Rockin' and rollin' through region
Fort Smith musician ready to play after lengthy hiatus
April Hudson
Northern News Services
Thursday, June 18, 2015
DEH GAH GOT'IE KOE/FORT PROVIDENCE
Coming from sunny skies in Fort Smith, singer Shane Daniels is hoping the weather holds out as he travels through the Deh Cho in the next three weeks.
Shane Daniels will be coming to Fort Providence and then Fort Simpson in the next few weeks. This photo was taken a few years ago at the Gateway Jamboree. - photo courtesy of Howard McKay
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Daniels is coming to Fort Providence on June 26 and 27 to play his first show there in a decade or more.
He will be joined by William Landry, Dana Cross and his 18-year-old son Theoron Daniels.
Daniels has lived off and on in Fort Smith for most of his life and has been performing for 26 years. Since he was a teenager, Daniels has sung and played guitar.
But when he reached his late 20s, Daniels says he decided to take a break from the music industry, as shows began to pay less and he started a family.
"I pretty much just stopped playing and went away. I played locally (in Fort Smith) whenever someone needed a guitar player, but nothing too crazy," he said.
That period of his life has lasted for 10 to 12 years. Now, fresh from playing Aboriginal Day in Hay River, he is looking forward to Fort Providence. He is also scheduled to be back in Hay River the following week for Hay Days, after which he will be going to Fort Simpson to play the dance for the Open Sky Festival.
"I'm really enjoying this right now. It's going to be a release, to go out and do it again. I often wondered if I would even be able to," Daniels said.
"When we played Hay River, right up until the point we started playing, I was wondering, 'Geez, can I even sing any more?' Because the bands I've been playing for over the past 10 or 12 years, I would never even sing a note. I just played guitar."
Daniels said he is starting to regain his passion for music.
"In the last few years, I didn't play much because I wasn't really inspired by anything that was out there. Nothing got my attention," he said.
That changed suddenly when his older brother, who was the one who got him involved with music to begin with, passed away suddenly.
"I thought, well, we don't really have a given time on this earth. So let's get out there and share what we can, while we can," Daniels said.
"That's the whole reason I'm doing this with my son, as well. I've got a little bit of time to go out and start playing music again, see some old friends, see some old towns."
In Fort Providence, concert-goers can expect to hear anything from classic and modern country to classic rock.
"For this show, the band here, we've all played together off and on through the years. It should be a pretty solid show," Daniels said.
"We're just looking at doing some playing and having some fun for the summer."
