June Story: Black Fly

This song was recorded in 2007 in Montreal in an excellent cafe/bakery called Le Gryphon D'Or (specifically at the corner of Monkland and Royal). I can't remember why I wasn't there, but Sarah, Dylan, and Jack were definitely in attendance (I will be posting their stories later this summer), as well as the rest of Jack's band The What Four (or the Four Hoarsemen, or The Golden Oldies, or Groupe Du Jour -- They can't decide on a name).

The song was written and orginally recorded by the late, great Wade Hemsworth and was animated by the NFB (specifically Christopher Hinton) in 1991 (watch the animated version at the NFB website). Whenever Jack turns up at an event or a storytelling evening with his guitar, I always ask him to play it.

So since June tends to be black fly month, I present to you Black Fly by Wade Hemsworth and performed by The What Four.

Black Fly (2:49 minutes)

June Story: Jack's Tall Tale

This is a story that is included on my book/CD You Don't Know Jack, but it was recorded earlier this year at Our Lady of Pompeii Elementary School in Montreal.

This is one of the first stories I learned, certainly the first Jack story I learned. As the story nears its end, there's a part that is so outrageous, the audience often cries out their incredulity at the tale, which gives me no end of satisfaction.

What I love about this story is how Jack, once he decides what he's going to do, refuses to give up. Even when his first story fails to trick the King, he tries it again from a different angle. All the Jacks that I know, and even those I've only heard about, have this unyielding desire to continue to push forward. It's a quality to which we all need to aspire.

Jack's Tall Tale (15:46 minutes)