Celtic balladeer John McDermott was born in Scotland, but following his family's relocation to Canada in the mid-'60s, he went on to hone his crystalline tenor at Toronto's St. Michael's Choir School. After graduating he accepted the position of circulation manager with a Toronto newspaper; discovered while singing at a private party, McDermott was befriended by publishing magnate Conrad Black, who funded the sessions that led to the release of the singer's smash 1992 debut, Danny Boy, a record originally intended as a gift for his parents' golden wedding anniversary. Old Friends followed in 1994, and a year later McDermott issued Christmas Memories; with 1996's Love Is a Voyage, he even earned a Canadian Juno Award nomination as Male Vocalist of the Year. When I Grow Too Old to Dream appeared in 1997, and a year later he resurfaced with If Ye Break Faith -- We Shall Not Sleep (retitled Remembrance for American consumption). Between 1998 and 2006 he released Old Friends, Time to Remember, Celtic Tenor, and Love Is a Voyage, as well as a collection of some of his most beloved material called Timeless Memories: Greatest Hits. He reunited with Irish TenorsFinbar Wright and Anthony Kearns during this period, recording a new album with the Tenors (2005's Deus Meus) and embarking on a U.S. tour in 2004.
From Web:
這首《The Old Man》，是愛爾蘭創作歌手兼鋼琴家菲爾柯爾特（Phil oulter）的作品，他就是在父親過世之後有感而發，寫下這首歌曲的。這位歌手曾經譜寫過《Puppet on a String》、《Steal Away》、《My Boy》和《The Town I Loved So Well》等在歐洲非常暢銷的歌曲，相當受到歐洲樂迷的推崇與喜愛，甚至連當紅的青春偶像羅南（Ronan Keating）都樂于跟他一起合唱，可惜由于他不講究包裝，在國際上的知名度相對的不是很高，當然這首《The Old Man》也面臨了同樣的命運。我第一次听見這首歌曲，是在“愛爾蘭男高音”（The Irish Tenors）的首張演唱會實況專輯。演唱者是三個男高音。這三個男高音，其實都不是科班出身的，演唱的風格距離真正的“男高音”也有一段距離，但是充滿生命力與感情的表現，卻令人激賞。他們三個人各有特色，也各有不同的故事，不過由于今天介紹的歌曲，所以我只談其中演唱《The Old Man》這首歌的約翰麥德默（John McDermott）。現年49歲的約翰麥德默出生于甦格蘭的一個愛爾蘭農家，十歲左右的時候跟著父母移民到加拿大，所以他的國籍其實是加拿大。但由于祖籍與幼年成長環境的影響，愛爾蘭與甦格蘭的凱爾特民俗音樂對他有著很深的影響。後來，他曾經在多倫多一所訓練合唱團的學校接受過一些聲樂的基礎教育。大學畢業之後，他在多倫多的一家報社擔任發行部的經理，閑暇的時候經常在朋友的私人聚會中表演歌唱，優異的歌喉與詮釋情感的風格，使他引起了不少注意。1992年，為了慶祝父母的結婚五十周年，他打算灌錄一張唱片來當作賀禮，而一位跟他私交不錯的出版商不但出資予以贊助錄音的費用，更進而鼓勵他把唱片出版，結果那張《Danny Boy》在加拿大造成了轟動，也得到了進入歌壇發展的邀約。原本他還有點舉棋不定，擔心收入將無法養家，父親知道他對歌唱的熱愛，特別予以全力支持，也讓他下定決心，就此改行。他陸續的幾張專輯，也都獲得了熱烈的反應，甚至在1996年被提名角逐加拿大“朱諾獎”的年度最佳男歌手。而隨著他應邀參加的“愛爾蘭男高音”獲得了美國公共電視網的青睞，他也打開了國際上的知名度。在“愛爾蘭男高音”于1999年春天以演唱會實況錄音發表的第一張專輯中，約翰麥德默所演唱的《The Old Man》感動了現場所有的听眾。那年的年底，他在自己的《Old Friends》專輯中，再度演唱了這首歌曲。很少人知道，當時他所敬愛的父親已經撒手人寰，而盡管這首歌曲並不是他自己譜寫的作品，感覺上彷佛就像是特別為他打造的。後來，當他開演唱會的時候，每當演唱這首歌曲，總是帶著父親的手杖與帽子上台，代表他對父親的思念，也希望父親在天之靈能夠分享他的成功。前不久，他推出了自己第一張演唱會實況的DVD，標題叫做《A Time to Remember》。當他再度演唱這首歌曲時，我看見他在間奏的時候努力深呼吸，彷佛試圖讓自己的情緒平穩下來，但是最後淚水依舊從他泛紅的眼眶中滑落。
催人淚下的歌曲
The Old Man
The tears have all been shed now
We’ve said our last goodbyes
His souls been blessed
He’s laid to rest
Andit’s now I feel alone
He was moer than just a father
A teacher my best friend
He can still be heard
In the tunes we shared
When we play them on our own
(chorus)
I never will forget him
For he made me "what I am"
Though he may be gone
Memories linger on
And I miss him, the old man
As a boy he’d take me walking
By mountain field and stream
And he showed me things
Not known to kings
And secret between him and me
Like the colours of the pheasant
As he rises in the dawn
And how to fish and make a wish
Beside the holly tree
I thought he’d live forever
He seemed so big and strong
But the minutes fly
And the years roll by
For a father and a son
And suddenly when it happened
There was so much left unsaid
No second chance
To tell him thanks
For everything he’s done
John was crying while singing ...
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Here You Are
Beautiful duet featuring John McDermott and Allison Girvan
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Well hello, Never thought I'd see that face again Lord I can't remember when the last time was But here you are Hidden in a box of odds and ends Tucked between some pictures of old friends My Old Friend These things just needed going through The last thing I thought I'd find is you
But here you are Smiling that smile Breezy as a summer day And here you are Looking at me that easy way As if to say, here you are
Well I know I really ought to toss you out Some day I'll just have to lie about why you're here But here I am Taking another chance with you Taking another glance or two At those eyes And here's a kiss for old time's sake Thank God that hearts don't really break
We lost each other then lost track But I had a feeling one day you'd be back And here you are
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My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean
Duet With Briar Boake
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My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose
"A Red, Red Rose" by Robert Burns [1794]
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Lyric
O my Luve's like a red, red rose, That's newly sprung in June: O my Luve's like the melodie, That's sweetly play'd in tune.
As fair art thou, my bonie lass, So deep in luve am I; And I will luve thee still, my dear, Till a' the seas gang dry.
Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear, And the rocks melt wi' the sun; And I will luve thee still, my dear, While the sands o' life shall run.
And fare-thee-weel, my only Luve! And fare-thee-weel, a while! And I will come again, my Luve, Tho' 'twere ten thousand mile!
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