ELORA – Rick St. Clair didn’t grow up in Elora.
But before the musician moved to the town about a year ago, Elora had stuck in his mind.
“It’s always been a town that people have heard of and talked about,” said St. Clair.
RICK ST. CLAIR
“I think everyone had it as their sort of secret little getaway.”
Originally from Halton Hills, St. Clair said he enjoyed often visiting Elora to paddle the gorge.
Now a resident of Elora, St. Clair said the town is “a perfect blend of everything” he likes. He emphasized the “great arts community and culture”, as well as the strong local support for the arts.
Now his love for the town has been infused into his art. He plans to officially release a song called Elora.
“The song Elora is just really a love letter to the community, the people, the places and the treasures of Elora,” said St. Clair.
“There’s just something special about this place.”
The lyrics make reference to locations such as the Tooth of Time and the Elora Brewing Company.
Elora was originally included on a five song demo EP, Reunion, which he recorded in his home and released last November.
He’s taken two songs from that project, Elora and Looking for a Home, and has given them a fresh coat of paint by re-recording them at Lincoln County Social Club, a music studio in Toronto.
The two songs will be released on music streaming platforms on July 5.
St. Clair said the second song, Looking for a Home, is about “the struggle for finding a house, but knowing that, if you have people in your life you love, that you always have a home.”
St. Clair broadly categorized his work as folk music, but said he is influenced by the sounds of blues, country, and even 90s grunge.
He said he’s inspired by the work of artists such as Townes Van Zandt, Lightnin’ Hopkins and Led Zeppelin.
St. Clair has been playing guitar since he was nine years old, but it wasn’t a musician or a song that inspired him to start making music.
It was the 1985 film Back to the Future.
“When Marty McFly plays the high school dance and he plays the tune Johnny B. Goode, I just saw that and I’m like, ‘Oh I want to do that,’” he said.
St. Clair will be performing this weekend at the Mariposa Folk Festival.
