博客來Not just the story of one person, David Woodhead’s Evidence of Ecstasy is a photographic window into a generation of Canadian independent musicians. It traces his journey through a lifetime of images, inviting us behind the scenes at recording studios, folk festivals, and touring adventures while working with many original and influential musical artists.
Through the lens of his camera, we catch glimpses of several different transitory communities of musicians, mostly through the 1970s and 80s, and mostly in black and white. There is a fierce sense of uncompromised creativity here, and each photograph is chosen to highlight that sense of being somewhat off the beaten track, and not part of the ＂star-maker machinery＂ of commercial culture.
From a Montreal family that valued music in everyday life, though teen-age influences from Brownie McGhee to the Fugs and Zappa, we see David progress through his first band experiences to a breakout to Stratford, Ontario’s Black Swan coffeehouse and the counterculture collective that was Perth County Conspiracy (does not exist). The next chapters follow his adventures as bassist with Stan Rogers, with another breakaway to Canada’s rustic West Coast and back east for a taste of Toronto’s Queen Street scene of the 1980s. Working with inspirational fiddler/composer Oliver Schroer is featured, and we close with a short chapter bringing us all the way from starting a family in the late 80s to recent events.
But the emphasis of Evidence of Ecstasy is on earlier times when people were not armed with cell phones and much less was documented visually. David did not intend to be a documentary photographer, but he certainly managed to capture some memorable images and has assembled them into a compelling story.
