Dave Gunning Returns

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Shaun: Hello, and welcome
to the High Note Podcast.
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I am your host, Sean Smith.
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Thank you very much for listening.
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I really appreciate it.
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If you're new to the high note, you
can check me out at high note blog.
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com.
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The high note began, began as a blog
way back in 2012, believe it or not.
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And so, uh, that's why the
domain name is high note blog.
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And that's where you can see new music
Friday, where I get all of the albums
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that are released each week on Friday.
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And also I do music reviews.
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So check that out.
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So you get notified every
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This interview is my
last of my interviews.
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From the Philadelphia Folk Festival.
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And I only thought it was fitting
that I interview Dave Gunning.
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Dave is one of my favorite people
that I've ever interviewed.
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And he was the last person that I
interviewed at the Philadelphia Folk
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Festival in 2019, which was the last
in person Philadelphia Folk Festival
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before this past year in 2024.
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So again, he was the last
person that I interviewed.
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It was really great to catch up
with Dave and talk about what has
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been going on with him and his music
world as well as his causes, because
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Dave not only cares about music, but
he also cares about his community.
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So we talk about his most recent album,
the same storm, as well as the Dave
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Gunning zero hunger campaign, which helps
to raise funds to stock school free stores
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in Nova Scotia, which basically just
helps kids who are hungry in Nova Scotia,
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which is where Dave's got from the pride
of Pictaw County, as I like to call them.
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So please enjoy this interview with
my friend and yours, Dave Gunning.
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Dave Gunning, welcome to
the high note podcast.
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How are you doing today?
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Great, Sean.
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Thanks for having me back on the show.
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Hey, welcome back to the
Philadelphia folk festival.
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Dave: It feels good to be back,
and I can only imagine it feels
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pretty awesome for everybody here
to have this thing back again, too.
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There was some rough, rough patch
there, but looks like they survived it.
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Yeah, yeah,
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Shaun: absolutely.
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Yeah, the last time that we chatted
was all the way back in 2019.
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Dave: Yeah, yeah, lots
has happened since then.
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There's like a three year hold.
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hole in our brains.
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Yeah.
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Shaun: Yeah.
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How did, uh, how did you
fare during the pandemic?
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Did you do the old online concert thing?
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I did a couple of those.
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Um, I
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Dave: did a couple of online things.
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At first I panicked.
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Um, you know, I think everybody panicked.
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Oh my gosh.
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Yeah.
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Because all the tour dates of course
were canceled and had all kinds
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of great things going to happen.
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But, uh, uh, just, I remember we, I
had a vehicle, I sold it immediately.
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We got down here with my wife
and I just Had the one vehicle
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and we've got three kids.
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We just, uh, hunkered down.
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Um, to be honest, um,
we made the most of it.
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It ended up being a real nice time.
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And, uh, we built, uh,
built a chicken coop.
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That gave me something
to focus on for a while.
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There was a little bit of depression
come, you know, two years into it where
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I kind of, uh, just kind of went through
a period where It was just unexplained
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sadness, but I think just, it, socially
it was a big, uh, shake up, too.
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And I think of our kids, they were at the
age where they weren't really interacting
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with a lot of other kids, but, uh,
but the home time was nice, but man.
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I'm glad it's over.
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Shaun: Yeah, absolutely.
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Yeah.
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Would you consider yourself
like a social person?
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Like, do you thrive off of the
energy of, uh, of comrades?
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And I
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Dave: would say that I, I definitely do.
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Like I, I'm, I'm kind of a mix of
definitely, uh, I was a shy kid growing
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up and I, I, I do feel like an introvert
a lot of the time, but, uh, at these
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festivals, this is where you find your
like, like minded people where you fit in.
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And, you know, maybe in school, I kind
of was more of a wallflower hanging
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out with the quiet kids or, or the
kids out back smoking or whatever.
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But at a, at a festival, it's like,
it's like an episode of the Muppet Show.
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You know, everybody's like, wow,
they're just like, like, like me.
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Shaun: Now, and you flew in
directly for this festival, right?
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Yeah, yeah, we were, we were in
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Dave: Alberta.
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I was at the Edmonton
Folk Festival last week.
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So flew in for this a direct flight
from Halifax, which is really nice nice
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and the so I'll head back on Monday And
then I play a show Next week in Nova
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Scotia near my hometown, and then I'm
off to Denmark to do six shows I think
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I'm gonna be over there for ten days.
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So Wow, so that'll be a big trip there
Have you been there before this will
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be my third trip there, but this will
be only my first time playing Shows
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that aren't part of the festival.
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Usually I go over and play the tuner
festival And, uh, there was a fellow that
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saw me play there last, or a couple of
years ago, and he spoke to me afterwards,
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and he has a little booking agency
there, and he books four tours a year,
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and he, he, he booked, uh, booked me a
little run of dates, so, pretty grateful.
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Shaun: That's great.
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Yeah.
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Do you think that the festival scene
has changed since before the pandemic
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since this is the first time that I've
seen you since the That was that like
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that was August of 2019 and then the
pandemic was in the spring of 2020 So,
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uh, you know since 2019 Do you think the
festival scene has changed now that you're
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because it's really kind of kicked off
again I feel like in the last year or so.
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Dave: I feel like I don't know if it's my
imagination or not, but I feel like the
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festivals that I've gone to so far this
summer, there seems to be just fresh blood
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in attendance now, and more young people
coming to the festivals now, and I'm not
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sure why that is, but it's a good sign.
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I think that because we need
that, obviously we need, do you
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need young people coming to these
festivals to keep them going and
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to keep the excitement going.
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And it seems to be the case when I
look around, I'm seeing, wow, there's
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a lot of young people here this year.
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And, and, uh, and, and, uh, you
know, I think in some ways, probably
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there's trying to get their wings
under them again to the festivals.
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It's probably not real
easy to kind of restart.
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Uh, but, but, uh, Yeah, yeah,
this festival in particular.
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Have you had a chance
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Shaun: to walk around a little bit?
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I think you just got here, right?
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A
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Dave: little bit.
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I've been here for two or three hours
and, um, walking around a little bit.
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And, uh, I haven't gone into the
campground yet, into the woods there.
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But, uh, I might make my way there.
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That's a whole other world.
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It is.
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Yeah.
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It's like all kinds of fairies and
hobbits and things, wizards back there.
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They're all good witches.
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Yeah, that's right.
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Yeah.
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They cast a good spell.
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Shaun: And we're actually talking
right before you're set with a
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JP Cormier, uh, right upstairs.
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We're right below the main stage here.
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That's right.
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So yeah.
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Dave: Yeah.
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Tomorrow night we're here at 5 45.
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Okay.
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Shaun: Yeah.
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Amazing.
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Oh, that's right.
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In a little bit, you're playing
over on the craft stage.
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The craft
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Dave: stage in about
an hour, I think, yeah.
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Yeah, who are you playing with?
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Uh, well, um, Chris Matthews
is, is, is part of it.
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Oh, perfect.
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I didn't see who else is
playing there, but I know she's
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playing there and I love her.
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Yeah, she's a
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Shaun: past podcast guest,
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Dave: too.
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Fantastic.
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Yeah, I discovered her at the Kerrville
Folk Festival a few years ago.
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We were riding in the shuttle
together and I thought, wow, what a
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sweet person this is and so smart.
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And I hope she's good because
I really like her as a person.
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I saw her show.
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I was blown away and, um, That's
around the time that we were, you
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know, fighting a really dirty bleach
craft pulp mill and I'm in my hometown
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and she was singing all these great
songs that kind of tied into that.
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I found that I found her
show quite a quite powerful.
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And so I'm looking forward to
being on the stage with her today.
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Yeah.
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And how did you hook up with JP Cormier?
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JP and I met back in the 90s.
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Um, I, I had a, a, a pub band back then
with a fiddle player, and the fiddle
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player canceled the night before show.
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And, uh, JP had just moved back from
Nashville and he hadn't been playing
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out around too much locally at home.
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But, uh, he was, he was back in
Chetty camp, I guess, and Cape
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Breton and I phoned him and, uh, he,
he took the gig and filled in, um,
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with my played fiddle with my band.
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And I was blown away by
how good this guy was.
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And he played the guitar and
sang harmonies that night.
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And then, uh, about a year or so
later, he played on my record,
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my, one of my first recordings.
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And then he did a recording
called Another Morning.
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And I went out as his special guest
on that tour, we traveled together.
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And then that fall, his bass player
quit two weeks before the tour, so
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I took the gig as his bass player
for his first cross Canada tour.
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But we've been working together on and
off in different kinds of projects.
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Forms over the years and at one point
he his marriage had split up and he
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moved to Pictou County to be close to
me It was only like 15 minutes from
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my house So he was coming over every
night and we were hanging out and he
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thought you know since we're hanging
out Maybe we should be productive too.
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We start writing and
recording one song per night.
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Oh cool.
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Just like okay Well, we had an album
quickly and then we started touring
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it together as Gunning Cormier.
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So
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Shaun: Wow, that's great.
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It's fun.
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Yeah Now, are fiddle players and
bass players typically unreliable?
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Is this, uh, some insight
that I don't know about?
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Seems to be a bit of a theme there,
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Dave: I don't know.
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But, uh, yeah, they're really in demand.
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But, uh, I don't know.
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I think, um, J.
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P.
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and I have been through everything
together, like over the years, 90s.
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And we're best friends.
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Um Yeah, I just I love getting to travel
with him and and getting to work with
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him And he's just he's so talented
and I can't wait for you guys to meet.
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Shaun: Oh, yeah, absolutely me, too Yeah,
no, is it different when you're playing
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instead of playing solo playing with
another person off on stage at a festival?
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Dave: Yeah, and the the challenge
will for JP night JP plays a every
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stringed instrument pretty well.
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But when we do our Gunning Cormier show
together, it's just two guitars and two
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vocals, two acoustic guitars, two vocals.
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So I sort of try to play some bass
parts every now and then I try
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to free up the middle for him.
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He does a lot of picking and things too.
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Um, but the goal is always to
try to blend our guitars together
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and to blend the vocals together.
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And it's, uh, we, we've, We've really
focused on kind of coming together to
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create something that's, uh, not, not
necessarily me or him, but it's kind
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of an us thing and it's pretty cool.
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Shaun: Yeah.
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Do you have any inspirations for a duo
that are different from like your solo
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inspirations as a singer songwriter?
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Dave: Yeah, I mean, it changes how we
write songs because we're writing songs,
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um, uh, with the duo show in mind.
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Um, so, and if we pick cover
tunes, we're, we're, we're
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choosing songs that work together.
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So we don't, we actually don't really
do any of our own material in the show.
233
00:11:06,890 --> 00:11:10,430
It's, it's, we have our own Gunning
Cormier show that's entirely
234
00:11:10,430 --> 00:11:11,770
different than Dave Gunning or J.
235
00:11:11,770 --> 00:11:11,920
P.
236
00:11:11,920 --> 00:11:12,430
Cormier.
237
00:11:12,660 --> 00:11:13,110
Wow.
238
00:11:13,229 --> 00:11:13,589
Shaun: Yeah.
239
00:11:13,710 --> 00:11:13,920
Dave: That's
240
00:11:13,920 --> 00:11:14,330
Shaun: awesome.
241
00:11:14,559 --> 00:11:15,030
That's awesome.
242
00:11:15,229 --> 00:11:17,960
And you had an album come out
in the past year or so, right?
243
00:11:18,000 --> 00:11:22,355
Dave: Yeah, I had um, Well, I had, uh,
probably a couple since I've been here.
244
00:11:22,415 --> 00:11:24,905
Um, no, up against the sky had
just come out when I was here.
245
00:11:24,925 --> 00:11:25,215
Yes.
246
00:11:25,295 --> 00:11:29,564
And the same storm has came out
just, um, during the pandemic.
247
00:11:29,865 --> 00:11:36,274
And I wrote the same storm just, you know,
um, you know, uh, basically the whole
248
00:11:36,295 --> 00:11:39,485
COVID thing, people said, well, we're
all in the same boat, but it's like, Oh
249
00:11:39,485 --> 00:11:43,025
no, no, we're kind of all in our own,
we're all in our own separate boats, but
250
00:11:43,025 --> 00:11:44,385
we're all in the same storm, you know?
251
00:11:45,005 --> 00:11:46,814
So I kind of inspired the song.
252
00:11:46,814 --> 00:11:48,875
So I wrote, I wrote sort of a happy.
253
00:11:49,795 --> 00:11:53,535
upbeat song about some of the, some of
the good things that we experienced at
254
00:11:53,535 --> 00:11:55,395
home during the whole lockdown thing.
255
00:11:55,905 --> 00:11:58,985
Um, but anyway, yeah, The Same
Storm is the, is, is my latest
256
00:11:58,985 --> 00:12:03,314
record and songs that I wrote kind
of while I was, while we were home.
257
00:12:03,835 --> 00:12:04,485
Shaun: That's great.
258
00:12:04,685 --> 00:12:05,055
Dave: Yeah.
259
00:12:05,055 --> 00:12:06,615
And you said you're working on an album?
260
00:12:07,005 --> 00:12:07,745
Um, work?
261
00:12:07,795 --> 00:12:09,235
I'm writing right now.
262
00:12:09,265 --> 00:12:13,604
I, I, I produced a lot of records for
other people in the last couple of years.
263
00:12:13,604 --> 00:12:16,365
I said yes to too many people
and I, so I'd be traveling.
264
00:12:16,365 --> 00:12:18,444
I'd be on the road for
three weeks or something.
265
00:12:18,444 --> 00:12:20,595
I'd come home and have to
work every day in the studio.
266
00:12:21,155 --> 00:12:24,265
Um, and it's just, um, a
lot of deadlines for people.
267
00:12:24,265 --> 00:12:26,185
They had to get their
records out by certain dates.
268
00:12:27,545 --> 00:12:32,355
Managed to get everything done on time
And I'm proud of the records that we've
269
00:12:32,465 --> 00:12:36,255
that I got to work on but uh but I'm gonna
start saying no now for a couple years
270
00:12:36,255 --> 00:12:41,694
and try to free myself up to to get back
at focusing on writing and Recording,
271
00:12:41,755 --> 00:12:45,545
you know songs that I'm working on So
that's what I'm excited about right now
272
00:12:45,545 --> 00:12:49,990
is just to kind of get back at creating
and writing and this Lots of stories and
273
00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:53,650
things that I've heard over the over the
while that I want to kind of get get at
274
00:12:53,839 --> 00:12:56,540
Shaun: yeah, absolutely Yeah, and
probably your European tour will
275
00:12:56,540 --> 00:12:58,120
uh, maybe influence you as well.
276
00:12:58,130 --> 00:12:59,989
Yeah get inspiration when you're on tour.
277
00:13:00,420 --> 00:13:06,229
Dave: Oh, yeah yeah, the people you
meet the stories you hear and and
278
00:13:06,230 --> 00:13:12,770
Everybody's lives and everybody's, you
know kind of going through this journey
279
00:13:12,770 --> 00:13:21,480
and and And obviously I love hearing
about You know, the stories from from
280
00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:26,379
people in here, you know, and, uh,
you know, like it's, I don't know.
281
00:13:26,379 --> 00:13:27,680
It's just enjoy.
282
00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:29,579
Um, enjoy that.
283
00:13:29,579 --> 00:13:31,150
Denmark is a special place.
