“… the best live album of the past thirty years…” (BC Musician)

 Shadow Mountain Lifesavers’ Club

Greetings music fans.

This is the second track on The Great Outdoors’ new album. They recorded a live album during a two night stint at the Auditorium Hotel in Nanton, Alberta. ‘Cause, you know, we just incurred all kinds of fresh debt over expensive updates to our own East Van Eden Studios, so what better time to record an album on the road. In another town. In another province.

Jon Raw: Why do you guys want to record in Nanton?
Adam Nation: It’s the greatest town I’ve ever been to. I love the people. I love the vibe. And I think if we record a live record there we can capture that real 70’s sound.
Jon Raw: The 1870’s?

But Adam has proven me wrong again. Actually, that’s bullshit; Adam rarely proves me wrong. But in this one instance he obviously did because Nanton: Live at the Auditorium Hotel  is without question The Great Outdoors’ finest work to date. Really. And it turns out Nanton’s a pretty nice place too.

Shine on you crazy diamonds.

Jon Raw

...we got kicked right out of the bar...

MACINTOSH APPLES

SHADOW MOUNTAIN LIFESAVERS CLUB

BLACK WATER ROAD

THE BOYS AT THE SHOP

MARIGOLD

Adam Nation –  vocals, bass, guitar, banjo
Randy Forrester – keys, guitar, vocals
RC Joseph – guitar, vocals
Steve Wells – vocals, guitar

Listen while you read…
SONG: Maybe Time will Tell…

Hello again music fans.

Yes, dammit – I know. I am fully aware that summer is already half over and just now are the kids in THE GREAT OUTDOORS getting around to releasing Summer, the second in their series of four seasonally themed EPs. And while I am sure all you tight asses back east are going off about how those west coast stoners at DDG Records have probably been partaking in so much smoked salad that they can’t even get their shit together long enough to get their releases out on time, let me just say this in our defense: You couldn’t be more wrong. We haven’t been smoking any weed. Just hash.

But that’s not the only reason THE GREAT OUTDOORS are a little late releasing their Summer EP; it has been an unseasonably cold June and
July out here on the coast. And what with all this chilly weather, it was pretty hard to wrap our heads around a release of four songs celebrating cool car rides through the hot city, sweaty nights rolling in the surf, and reective trips through the sun-baked cemetery while ballpark reworks explode in the distance.

But alas, we are now ready to rock for the heat has arrived. (The heat of the sun, that is, not the pigs. Good thing, too, ‘cause we still got a ton of that hash lying around here somewhere.) Adam Nation (vocals, guitars) is back with the sweltering line-up of Randy Forrester (guitars, keys), Craig McCaul (bass), Steven Wegelin (percussion), and Steve Wells (vocals, guitars) to deliver what may be the band’s nest work to date. With Nation and Wells penning two hits each, songstress extraordinaire Melisa Devost adding some lovely back-up singing to all the tracks, and Kingsway’s RC Joseph even lending some of his vocal goodness, Summer has denitely shaped up to be an EP well worth the wait.

So keep your druggie/slacker comments to yourself. DDG Records gets its releases out on time (for the most part). We got THE GREAT OUTDOORS’ Spring EP out on time, and we will redeem ourselves with the timely release of their upcoming Fall EP. So just relax, sit back, crack a cold one, and enjoy the smooth sounds of Summer. And I think I will do the same. Now, if I can just remember where I put the rest of that hash…

Shine on you crazy diamonds.

Jon Raw
owner, DDG Records

CBC 3 Track of the Day – Summer in the City

THE GREAT OUTDOORS
Nanton: Live at the Auditorium Hotel
DDG Records (DDG-013/DDG-013LP)
release date: September 7, 2010

Jamaican Prison Song

Recorded by Steve Loree at the Auditorium Hotel in beautiful downtown Nanton, Alberta, this 10 song masterpiece is set to be released on both CD and vinyl.

Greetings music fans.

Let me fill you in on The Great Outdoors’ new album, Nanton: Live at the Auditorium Hotel. They recorded a live album during a two night stint at the Auditorium Hotel in Nanton, Alberta. (I guess that was pretty much explained in the title, huh?) Anways, we just completed all kinds of expensive updates to our own East Van Eden Studios when Adam Nation and the boys decided to do their next album on the road. In another town. In another province.

