One of the things I love about this folk-world is how things connect in strange ways sometimes.

I first heard a Michael Smith song when Rick and I were on honeymoon. We spent an evening at the Black Swan Folk Club in York where a singer called Marilyn C?? sang Vampire. We hadn't really expected to find an American singer in a local Yorkshire club, so naturally we got talking. Marilyn was from Chicago, where she knew Michael, but had moved to Glasgow when she got married.

Back in Toronto, we discovered that Michael was a good friend of our friend, Norm Hacking. A few months later, we got a chance to see him when he came to Toronto to do a concert with Norm. A great performance, every song was a gem and we turned into real fans. Now we go to see him whenever he comes to Toronto and are never disappointed.

My favourite song used to be Sister Clarissa, until Michael and Norm got together and wrote a song called "This One's The Dreamer".

Duckboots