Setting the Vibe with Ray d’Entremont's Liner Notes

Editor’s note: Today, fellow Nova Scotian Ray d'Entremont joins CFP as a regular columnist, writing about the nostalgia from the many talented musicians, whose unforgettable music takes so many of us back to fond memories of better days.

In his younger years as the founder of his own '60s and ‘70s bands, including Purple Splintered Night, and Ray was one of them.

This idea to bring these talented singers and musicians back into memory got its start last Christmas when Ray, his wife Heather and son Peter joined CFP for an old-fashioned turkey-with-trimmings dinner. Warm memories of us all sitting around the table after dinner, holding hands and belting out songs from 'Judi’s Playlist' will live in our memory forever, as the happiest of all our days in lonely Nova Scotia.

As with many musicians, melodies register immediately--but lyrics? I’ve gotten better at catching them--maybe thanks to bittersweet lessons from my songwriting, my over-priced hearing aids, or even more likely, retirement granting me time to slow down and smell the roses. Back in the day though, a few lyrics did pierce the 11 p.m. static of our modest AM radio, and they resonated and stuck.