LES COULISSES DE KISSING RAIN

KISSING RAIN - BEHIND THE SCENES

Français

Wouldn’t you like to tumble into a warm, hot bath and think about nothing else than to find peace within yourself, if during 10 years, the only life that you had known, was a life on packing your suitcase and flying from one city to another ? That’s what Roch felt: he had an urgent need to calm down, to relax. A little voice inside his head begged him to slow down the pace of his life, to redefine the man he was, to think about the choices that he made on the solitary routes from Montreal to Paris, and in between Brussels, London or Amsterdam. What did he care about ? What did he want to achieve ? With whom wanted he to work ? Or more simply: was he happy ?

The beloved man with the French/English double identity decided to pack his bags and to take a plane to LA (he had the choice between Nashville, New York and Los Angeles to record an album, but his heart pointed him the road to LA, not only because some awful musicians are working there, but also… yes, because of the nice weather, Roch would be able to play some golf!). He made a first stop at Toronto, where his beautiful musical history began… He met an angel on the road: Amy Sky.

Roch found himself swept into another world. He decided to take the time to write, to live, to breath like everybody else, to play golf (something he can’t quit), to organise some barbecues, to meet some friends. Gone: the time when Roch composed between 2 concerts, 2 planes or 2 interviews....

Kissing Rain - the album:
Roch loves to describe his album as being composed essentially by pop songs. Although, he succeeds in composing some rhythm & blues and folk/rock songs.

Kissing Rain - the song:
What is the meaning of the title ? Well, that’s quite a funny story.
While Roch was walking back to his home in Los Angeles and was accompanied by A. Thompson, Roch read these words on a licence plate of a Jeep. In a split of a second, he had an idea: he wanted to compose a song where the rain would play a leading role. How ingenious for a folk/country melody !

Shed a light:
When Roch was composing this song, he had only one thing on his mind.
It was imperative that the song was expressing nothing but POSITIVE ideas !

He wanted to write a song about two people who wanted to stay together. The song is about a man who says to another man: "awaken, love your woman, stop being a jerk".

And apparently, thinking positive makes Roch work very quickly. He says that he has written this song in a very short time !

Love never dies:
This song is often described as being ‘the love song to die for’.

Deliver me:
First stop at Toronto, and meeting with Amy Sky for lunch. This meeting was very inspiring, because not soon after that, the notes of ‘Deliver me’ where played on their guitars. This was the very first song on the writing trip.

Roch says it's a great song because it's basically a song that keeps on giving, that starts real slow and it just keeps on building.

Roch heart beats faster when he plays this song.

He tells us a private detail: Amy Sky has become a true friend, something that doesn’t happen real often in showbusiness.

Cross my heart & soul:
You can read it in it’s title, a song with a little soul flavour…

The right one:
Mmm, a song that’s sweet and rock at the same time, like our beloved Roch Voisine.

St-Annie with the wild blue eyes:
Christopher Ward (the author behind ‘Black Velvet’ from Alannah Myles), looked straight at Roch and asked him, the first time he met him: "Are you catholic? Would you have any problem singing something with a little correlation with sex and religion ?". Roch replied "absolutely not, I think it is pretty cool." And that’s how on Kissing Rain, we have the opportunity to listen to a superb country ballad.

All I know:
Roch doesn’t hide the fact that this is one of his favourite songs on the album.
This song was co-written by Amy Sky and Richard Marx. Roch never forgets to thank his colleagues in his interviews.

Chaque Jour de ta Vie:
In Los Angeles, Roch had the opportunity to meet Don Grierson. And thanks to him, he met the loveable Richard Marx. At that moment, Richard was composing a duet album, he thought it would be great if Roch could also sing a duet with him. In his eyes, Roch represented both Canada and French Europe.

A heavy conversation emerged between the two creative minds: will/will not do a bilingual duet. The solution ? Very easy: on Richard Marx’s ‘Flesh and bone’ you will be able to hear ‘Every day of your life’, sang exclusively in English by our 2 stars. But on ‘Kissing Rain’, Roch wanted to give the song an extra personal touch. And he performed a magical trick by making Richard sing in French and in English ! Incredible, wouldn’t you say ?

Don’t lose your faith in me now:
Few has been said about this song (by the critics and by Roch).
Go back to the roots for Roch… guitar and voice.

With these eyes:
The story behind this song shows how much Roch’s music is evolving.

On the album, you will hear a beautiful love song, where Roch drives his voice to the extreme limits of mankind. He makes the words vibrate, makes the tears come out of their shelter. The different music instruments make love in the open light.

But Roch is a perfectionist, and he only lives to please his public, he go back to his roots, and very simply, sits down by the open fire with his guitar and sings a ‘With these eyes’ with a very delicate touch, which shakes and mixes all feelings that we might encounter. Roch also walked down that road during his summer concerts in Canada.

Stay with me:
A very discrete but lovely love song.

Whatever it takes:
"Whatever it takes" is another non-depressive sort of love song. Roch admits having a reputation of singing especially sad love songs: whether he’s leaving the woman of his heart, or she is telling him goodbye.
Roch wanted to do something completely different with this song. Basically, he wanted to express the way a couple-in-love feel "whatever it is going to take for us to do this, to make this happen, we are going to do this, because the incredible happiness is worth the efforts".
Co-written with Eddie Schwartz for the rhythmic part, we can say that this song is nothing but positive thinking.

Whose heart is it:
A sad message which characterises often the most beautiful love songs written by Roch.

Dance with a stranger:
Roch says about this song that it is quite simply build.
But the story behind this song isn’t !

Roch was all pressed with time, he had spend a lot of time caring about every piece of music put on the album. Unfortunately, the album was overdue and Roch didn't think that he had time to record "Dance With A Stranger".

That’s when destiny stroked him. On his way, he met an angel of mercy: Richard Marx, who heard the song on a demo tape and he fell in love at first sight with this song. To do something about the deadline, he advised Roch to put this song at the end of his album. To let everyone experience the amazing beauty of the song, he decided to call his dad, Dick Marx, who is very popular in the States for his orchestral talents. Richard even lent his recording studio to Roch.

Roch thanks Richard Marx for that, because he says that this song would have never made it on the album if it wasn't for him. And Richard, I would also like to thank you for everything you’ve done. This song makes me want to cry, it’s one of the best love songs - ever.

Los Angeles did inspire our Sweet Rock-‘n-Roller, because in less than 6 months, Roch has co-written - and this is not a joke, 52 songs ! Needless to say that Roch isn’t ready to lose his source of inspiration…