Jon Raw: Why do you guys want to record in Nanton?
Adam Nation: It’s the greatest town I’ve ever been to. I love the people. I love the vibe. And I think if we record a live record there we can capture that real 70’s sound.
Jon Raw: The 1870’s?

But he album actually turned out pretty fucking great. BC Musician even called it, “…the best live album of the past thirty years.”  And it turns out Nanton’s a pretty nice place too. So yeah, sometimes it pays to take the show on the road. (Please God, let it pay.)

Shine on you crazy diamonds.

Jon Raw
owner/operator
DDG Records

Hello again music fans.

DDG Records’ folk-rock ensemble extraordinaire, THE GREAT OUTDOORS, is releasing a series of four themed EP’s – one for each of the seasons – and I couldn’t be happier.

I know I come across as a miserable, old drunk sometimes but, truth be told, Jon Raw really does love some of the things this world has to offer. Most notably, I love the changing of the seasons and all that defnes those glorious times of transition, hope, and new beginnings. Yes indeed, I love that first, sweet waft of newly-budding cherry blossoms that creeps into my well-worn nostrils every Spring. I love that feel of thick, luscious lawn between my toes as I sip pear cider and vodka shandies at a backyard barbeque on a warm Summer evening. I love the smell of burning leaves in the early Autumn as I stroll through a wooded mosaic of oranges, browns and reds (whilst smoking my own leaves, if you know what I’m saying). And I really love sitting near an icy hillside on a bright winter day hearing the joyful screams of merry toboggan enthusiasts fill my head as a strong hot toddy fills my tummy.

Yep, I love it all. That’s why I really had no problem getting behind THE GREAT OUTDOORS’ latest series of releases. You see, releasing four themed EP’s over the next year – one for each of the seasons – is just going to give me one more reason to get excited about each impending

solstice and equinox. The first of these releases is due out Spring 2008, with a new release to follow every three months and, if I do say so myself, they’re all shaping up to be some of the finest work to come out of East Van Eden Studios yet. Songwriters, Steve Wells, Adam Nation

and the boys are really on top of their game these days, and that’s got old Jon Raw on top of the world. (I told you I get all giddy this time of year. The changing of the seasons always gets me feeling great. Plus, I am little medicated right now, but that’s neither here nor there.)

Shine on you crazy diamonds.

Jon Raw
owner/operator
DDG Records

Greetings Mr. McLean,

Thanks so much for featuring The Great Outdoors‘ song ‘The Garden’ on your Vinyl Cafe this weekend. It was really an honour. And it has catapulted The Great Outdoors back into the number one slot at DDG Records. Yes, they are now officially my favourite band here at my beloved label. I know what you are thinking. You are concerned the other bands on DDG Records might read this and think that I don’t care about them as much. Not to worry. They knew that a long time ago. And besides, it’s kind of my management style. I did the same thing with my four kids. Every six months or so I would sit them down and tell them which one I loved the most and where the other three subsequently ranked. It was very effective. They were great kids. I can’t understand why now as adults they’re all such a complete and utter mess. Big time issues. I mean, none of them have even talked to me in the past eight and a half years. Between you and me, a lot of the blame probably lies with their mothers. Those three ladies screwed those four kids up something fierce. But I digress.

Anyways, I really am a fan and just wanted to express my gratitude for letting us be part of your weekly institution. You know, there are all kinds of different ways you can show the world you’re a true Canadian.  You can win an Olympic gold medal in hockey then smoke cigars and drink beer at center ice…

Smoke 'em if ya got 'em

You can get some oh-so-Canadian, witty-but-not-too-offensive-style tattoo plastered somewhere on your body. (Though honestly, I think getting such a  tattoo is really more about getting laid on vacation than it is about nationalism. Ah Mexico, you really must think you are the intellectual powerhouse of this continent. I know I would.)…

"You have Corona down here, eh?"

 Or, you can have one of your songs spun on Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Cafe.

The Great Outdoors happened to be in a cold, mystic wooded area full of blue trees when they heard the good news. They laughed with glee. Then then got the hell out of there.