284
00:13:31,539 --> 00:13:36,499
I've only been there twice in
the past, but but I find the
285
00:13:36,500 --> 00:13:40,900
audiences, um, just they're
beautiful people to play music for.
286
00:13:41,380 --> 00:13:45,465
And, um, They love the stories.
287
00:13:45,625 --> 00:13:49,445
And I remember when the guy said, we're
going to book you some dates over here.
288
00:13:49,995 --> 00:13:52,595
Uh, I said, well, what
about the language barrier?
289
00:13:52,595 --> 00:13:53,725
He said, don't worry about that.
290
00:13:53,865 --> 00:13:57,414
They all understand English, and they
love the stories, and they love the
291
00:13:57,414 --> 00:14:00,125
jokes, and just do what you do, you know.
292
00:14:01,200 --> 00:14:02,000
Maybe slow it down
293
00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:05,290
Shaun: a little, but that's great.
294
00:14:05,330 --> 00:14:09,090
Now, when you go over there, do you try
to immerse yourself in the local culture?
295
00:14:09,090 --> 00:14:11,260
Do you pick up any
local music or anything?
296
00:14:11,260 --> 00:14:12,429
Dave: Oh yeah, for sure.
297
00:14:12,449 --> 00:14:18,159
Um, I mean, the festivals are especially
good for doing that, but I'm hoping
298
00:14:18,180 --> 00:14:22,039
on days off to, uh, I'll be traveling
with some people that will know a
299
00:14:22,049 --> 00:14:26,610
lot of the local musicians and, um,
there's some incredible, incredible
300
00:14:26,619 --> 00:14:28,990
fiddlers from over there and, uh, and I.
301
00:14:29,580 --> 00:14:32,180
And a great folk music scene over there.
302
00:14:33,050 --> 00:14:37,790
Um, so yeah, I'm hoping to
get to see some of that.
303
00:14:37,790 --> 00:14:42,700
I won't have a ton of time to do, to,
to travel around just to be a tourist,
304
00:14:42,700 --> 00:14:44,120
but I will have a few days off.
305
00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:45,030
Shaun: Yeah.
306
00:14:45,280 --> 00:14:46,019
That's awesome.
307
00:14:46,119 --> 00:14:46,419
Shaun (2): Yeah.
308
00:14:46,649 --> 00:14:47,364
Shaun: That's really great.
309
00:14:47,805 --> 00:14:50,895
Now you had mentioned twice during
this podcast, uh, bass, uh, playing
310
00:14:50,895 --> 00:14:54,825
bass parts for when you're up there
with JP and also filling in for bass.
311
00:14:55,025 --> 00:14:56,645
Uh, I didn't know that you played bass.
312
00:14:56,645 --> 00:14:57,534
Do you, how many instruments
313
00:14:57,535 --> 00:14:57,695
Dave: do you
314
00:14:57,695 --> 00:14:58,075
Shaun: play?
315
00:14:58,165 --> 00:15:01,935
Dave: Uh, well, I play, I play,
um, lots of different instruments
316
00:15:01,935 --> 00:15:02,964
when I'm producing records.
317
00:15:02,964 --> 00:15:06,445
Like I'll play banjo or mandolin
or bouzouki or guitars or
318
00:15:06,445 --> 00:15:08,015
bass or drums or keyboards.
319
00:15:08,235 --> 00:15:13,045
So like sometimes I'll play whatever
I'll play, whatever is required for the
320
00:15:13,045 --> 00:15:14,644
songs that I might be helping produce.
321
00:15:15,290 --> 00:15:16,720
and then hire people to come in.
322
00:15:16,720 --> 00:15:21,130
I don't play pedal steel or, or Hammond
or anything, but I can do simple
323
00:15:21,130 --> 00:15:26,380
parts on organ and, and simple piano
things, but, but I, um, otherwise
324
00:15:26,380 --> 00:15:28,740
hire, hire players to do parts.
325
00:15:29,189 --> 00:15:34,159
Um, but I did, I have
toured as a bass player.
326
00:15:34,199 --> 00:15:40,000
Um, you know, I play upright bass and
I play electric bass and, and, uh,
327
00:15:41,170 --> 00:15:44,785
with JP, I played electric bass and,
um, There was an artist in the county.
328
00:15:45,530 --> 00:15:46,709
Name's Stompin Tom Connors.
329
00:15:46,709 --> 00:15:49,350
I played, uh, I played upright
bass for Tom and played electric
330
00:15:49,350 --> 00:15:50,480
bass for JP or other, but.
331
00:15:50,920 --> 00:15:51,449
Shaun: Yeah, of course.
332
00:15:51,449 --> 00:15:54,560
I think our last chat we,
we bonded about Stompin Tom.
333
00:15:54,560 --> 00:15:55,099
Yeah, we talked about, that's right.
334
00:15:55,099 --> 00:15:56,140
Yeah, we talked about,
I remember that now.
335
00:15:57,169 --> 00:15:59,349
Dave: Yeah, as soon as I mentioned
it, I was like, yeah, we, it.
336
00:16:00,310 --> 00:16:02,659
Shaun: Okay, and you are
the pride of Picktaw County.
337
00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:05,089
Uh, the last time we also
talked about the paper mill.
338
00:16:05,140 --> 00:16:06,040
Uh, so you have, uh,
339
00:16:07,450 --> 00:16:12,600
Dave: The paper mill has closed, so, um,
I mean, um, it was a lot, a lot of work.
340
00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:15,200
We, we spent, uh, close to 15 years on it.
341
00:16:15,720 --> 00:16:17,029
Uh, we formed a group.
342
00:16:18,325 --> 00:16:20,555
We became quite
knowledgeable about the mill.
343
00:16:20,555 --> 00:16:24,145
We had, um, a couple of pulp and paper
experts on our group and two scientists
344
00:16:24,145 --> 00:16:25,515
that had worked with Environment Canada.
345
00:16:25,955 --> 00:16:29,095
And we attracted, um, some
corporate folks and, uh, business
346
00:16:29,095 --> 00:16:30,345
people from the community.
347
00:16:30,814 --> 00:16:33,884
We, uh, my brother said, we're not
going to be activists, we're going to
348
00:16:33,884 --> 00:16:37,304
be factivists, which is going to take
a little longer, but it, it allowed
349
00:16:37,304 --> 00:16:39,125
us to gain trust from the government.
350
00:16:39,485 --> 00:16:43,264
So when, when we were meeting with
them, so over, over a period of
351
00:16:43,265 --> 00:16:46,005
several years, we gained their trust.
352
00:16:46,585 --> 00:16:51,965
And we were able to, um, pressure
the government, which empowered
353
00:16:51,965 --> 00:16:54,745
them to make the right decision.
354
00:16:55,435 --> 00:17:01,445
And the premier, um, when it came
down to the wire, uh, the company,
355
00:17:01,445 --> 00:17:05,665
which is foreign owned, um, wanted
an extension to continue dumping
356
00:17:05,665 --> 00:17:08,875
the effluent into the middle of Boat
Harbor, which is right where our
357
00:17:08,875 --> 00:17:11,055
only First Nations community lives.
358
00:17:11,565 --> 00:17:17,359
And, um, the premier, uh, did not
grant an extension to use Boat Harbor.
359
00:17:17,410 --> 00:17:20,629
He, he basically forced them to shut down.
360
00:17:20,859 --> 00:17:21,230
Wow.
361
00:17:21,290 --> 00:17:21,980
Um, and I,
362
00:17:21,990 --> 00:17:24,470
Shaun: from the pressure from
the community and from you, I
363
00:17:24,470 --> 00:17:28,939
Dave: think, I think our group, like my
role in the group was to meet with pulp
364
00:17:28,939 --> 00:17:36,139
and paper experts and translate the, the,
uh, technical, uh, information into plain
365
00:17:36,139 --> 00:17:37,919
speak so that people could understand it.
