Don Ross Revisits a Timeless Collaboration With “Did I Fool You” From New Album, Songs That Found Me
Acclaimed Canadian guitarist, composer, and songwriter Don Ross releases his new single “Did I Fool You” today, offering a rare glimpse into a creative partnership that stretches back to his teenage years. Written with longtime collaborator Norman Wolfson, the song is the first single from Ross’s album Songs That Found Me, out now via Goby Fish Music. The track bridges decades of musical craftsmanship, combining elements of a 1981 Toronto recording session with newly recorded performances that reflect Ross’s evolving artistry and production vision.
“I wrote this song with my old friend Norman Wolfson back when we were both teenagers,” Ross says. “We wrote a lot of songs together for various projects. We always thought this song was maybe our strongest tune.”
The original version was recorded at Captain Audio in downtown Toronto in the early 1980s, when Ross and Wolfson entered the studio with hopes of presenting the song to established vocalists. What emerged instead was a recording that captured the spirit of two young writers finding their voice. More than four decades later, that session has become the foundation for a strikingly contemporary release.
The song’s lyrics carry the emotional clarity and introspection that have long marked Ross’s writing. In the chorus, he sings, “But I’m all right, I’m fine / Everything happens my way / I could fool anyone, but did I fool you?” — a line that anchors the song’s reflective tone and melodic sweep. Elsewhere, Ross sets the stage with poetic imagery: “Dreams and songs remain to haunt my worried mind / How often have I stayed inside myself, beside myself?”
“Back in about 1981 we went into Captain Audio recording studio in downtown Toronto and did the best job we could recording this song,” Ross recalls. “Mostly what we ended up with was a really nice recording.”
Years later, while exploring recording engineering in greater depth, Ross discovered a box of tape reels from those early sessions and carefully transferred them into the digital realm. That archival moment became the starting point for the single’s innovative production approach.
Using the A.I.-powered software Spectralayers, Ross separated the original stereo recording into its component parts, allowing him to remix and expand the track. The result is a recording that blends eras seamlessly: electric guitar, keyboards, bass, and backing vocals preserved from the 1981 session, alongside Ross’s newly recorded lead vocal, acoustic guitar, orchestration, and a fresh drum performance by longtime collaborator Marito Marques. “Definitely the most 21st century approach I’ve ever taken to a mix,” Ross says of the process.
Ross’s career spans decades of innovation across acoustic music, songwriting, and composition. Born in Montréal and now based in Windsor, Nova Scotia, he first emerged on the international stage after winning the U.S. National Fingerpick Guitar Championship in 1988, becoming the competition’s first two-time champion when he won again in 1996. Over the years he has released more than two dozen albums, toured extensively across Europe, Asia, and North America, and built a reputation for genre-blending work that connects virtuoso guitar playing with expansive musical storytelling. His upcoming album Songs That Found Me marks his 19th solo release and continues a creative path that has led to honours including the Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts from the Canada Council for the Arts.
Following the release of “Did I Fool You,” Ross will bring his music to audiences across Europe and North America throughout 2026, including performances in Germany, Poland, Bulgaria, and across Canada, with notable stops at the Luminato Festival in Toronto and the Stewart Park Festival in Perth, Ontario. Additional dates span from Aurora, Ontario to Vancouver, British Columbia, continuing a touring tradition that has connected Ross with global audiences for decades.
Hi, Don! Good to see you again! Care to introduce yourself to the readers for those not familiar with your music?
Hey there. I have been recording and performing full-time since the late 1980s. I am best known as a sooli acoustic guitarist, but I also do other projects, like a jazz quartet that I have (called Don Ross Louder Than Usual), orchestration work for video games and television and film, and currently I do a lot of touring as a duo with a German guitarist named Julie Malía. But, my most current project is an all vocal album, called Songs That Found Me. It’s my first all vocal album in 17 years. So I do a little bit of this and a little bit of that, all centred around the acoustic guitar for the most part. But I play a lot of different instruments in the studio.
