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COVID-19: 㽶ƵֱThe Ballad of Bonnie Henry㽶Ƶֱ recorded and released

LISTEN: Quick turnaround for song penned by B.C. Order of Canada musician Phil Dwyer
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It was a quick turnaround on the recording of a true 2020 tune, 㽶ƵֱThe Ballad of Bonnie Henry㽶Ƶֱ.

The song was written for B.C.㽶Ƶֱs provincial health officer by Order of Canada jazz musician , who is also a lawyer from Qualicum Beach.

It features Tina Jones (Gabriola Island) on voice and banjo, Daniel Lapp (Pender Island) on fiddle, Ben Dwyer (Toronto) on acoustic bass and Dwyer on the music, lyrics and production.

It was mixed and mastered in Nanaimo by Rick Salt from Mountainview Studio.

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Dwyer thought up the lyrics to the song after a concert at Qualicum Beach㽶Ƶֱs Old School House Arts Centre. He dedicated 㽶ƵֱAin㽶Ƶֱt Misbehavin,㽶Ƶֱ a jazz song written in the 1920s, to Dr. Henry. The next morning, he got up, wrote the lyrics, and posted them online.

㽶ƵֱI thought, I㽶Ƶֱm just going to pop this on the interweb because it㽶Ƶֱs gotta be better than looking at some clip of a Donald Trump press conference,㽶Ƶֱ he said. 㽶ƵֱAnd a couple of friends of mine got back to me right away.㽶Ƶֱ

From there, he decided he needed to put it to music, so he quickly put together a cast of musicians to get it done.

The song description on SoundCloud says the song is written for Henry, along with 㽶Ƶֱall the other hard-working people in the health care sector.㽶Ƶֱ It asks listeners to consider making a donation to the , which is raising money for COVID-19 relief efforts. Donations are currently being matched by Gore Mutual.

The lyrics to Dwyer㽶Ƶֱs song:

She comes on the radio, just around 3

with the public health news for the folks of BC

and to talk of a crisis, of a scope yet unseen

with an ungainly moniker, Covid-19

From the start, at the top of her list of demands,

was we lather with soap and please wash off our hands,

and as things took a turn for the worse day by day,

that we keep friends and neighbours a good six feet away

She㽶Ƶֱs had lots of help in her search for a fix,

not the least of whom is Mr. Adrian Dix,

in the eyes of the public though, she㽶Ƶֱs been the one

that has been with us since this whole thing has begun,

As nurses and doctors proceed with their tasks,

and pray for enough ventilators and masks,

she asks us to all help and flatten the curve,

and that from her health policy we do not swerve,

If we all stick together and see this thing through

we can show what a civil society can do

when it㽶Ƶֱs faced with a threat that first seemed unreal

but that now, it is obvious, is the real deal

So please follow the guidelines that she has laid out

it is going to be worth it, of that there㽶Ƶֱs no doubt

and if you turn on your radio, just around 3

the voice that you hear is of Bonnie Henry

cloe.logan@pqbnews.com

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