "I don't know. Some guy,
he hasn't got a record out yet, they're just trying
to put a band together and he's going to release
a single."
J.P.
decided to take the gig with the McCarter Sisters,
and he laughs when saying "Six months later,
(Tim McGraw's breakthrough single) "Indian
Outlaw" came out."
(J.P.'s
timeline is a little mixed up -- "Indian
Outlaw" didn't come out as a single until
1994, but regardless, it was the single that launched
Tim's career.)
J.P.
says he believes that many of the musicians in
Tim's band have been with the country star since
the early 1990s, "So, it's been a good run
for them. I often wonder what would have happened
if I had taken that gig."
He
laughs about it and says he doesn't regret his
decision at all.
"That's
the reason I left Nashville, I was just tired
of being a sideman. It's very grueling work. I'd
much rather do my own gig. But I'd love to tell
Tim that story because it's so funny. I know I
would have gotten the gig, because I was one of
the only guys in town who was a utility man, and
that's what they were looking for. They were looking
for someone who could play fiddle and banjo and
mandolin,
(guitar) and whatever."
Several
years later, J.P. finds himself opening for Tim
McGraw at the biggest East Coast country concert
of the year.
But
leaving Nashville certainly didn't hurt J.P.'s
career. Since 1995, he has released a dozen albums
that have earned him nine East Coast Music Awards
many more nominations and recognition across the
country.
In
addition to touring, J.P. is currently working
on his next record, The Messenger, tentatively
due for release in October. It's his first new
CD of vocal material in seven years. His last
few releases have been instrumental albums.
J.P.
won't divulge much about the album other than
to say he is eager to get it out. He says one
song from the album was inspired by his trip to
Afghanistan in May. A group of performers was
sent over to the war-torn country by Garrison
Hill Entertainment, a company owned by Great Big
Sea's Bob Hallett and Moncton's own Shelley Chase,
who is now living in Newfoundland. The group was
sent over to entertain Canadian troops in the
country.
"It
was a life-altering experience. It's something
I would suggest for just about everybody. We should
all be able to see what our troops are doing on
the ground when they're working. It would probably
put a stop to all the naysaying that they shouldn't
be there."
After
seeing what the armed forces are doing in Afghanistan,
J.P. says there is no question in his mind that
"they should be there."
"If
we're not there, we're going to have trouble here
down the road. We are saving lives there daily.
And those poor people, it's unbelievable how they
have to live."
The
song inspired by this experience "seemed
to complete the idea behind that record. And it
became incredibly crucial to get that record out.
The message that's in the album, it's time for
people to hear it."
In
addition to performing Afghanistan, J.P. and his
band have performed in Scotland and all across
Canada in the last year. He is planning another
Canadian tour before the year is over.
While
he says the Country Rocks The Hill show is "just
another gig" to him, J.P. says the line-up
of talent is phenomenal, and he is proud of the
City of Moncton for supporting it.
"I'm
just proud that Moncton gets behind something
like this. Because there's not a lot of places
in the Maritimes that would have infrastructure
first of all to do it and secondly the vision
to do it. And I'm really proud of them."