366
00:17:38,379 --> 00:17:45,120
But, and, and we had to, we had to kind
of keep their, identities hidden because
367
00:17:45,520 --> 00:17:49,850
some of the people on our group were
actively working in the industry and,
368
00:17:49,850 --> 00:17:54,420
um, one engineer in particular said, you
know, if I talk to the media directly,
369
00:17:54,420 --> 00:17:56,670
I can lose my engineering certificate.
370
00:17:57,260 --> 00:17:59,710
It's, so he said, I need
to remain anonymous.
371
00:17:59,710 --> 00:18:06,229
And so my role was to speak, uh, connect
with media, connect with government,
372
00:18:06,229 --> 00:18:10,875
set up meetings and, and, um, put
things into layman's terms and then
373
00:18:10,885 --> 00:18:15,064
have them re read the material to
make sure that it was still accurate,
374
00:18:15,095 --> 00:18:18,965
scientifically accurate after I
had translated it into plain speak.
375
00:18:19,004 --> 00:18:19,395
Yeah.
376
00:18:19,434 --> 00:18:21,635
It took, uh, hours and hours and hours.
377
00:18:21,635 --> 00:18:22,824
It was like a full time job.
378
00:18:23,595 --> 00:18:28,584
But, uh, yeah, and we, my brother and
I kind of started the group way back.
379
00:18:29,494 --> 00:18:34,144
And by the end of it, we had a
very large group of, of people
380
00:18:34,144 --> 00:18:35,904
that were, were helping out.
381
00:18:35,984 --> 00:18:36,394
And.
382
00:18:37,629 --> 00:18:41,520
it, it empowered, I think it
helped empower the premier
383
00:18:41,520 --> 00:18:42,419
to make the right decision.
384
00:18:42,610 --> 00:18:43,010
Shaun: Wow.
385
00:18:43,199 --> 00:18:43,889
Congratulations.
386
00:18:43,949 --> 00:18:44,209
Oh
387
00:18:44,240 --> 00:18:44,560
Dave: gosh.
388
00:18:44,560 --> 00:18:44,749
Yeah.
389
00:18:44,749 --> 00:18:47,350
It was, it was a learning
experience for sure.
390
00:18:47,429 --> 00:18:47,770
Yeah.
391
00:18:48,539 --> 00:18:51,559
Shaun: Now, do you think that that has,
this process has changed or influenced
392
00:18:51,560 --> 00:18:54,909
your songwriting as far as being like
a researcher and then fact finder?
393
00:18:54,939 --> 00:18:55,589
Oh my gosh.
394
00:18:55,610 --> 00:18:56,149
It, it's
395
00:18:56,159 --> 00:19:01,649
Dave: influenced it in terms of, uh,
well, I, I, uh, I wrote these hands, which
396
00:19:01,649 --> 00:19:02,544
is one of my more personal favorites.
397
00:19:03,084 --> 00:19:06,425
well known songs after watching
a Pete Seeger documentary.
398
00:19:06,435 --> 00:19:09,554
And it was right, we were in the
thick of this thing, fighting it hard.
399
00:19:09,955 --> 00:19:12,485
And then I watched the Pete Seeger
documentary and I was like, Oh my
400
00:19:12,485 --> 00:19:14,514
gosh, I've got nothing on that guy.
401
00:19:15,074 --> 00:19:17,195
You know, he fought the
good fight his entire life.
402
00:19:17,205 --> 00:19:19,564
And I just, it actually
brought me to tears and I wrote
403
00:19:19,564 --> 00:19:20,614
the song the next morning.
404
00:19:20,615 --> 00:19:24,584
And, uh, there's a bunch of other songs.
405
00:19:24,584 --> 00:19:29,154
At the time I, I wanted to, uh, I was
worried that I wasn't going to write songs
406
00:19:29,184 --> 00:19:31,365
because I was, So busy with this issue.
407
00:19:31,985 --> 00:19:37,745
Um, but I guess passion fuels
creativity and I was so passionate
408
00:19:37,745 --> 00:19:41,905
about this that it inspired my
creativity to start writing songs.
409
00:19:41,905 --> 00:19:47,385
I wrote lots of songs inspired by the,
by the issue and um, some of them on the
410
00:19:47,385 --> 00:19:50,925
nose, some of them not really, some of
them, you know, you can tell, oh yeah,
411
00:19:50,925 --> 00:19:52,745
that's definitely inspired by the issue.
412
00:19:52,745 --> 00:19:58,459
But I mean, it was a long battle and my
brother and I, Being in the thick of it,
413
00:19:59,120 --> 00:20:02,199
you know, early on the RCMP would reach
out to us because they were worried about
414
00:20:02,199 --> 00:20:06,439
our safety telling us not to put pictures
of our kids in social media and, and, you
415
00:20:06,439 --> 00:20:10,809
know, put security cameras in your, on
your property and, uh, just be careful.
416
00:20:10,809 --> 00:20:12,749
And if you notice anything
out of the ordinary, please
417
00:20:12,749 --> 00:20:13,929
reach out to us immediately.
418
00:20:14,309 --> 00:20:16,009
And they gave us their cell phone numbers.
419
00:20:16,009 --> 00:20:18,899
They said, you can call 911, but
here's our cell phone numbers because
420
00:20:19,310 --> 00:20:19,439
Shaun (2): you
421
00:20:19,439 --> 00:20:22,439
Dave: guys are at the front of this
and we're a little bit worried and we
422
00:20:22,439 --> 00:20:24,070
don't have a textbook example to go on.
423
00:20:24,669 --> 00:20:27,399
And I remember my brother saying,
you know, have you noticed
424
00:20:27,399 --> 00:20:28,219
anything out of the ordinary?
425
00:20:28,219 --> 00:20:31,909
He said to the police and they
said, well, you know, Matt, the
426
00:20:31,909 --> 00:20:33,779
RCMP, she said, well, why you ask?
427
00:20:33,779 --> 00:20:36,969
And he said, well, because you call the
meeting, you keep, you keep calling me.
428
00:20:37,699 --> 00:20:41,649
But at one point, uh, the, uh,
the company was owned by Asia pulp
429
00:20:41,649 --> 00:20:43,379
and paper for Indonesia, China.
430
00:20:43,919 --> 00:20:47,899
And, uh, so a big, uh, you know,
the, I mean, if you trace it back far
431
00:20:47,899 --> 00:20:50,299
enough, it's basically the Chinese
Mafia that owned the place, so.
432
00:20:50,299 --> 00:20:50,469
Oh.
433
00:20:51,459 --> 00:20:56,605
So, so they, we were a little bit, um,
worried for a while until They proposed
434
00:20:56,635 --> 00:20:59,754
putting the effluent pipe out into
the Northumberland Strait, which was
435
00:20:59,754 --> 00:21:01,075
going to affect the lobster fishery.
436
00:21:01,095 --> 00:21:04,524
And all the lobster fishermen stood up
and said, no, no, you're not doing that.
437
00:21:05,075 --> 00:21:07,314
So all of a sudden 3000
lobster fishermen stood up.
438
00:21:07,325 --> 00:21:08,945
We figured, okay, we're okay now.
439
00:21:08,984 --> 00:21:09,384
Yeah.
440
00:21:10,504 --> 00:21:10,794
Shaun: Wow.
441
00:21:10,794 --> 00:21:11,304
That's amazing.
442
00:21:11,894 --> 00:21:12,764
Dave: That's really powerful.
443
00:21:12,774 --> 00:21:13,274
Yeah.
444
00:21:13,345 --> 00:21:13,605
Yeah.