So thanks again, Mr. McLean. The Great Outdoors appreciate it, DDG Records appreciates it (even those artists I presently think less of – I am talking to you, RC of Kingsway), and Jon Raw appreciates it. If you get a chance, come visit us next time you’re out west. I always have a nice bottle of scotch on hand. I will make sure RC has the good tumblers washed and ready.

Shine on you crazy diamond(s).

Jon Raw
owner/operator
DDG Records

posted: April 12, 2010
 

Hello again music fans.

As my old bowling teammate Wilson Pickett once sang, “The night was clear, the moon was yellow, and the leaves came tumbling down…”

That’s right music fans, Fall is upon us and the leaves definitely are coming down. I’ll tell you what’s not coming down though: your good buddy Jon Raw, that’s what. And what, per chance, has this crotchety, old-time rock ’n’ roller feeling so high as the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer? Why it’s none other than The Great Outdoors’ third release in their series of four seasonal EPs entitled – you guessed it – Fall.

Now I know the boys in The Great Outdoors rocked out a bit hard on their last EP, Summer, to the point where some of you more pansy-assed listeners out there were even filling my inbox with comments like, “I thought TGOD was a folk band,” and, “Ian Tyson must be spinning in his grave.” (BTW: Ian Tyson is alive and well, numb nuts. I just had brunch with him three weeks ago. And as folkie as he is, Ian loves the rock as much as anyone; we listened to Kyuss while he prepared us Eggs Florentine. But I digress.) The Fall EP, however,finds Adam Nation (vocals, guitars), Randy Forrester (guitars, keys), Craig McCaul (bass), Steven Wegelin (percussion), and Steve Wells (vocals, guitars) back in their wheelhouse: delivering smooth and bluesy folk rock. In fact, Nation’s and Wells’ brilliant songwriting, the band’s now unmistakable sound, Melissa Devost’s glorious backing vocals, and the magic of the East Van Eden Studios’ atmosphere all come together to create what is, without a doubt, the band’s finest effort to date. (Though, at the rate these kids are trucking, I’m betting the Winter EP will even outdo this one.)

So that, music fans, is why your Uncle Jon is so up these days. Yes indeed, The Great Outdoors’ Fall EP has me feeling higher than five billy goats. Well, that and the three drops of hash oil I put in my vanilla latte this morning.

Shine on you crazy diamonds.

Jon Raw
(owner – DDG Records)

Hello again music fans.

Let me tell you a little something you might not have suspected about ol’ Jon Raw: I hate winter. Fucking hate it. Hate.

I moved out west years ago to get away from the frozen nose hairs, burst pipes and five months of scraping windshields. The only chains I want to deal with are the blingy ones around my neck. The only snow Mr. Raw wants to shovel is waiting patiently on my mirrored coffee table to be chopped up nice and fine with my American Express Black Card. Dig?

But there has actually been one thing about this year’s winter that I’ve been able to tolerate: The Great Outdoors’ final release in their series of four seasonally themed EPs entitled – what else? – Winter.

Featuring songs from Randy Forrester (vocals, guitars, keys), Steve Wells (vocals, guitars) and, of course, the illegitimate son I’ve always wished I had, Adam Nation (vocals, guitars), the Winter EP is as fine a recording as DDG Records’ answer to The Eagles (or The Band, or CSNY, or The Highwaymen) has ever released. Randy, Steve and Adam, along with Craig McCaul (bass) and Steven Wegelin (percussion), have not only put together a great EP, they have put together a great accomplishment. An EP for every season, all recorded over the course of a single year at our East Van Eden Studios, and each one collecting even more rave reviews than its predecessor. I am certain the Winter EP will be just as well received.  And that’s not just the “snow” talking.

So music fans, if you’re like your ol’ Uncle Jon and you think the only good thing about winter are the holiday deals on Irish Cream at the liquor store, fret not.  The Great Outdoors’ Winter EP is so brilliant it will even make that tingle of frozen nose hairs in your nostrils seem enjoyable. Now I gotta go. I’m off to the DDG Christmas party to give my nostrils a completely different sort of enjoyable tingle. Dig?

Shine on you crazy diamonds.

Jon Raw
(owner, DDG Records)