Saskatchewan singer-songwriter Adam Johnson has released a track called “Craven” which was inspired by the Country Thunder music festival.
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Adam Johnson loves to sing the praises of Country Thunder.
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The Saskatoon-based musician has been faithfully attending the festival in Craven for almost 10 years, calling it one of his favourite places on earth.
In fact, Johnson loves Country Thunder so much that he released a song last month called “Craven” that’s already garnering some local radio play and is certain to be overheard in the festival campground.
“We wanted to put the song out before Craven and give people something to listen to leading up to it,” explained Johnson, 27. “We wanted to capture the excitement leading up to Craven. The song kind of loses its (impact) after you’ve come home and your head is pounding and you’re thinking, ‘What did I do to myself?’”
The tradition is set to resume this week when Country Thunder makes its comeback from a two-year COVID hiatus. Accompanied by his trusty guitar, Johnson is eager to play the unofficial Craven anthem for anyone who’ll listen.
“I always have a guitar with me walking around to different campsites,” he said. “I hope to get a whole bunch more people listening to it. In past years when I’ve gone around playing it, I’ve definitely had a lot of interest in the song.”
Although Johnson is the man behind the microphone, the lyrics were written many years ago by his uncle, Mike Doughty, an Ontario native who visited Craven in the early 1990s. He ended up meeting his future wife Lesley at the festival and they even returned to Craven for their honeymoon.
How’s that for some musical inspiration?
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“Basically, he has been playing that song forever,” Johnson said of his uncle, an amateur songwriter who “played some shows” in his younger days. “I started playing it as soon as I got into music and I’ve been playing it live for a few years. He had kind of been bugging me: ‘You should record it’ because it comes off so well in Saskatchewan. I finally got it organized to put the song out. I was really happy with how it turned out.”
So is his uncle.
“He’s really excited,” added Johnson. “He was back in Saskatoon two weekends ago. I was playing a show so he came out to watch. I actually got to play the song onstage with him.”
Johnson recorded the Craven tune with three fellow country singers from Saskatchewan: Ches Anthony, Cooper Tropeau and Darryl Anderson. The intention was to create the feel of “a bunch of guys walking around the campsite with guitars, goofing off and having a good time — and I definitely think we hit the nail on the head.”
Johnson is now putting the final touches on an accompanying music video in hopes that it might be done in time to debut at Craven. Country Thunder organizers gave their blessing to the project and even supplied some footage.
“I think it’s really nice that somebody cares enough about the festival to write a song about it,” said general manager Kim Blevins. “That’s why we participated with him and provided some footage. We can’t claim any direct affiliation because there is none but we have been happy to help out a fan to create some art that is reflective of our event. It’s really important to us that people make these memories and appreciate and enjoy an event so much that it becomes a part of their lives. That’s very special.”
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Johnson has been writing songs for many years but didn’t get serious until the COVID pandemic. He has now released four singles, with one more on the way this summer to complete his first extended-play album.
One of the songs on the EP is Craven.
“I would definitely love for (the festival) to use it in any way possible,” he added. “Everyone I’ve showed it to has loved it. Obviously I’m a patron of Craven. It’s one of my favourite places in the world. My biggest goal with the song was just to share it. It’s awesome to (play) it out there and connect with everyone. I’d like to be able to continue to spread the greatness of Craven.”