445
00:21:13,605 --> 00:21:18,200
And, and I think, you know,
That's part of what we're supposed
446
00:21:18,200 --> 00:21:20,149
to do, I suppose, as folkies.
447
00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:24,440
Like, I remember this older fellow in my
community saying, you know, you're out
448
00:21:24,450 --> 00:21:28,489
preaching, you know, singing these songs
about peace and love and the environment.
449
00:21:28,800 --> 00:21:31,129
He said, make sure your own
backyard is clean first.
450
00:21:31,510 --> 00:21:31,850
Yeah.
451
00:21:31,859 --> 00:21:33,039
Because you won't have credibility.
452
00:21:33,749 --> 00:21:34,129
Yeah.
453
00:21:34,129 --> 00:21:38,159
And he said, like, our community, your
neighbors, your friends and family,
454
00:21:38,379 --> 00:21:40,700
and the First Nations community
over there are being poisoned.
455
00:21:41,735 --> 00:21:43,844
So you, you have to fight here.
456
00:21:44,594 --> 00:21:45,925
So I'm glad I did.
457
00:21:46,155 --> 00:21:46,594
Yeah.
458
00:21:46,705 --> 00:21:47,534
Shaun: I'm glad it's over.
459
00:21:47,604 --> 00:21:48,354
Absolutely.
460
00:21:48,594 --> 00:21:49,054
Yeah.
461
00:21:49,374 --> 00:21:49,584
Yeah.
462
00:21:49,584 --> 00:21:50,245
That's amazing.
463
00:21:50,245 --> 00:21:50,475
Yeah.
464
00:21:50,694 --> 00:21:52,915
Now tell me a little bit about
your songwriting process.
465
00:21:52,915 --> 00:21:57,724
Do you start with a idea in mind,
like for, uh, for lyrics or given
466
00:21:57,724 --> 00:21:59,364
your producer background now?
467
00:21:59,634 --> 00:22:02,034
Do you have a fuller arrangement in mind?
468
00:22:02,084 --> 00:22:06,144
Dave: I definitely, my, my high beams
don't work that well, but I can picture
469
00:22:06,144 --> 00:22:10,444
a full arrangement, but I just sort of
chase it any way I can get it, you know,
470
00:22:10,464 --> 00:22:14,284
sometimes a title, sometimes a story,
sometimes something on the guitar or.
471
00:22:14,439 --> 00:22:18,669
A little bit of music or a melody,
but honestly it can happen any, any
472
00:22:18,919 --> 00:22:22,350
different number of ways and I just,
I'll take it any way I can get it.
473
00:22:22,350 --> 00:22:26,009
You always think, you know, how did,
how did I, how did I write that?
474
00:22:26,019 --> 00:22:27,600
I hope I can write another one someday.
475
00:22:28,679 --> 00:22:32,909
A friend of mine said, uh, any, maybe
you heard this from, from somewhere else.
476
00:22:32,909 --> 00:22:36,340
I don't know, but Ron Hines, I remember
I was at a songwriter circle with Ron
477
00:22:36,799 --> 00:22:40,350
and somebody said, Hey Ron, like where,
you know, how do you write your songs?
478
00:22:40,350 --> 00:22:42,479
And he says, I don't
have, I don't have a clue.
479
00:22:42,499 --> 00:22:43,229
He says, if I knew where.
480
00:22:43,730 --> 00:22:46,120
Good songs came from
my, from my move there.
481
00:22:47,810 --> 00:22:48,580
Shaun: Oh, that's amazing.
482
00:22:48,610 --> 00:22:48,860
Yeah.
483
00:22:48,930 --> 00:22:49,649
That's amazing.
484
00:22:49,649 --> 00:22:50,430
I like that a lot.
485
00:22:50,430 --> 00:22:51,319
Yeah.
486
00:22:51,320 --> 00:22:54,960
So, uh, so tell me again, uh, you're
going to be in Denmark coming up
487
00:22:55,080 --> 00:22:58,689
and, um, are you going to be touring
back in Canada or the United States
488
00:22:58,689 --> 00:23:02,010
anytime soon that maybe my, uh, my
listeners could come check you out?
489
00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:04,080
My stateside listeners.
490
00:23:04,139 --> 00:23:04,540
Yeah.
491
00:23:04,540 --> 00:23:04,810
We're going
492
00:23:04,810 --> 00:23:08,559
Dave: to be continuing to, to get there.
493
00:23:09,210 --> 00:23:12,600
to do shows here for sure in this region.
494
00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:14,820
I don't know offhand
when we're coming back.
495
00:23:15,210 --> 00:23:17,600
I, my work visa expires this weekend.
496
00:23:17,690 --> 00:23:18,080
Okay.
497
00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:18,350
Yeah.
498
00:23:18,350 --> 00:23:23,259
So this is my last show on this visa and
I'm reapplying now to, to get another one.
499
00:23:23,710 --> 00:23:28,879
And, uh, we'll, we've got some
shows on the books, uh, that are a
500
00:23:28,879 --> 00:23:30,800
possibility if the visa comes through.
501
00:23:30,810 --> 00:23:31,889
So that's awesome.
502
00:23:31,899 --> 00:23:32,210
Yeah.
503
00:23:32,210 --> 00:23:32,530
Yeah.
504
00:23:32,530 --> 00:23:34,720
But the dates, we always put
the dates on the website.
505
00:23:34,730 --> 00:23:35,240
Dave gunning.
506
00:23:35,389 --> 00:23:36,220
com is mine.
507
00:23:36,669 --> 00:23:37,700
And, uh, gunning.
508
00:23:38,014 --> 00:23:38,834
And Cormier.
509
00:23:38,864 --> 00:23:41,665
com is the shared website with, with JP.
510
00:23:41,804 --> 00:23:42,094
Shaun: Yeah.
511
00:23:42,094 --> 00:23:46,344
Any future collaborations or
any other, uh, work with JP
512
00:23:46,344 --> 00:23:47,384
that you have in the works?
513
00:23:47,395 --> 00:23:49,955
Dave: Well, he he'd like to
do another record together.
514
00:23:49,955 --> 00:23:54,024
He mentioned I, I, and I, I think we
should, because it's, it's, it's fun.
515
00:23:54,044 --> 00:23:57,304
And, uh, so we, we might
do a third record together.
516
00:23:57,364 --> 00:23:58,329
We've got two out now.
517
00:23:59,199 --> 00:24:04,030
And I'm working also with a great singer
songwriter from home named Rose Morrison
518
00:24:04,090 --> 00:24:05,800
and she's an incredible fiddle player.
519
00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:09,530
She was a fiddler in a group called the
Cotters years ago when she was quite
520
00:24:09,530 --> 00:24:14,929
young and she and I are starting to
do some shows together and it's, it's
521
00:24:14,929 --> 00:24:16,790
a, it's a riot, it's a pile of fun.
522
00:24:16,810 --> 00:24:17,610
She's incredible.
523
00:24:18,929 --> 00:24:21,459
So, uh, we're looking forward to that.
524
00:24:21,469 --> 00:24:25,159
Rose actually just played at Carnegie
Hall with Glenn Hansard for the tribute
525
00:24:25,159 --> 00:24:27,129
to Shane McGowan when he passed away.
526
00:24:27,300 --> 00:24:27,669
Oh, wow.
527
00:24:27,679 --> 00:24:27,850
They
528
00:24:27,850 --> 00:24:31,110
Dave: did, uh, Glenn sang Fairytale
of New York, and he hired Rosie to
529
00:24:31,110 --> 00:24:32,149
come down and play fiddle with him.
530
00:24:32,209 --> 00:24:33,619
So, it's That's cool.
531
00:24:33,629 --> 00:24:34,499
She's that good.
532
00:24:34,499 --> 00:24:35,370
She's so good.
