Video: Ryan McMahon

In this interview, musician Ryan McMahon talks about his early influences and being creative during COVID. This is part of The Beat Goes On – Ladysmith History & Music, a series of videos produced by TAKE 5 Print & Digital Media for the Ladysmith & District Historical Society. A clip of Are You All Right is performed by Ryan McMahon and produced with his permission.

[Ryan McMahon is seated in his home studio on Zoom]

[Ryan McMahon] I’ve been a performing, recording artist for 20-plus years. Born in Chemainus and raised in Ladysmith, and once I got to about the age of 15, being a musician was about the only thing I ever wanted to do.

[Music “Tell me what you’re after, tell me what you want” ]

[R.M] Anyway, so you show up at grade eight and you look around and you try to find your tribe, kind of, you know, you try to find like-minded people and, you kind of float for a few years. But, I think by the time I got to about grade 10, there was this band of guys that were in grade 12 two years ahead, and they were in a band called “I’m Not Frank”, and it was Dustin Young, Mike Rogerson and Dylan Baker.

And, the grunge era was the flavour of the year of that era. You know like the ripped jeans and the bad sweaters. Let’s dress as much like Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder as possible. And they dressed the part, they looked the part and they were kind of, they were kind of bad. You know?

And I just I saw those three guys and I’m like and they’re playing, like I mean, they would play Jimmy Hendricks “Voodoo Child” at battle of the bands in the gymnasium. And, they would play it like note for note, flawlessly. Like they were all really, really talented musicians.

And I wanted to be them so bad.

Then fast forward, a couple years later I was, you know, touring in Canada with two of them. They they were in my band. And, Mike Rogerson kind of took me under his wing in Vancouver and recorded my first couple records at a studio called Baker Street.

So, I mean those those guys absolutely were a huge influence early. And then even Lorcan Byrne who was my age, he rolled out of bed writing great songs.

[Slide show of photographs showing Ryan playing at various venues, plus a photo of Ryan and Burton Cummings singer with the Guess Who.]

[R.M.] All of my travels and my experiences overseas in Denmark, Germany, Canada, or the United States gave me fuel. Writing fuel.

And yeah, during COVID, I recorded a song here. Right here, in my garage studio called “Are You Alright”.

[Music Video “Are You Alright”]

Tell me what you’re after, tell me what you want,

Full feeder for the birds in the winter, worry gone.

The kid is learning Hendricks, in the white vanilla ways.

Crammin’ riffs under his lid, to keep forever days.

Are you all right?

Are you digging your aggressively domesticated life?

Are you alright?

Does your mother understand why you love me up so tight?

The creditors called, “Thank you for your payment”.

And the neighbours on the lawn making like we’re famous.

Power wash the rust off the song you used to slay,

And sing it to the crowd, while they talk about their day.

Are you alright?,

Are you digging your aggressively domesticated life?

Are you. Alright?

Or are your dreams in the fire as the smoke circles the sky?

Right on!

Renovate, paint, wake up and do some more.

While the 737s laying just outside your door.

Everything you knew and all the things you miss,

We could climb up our complaints just to see the view again.

Are you alright?

Are you digging your aggressively domesticated life?

Are you all right?

Or do you roll out of your bed and ask why? Heavens why?

[End video]

[R.M.] And, there was a part of the song where I had the horns come in and the gang vocals come in. And I thought well, I don’t have any trained singers or anybody to sing these gang vocals for me. So I called on the kids and whoever was home. I said come on in. Come on. I need you to do this “bahd ahd bahd ahd” part. And everybody came in and sang on that.

So I mean it’s still the family business for sure, whenever possible.

[Music]

[Slide show of family photographs]

[R.M.] And their grandkids can listen to them sing on these songs, too you know.

[Music]