Nova Scotia songwriters Cameron Nickerson and Jud Gunning share “‘Summertime in the Maritimes.” Their first collaboration, the song has been a few years in the making.
“I’ve always wanted to write a song about my love for the Maritime provinces – I’m thankful that I was born and raised here, and I’m amazed that people come from all over the world to the place that’s always just been home for me,” said Jud Gunning (he/him). “We’ve got the greatest characters, iconic landscape and best music in the world, and I’m proud of that.”
“It’s good to be back home again / Where your neighbors lend a hand / Now I don’t care if it rains all day or if the fog rolls in across the bay,” the pair sing on the infectious chorus. “Cause I’m back home in the Maritimes again.”
“There’s a charm about this area that I wanted to share with my audience through my music,” Gunning said. “I brought the title of the song and the fiddle tune to Cameron Nickerson down in St. Margarets Bay. I knew we’d have good fun working together, because he likes hillbilly music just like I do. We wrote the chorus and put the verses to the MacNab’s hornpipe melody, then brought it to my dad’s studio and called Rachel Davis and Darren McMullen in to play the fiddle and mandolin tracks.”
Review
“Summertime in the Maritimes” is a love letter to the East Coast, capturing the feeling of coming home to where the air is fresh, and community is everything. The chorus, “It’s good to be back home again,” hits like an anthem for Maritimers, a reminder that no matter where life takes you, there’s nothing like returning to your roots.
With its folk-inspired melody and vivid lyrics, this song is the perfect soundtrack for foggy mornings by the bay or beach bonfires at dusk. You can almost feel the sea breeze and taste the salt in the air as the Bluenose sails by. It’s a celebration of the simple joys and the unique beauty of Maritime summers.
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