533
00:24:35,379 --> 00:24:41,169
And, and what a gem of a human, and great
songwriter, singer, and So, I'm excited
534
00:24:41,169 --> 00:24:43,100
about working on some material with Rosie.
535
00:24:43,479 --> 00:24:45,300
Shaun: Yeah, does that give you
a different opportunity to play
536
00:24:45,300 --> 00:24:47,729
like different types of music when
you're playing with another guitar
537
00:24:47,729 --> 00:24:49,139
player versus a fiddle player?
538
00:24:49,409 --> 00:24:51,179
Dave: JP forces me to
stretch out, of course.
539
00:24:51,179 --> 00:24:53,149
He's like one of the greatest
guitar players in the world.
540
00:24:53,149 --> 00:24:53,750
I'm sure of it.
541
00:24:54,239 --> 00:24:57,159
And I mean, Chet Atkins was a fan of JP's.
542
00:24:57,160 --> 00:24:58,189
Oh, wow.
543
00:24:58,659 --> 00:25:03,389
JP played banjo for Bill Monroe in the
Grand Ole Opry when he was in his teens.
544
00:25:03,520 --> 00:25:04,030
Oh, geez.
545
00:25:04,030 --> 00:25:04,469
Oh, yeah.
546
00:25:04,500 --> 00:25:04,860
Wow.
547
00:25:04,860 --> 00:25:07,159
He was played with Waylon
Jennings and Marty Stewart.
548
00:25:07,489 --> 00:25:09,040
So the guy is a monster musician.
549
00:25:09,040 --> 00:25:11,629
So he, you know, forces me to kind of.
550
00:25:12,155 --> 00:25:16,145
To bring it, you know, and Rosie forces
me to bring it in a different way.
551
00:25:16,235 --> 00:25:20,105
Uh, Rosie and I have a Kind
of from the scene camp.
552
00:25:20,175 --> 00:25:21,615
We we like dynamics.
553
00:25:21,615 --> 00:25:25,985
We like playing really softly and having
those Sort of fragile moments and then
554
00:25:26,204 --> 00:25:30,014
these moments where it's a rush of energy
and you're just giving it Yeah, like
555
00:25:30,014 --> 00:25:36,875
kind of rock and roll Yeah, and she she
has that energy that that uh, that that
556
00:25:36,885 --> 00:25:39,705
forces me to You know Bring my A game.
557
00:25:40,435 --> 00:25:41,225
And are you jamming?
558
00:25:41,225 --> 00:25:42,135
Are you improvising?
559
00:25:42,135 --> 00:25:42,795
Oh yeah.
560
00:25:42,845 --> 00:25:43,105
Yeah.
561
00:25:43,145 --> 00:25:47,724
Because, uh, well, we are, uh,
when we're playing tunes, she'll
562
00:25:47,725 --> 00:25:51,835
play fiddle tunes that I'm just
following along the best I can.
563
00:25:51,845 --> 00:25:52,265
Yeah.
564
00:25:52,335 --> 00:25:55,024
And, uh, so that's definitely jam world.
565
00:25:55,135 --> 00:25:55,365
Yep.
566
00:25:55,395 --> 00:25:58,265
And then she will, she will
play, she'll accompany me on my
567
00:25:58,265 --> 00:26:00,365
songs and come up with parts.
568
00:26:00,655 --> 00:26:03,925
And they're, you know, not really
ever the same twice kind of things.
569
00:26:03,925 --> 00:26:04,445
Yeah.
570
00:26:04,495 --> 00:26:05,175
That's awesome.
571
00:26:05,175 --> 00:26:05,545
Yeah.
572
00:26:06,044 --> 00:26:07,735
Shaun: When you're playing
with JP, is it straight ahead,
573
00:26:07,735 --> 00:26:08,745
the stuff off of the album?
574
00:26:08,745 --> 00:26:10,934
We sort of stick to the arrangements.
575
00:26:10,995 --> 00:26:11,354
Um,
576
00:26:11,364 --> 00:26:13,584
Dave: there's a little bit of
jamming every now and then.
577
00:26:13,684 --> 00:26:16,094
Like the big moments
where we're, enter that.
578
00:26:16,674 --> 00:26:17,485
This is kind of fun.
579
00:26:18,014 --> 00:26:21,584
But we stick, you know, to the
arrangements to some degree.
580
00:26:22,045 --> 00:26:23,034
You know, in the songs.
581
00:26:23,589 --> 00:26:26,979
Shaun: Yeah, yeah, and does it change
so like playing a festival like
582
00:26:26,989 --> 00:26:30,259
putting together a set list or trying
to yeah as opposed to when you're
583
00:26:30,259 --> 00:26:32,159
Just doing the tour by ourselves.
584
00:26:32,209 --> 00:26:32,449
Dave: Yeah.
585
00:26:32,449 --> 00:26:35,949
Yeah when we're touring by ourselves
It's it's straight ahead to you know, 250
586
00:26:35,949 --> 00:26:37,579
minute sets with a 20 minute intermission.
587
00:26:37,579 --> 00:26:42,909
Yeah at a festival say okay, well, we've
got like a 60 minute set or whatever
588
00:26:43,429 --> 00:26:47,909
length the set is and we sort of look at
the how can we You know, kind of showcase
589
00:26:47,909 --> 00:26:51,699
different things here and, and, uh, so
we'll, we haven't actually figured out our
590
00:26:51,790 --> 00:26:53,500
set for tomorrow night, but we'll do that.
591
00:26:53,850 --> 00:26:54,000
Yeah.
592
00:26:54,000 --> 00:26:57,587
Shaun: I was talking, I saw Shanna
in a dress yesterday as she was
593
00:26:57,587 --> 00:26:59,709
putting together her set list, right?
594
00:26:59,709 --> 00:27:01,550
Which she, Oh, she's incredible.
595
00:27:01,550 --> 00:27:03,849
And she has a great,
some great stories too.
596
00:27:03,859 --> 00:27:05,250
Dave: She's funny, funny, funny.
597
00:27:05,510 --> 00:27:08,039
And it brought me to tears
with the song about her dad.
598
00:27:08,199 --> 00:27:08,839
Oh, yeah.
599
00:27:08,959 --> 00:27:09,499
Oh my God.
600
00:27:09,509 --> 00:27:09,729
Yeah.
601
00:27:09,729 --> 00:27:12,649
Shaun: She was playing on the craft
stage just a little while ago.
602
00:27:12,659 --> 00:27:12,960
Yeah.
603
00:27:13,040 --> 00:27:13,320
Dave: Yeah.
604
00:27:13,350 --> 00:27:15,600
It was, uh, she was an incredible.
605
00:27:16,039 --> 00:27:19,279
Shaun: But yeah, she was putting
together her set list, um, right next
606
00:27:19,289 --> 00:27:21,189
to the camp stage over there yesterday.
607
00:27:21,189 --> 00:27:22,769
And she said, is this how you do it?
608
00:27:22,769 --> 00:27:23,699
And she goes, yeah, pretty much.
609
00:27:23,699 --> 00:27:27,319
I just try to wing it, you know, when I,
uh, and is that what you're going to do?
610
00:27:27,340 --> 00:27:28,939
You're just going to kind of wing it
611
00:27:28,959 --> 00:27:29,590
Dave: for sure.
612
00:27:29,590 --> 00:27:29,889
Yeah.
613
00:27:29,889 --> 00:27:31,090
To a, to a certain degree.
614
00:27:31,090 --> 00:27:34,979
And yeah, you can, you know,
sometimes you'll do a set list
615
00:27:35,039 --> 00:27:36,449
just to make yourself feel good.
616
00:27:36,509 --> 00:27:36,969
Yeah.
617
00:27:37,239 --> 00:27:38,840
Or to appease to a crowd, right?
