MusicNL Award-winning musician Terry Penney released his first album in over a decade entitled “The People I Am.”
The album IS AVAILABLE NOW, and is a fittingly titled “The People I Am”, explores different sides of Terry’s personality while representing his evolution as a musician throughout his impressive career.
An accomplished singer/songwriter with nine full-length albums in his discography, Terry is widely known for his captivating performances and imaginative storytelling. With his expert ability to paint a picture of the people and places he has encountered throughout his life, Terry is a celebrated lyricist with a skillful ability to have listeners relating to his often deeply personal experiences. Pairing his unique yet universal stories with carefully crafted instrumentation, Terry is adept at communicating through both melody and language.
With over three decades in the music industry, Terry’s incredible storytelling has often been compared to some of the best writers of all time, including Steve Earle and John Prine. The MusicNL Songwriter of the Year has earned multiple nominations from the Music Industry Association of Newfoundland Awards and the East Coast Music Awards. His music has received international recognition through numerous music competitions across the globe, and his work has been highlighted on both television and radio in Newfoundland, where he is originally from, and throughout Canada.
Terry Penney’s “The People I Am” marks the songwriter’s first release of original music in over a decade. After penning a song for his partner as a gift, Terry was encouraged to not only record the track, but continue recording new music as well. Diving into his unreleased archive of songs written throughout his well-travelled life, Terry found himself reconstructing and reimagining a number of his lyrics, adding new perspectives that could only be gained from the gift of growing older. Recorded in Terry’s hometown of Lewisporte, NL “The People I Am” was co-produced with Citadel House label head, Dean Stairs. Through their collaboration, Terry was able to deliver his most personal album to date.
Stylistically eclectic and filled with the widely universal themes of longing for home, missing loved ones, and moving on from closely held dreams, “The People I Am” candidly tells the story of Terry’s life through his vast experiences and candid self-reflection. The first single from the album, “Travelling On Those Tracks”, is the newest song Terry wrote for the project and focuses on longing to close the distance between two people. Born from late night conversations that often featured the wail of a passing train, Terry blended elements of Rock with his traditional Folk sound, and added the familiar roar of the train whistle he so often heard during those middle of the night chats. Continuing with the motif of a train, “Bernadette Regan” was penned after Terry encountered an elderly yet spirited lady on a journey between Belfast and Dublin. Inspired by her radiant character and resilience, Terry acknowledges the impact she made on him in the form of a song. A tune about how age is just a number, the song features the background vocals of Terry’s partner and inspiration for the single “Travelling On Those Tracks”.
Drafted over thirty years ago in 1989, “1983” recalls the unforgettable feeling of falling in love for the first time, an experience most listeners can relate to. Coloured with notes of nostalgia, wistfulness, and curiosity, “1983” layers Terry’s emotive vocals over soulful acoustic instrumentation. Pulling the decades-old song from his extensive archive, Terry revised some of its lyrics to reflect the nuanced changes in perspective he felt between when the song was first penned, and now. The title track and Terry’s most personal song yet, “The People I Am” is an introspective, somber Folk song that offers an unfiltered glimpse into how Terry views himself. Comparing and contrasting personality types, moods, and ideas, the song is both complementary and unflattering – intending to showcase all of the positive and negative sides the artist has within himself. Written during a period of isolation, Terry’s honest, insightful, and deeply personal second single serves as a natural lead track for his most reflective body of work to date. The project also includes songs and stories from home.
A thoughtful reflection of life, his career, and the people he met along the way, “The People I Am” is Terry’s most personal and emotionally nuanced project yet. Contemplative and honest, the brand-new album showcases the distinguished songwriter at his best, illustrating his unrivaled gift for storytelling and masterful exploration of genres. Terry’s skilful delivery of his most personal messages are shared in a way that can be understood and related to by all audiences. With the aim of both entertaining and relating through storytelling, Terry Penney’s “The People I Am” offers something for everyone, and serves as a musical autobiography of Terry’s life and experiences.
“The People I Am” was released on July 15th and NOW available everywhere!
Connect with Terry Penney:
https://www.facebook.com/TerryPenneyMusic