Last Updated on 22 September 2021 by Showcall Editorial Team
Musicians from Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada have recorded folk covers of songs from musical Come From Away
A new album has been released of folk singers and bands reinterpreting the songs from hit musical Come From Away.
With the title Covers from Away, it features tracks by musicians from Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada whose sounds originally inspired the show’s composers, Irene Sankoff & David Hein.
Come From Away, currently running at the Phoenix Theatre in London, tells the story of international flights grounded in Gander in Newfoundland after the 9/11 attacks.
Although the album draws on the score and lyrics of Come From Away, the songs have been adapted to work better as stand-alone tracks.
Sankoff said: “Come From Away has very few stand-alone songs so what was most exciting about this project was the opportunity to actually collaborate with these bands by digging into our original or cut lyrics, writing new ones, or pairing songs together to create something completely new.
“With this album, we hope to bring Newfoundland music to people around the world. I hope people will return the favour by seeking out these artists and buying their albums and going to their concerts, and even coming to Newfoundland to hear them.”
Hein added: “This project was such a gift for us. To have our music interpreted by these amazing bands that we’re such huge fans of is truly an honour.
“When we first started writing Come From Away, we knew we wanted the music to be as authentic as possible, so we listened to every album from all the Newfoundland and Labrador bands that I fell in love with growing up.
“And now, with this album, we get to share an even more authentic experience, with those same bands putting their unique spin on every song from our show.”
The album was recorded in summer 2021 in locations throughout Newfoundland and was produced by Sankoff and Hein along with Ian Eisendrath, Bob Hallett and Sean Patrick Flahaven.
Two songs from the album, “Welcome To The Rock”, performed by The Navigators, and “Screech Out”, performed by The Dardanelles, can both be heard in the end credits of the Apple original film Come From Away, now streaming globally on Apple TV+.
Covers From Away is available now to stream or download via platforms including Spotify.