618
00:27:38,860 --> 00:27:40,289
Like, you know, if you see a certain
619
00:27:40,289 --> 00:27:41,989
Shaun: demographic or, uh,
620
00:27:41,989 --> 00:27:42,209
Dave: hear
621
00:27:42,209 --> 00:27:43,340
Shaun: something from earlier in the day,
622
00:27:43,340 --> 00:27:43,809
Dave: maybe somebody
623
00:27:43,809 --> 00:27:45,649
Shaun: might shout something out or.
624
00:27:45,670 --> 00:27:49,029
Do you listen to those people
when they shout out a song?
625
00:27:49,239 --> 00:27:49,509
Uh,
626
00:27:49,759 --> 00:27:50,840
Dave: sometimes, yeah.
627
00:27:50,840 --> 00:27:52,519
Yeah, sometimes we will, yeah.
628
00:27:53,209 --> 00:27:54,209
Yeah, yeah.
629
00:27:54,349 --> 00:27:56,429
Shaun: Now what about when you're
playing in the round over here?
630
00:27:56,489 --> 00:27:58,179
Uh, do you have an idea in mind?
631
00:27:58,179 --> 00:28:00,600
Or are you just going up
and feeling off the energy?
632
00:28:00,679 --> 00:28:01,870
Dave: I'll look at what it's called.
633
00:28:02,929 --> 00:28:04,619
I'll look at what the
title of the round is.
634
00:28:04,619 --> 00:28:05,939
And then I'll kind of go from there.
635
00:28:06,099 --> 00:28:07,509
I think it's called Topical Songs.
636
00:28:07,549 --> 00:28:08,609
I think you're correct, yeah.
637
00:28:08,609 --> 00:28:13,725
So, and, and uh, Chris and I come
from the same I think John Flynn might
638
00:28:13,725 --> 00:28:15,054
Shaun: be the other person who's playing.
639
00:28:15,104 --> 00:28:15,405
Who is this?
640
00:28:15,405 --> 00:28:16,475
John Flynn maybe?
641
00:28:16,594 --> 00:28:17,874
Dave: Yes, it is.
642
00:28:18,604 --> 00:28:18,995
Yeah, yeah.
643
00:28:19,385 --> 00:28:20,925
Yeah, okay, that's gonna be amazing.
644
00:28:21,074 --> 00:28:22,454
Yeah, that's a really great line up.
645
00:28:22,465 --> 00:28:23,635
That's an amazing line up.
646
00:28:23,635 --> 00:28:24,645
Shit, I should go practice.
647
00:28:24,645 --> 00:28:26,460
Ha, ha, ha.
648
00:28:26,460 --> 00:28:28,274
Ha, ha, ha.
649
00:28:28,274 --> 00:28:28,685
Man.
650
00:28:29,235 --> 00:28:30,234
Yeah, that's gonna be awesome.
651
00:28:30,614 --> 00:28:34,995
So, yeah, I guess, I mean And those
two writers, we've got lots in common.
652
00:28:35,344 --> 00:28:39,074
And maybe that's why we were put together
on this stage, but we kind of write about
653
00:28:39,164 --> 00:28:44,024
social justice things, and we've got
some common themes through our writing.
654
00:28:44,674 --> 00:28:46,924
So I would imagine that theme will kind of
655
00:28:47,404 --> 00:28:48,034
Shaun: pop up.
656
00:28:48,264 --> 00:28:48,864
That's awesome.
657
00:28:49,374 --> 00:28:51,844
Now you had mentioned, I think you
played with Chris Matthews, or you
658
00:28:51,844 --> 00:28:53,574
met Chris Matthews on the shuttle.
659
00:28:53,725 --> 00:28:54,215
Yeah.
660
00:28:54,264 --> 00:28:55,485
And you played at a festival with her.
661
00:28:55,495 --> 00:28:57,114
Have you ever played with John before?
662
00:28:58,350 --> 00:28:59,129
Besides here.
663
00:28:59,139 --> 00:29:02,570
I think he was, uh, I think he played
the Philadelphia Folk Festival in 2019.
664
00:29:02,570 --> 00:29:04,649
Dave: But we weren't on
the same stage together.
665
00:29:04,649 --> 00:29:08,839
I don't think, uh, so no, this will be
the first time that I'm actually getting
666
00:29:08,840 --> 00:29:10,949
to meet him and be on the stage with him.
667
00:29:11,110 --> 00:29:11,659
Shaun: That's awesome.
668
00:29:11,669 --> 00:29:11,949
Yeah.
669
00:29:12,209 --> 00:29:14,949
Do you have any favorite like
topical songs or, uh, you know,
670
00:29:14,969 --> 00:29:16,030
while we're on the subject?
671
00:29:16,090 --> 00:29:16,350
Well,
672
00:29:16,350 --> 00:29:17,239
Dave: I might, I don't know.
673
00:29:17,239 --> 00:29:21,629
I might to, I might do some of the
ones that are related to the pulp
674
00:29:21,629 --> 00:29:29,100
mill issue, you know, um, and, uh, And
because I was so involved with that
675
00:29:29,100 --> 00:29:33,720
issue and so outspoken about it, that
issue, I, I get asked quite often now
676
00:29:33,780 --> 00:29:35,720
to get involved with other issues.
677
00:29:36,260 --> 00:29:41,570
And, um, you know, uh, there was a
proposed gold mine going to go on
678
00:29:41,570 --> 00:29:43,059
a beautiful river in Nova Scotia.
679
00:29:43,060 --> 00:29:47,830
So, um, you know, I, I said, listen, I
can't really get too deeply involved.
680
00:29:47,830 --> 00:29:52,475
Like, uh, you know, I'd like to know
if I'm backed into the corner by an
681
00:29:52,534 --> 00:29:56,064
industry professional, I want to be
able to talk my way out of it, you know,
682
00:29:56,064 --> 00:29:57,554
and I don't know enough about that.
683
00:29:58,000 --> 00:30:00,590
To do it, but I knew enough
about the pulp mill to do that.
684
00:30:00,720 --> 00:30:01,090
Yeah.
685
00:30:01,139 --> 00:30:02,330
Well, cause you did your homework.
686
00:30:02,340 --> 00:30:03,419
Yeah, exactly.
687
00:30:03,419 --> 00:30:07,199
But I, but I did know enough about
the goldmine issue to write a song.
688
00:30:07,659 --> 00:30:09,690
So I, you know, I wrote
a song for them and
689
00:30:10,270 --> 00:30:10,360
Shaun: they
690
00:30:10,360 --> 00:30:11,519
Dave: shot a video for it.
691
00:30:11,520 --> 00:30:12,479
And, oh, that's great.
692
00:30:12,489 --> 00:30:13,480
And it helped a little bit.
693
00:30:13,480 --> 00:30:15,480
I think maybe that's awesome.
694
00:30:15,490 --> 00:30:17,790
So maybe I'll try to dig that
one out if I can remember it.
695
00:30:19,399 --> 00:30:19,960
Shaun: That's awesome.
696
00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:20,180
Yeah.
697
00:30:20,180 --> 00:30:23,620
Do you have any other, uh, activists
causes or, uh, you know, things that
698
00:30:23,620 --> 00:30:25,070
you're passionate about now that
699
00:30:25,070 --> 00:30:27,330
Dave: raise money right now?
700
00:30:27,370 --> 00:30:35,150
Um, I've helped start a school program
to, um, called Little Free Stores and
701
00:30:35,150 --> 00:30:40,529
Schools, but what we're doing is we're,
um, stocking a shell, shelves in schools
702
00:30:40,530 --> 00:30:46,009
in a discreet location so that the
teachers can, one on one, take students
703
00:30:46,009 --> 00:30:49,380
that they know are hungry into this area.
704
00:30:49,780 --> 00:30:53,305
And, um, Ask them if they would like
to take any food home for their family.
