Great Lakes

My nephew and niece as well as her boyfriend are visiting Canada from Germany, and are leaving shortly for a bit of a tour around the area to see a little bit of the Great Lakes.  Their plan reminded me of Great Lakes song by the band Harlan Pepper.  The video above is not professional, but from 2009 and at the time of this the kids are still in high school in Hamilton, Ontario.

I like the feel of this homespun video, a more professional version of this song Great Lakes is on their 2010 album Young and Old.  I love the setting that they use because it reminds me of my own family gatherings.  You know, there is nothing like sitting on the porch in the summer singing and having a few beer with friends.  I guess, unless it is sitting on a porch on a Tiny House on the Allegany Mountain (part of the Appalachians) and having so much talent.  The whole thing is pretty sweet I think.

I have seen Harlan Pepper play live a few times now, and I am a big fan of what they sing as well as their laid back homey style.  I guess it is odd that I love them so much, given the wide age difference, but the singer reminds me physically of young Bob Dylan; too the lyrics are snappy and while the music sounds new it is grounded in all the music that I love best.  Of course it is not much of a leap that I am a fan of these young musicians.   I think a lot of their charm is that they seem like the kids next door and I guess in my case they really are since my Hamilton place is around the corner from from them.  I don’t know the young musicians but our kids went to the same school for a time many years ago.

While I was thinking about them, I checked in at their website today.  I am mighty pleased, because I notice some movement and think that there may be a new album in the works?  If you like the sound, they have a lot of shows coming up: all in Canada.  If you want to catch them live you will have to get up here to Canada for a visit.

As for my visiting family, I hope that they enjoy the trip North. I also hope that they see the lakes in the way that Harlan Pepper and I see them.  I love Great Lakes!

Gute Reise!