“Longview Alberta’s roots/swing duo Over The Moon are totally immersed in real cowboy country. When you set up home in the foothills of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains, it’s inevitable there will be a strong sense of place - and the rhythms of the land when you start to make music,” details the artist bio at www.yorktonarts.ca
Suzanne Levesque and Craig Bignell “treat their audiences like a living room full of close friends coming over for a night of music and fun stories. They’re very down to earth, rural people, and their music is uncluttered, simple and sweet.”
Yorkton This Week arranged an interview with the duo and the first question was how they got their start in music.
“I started out being a drummer percussionist,” offered Bignell. “I recorded for and played live with many artists throughout my career.
“One artist that I always worked with was Susan Aglukark as her drummer/percussionist and music director for most of her career.
“I always fooled with the banjo and acoustic guitar, but that turned to a passion while I was working with John Cowan, from Newgrass Revival and The Doobie Brothers.”
For Levesque it was a case of family.
“I started playing music with my family when I was 12 years old in the North Okanagan British Columbia,” she said, adding she began playing electric bass and lead and harmony vocals.
“We played as a family band for about 12 years performing in Legions, Army and Navy Clubs and dances before moving to Alberta.
“I started freelancing with touring bands and performed back-up vocals and bass for various Canadian country music artists until I changed direction and began performing more folk/acoustic music with The Travelling Mabels, a group that my mother is a part of.
“I bought an upright bass and started working on it but only started playing it on stage when I started playing music with Over The Moon.
“I have always loved country western music, acoustic instruments, harmonies and songs that don’t need gimmicks to be a good song.”
So how did Levesque and Bignell come together to create Over the Moon?
“Suzanne was recording with a group she was part of from Calgary called the Traveling Mabels. They hired me to record drums and percussion on that recording, which I did from my studio in Ontario,” explained Bignell.
“A while later I was in Calgary rehearsing with Tom Jackson for his Huron Carol Tour. The Mabels found out I was there and asked me to be part of their album release party.
“That’s the first time I would meet Suzanne.
“Later the same week, Tom was having a dinner party at his house and he invited the Mabels and there she was again!
“Traditionally at Tom’s house, after supper, everyone takes turns singing songs and when it came to my turn, I was terrified as singing and playing guitar was so new to me.
“Suzanne had a feeling I could use some help so she grabbed her bass, came and sat down beside me and sang harmonies with the John Prine song I was struggling with.
“That was it. Our love was born and so was Over The Moon.”
But one song does not a duo make. So there had to be some connection that became apparent to decide to play music together professionally.
“We thought it would be a nice change for folks to have a married music couple that doesn’t take themselves seriously, but takes their music very seriously, and are down to earth and treats their audience like long lost family,” said Bignell.
“Plus a big comment we always get is, ‘we can tell that you two really love each other and what you’re doing’, and, that is exactly how we feel!”
Does that connection extend smoothly to writing songs?
“Craig and I seem to write/work well together,” said Levesque. “Sometimes, I’ll have an idea for a song or some lyrics and I’ll bring it to Craig to put his magic to it. He is more knowledgeable about the theory of music and can play many instruments so he always has interesting and creative ideas about the melody/feel of a song.
“He has produced both of our albums.
“I add ideas for the vocal melody/harmony and we both write the songs. In music and in life we have our strength and weaknesses and are stronger together than apart. It’s only our second album but we’re really getting a rhythm of how we work best together. It’s wonderful!”
The music Over the Moon creates is varied.
“We are musicians first, and artists second,” said Bignell. “That being said; we have a hard time sticking to one genre.
“We love all styles and when we write a song, we use whatever style that can create the right emotion to convey the story.
“What I can say is, that our music is very acoustic, organic, with no studio tricks, because we don’t know any.
“(it’s) kind of stone group sound or Y’alternative Cowbilly – that’s what we call it…Cowbilly!”
To-date Over the Moon has releases two albums, their debut recording ‘Moondancer’ in 2017, and on Oct. 29, ‘Chinook Waltz’ was released worldwide on Borealis Records.
Besides the albums, what have been highlights to-date for Over the Moon?
“We were asked to fly to China two-years ago, to play a concert tour across the country in some of their biggest and most beautiful theaters. It was amazing,” said Bignell.
“Now we are booked for a two-month tour of the UK/Ireland and into Europe for next March/April.”
