"What is the right way on," West Coast singer/songwriter
Tim Lawson asks in the title track of his album - The Right
Way On.
The
song - inspired by the book of the same name, published by
Lawson's Langley, B.C. publishing company, Timberholme Books,
and packaged for sale with the CD - is about the tremendous
challenges faced by the thousands who risked everything in
an adventurous trek to the Yukon during the Klondyke Gold
Rush of 1898.
For
Lawson, finding "the right way on" is an eternal
quest.
It's
why he was captivated by the diaries of William Henry Trewolla
Olive, the Klondyke steamboat captain, who ferried the
prospectors north to the gold fields and wrote down their
stories for future generations.
And,
it's a question that sums up his own quest to discover the
right ways to make the world better.
"Those
of us with good health and good fortune should look outside
our backyard and find people who are having trouble and struggling...
see what we can do for them," he maintains.
This
is a theme that runs through Lawson's music and he hopes it
will have an impact on his listeners. "To have an influence,
to some degree, on as many people as possible through the
music is really what I'm all about. Let's work together to
make the world a better place."
Lawson
carries on that torch through words and music, in the songs
that he writes and the books that he chooses to publish. All
are about making a difference on some level, whether in personal
or global relationships.
He
is, first and foremost, a storyteller. His lyrics reflect
the tales that touch him on a deeper level and his beliefs
and philosophies, offered in a soft rock format which often
takes on a folk music feel.
The
Right Way On is an eclectic collection of offerings from up-tempo
pop tunes to acoustic love ballads, but all, he says, "about
making the best of the moments we are allowed to have and
knowing that every moment is precious.... The theme is each
person finding his or her own way and the music is the platform
that lets me speak and say that all individuals can make a
difference."
There
are the stories from the past, like "The Right Way On,"
about the desperate trek north by the prospectors, and "Kettle
Valley Railway" which looks at the hardships of workers
who carved a rail line through trecherous territory from the
rugged B.C. interior to the coast.
There
are the comments on the world we live in. "Goodbye East
Berlin" is an anthem of hope for the people of Berlin,
their struggles and triumphs which continue 10 years after
the Wall came down. "The Fire of St. Bartholomew"
is an environmental warning against the ongoing destruction
of the Brazilian rain forest.
The
love songs - from the ethereal ballads like "The Night
Is On" to the saxophone-laden rocker "I'm Just Waitin'"
to up-tempo pop tunes like "Lately I Don't Care"
- spring largely from Tim's own recent experience with his
wife and love of his life, Karola.
This
album continues in the tradition of The Quiet Canadian, Lawson's
first offering, released two years ago. It was a tribute to
his hero and mentor Sir William Stephenson, the famed wartime
espionage agent, better known to the world as the "Man
Called Intrepid."
Tim
met Stephenson in 1985 and formed a close relationship with
the man who shared his commitment to creating a better and
more peaceful world. In 1998 he published The True Intrepid:
Sir William Stephenson and the Unknown Agents. The book, which
reveals many previously uncovered facts about Stephenson's
life, soared to the top of the charts, hitting the Top Ten
and becoming a national bestseller.
The
Right Way On, book and CD, are available at major retail outlets
across Canada. Marketing them together, Lawson says,
allows the music to promote the written word. "It's important
to keep the written word, as a form of communication, alive
in this world of technology," he believes.
It's
just one of the things that he hopes to accomplish through
his music. "It's not just business. Of course,
music is business. But beyond it all, is the heart in the
music."
