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Mikel Miller: Still Playing After
All These Years
By Karan Smith, Star Reporter
Many people outside the territory
are surprised to hear there’s a recording community in the Yukon, says one
local musician. But that’s slowly changing, Mikel Miller says in a recent
interview. When Jerry Alfred And The Medicine Beat won a Juno award this
year for the Best Music of Aboriginal Canadian Recording, that opened a lot
of doors, he says. "Word is starting to get around...I only see it getting
stronger because there are good musicians." It was from that local source of
musicians that Miller drew upon o join him on his second album, the KEY,
such as Dave Haddock, Andrea McColeman, and Bruce and Deb Bergman, to name a
few.
The quality in the Yukon is equal to
that of southern counterparts, he says. And many southern musicians are
aware of the territory because of the Frostbite and Dawson City Music
Festival. "That’s for sure. Plus, it’s more fun up here." His album, of
country/folk nature, was also produced by Bob Hamilton at Old Crow Studios,
the same man who put together Alfred’s Etsi Shon. The photo, design and
layout were all done in the Yukon. The exception was the pressing of the CD
and tape, he says. Miller spent a month this summer on a tour to promote the
KEY. The singer and guitarist traveled through British Columbia and Alberta,
visiting various radio stations along the way. The trip also served as his
summer vacation- that’s the way it happens when one is one’s own manager, he
says. Without a lot of marketing, the recording is selling slowly. This
season, Miller plans to mail out the CD to festival organizations across the
country and perhaps play a few local concerts.
The KEY is his second album; his
first was in 1989. But Miller says he’s much happier with the new album. It
can be an expensive venture setting out into a recording career. He saved
and borrowed to fund this album; his first didn’t make money.
But Miller, who also works as a
janitor, is determined to invest himself in this. In 1988 he quit smoking
because he felt burnt out. In 1991, after years in the bars, he stopped
playing in the establishments. He was tired of being a "juke box", playing
others’ tunes, he says. His profile is not very visible without playing in
any bars, concedes the 46-year old. "I’m still trying to make a living at
it. You’d think I’d learn."
Since Miller moved north in 1979, he
says he’s played in all the local bars. He originally left Vancouver because
a fellow musician playing at the Kopper King invited him up for a beer.
"I’ve been here since. Never left."
Songwriting is the source of his
inspiration. He writes about things he’s noticed, people he has encountered,
and little things.
"I think I’d like to be known as a
balladeer... Hopefully , (people) listen to the words, still." One song on
the Key, "Something You Never Knew", is about an old friend, Kootch, who was
like a mentor and a father to Miller, passing on "little bits of wisdom". He
had a sense of humour, says Miller, recalling his introductory comment:
"I’ll tell you a lie that you’d believe."
"He always made me laugh," says
Miller. Kootch was like the Colourful Five Percent individuals,
characterized by local artist Jim Robb. "Yeah. He would have fit in up
here." Kootch also taught him not to take life too serious. His friend
passed away in 1992 at the age of 92. The KEY is dedicated to Kootch and to
P.B. Miller, Mikel’s mother. She was probably his number one fan, he says.
The liner notes describe her as a woman "who always had a cigarette when I
needed one, a beer when I was thirsty, and on more than one occasion, bus
fare out of town." She always supported him and never asked him to find a
career, he says. The album is dedicated to their spirit, he says, to keep on
doing what one wants to do. And Miller’s taking their advice.
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