Frank Deresti and Craig Smith met on the road about a decade ago, while both working musicians found themselves sharing the stage in different acts at various locations around Ontario. While it would be years before the two played together, there was an instant affinity and respect between the two journeyman musician/songwriters.
Sometime in 2018, the pair decided to try writing some songs together, intending to see what they could come up with in a short amount of time, and possibly release an EP. Along the way keyboardist / vocalist and all around collaborative adventurer, Jay Stiles, joined the project. Jay had been working with both Frank and Craig for several years and was a natural fit, elevating the sound and vibe musically and creatively.
Cozy and creative in a small studio in Duntroon, ON, with the fire going and the mighty Georgian Bay visible through the trees in the distance, the collective wrote and recorded 10 songs over the course of several sessions, spanning two years of intermittent collaboration. Chris Johns came along to play the drums on most of the tracks as they were finished. The result is the debut album from “Ontarians” – “The Greatest Short Story Never Told.”
Bridging the worlds of folk, pop and Americana, “The Greatest Short Story Never Told” plays out at times like a film score, at others a manifest of simple, beautiful times when records are made in imperfect rooms by imperfect people searching for the perfect expression of a moment in time. TGSSNT is a collection of those moments, those imperfect and honest moments of exploration, introspection, and expression.
We hope that there is something in this offering that resonates with you.
Thanks for listening,
Ontarians.