705
00:30:54,205 --> 00:30:56,915
And so it's basically a food
bank, but it's distributed
706
00:30:56,925 --> 00:30:57,975
through the school system.
707
00:30:58,544 --> 00:31:01,915
And, uh, they can discreetly take the
food home and backpacks or whatever.
708
00:31:01,915 --> 00:31:05,114
And they even have backpacks
for them if they don't have one.
709
00:31:05,755 --> 00:31:08,734
So we we've got, we've raised
over a hundred thousand dollars.
710
00:31:08,734 --> 00:31:10,375
We're trying to get to 200, 000 now.
711
00:31:10,505 --> 00:31:10,875
Wow.
712
00:31:10,885 --> 00:31:13,995
So it'll cost about 5, 000 per school.
713
00:31:14,005 --> 00:31:16,085
Something we're doing in
my province in Nova Scotia.
714
00:31:16,764 --> 00:31:19,645
But, uh, yeah, it's, it's a,
it's a cause that, uh, came up
715
00:31:19,645 --> 00:31:21,905
a friend of mine, Bruce Guthrow.
716
00:31:21,915 --> 00:31:24,065
He was wanting to do
it and he was too sick.
717
00:31:24,445 --> 00:31:27,124
Uh, he, he just passed
away actually last year.
718
00:31:27,215 --> 00:31:28,134
I'm sorry to hear that.
719
00:31:28,135 --> 00:31:28,824
Yeah, thanks.
720
00:31:28,824 --> 00:31:33,044
And, uh, he reached out to me, you
know, and pitched the idea and I
721
00:31:33,044 --> 00:31:34,514
said, man, that's, that's awesome.
722
00:31:34,514 --> 00:31:36,735
I, I, I definitely want to help if I can.
723
00:31:36,735 --> 00:31:39,875
And so I've been working with
that organization to do that.
724
00:31:40,500 --> 00:31:41,970
So that's what I've been up to lately.
725
00:31:42,060 --> 00:31:42,490
That's great.
726
00:31:42,500 --> 00:31:44,050
Now, uh, what's the name
of the organization?
727
00:31:44,160 --> 00:31:46,139
Uh, it's called the Zero Hunger Fund.
728
00:31:46,240 --> 00:31:46,430
Okay.
729
00:31:46,540 --> 00:31:50,450
And it's, uh, the Nova Scotia,
uh, uh, The Rural Communities
730
00:31:50,460 --> 00:31:51,940
Foundation of Nova Scotia.
731
00:31:52,370 --> 00:31:54,459
And it's called Zero Hunger Fund.
732
00:31:54,580 --> 00:31:59,970
Um, but, uh, You know, it's getting,
mostly getting support from other people
733
00:31:59,970 --> 00:32:03,970
in the province because it's, it's a,
it's a Nova Scotia thing that we're
734
00:32:03,970 --> 00:32:07,140
doing, but at this, at this point, yeah.
735
00:32:07,330 --> 00:32:09,410
Shaun: If people want to go
online, can they donate somewhere?
736
00:32:09,760 --> 00:32:10,820
Dave: Oh, yeah, for sure.
737
00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:17,189
Yeah, the Rural Communities Foundation
of Nova Scotia, and, um, I should do
738
00:32:17,189 --> 00:32:23,689
a, uh, post maybe on social media here
about it, um, soon, um, but it's just
739
00:32:23,690 --> 00:32:26,270
called the, uh, the Zero Hunger Fund.
740
00:32:26,639 --> 00:32:27,419
Yeah, great.
741
00:32:27,459 --> 00:32:30,250
Actually, I think that it's called
the Dave Gunning Zero Hunger Fund.
742
00:32:30,479 --> 00:32:34,105
It was going to be called the Bruce
Guthrow Zero Hunger Fund, and I Then
743
00:32:34,105 --> 00:32:36,835
they, they called it the Dave Gunning
Zero Hunger Fund, which I felt a little
744
00:32:36,835 --> 00:32:39,955
bit weird about, but I guess that's
how they direct people to it, so.
745
00:32:40,285 --> 00:32:42,625
Shaun: Well, I mean, you're,
you're, you are the pride of Paw
746
00:32:42,625 --> 00:32:47,215
County and you are, gosh, you know,
Canada's favorite son, so, oh gosh.
747
00:32:47,215 --> 00:32:47,275
Yeah.
748
00:32:47,275 --> 00:32:47,365
Well,
749
00:32:47,365 --> 00:32:50,875
Dave: we, uh, we, uh, I just played
my hometown actually, not just.
750
00:32:51,930 --> 00:32:55,490
A couple of nights ago, right on the
Pictou waterfront, and I've written
751
00:32:55,490 --> 00:32:59,020
so many songs about dead guys from
Pictou over the years, that I don't
752
00:32:59,020 --> 00:33:00,659
get hired New Year's Eve much anymore.
753
00:33:00,990 --> 00:33:01,620
Happy New Year!
754
00:33:01,620 --> 00:33:03,589
Here's another song about
a dead guy from Pictou.
755
00:33:05,099 --> 00:33:06,659
Shaun: Paying tribute
to the legacies, right?
756
00:33:06,659 --> 00:33:07,424
Yeah, that's right.
757
00:33:07,735 --> 00:33:08,425
That's awesome.
758
00:33:08,735 --> 00:33:11,294
Well, Dave Gunning, I know that
you have a set coming up soon.
759
00:33:11,294 --> 00:33:14,685
Was there anything that I didn't ask that
you think that I should have asked here?
760
00:33:14,805 --> 00:33:15,945
Dave: Oh gosh, man.
761
00:33:16,115 --> 00:33:19,794
I love talking to you, and I'm glad
you're doing this and back at her.
762
00:33:20,064 --> 00:33:20,494
Shaun: Yeah.
763
00:33:20,534 --> 00:33:20,885
Dave: Yeah.
764
00:33:20,894 --> 00:33:21,655
Shaun: Thank you so much.
765
00:33:21,655 --> 00:33:22,334
I appreciate that.
766
00:33:22,335 --> 00:33:23,354
It's always great talking to you.
767
00:33:23,354 --> 00:33:23,814
Love you, Sean.
768
00:33:23,874 --> 00:33:24,124
Bye.
769
00:33:24,384 --> 00:33:24,924
Love you, too.
770
00:33:24,925 --> 00:33:27,024
The last conversation that we
had was one of the favorites.
771
00:33:27,024 --> 00:33:28,235
I know the fans loved it, too.
772
00:33:28,235 --> 00:33:31,299
So, I just appreciate your time
and, uh, yeah, coming back.
773
00:33:31,340 --> 00:33:33,090
Come thank you for coming
back to Philadelphia.
774
00:33:33,139 --> 00:33:34,840
Dave: I appreciate being back here.
775
00:33:34,879 --> 00:33:36,300
I'm not taking it for granted now.
776
00:33:36,300 --> 00:33:37,440
I don't think any of us are.
777
00:33:37,600 --> 00:33:38,610
Shaun: Yeah, yeah,
778
00:33:38,659 --> 00:33:39,409
Dave: absolutely.
779
00:33:39,490 --> 00:33:39,859
Yeah.
780
00:33:39,859 --> 00:33:40,520
Thanks buddy.
781
00:33:40,590 --> 00:33:41,310
Thank you, Dave.
782
00:33:58,965 --> 00:34:02,175
I don't think anyone wants to
hear a football slash soccer.
783
00:34:06,245 --> 00:34:08,075
Oh man, I'm stoked.
784
00:34:08,285 --> 00:34:11,885
I'm in the parking lot of a
seven 11 in El Cajon, California.
785
00:34:23,495 --> 00:34:24,875
Man, these are great questions.
786
00:34:26,670 --> 00:34:31,565
, I think I, I, I think the an, the
answers, the answers are probably better.