IN CONCERT
What: David Francey with Pierre Schryer and Adam Dobres
Where: Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club, 753 View St.
When: Wednesday, Jan. 15, 7:30 p.m. (doors at 5:30)
Tickets: Sold out
Note: Francey also performs at St.听Andrew鈥檚 United Church in Nanaimo on Jan. 14 , the Big Yellow Merville Hall in Merville on Jan. 17 and the Quadra Island Community Centre on Jan. 18
听
David Francey broke from tradition two years ago and decided against playing shows in support of his 12th album, The Broken Heart of Everything. It wasn鈥檛 by design.
The native of Ayrshire, Scotland, gladly would have toured to promote the album, had medical professionals not intervened and ordered the folk singer off the road for a year following the album鈥檚 release in 2018. Twenty years of hard touring had left Francey with little more than a croak for a voice at the point when doctors said he would risk permanent damage by touring for months at a time, so that sealed the deal. He听was off the road for the foreseeable future.
鈥淚 wore myself out, simple as that,鈥� Francey said.
The resident of Elphin, Ont., is finally touring behind The Broken Heart of Everything, which drew a Juno Award nomination last year for traditional roots album of the year. The trek, featuring Victoria鈥檚 Pierre Schryer on fiddle and Pender Island鈥檚 Adam Dobres on guitar, has a number of dates in the Vancouver Island area, including a sold-out stop at Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club on Wednesday. Francey will also perform at St. Andrew鈥檚 United Church in Nanaimo on Jan. 14 , the Big Yellow Merville Hall in Merville on Jan. 17 and the Quadra Island Community Centre on Jan. 18.
He鈥檚 happy to be back playing concerts, and though he knew he made the right decision not to tour last year, Francey said, he forgot how much he missed travelling across sa国际传媒 playing music. 鈥淭here鈥檚 nothing like getting out on the road with some friends and playing some music.鈥�
Francey found an interesting way to occupy his time when he was on his respite from the road 鈥� painting. A former carpenter by trade, Francey had built his wife, artist Beth Girdler, a studio on the back of their property, where she could paint. Girdler rarely used it, so Francey took advantage of its vacancy and now uses it as a creative hub for writing and painting. That his latest artistic pursuit has come as a result of a potentially career-threatening condition was a blessing in disguise, Francey said.
鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 croak out a song, so I had no choice there. But I had to do something. I live for creativity of some sort, so I switched over to art. I have been painting on and off for many years, so it wasn鈥檛 a hard switch. But it鈥檚 not quite the same as doing what you鈥檙e supposed to be doing. So I kept writing, which was great. If that had dried up, I would have been really morose.鈥�
Francey left behind a career in听construction in 1999, and has enjoyed a run of success in the听years since.
Francey has become a strong draw on the North American tour circuit, and the road is where he says he feels most comfortable. It听can be a shock at times, travelling to big cities in order to make a living, especially when the town he currently lives in barely has enough residents to produce a game of hockey.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a population of 38, so it鈥檚 not exactly a metropolis,鈥� he said of Elphin, where he has lived with Girdler for the past decade. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 a nice place to hang out.鈥�
Their children are now grown, which means the buzz of a house full of footsteps is a fading memory. Francey often wrote first-person narratives about his family when his children were younger, and that gaze has now turned toward his grandchildren. Songs written about his children when they were young 鈥� Broken Glass is about his daughter, Amy, when she was 14 鈥� still find their way into his sets, which grounds him as he tours across the world, far away from home.
鈥淚 certainly take stock of the passing of the years. When I started out in this, my biggest fear was to sing things by rote. I听did not want to get up there and mouth the words every night. Beth gave me the best advice I鈥檝e ever had, which was this: 鈥榊ou鈥檒l always remember why you wrote the song and where you were when you wrote it.鈥� She鈥檚 right in that sense. You can鈥檛 help but reflect later on just how much time has passed.鈥�
Francey, 65, admits to being a bit of a handful when he was in his 20s. If he was given his recent instructions from doctors at that age, he probably would have ignored them. But he values his voice and what it can do for his career, which is why he鈥檚 touring smarter these days 鈥� not harder. 鈥淚 have a tremendous work ethic, and really enjoy what I do, and adore the travelling. I didn鈥檛 want to come off the road, and kept at it for too long. I鈥檓 trying to be a wee bit wiser about things. I鈥檒l have to accept that.鈥�
