Listen to full album via your preferred streaming app here: https://linktr.ee/timmykane
* The 10 songs compiled here cover a lot of ground. Some opine about humanity’s failure to adequately address environmental degradation. Others are more point-specific to an endangered local species. One offers a famous poem collab while another is a form of prayer. While this is a rock album, you’ll hear elements of funk, pop, experimental, and blues in there as well.
Dedicated to my mom…..
My new environmental awareness concept album, ‘Tall Trees’, planted its roots right after I had left being the drummer of six years for a popular classic rock touring group, The Island Castaways Band. I feel truly grateful to its founders Joe Holewa and Paul Kane for the opportunity to play in hundreds of venues, cruises, town commons, parrot head gatherings, backyard parties and beach towns all across New England. We performed before tens of thousands of supportive and fun-loving fans. We even gigged at Fenway Park festivals – twice. But it was time to continue my music journey and open a new door. Joe’s the guy who taught me the importance of really working on transitions in songs between verses and choruses. Thank you. My ageless college band, ‘The Rusty Muskets’, including Eric Hellweg, Ed Murray and newcomer Ara Avakian, taught me everything else about songwriting over a period of decades. We still play together.
During this same time, I was also pursuing continuing education coursework at Berklee School of Music and elsewhere. This eventually led to me obtaining my state music teaching license – the toughest exam I’ve ever taken (three times in a row). I finally passed and now work as a public school music teacher and little kid chorus director. I believe this was my “next season” after nearly 15 years of trying to make it as a professional drummer, the final six totally out on my own. Covid-19 didn’t help my sole proprietorship dreams any. After most of my freelance work dried up, I needed more stable employment and a thicker paycheck fast. Teaching has most certainly filled that void, but I still yearned for more creative musical outlets being in between actively gigging bands. I’ve always written original songs, but never a full 10-track concept album with mostly all acoustical live instruments. It was new territory for me.
When I think back on my life, roaming in and exploring nature and the outdoors are key aspects of my upbringing and personal life today. My mom Judith Anne Kane – to whom this album is dedicated – was the reason for my lifelong interest.
Growing up relatively poor, my three older sisters and I were dragged along for basic tent camping, mountain hiking, river swimming and road bicycling to Jamaica, Vermont countless times. I climbed my first tall Vermont mountain – Bald Mountain – at age 1. Rain gear and all. My mom and dad ended up being volunteer park hosts/rangers at the state park in that quiet, rural town for nearly 20 years. I eventually grew to appreciate those trips despite the tiny tent camper or leanto and cold pickup truck bed transport. I was never inside during my childhood, except to play drums in my tiny bedroom.
Because of my mom’s great example, my own passion for nature has endured in my heart and life. I’m an avid amateur conservationist and environmental advocate. Way back when I was a writer and columnist for newspapers, I constantly sought out story topics on the outdoors: People coming together to protect nature, maintain trails, build bridges, offer public lessons about locally endangered species, and celebrate our beautiful waterways and woods all around us. I then tried to become the people I used to write about.
When my kids were young, I helped them lead our local Cub Scouts pack and eventual troop. We camped, hiked, kayaked, swam, and pursued fun activities and skillsets all based upon outdoor environmental conservation. I had no idea what I was doing, however, my startup boy scout troop rebuilt an entire loop trail and added large wooden wildlife and ecosystem educational signage for the public to enjoy. That was huge.
Today, my joy time is spent kayaking, skiing and hiking with my dog/best friend Stella – mostly in the vast woods right behind our home. My wife Danielle calls me the “Godfather” of those many trail systems everyone enjoys today. I don’t know what she’s talking about… 🙂
So when I think about the reason why I wrote a 10-track concept album entirely dedicated to environmental awareness, the above mentioned reasons are the genesis – albeit a very long-winded explanation. I think it’s important to know a little about the artists behind their creations. I certainly do when listening to musicians or viewing artwork in museums. This concept album is as close to true art – original rock songwriting – as I’ll ever come, as far as I’m concerned.
The idea for ‘Tall Trees’ was also born from a 2021 family trip to California and Sequioa National Park. Standing beneath the king of all trees was quite humbling. My album cover art is a photo from one of our journeys out there.
The songs on this album cover a lot of ground. Some opine about humanity’s failure to adequately address environmental degradation. Others are more point-specific to an endangered local species. One offers a famous poem collab while another is letter prayer. While this is a rock album, you’ll hear elements of funk, pop, experimental, and blues in there as well. I played and recorded all the instruments live, horn parts and all. I was committed to limiting digital instrumentation on this album. How can you write about nature and use all fake sounds? So I needed to get better at playing electric guitar and bass, piano and even trumpet and saxophone. It’s not perfect and neither am I.
I sang everything on the album as well and refused to use any pitch or voice correction. So there will be a few sharps and flats evident. Sincere apologies in advance.
My budding 16-year music songwriter protege and future producer son Christopher Miles Kane (AKA ‘Kane9’) challenged me to write the album. He agreed to master the songs himself using Logic Pro X plugins and preset mixing tools – and most importantly his own great ear for music. He’s also a drummer.
I’ve written lyrics and words since my early teenage years – inspired by the late great RUSH drummer, Neil Peart. The lyrics for this album, which are all directly synced to the streaming audio tracks, are among the most introspective and meaningful words I’ve ever written. They all tell a story and my opinion or vision of where we’re possibly heading environmentally if we don’t stand up and fight. Don’t let “a hundred year storm become an everyday.” This was a memorable line in one song that really defines why I wrote the entire album.
I’m going to try to partner and share this music with environmental causes and non-profit eco-friendly groups who may find a need for it. But it really is meant for anyone who will listen to and appreciate my life’s journey in the glorious shadow of Mother Nature.
