Episode 6 - Jay Semko
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Our guest in today's episode is national treasure Jay Semko! Jay is obviously best known from his tenure as bass player, singer, and songwriter with the Northern Pikes; one of Canada's most influential bands of late 80s/early 90s. Jay and Randy have worked together lots over the past decade or so and the conversation was relaxed, warm, and very funny. Jay is a natural storyteller, whether on stage or on Zoom, so this was one of the easiest interviews we've done. Give Jay a topic and he can remember dates, places, people, and all manner of details that bring the stories to life!
Jay related a couple of fun stories about life on the road and starting out as somewhat of a punk rocker, which may surprise fans who only know him from the Pikes or as a solo artist. But he's had some hairy moments on the road, like the Blues Brothers without the chicken wire, and his fair share of great moments too, like recording in some of the most prestigious studios in North America and getting a wink from Joan Baez!
With such a long and varied career, it was impossible to fit everything into one episode, but Jay already agreed to come back and chat some more, so look out for that in Season Two!
The lead out song, Clean, comes from Jay's immaculate album Flora Vista album, which Randy coincidentally co-produced and engineered.
Go check out Jay's website and buy his music at https://www.jaysemko.com/
You can also find his records on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/user/realjaysemko
To check out The Northern Pikes, check out https://thenorthernpikes.com/
During the episode, we talked about a lot of different tunes.
The Beatles' Rain is most definitely best listened to in stereo! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cK5G8fPmWeA
The best gig Jay ever want to was The Police, in Regina in 1980 on the Zenyatta Mondata tour. We can confirm that this was a band "on the up" and at the peak of their youthful, gung-ho powers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzx9jcN1Amo
Another band that we also love, is Squeeze and Jay talked about how much he enjoyed seeing them live, with Jools Holland on piano. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQciegmLPAov=CN9Zj6OyKRs
Like Ross from an earlier episode, Elvis Costello also features as an influence (which isn't a surprise if you know Jay's writing style) and he's played Pump it Up more than once! It's a song which demands to be listened to live, so here you go. Raw energy!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oi1-S6UPNc
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