If there is something a tad familiar about “Sunday Night,” the third of 12 planned single releases this year from acclaimed Moncton musician Chris Colepaugh, there happens to be a very good reason behind that.
Originally released on his band’s Mazes & Mirrors album in 1997, the singer-songwriter never gave much credence to the thought he’d be revisiting the song more than 20 years later.
“A couple of years ago, we were playing some band shows and, during the course of the night, I was casually introducing some of our earlier material as being ‘old.’ At one point in the evening, a fan from the audience approached me and said, ‘You keep announcing some of these songs as being old, but they’re all fresh and contemporary to me.’ It was that conversation that got my mind wandering,” Colepaugh says.
While the idea might not have occurred to him prior to that fateful conversation, Colepaugh decided that revisiting certain songs from his catalogue may very well prove to be beneficial. Not so much from the perspective that he felt the original versions of the songs were incomplete or somehow didn’t live up to their full potential, but rather was more interested in seeing what two decades of wide-ranging experiences could lend to reimagining the songs.
“From my standpoint, I’ve got more than 20 years’ experience behind me, and have naturally grown as a person and an artist. There’s nothing wrong with the way the song was; this was more of an exercise to see how the elements of who I am today would influence the re-creation of the song.”
Colepaugh admits that it was initially tough to un-teach himself a long-standing song like “Sunday Night.” While he wasn’t necessarily looking to reinvent the wheel in revisiting the track, he still sought to place some distance between the original version of the song and this latest version.
“It was hard to let go of that first version. It’s almost like muscle memory that you keep wanting to do things in the same manner you’ve done them for 20-plus years. But once that attachment to the ‘old’ was broken, the process of adding the experience I’ve gained from touring, recording and living added a completely new vibe to the song. Incorporating who I am now into the song was exciting. I enjoyed the whole process. It was looking back on what I’ve done with my eyes wide open to the possibilities that could be found.”
lyrics
Storms and calms and pretty songs
They have found a way
My pretty songs are no doubt done
Help me with my play
My play is short but most of all
My play is sung for you
You can't tell my fairy tale
My face is bold and new
I've lost my fun I've come undone
Help me with my life
I've lost my fund I think I've won
Have you paid the price
My mark is set, my face is large
I am not the clown
Bring me to my definition
My head is in the clouds
My face is not what I convince
I am simply lost
Price me large and price me small
I have found the cost
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