Twain, torch travel similar roads
Posted By JOHN EMMS

In a few days Shania Twain will be participating in the Olympic torch relay -- an event that will eventually take more than 100 days and 45,000 kilometres to complete.

As sure as that Olympic torch has been carried through many communities in eastern Canada already, Twain's career has also -- in its own way -- travelled a long and winding road.

Think about it folks.

She is a long way from the Mattagami First Nation and a long way from singing at telethons and the Maple Leaf Hotel -- where Stompin' Tom made his mark.

She is also a long way from the Deerhurst musical revues and a long, long way from some early negative Nashville attitudes towards her initial musical endeavours.

For that fact alone, I dare anyone to say Twain did not work her way to the musical status she currently enjoys.

Not a lot of people would have hung in there. In fact, 90% of us would have quit long ago.

Maybe that's why I have always admired her drive, talent and ambition.

I've covered Twain from the first years of writing this column when I was running through a history of Timmins music.

But those early columns were not the first time I was aware of her drive and ambition.

For that we may have to go back to the early '80s.

If I was not playing a gig with a band I was singing at the Airport Hotel, or across the street at the Rocking Tap, or maybe seeing some cool Toronto band like Coney Hatch at the The Empire Hotel. You might have also seen me soaking in some "vibes" at J.P.'s Lounge at the Escapade Hotel.

At the time a lot of the musicians in our area were aware of each other's bands and musical efforts.

We played the same bars and we watched each other's sets.

Even though it was competition it was also fun.

I became aware of Twain's talent through the local musicians' grapevine.

I was writing a lot of songs at the time, and had even joined SOCAN years earlier.

There were only a few bands and musicians who were willing to perform their own songs.

Guy Martin (David Hartt) was one of them and that is a fact we shared then and do to this very day.

It was a small musical community so it was no surprise when I heard Dave was working with a female lead singer.

Being a lead vocalist myself, I had to check out their gigs.

Longshot was the name of the band and despite the fact I wanted to hear some original songs I was impressed by the band and the lead vocalist's ability to perform cover material from Journey, Pat Benatar and Toronto.

That was the first time I saw Twain on stage, but it would not be the last.

I still believe that her 2002 album "UP" is one of the finest pop albums ever recorded. A lot of the that album's big sound and eventual success was due to her ex-husband Mutt Lange.

Lange should be considered on a musical level with the greats, such as Phil Spector. He is a visionary producer, engineer and musician with the midas touch.

Still, it was a team effort. In fact, Twain's overall success has been a team effort. Make no mistake it was not a fluke.

It sometimes gets swept under the rug, but Twain was a musician early on. She knew chords on the guitar, she understood musical arrangements and she understood harmonies and different vocal keys and cues.

If you combine that with hard work and crucial timing you have in a nutshell what Twain's current status is today.

As fans know, Twain's musical output covers many genres including pop, new country and rock.

It is anticipated that she will release an album of new material in 2010.

That should mean a return to the celebrity circuit.

John Emms is a local musician, songwriter and performer. To read his blog

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