Music: {allcanada} Writing music still personal for Brody

Saturday, September 10, 2011

{allcanada} Writing music still personal for Brody

Canadian country singer Dean Brody's handsome mug stares out from the cover of his 2010 sophomore album, Trail in Life, with nary a trace of the major reconstructive facial surgery he's had to endure.

But a 2008 waterskiing wipeout definitely left its mark, says Brody, who is currently enjoing his most successful year yet, culminating with five nominations at Monday's Canadian Country Music Awards -- second only to six-time nominee Johnny Reid -- and a cross-Canada tour starting Sept. 22 with Aaron Lines and Deric Ruttan on the so-called CMT Hit List Tour.

"I smashed my face on my waterski," said Jaffrey, B.C.-born Brody, 36, from his adopted home of Chester, N.S., from where his wife's family hails.

"We were on the Potomac River in the U.S. and I just smashed my ski and it crushed my face and had to get reconstructive surgery -- three titanium plates and twelve screws in my face to elevate it back to where it was. My face was kind of messed up for a while. It definitely was a setback there. You can feel my screws along the ridge of my eye -- it's pretty gnarly."

The CCMAs get underway Monday night at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton and will be broadcast on CBC and CMT.

Of Brody's five nods in all of the top categories, including album (Trail in Life) and single (Trail in Life), he says the songwriting nomination means the most.

"Because I lived in a remote area of Canada I had to write a lot by myself and so it became quite a personal thing to write a song -- it still is for me. I write almost exclusively by myself, just because I think that's how I learned and how I developed what I do and so that I would be cool."

Brody will also perform on the CCMAS telecast -- his new single, People Know You By Your First Name -- along with Reid, Paul Brandt, George Canyon, Terri Clark, Doc Walker, Emerson Drive, Luke Bryan, Ronnie Dunn and Jim Cuddy, among others.

Still, Brody seems resigned to the fact that it's Reid, who has taken home 10 CCMAS in the last two years, who is the obvious favourite.

"For every artist, for years, Johnny -- he's the guy," said Brody with a chuckle.

But after a bumpy ride getting to this point he doesn't mind one bit.

"It's really nice to have that many nominations, especially after this last couple of years, it's been a new record label and everything so it's been an adjustment. But it's been rewarding, when you get those nominations from your peers, it's just really awesome."

To backtrack, just before the waterskiing accident, Brody -- who moved to Nashville in 2004 originally just to be a songwriter -- had signed with a label but when his U.S. work permit ran out, he was forced to move back to Canada.

Eventually, he released his first single, Brothers, in 2008, followed by his 2009 self-titled debut, but fell out with the label over their management choices.

He's since signed with Open Road in Canada.

"The couple years there it felt as soon as we got going we'd get hit with something else and we finally got the record deal and I found out I wouldn't have to work in a coal mine for the rest of my life," said Brody.

"Where I'm from, that's what you do, you work in a saw mill or a coal mine."

Needless to say, his recent success has gone over well with the parents, who will be in the audience on Monday night in Hamilton.

"When I first started out they definitely thought I was a little crazy," said Brody. "Saw their son go off to Nashville with his wife and their two-year-old boy (they've since had a girl too). I think it freaked them out. Lately they really see it, it's coming true. The dream's coming true. They're my biggest fans now."