Guitarist Sean Kelly (Crash Kelly, Nelly Furtado, Helix) recently spoke with BraveWords scribe Carl Begai about collaborating with Canadian icon Lee Aaron on her new album, Fire And Gasoline. An excerpt from the story is availabel below:

Kelly: “I co-wrote five songs on the new album, and our collaboration was done long distance; I would send her demos via email. Sometimes there were fully formed musical arrangements, and sometimes just iPhone memos of riffs and ideas. We would go back and forth once she picked up on ideas she liked, and I have to tell you that I was blown away with the results. I live in Toronto, and she’s out in BC, so sitting in a room together is a luxury we don’t have – aside from when we’re on the road doing concerts – so we made the best out of the technological advancements of our current age. Most of the material I sent was brand new, but one song I actually wrote with Gilby Clarke in mind when we were writing together a few years ago. It was a Badfinger-esque track that he dug, but was not quite right at the time. What Lee did to it was breathtaking, and that became the song ‘Nothing Says Everything’.”

Ultimately, Kelly went into writing with his Lee Aaron fandom intact. He was very familiar with the various facets of Lee Aaron's career, so it stands to reason that the things he liked about her previous albums would work themselves into his writing.

“Actually, one song we wrote didn’t make the album because she felt it was a bit too closely associated with something she’d already done,” Kelly counters. “The goal here was just to write great songs in the here and now. Lee isn’t the type of artist to rehash her past catalogue, and if you look back at her history you can see she never was that type of artist. There was always evolution. I feel very lucky to be working with her at a time where I suspect she’s most free as an artist. She has a great sense of clarity and vision, not only as a songwriter but also as a producer and arranger. She handled all of these tasks with great aplomb. She also delivered some of the most stunning vocal performances I’ve ever heard on record… ANY record. There’s a note she hits on the song ‘Find The Love’ that brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it. She has the great gift of emotional conveyance and connectivity.”

When asked if he has a favourite Lee Aaron era…

“The honest answer is this current era,” Kelly says without missing a beat. “The live show is a killer representation of her past body of work, and sometimes I have those ‘pinch me’ moments you asked about when I see a song we wrote together on the setlist beside a song that was a big part of my musical development. Big hats off to John Albani for his great writing and wonderful guitar arrangements. In this era I get an inside perspective as a musician on Lee’s development as a vocalist and writer, and also get to be an active participant in the next part of the journey. It doesn’t get any better than that for me.”

Go to this location for the complete story.

BraveWords is rocking out with Lee Aaron as she gears up for the March 25th release of an album that's ready to ignite her career, Fire And Gasoline!

About the album she says: "Fire And Gasoline is a rock n' roll record, and I think it would have been a huge mistake to make an album that sounds like something I did before."

"Tomboy" was inspired by her daughter. "In the history of Lee Aaron, I've always embraced themes of female empowerment. I look at my daughter and I see that she just marches to the beat of her own drum. Me and her are kind of in the same place right now."

Lee Aaron's new album, Fire And Gasoline, will be released on March 25th. The complete tracklist is as follows:

"Tomboy"
"Fire And Gasoline"
"Wanna Be"
"Bittersweet"
"Popular"
"50 Miles"
"Bad Boyfriend"
"Heart Fix"
"Nothing Says Everything"
"If You Don't Love Me"
"Find The Love"

Pre-order Fire And Gasoline here. Teasers: