Franklin McKay

  Sometimes songs are a slow build and sometimes they happen in the blink of an eye. Harry Hess and I sat down one winter weekend in early January 2024 and wrote "Give Me a Sign" start to finish. It started with a conversation, a title, a few attempts at a melody — nothing was working — and then it all came together rather quickly. Probably the fastest song I'd ever co-written. A few weeks later we were in a Toronto studio recording it, with Harry at the helm as producer. Unlike the old days most sessions are now virtual and it's rare to have everybody in the same room together. When it was finished it reminded me of a big Mutt Lange production and it's in the sweet spot, 92 bpm. I'm planning on doing a remix version featuring more of Bill's Hammond B3 vibes. The players: Bill Champlin — Hammond B3 organ (formerly of the band Chicago, 2x Grammy winner) Pete Lesperance — guitars (Harem Scarem) Russ Boswell — bass (Corey Hart, David Wilcox) Crei...

Metalworks Studios, Mississauga, November 2009. L-R: Chris Crerar, Russ Boswell, Franklin McKay, Mark Kelso.   November 2009. Metalworks Studios, Mississauga. I walked into a real recording studio for the first time since the 1980s — back when I was a kid in Sault Ste. Marie, saving every dollar I had to cut demos at Satellite Sound. This time I wasn't alone. This time I had a band. Mark Kelso on drums — first-call Toronto session drummer, four Junos, who's played with everyone from Herbie Hancock to Michael Bublé. Bernie LaBarge on guitar — fifty years in the business, a Juno nomination of his own, sessions with Ian Tyson and Kim Mitchell. Russ Boswell on bass — the guy behind Corey Hart, David Wilcox, and Serena Ryder. I played piano. And co-producing alongside me: Paul Gross, co-founder of Toronto's legendary Phase One Studios (not the actor), and Chris Crerar, Metalworks' senior mastering engineer whose credits include Prince's Musicology. That's what "...

Photography by Franklin McKay — mural by @soortattoo (Suren Davtyon), Graffiti Alley, Toronto. I love photography. Wandering Toronto with a camera is one of my favourite ways to disappear for a few hours — and Graffiti Alley never disappoints. One day the wall gave me this: a giant, hyper-realistic eye staring straight through the brick, painted by @soortattoo (Suren Davtyon). It stopped me cold. An eye that watches — it felt like the entire idea of 'Awake' captured in a single image. I tracked down the artist and asked for his blessing to use my photograph of his work as the artwork. He said yes — and I'm grateful, because this cover wouldn't exist without him. Credit for documenting the wall goes to the 'as I walk Toronto' street-photography blog (mcfcrandall.blog) — you can see the eye and its neighbours here: The alley keeps changing, but that eye is still watching. — Franklin franklinmckay.com