Sean McCann gave a number of reasons for leaving Great Big
Sea. However, the main one seems to be his contribution was getting lost in the
business that is Great Big Sea. While sad he is just one of many musicians to
leave a band due to creative differences. It is unfortunate they couldn’t
resolve their differences. Sean says “When
I was the most useful and the most happy in Great Big Sea was when I could
contribute songs and we did a lot of work, but that faded way over the last
five or six years. The stuff I was interested in went away”.
“Making the decisions
to leave GBS was one of the first steps, he says, in his new life philosophy,
which inspired his latest project: a concept album called “Help Your Self”
produced by Joel Plaskett”. Sean talks a lot about how he made his new
album. While lots of people on social media have responded well to it I am
still unsure after seeing the first film clip. There are many things I like
about his new music including the sound of the music, his journey of help your
self, the do-it-yourself aspect of his music, his collaboration with Joel
Plaskett and the greater involvement of fans on social media. However, to be
honest there is one thing I am not particularly fond of is one of the images of a woman flashing her boobs in front of me and a bit of swearing. To
me it is so old hat. Many fans will disagree with me, but I guess it will shock
a few old time Great Big Sea fans out of their comfort zones about what to expect from Sean McCann in the future.
Sean talks honestly about the music industry, the branding
of Great Big Sea, making money and leaving the financial safety net. There
is a perception by many fans, that musicians and bands are there just to make
music, share stories and to entertain people. Talking about making money from music is often seen seen as a
dirty word. Although 99 percent of the time is obviously about making music and
to have the music heard, musicians and bands have to make money. It is a fact
of life. Making music costs money. This time he has decided to
go alone without management and a publicity machine, a brave step indeed.
Sean openly and honestly talks about his drinking in the
interview “The very first step in the
journey McCann says, was giving up drinking, just over two years ago. I never
went to AA or anything, I just did” he says.” Then it was like, why was I so
unhappy that I would drink too much? How do I get out of that? I like to talk
through stuff but I am a better communicator in songs and lyrics”. I was
surprised by the honesty in his comments on his drinking and how it influenced
his life and creativity. A fan kind of gets the impression there is a fair
amount of drinking going on in the Great Big Sea and St John’s world from
social media and having personally been to St John’s. I remember reading
an interview with Alan Doyle a little while ago about the culture of drinking
that he was involved in and how hard it was for those who didn’t drink to be
with drinkers. So I imagine for Sean McCann it must have been a rough road giving up drinking in his world. From personal experience it can be a rough road being an occasional drinker in any world.
“I worked really hard
on the box set, that was my whole year, and that part of the process when I
decided, you know what? When you start making boxed sets we’re checking out. I
still have a hard time with it, and some days I still can’t believe I’m leaving
that financial safety nest, but I want
to find something else I can do”. I was a bit disappointed with his comments on the 20th
anniversary Great Big Sea boxed set. While I didn’t buy the boxed set I know people
who did and they received a lot pleasure from it and still do. I bought the Great
Big Sea XX CD and it gives me a lot of pleasure and in particular the
traditional folk songs, many of them sung by Sean McCann.
During the interview Sean McCann sheds some more light on
his departure from Great Big Sea. There was a lot of speculation as to the
reasons why amongst the fans on social media during the days that followed the
announcement on Twitter and Facebook. Much of it occurred as a result of the
release of a song, his parting gift on SoundCloud. For me it was great to read
“he was in a good place, happy and fulfilled” and to know what the future holds
for Great Big Sea and Sean McCann. Many fans are still coming to terms with the
changes and challenges Great Big Sea now faces, Sean’s words will now bring
closure for those hoping for a Great Big Sea reunion.
Although going to a concert is preferable, I have been
playing some of the music available on his official YouTube and Sound Cloud
site. I love the music Sean McCann plays on his own with his guitar or in a
band and the stories he tells. He totally blew me away. There is also a
collection of black and white legal film clips of Sean McCann and his guitar
playing a small intimate venue in Quebec which I just love on his official
YouTube site. On his official YouTube site is a wonderful special produced for
CMT (XM sounds) loaded up just before the beginning of Great Big Sea XX. He was
in a different place back then even though he was doing his own thing. Once again it was great for fans to read in this interview “he was in a
good place, happy and fulfilled” today. All the best Sean McCann.
Pic from Twitter @jancarson65 Great Big Sea at the @CPHolidayTrain show @alanthomasdoyle@greatbigsean Superfun night (no copyright infringement intended).
The following article in The Telegram in St John's made the announcement that Sean McCann was leaving Great Big Sea. I am currently looking through fan photos from the Great Big Sea XX tour of Sean McCann to form the basis of a photo essay. (no copyright infringement intended).
Sean McCann leaves Great Big Sea by Tara Bradbury published in The Telegram in St John's on November 15 2013. (No copyright infringement intended)
Sean McCann has announced he will leave Great Big Sea at the end of the band’s 20th-anniversary tour.
McCann posted messages on his Facebook and Twitter accounts early Thursday afternoon.Sean McCann of Great Big Sea said Thursday he will be leaving the band “with nothing but love in my heart.”
“This will be my last tour with GBS and I fully intend to enjoy every f--ken second and leave the stage with nothing but love in my heart,” he wrote. “So come out to say goodbye and save the last dance for me.”
McCann, who was in Orillia, Ont., Thursday night for a Great Big Sea concert, declined to say anything further about leaving the band when contacted by The Telegram, but said he'd comment in the new year.
The band was flying in the afternoon to Orillia, Ont., where they performed Thursday night.
Great Big Sea was formed in the mid-1990s with fellow musician Darrell Power, who left in 2003 to spend more time with his family.
The band grew to become one of the province’s biggest exports and, a year ago, released “XX,” a greatest hits compilation celebrating their 20-year career, available with a DVD. The collection took two weeks to go gold.
McCann, like Doyle and Hallett, has a successful solo career, and has released two records: 2010’s “Lullabies for Bloodshot Eyes” and 2011’s “Son of a Sailor.” He told The Telegram last year, while promoting “XX,” that he wasn’t ready to give up playing music.
“I’ve got some sore hips and sore knees, but the energy and passion is still there,” he said, laughing.
According to Great Big Sea’s website, the band will spend the next six weeks playing around Ontario and the eastern region of the United States before finishing the current leg of their tour at Moncton’s casino on New Year’s Eve.
Tbradbury@thetelegram
