2010 started off on a very bright and busy note for Deric Ruttan with the January 12th release of his third album, Sunshine, and a 21-city cross-Canada tour soon afterward. His new album has added two more hits so far to the multi-CCMA Award winner's growing list with "Sing That Song Again" and his current top 20 single "Up All Night." You can hear these two hits and more on Deric Ruttan's MyCMT profile page now.
With his nationwide Sunshine Tour barely a memory and a string of fair and festival dates on the horizon, CMT checked in with Deric at home in Nashville to reflect on his latest collection and look to what's ahead.
CMT: Why did you call the new album Sunshine?
DR: There's a song on the album called "Sunshine (Hey Little Girl)". It's a tribute to my wife, who is the quintessential 'glass-half-full' kind of person - she sees the positive in everything. (I'm the dark cloud). The chorus lyrics are: "Hey little girl, sun on your shoulders and the light in your eyes/I've got a feelin' you ain't been readin' the news/These days they say there's no silver linin' still you find it every time/They see the rain, you see the sunshine". I thought that message was really timely, particularly with all the negativity we're seeing in the media right now. Early on, that song emerged as a sort of centrepiece for the album. When I was in the studio working on other songs for the CD, I noticed the word "sunshine" appears in the lyrics of several other songs, as well. It just seemed to fit the overall, optimistic tone of the record.
CMT: After releasing your second album, it seems like you wanted to get back into the studio as quickly as you could to record again. How did the urgency of giving yourself less time to write and prep new material affect you and the new music?
DR: I'm the kind of songwriter who is always writing, whether I have an album to record or not. Most of the songs on Sunshine were written in the two years since the recording of my last album, First Time In A Long Time. A couple were back catalog songs I'd always wanted to record - "I Still Think Of You" is one of those. That song is 7 or 8 years old. For the newer songs (like "Up All Night"), I actually write pretty well under pressure I think, so having a hard recording deadline helped me focus my thoughts and energies and write songs that fit the vibe of the album.
CMT: "Sing That Song Again" and "Where The Train Don't Stop" bring some personal nostalgia to the new album. Did anything specific trigger your desire to write about childhood days? Was it just the right time to be reflective?
DR: I don't know. When you're at a certain age and you start having kids, I guess it's only natural to reflect more on your own childhood. I wrote "Sing That Song Again" with my friend Ben Hayslip. He and I come from very different places (he's from south Georgia, I'm from Ontario), but we discovered we shared a lot of common experiences in the way we grew up. We're the same age and we were both raised in a very rural setting. We wanted to relate some of our life experiences in the lyrics as vividly as we could, and I wanted it to sound anthemic. "Sing That Song Again" was the result. To me, "Where The Train Don't Stop" relates most specifically to me growing up in Bracebridge, ON. The river, the kids trying to buy beer, the CNR (Canadian National Railway), and the story in verse 2 about Alan Doley (my Grandfather's best friend who died in WWII) - those are all true things and events. I thought the title "Where The Train Don't Stop" would make for a cool, be-proud-of-where-you-come-from song, no matter how small the town.
CMT: Family and hope are also recurrent themes on "Sunshine". What are your hopes for your own family?
DR: All the usual stuff - for them to realize how unique and special they all are; for them to be truly happy and content in their lives; and for them to know how much I love them.
CMT: You've just completed a 21-city cross-Canada tour. After a tour like that, do you feel like you're at the helm of a pretty well-oiled road machine? What can fans expect at your shows this summer?
DR: Well, there are always surprises, hiccups, and new things we try onstage. That keeps it fresh, but generally yes, the machine is pretty well-oiled. My band and I really enjoy each other's company offstage, and I think that's reflected in our chemistry onstage. We have fun and it shows. This summer we're performing across Canada at various fairs and festivals (check dates at www.dericruttan.net). For anyone who's never been to one of our shows, we play the radio hits you'd expect, as well as some songs you might not. I like to do a song or two by an artist who inspired me along the way, as well as a medley (sometimes two) of songs I've written that other artists have had radio hits with. I want people to think that the money they paid to get in was worth it. Above all, I want them to have a unique experience and be throughly entertained.
Deric Ruttan's Sunshine is available in stores and online right now.
Deric will be back home to Canada next weekend to share the stage with Shane Yellowbird and Doc Walker for the special Doc Walker - Coming Home concert at Portage la Prairie, Manitoba's PCU Centre on April 3. Watch for Deric this summer all across Canada at events like the Manitoulin Country Fest on Manitoulin Island, August 6. Visit our Concert Listings section for more info.