This song started in your teens – what did your younger self get right about it?
Back then, I was doing a lot of co-writing of songs with various musical friends of mine that I had met at high school. This particular song I wrote with my old friend Norman Wolfson, and we always felt it was our best song. So the cool thing is that I was able to use a recording that we did at a nice studio in downtown Toronto back in 1981 and then use artificial intelligence tools to unmix the tune and remix it and redo the vocal and the drums so that it sounded a little bit more 2026. The result was really surprising, but I knew at its core it was a strong song. Even though I wrote it when I was something like 17!
What made this the song worth revisiting decades later?
It’s very well written, both harmonically and melodically. The lyrics are really just a collection of thoughts and images, rather than being the kinds of lyrics that tell a story. So, the listener can do their own interpretation of what we were saying in the song. I’ve always liked that idea…leaving a lot up to the imagination of the listener. I think that’s the song does that quite well.
How did working again with Norman Wolfson feel after all these years?
Well, we didn’t really work directly again. I was in regular touch with him about the idea of putting the song out for real. He was happy with the idea, and every time I tried something new with the tune, I would run it by him again. In the end, I think he was pretty pleased. It’s cool that we’ve been able to stay in touch all these years.
If this album is ‘Songs That Found Me,’ what does this one say about timing and rediscovery?
My idea, when putting songs together for the album, was to pick songs that have kind of been milestones for me throughout my life…going as far back as the age of 17 for this song, all the way up to songs that I’ve only just discovered by other artists in the last few years. Each of the songs has a strong association for me with various parts of my life. So that’s the cool thing about this tune… It reminds me of a very creative time from my youth, and it’s just a great thing that I was able to use a recording that I did way back when and still make it sound like something I would do at this point in my life.
Upcoming Shows:
All shows double bill with Julie Malía unless noted
24/04/2026: Neuötting, Germany
25/042026: Neunkirchen, Germany
26/04/2026: Hemsbach, Germany
30/04 – 03/05/2026: Klasdorf, Germany (Groove Guitar Camp)
08/05/2026: Nienhagen, Germany
09/05/2026: Wernigerode, Germany
14/05/2026: Einbeck, Germany
15/05/2026: Marmagen, Germany
16/05/2026: Gelnhausen, Germany (solo)
23/05/2026: Aurora, ON, Canada (solo)
06/06/2026: Luminato Festival, Toronto, ON, Canada (solo)
17-18/07/2026: Stewart Park Festival, Perth, ON, Canada
14-16/08/2026: Don Ross Guitar Weekend, Windsor, NS, Canada
18-20/09/2026: Warsaw Fingerstyle Guitar Festival, Warsaw, Poland (TBC)
01/10/2026: Salty Towers, St Andrew’s, NB, Canada
02/10/2026: Harbourfront Theatre, Summerside, PE, Canada
04/10/2026: Le Richelieu, Meteghan, NS, Canada
07/10/2026: Strathspey Performing Arts Centre, Mabou, NS, Canada
10/10/2026: Chester Playhouse, Chester, NS, Canada
15/10/2026: Sofia, Bulgaria (Venue TBA) (solo)
22/10/2026: Paderborn, Germany
23-25/10/2026: Bad Wildungen, Germany
31/10-01/11/2026: Beuggen, Germany
06-07/11/2026: Hamburg Guitar Festival, Hamburg, Germany
14/11/2026: Heidenheim, Germany
19/11/2026: Saskatoon, SK, Canada
20/11/2026: Fort Saskatchewan, AB, Canada
21/11/2026: Valemount, BC, Canada
22/11/2026: Canmore, AB, Canada
23/11/2026: High River, AB, Canada
24/11/2026: Cranbrook, BC, Canada
26/11/2026: Duncan, BC, Canada
27/11/2026: Courtenay, BC, Canada
28/11/2026: Victoria, BC, Canada
29/11/2026: Vancouver, BC Canada
04/12/2026: Bath, ME, USA