I used to spend a lot of time with Keith Grimwood and Ezra Idlet of Trout Fishing in America, but that was mostly in the late 1980s through the ’90s. We got to be friends and I would on occasion drive or even fly to wherever they might be playing in the U.S. or Canada, places like Portland, Maine or Portland Oregon; Albany, NY; Kerrville, TX; Beacon, NY; Chicago, IL; Winnipeg, MB; Owen Sound, ON, etc., etc. It was always a blast and I’m glad I had the time to do it before life got in the way.
Keith and Ezra have released 24 studio albums through their own label, Trout Music. Their music has been described as alternating between folk-rock and children’s music. Four of their albums have been nominated for Grammy Awards. It’s always been hard to pigeon-hole what they do, but they are one of the best live shows you’d ever want to see.
I was looking through some old pictures today and came across a photo of Keith and myself at the Blue Skies Festival, which is held north of Kingston, Ontario. I think this shot is from 1995. Not sure about that. Keith is the one with the Red Dwarf shirt, and that’s me when I had hair.
Another curiosity about knowing Keith and Ezra for so long is that I actually have an honest-to-goodness cassette tape of their music, which they gave me. It’s from 1988, called “Stark Raving Trout.” It’s full of great stuff they used to play back in the day at the beer tent at Summer Folk in Owen Sound, if that means anything to you: stuff like “Dixie Chicken,” “Brown-Eyed Girl,” and “Big Trouble.”
Anyway, it would be good to see them again, and fun, always fun.