Sean Ashby, 24 Hours Of Daylight

I came across Sean Ashby when he showed up at the Long Beach Radio studio. Touring alone in support of the album "24 Hours Of Daylight".  You've heard him even if you haven't heard of him. Guitarist for Sarah McLachlan for a decade or so, Sean was also the "new guy" when The Grapes of Wrath became Ginger.  The version of The Beatles' tune "Blackbird" in the soundtrack for I Am Sam features Sean's playing as well.

24 Hours Of Daylight wasn't what I had expected, neither was Sean for that matter. In Sean's case he was casual, almost disorganized and dishevelled when he arrived at the studio.  I had a preconception of a guy in a tie with airtight custom hard cases for his guitars.  I was pleasantly surprised by both the album and the artist.

The opening track "Shoulder Wide" has gotten a bit of airplay... It's not my favourite off the album, but it does carry a fair bit of the guitar sound that he's left on the Sarah McLachlan recordings over the years.  The drums are very present and Sean does a great job of using a limited vocal range to express a sense of desperation.

A number of the middle tracks use a great mix of bright surf-guitar sound and complex drums to create a hectic feel that seems like it would fit into a particularly dark scene in a Quentin Tarantino movie.  Around midway through the album Sean offers up a fairly straight ahead blues rock number "Barbwire Valentine" in the character of David Gogo or Colin James, featuring some compelling slide guitar.

For the last 3 songs things drop down and get a little more "coffee shop" than "blues bar". "3 sides" has a bit of a Jeff Buckley quality with a lot of space and a good emotional journey. 

The title track, second to last on the album is an instrumental piece. Guitar arpeggios that, despite being very tasteful and flawlessly delivered fail to deliver me anywhere.

The album wraps up in a similar mood to the on it began with, returning to a mellower groove with a little desperation and some very satisfying guitar interplay. 

Fan's of Canada's "Light Blues Rock" scene will enjoy this album I think, people who go for David Gogo, Colin James, Colin Lindon and even John Mayer will find the album pretty fulfilling.  If you're expecting Sarah McLauchlin style songs you won't find them. Sean is on his own road here and based on our interview from a while back it sounds like he's pretty happy to drive it.

Here's the interview with live in-studio performance.





You can get the album here

Thanks for reading and happy listening, Geoff