Candice Night Goes Back to the Beach

Candice Night is known primarily as the singer and multi-instrumentalist of guitarist Ritchie Blackmore’s longtime post-Deep Purple outfit Blackmore’s Night. 

However, this spring the Long Island native stepped out on her own to release a new solo album, her first in a decade. 

Entitled Sea Glass, it’s Night’s third effort and finest yet, finding her looking at her life through a prism that radiates multiple colors like the smooth rocks glistening up from the shallow end of the Atlantic Ocean.

“We go through so much in life, we break, we shatter, our pieces tossed and tumbled by forces all around us, smoothing our edges, teaching us lessons,” Night says. “And though some pieces may be lost, most return to be changed, different, worn by time, and yet…brilliant treasures in who we have become…”

Having just wrapped a string of shows with Blackmore’s Night in April and early May, Night has not yet announced plans to tour behind Sea Glass at press time, but Rock & Roll Globe was honored to have the chance to interview the singer in the wake of the album’s release.

Sea Glass is available now on earMUSIC. 

 

What inspired the creative direction of Sea Glass?

It is quite literally a collection of songs that I have collected inspired by the experiences that created them. There are songs on there inspired by my dad, who I lost in 2018; by my children and messages I want them to know about their journey here; about my mom being so fierce yet fragile. Each song is a strong moment in time for me, poignant enough to become a song and be discovered on this CD. 

 

Why did you wait a decade before releasing a new solo album?

I didn’t realize 10 years had passed between my last solo album and this one. It isn’t like I haven’t been busy. In that time period, I was on the title track of Tobias Sammet’s “Moonglow” with Avantasia, I did a duet with D’artgnan called “We’re Gonna Be Drinking”, I was on a Carole King track “It’s Too Late” with Dweezil Zappa and on Don’t Kill The Whale with Brian Auger as well as releasing our Blackmore’s Night CD’s Nature’s Light in 2021 and the remastered anniversary editions of Shadow of the Moon and Fires At Midnight and touring with BN. Also the dark COVID years ate about two years of everyone’s life. So there has been a lot happening in the last 10 years. But my first role in life was being with my kids as they turned from toddlers to teenagers and now that I’m the shortest one in the house while standing next to my 13 and 14 year olds, and the last cd I put out in a solo realm was a lullaby cd inspired by them. I had a lot of songs based on experiences from the last decade to be able to put out as an album now.

 

AUDIO: The Prog Collective feat. Candice Night and Dweezil Zappa “It’s Too Late”

I hear a country music influence on some of the material here. Where does that come from?

I love listening to country music and always have. They have such great story songs. Their lyrics make you feel. The musicianship is stellar. I guess I absorbed a bit of it along the way. I wouldn’t say its a country album, as there is a bit of everything on here and I don’t like being put in a box. I think when you’re an artist, a creative type- no matter if it is painting, writing, sculpting or music…the whole point of being creative is not to be locked in 1 specific box or genre. To kick down the walls of limitations and labels. Play whatever you want whenever you want to. 

 

I love the album title and would love to know the story behind why you named this LP as such?

When COVID happened  — and it still feels like a bad dream that we lived through —  it was incredible to believe that it wasn’t just happening to a neighborhood or a state or even a country — but to the whole world at the same time. That was the bad and good thing about it. That we weren’t in it alone- even though we felt so alone at the time with the distancing, and quarantines. Everything we took for granted that made us feel good : going to concerts, movie theaters and restaurants, being around people..even simply hugging someone wasn’t aloud. I was trying to find ways to keep my 2 small children sane and off screens constantly since that became their reality. I found that a lot of people were going back to nature. You could still be solitary, but not feel alone. You would have the sun on your face, breathe fresh air and be introspective. So every day I took my kids to the beach. As we walked along the beige sand, we noticed, hidden, were small pieces of sapphire blues, emerald greens and amber browns. We spent hours treasure hunting for these hidden gifts. They became our joy in the dark times. It was then I realized that we as humans were so alike with these pieces of sea glass. We get broken down, tossed and tumbled. Shattered and scattered. Our edges softened. We return the same, yet changed. Hopefully we can, the the experiences of life, find that even when we are broken, we still are shining treasure within. I thought the realization of our parallel between human condition and sea glass made the perfect idea for a song and it was important enough to become the title track.

How involved was Ritchie in the creation of this music and what was his advice to you upon embarking on this project?

Not at all. Actually he didn’t even know I was recording an album. He has very set ideas in mind when it comes to music. If I included him in the writing process, the songs would be Blackmore’s Night songs. These songs I wrote myself, except for Nature Boy which is a classic Nat King Cole song and When I Want to Fly which I wrote only the lyrics on. The songs on this album are a very personal journey, each one born from specific moments in the past ten years that deeply affected me and inspired them. Ritchie’s favorite song on the album is Promise Me, I played it for him when it was completed. 

 

How do you plan on touring Sea Glass? Do you have a new band you’ve put together?

Right now, my plan is to preview a couple of songs from my album in the middle of the Blackmore’s Night set. Just the girls, me, Jessie (my backing singer/rhythm guitarist) and Claire Bermingham , my violinist. We will do a couple of songs very scaled down so they will sound more intimate and acoustic than the album version, just a bit of a surprise for the fans at the show so they can hear the new music.  

 

What is your favorite instrument to play and why?

Well, my 1st instrument is the voice and it’s because I think that’s how you connect to people on a deep level. Sharing your voice in song with someone is very intimate and  makes you very vulnerable. Its like giving a part of yourself to the listener. Beyond that, I love gemshorn. I play about 9 medieval and renaissance woodwind instruments. I’m playing piano on my song ‘Dark Carnival,’ and I write many of my songs on piano. I wish I was more proficient on piano so I could relax with it and have it flow more naturally. But the other instruments I play have a very brash sound. I use them in Blackmore’s Night because they fit into the role of the texture we need for certain songs to stay true to the spirit of the melodies which can range from the 12th to the 15th century. But gemshorn is very muted and calming when you play it. It instantly relaxes you. It’s not like the shawms and rauschpfeifes. It’s a very organic sound when played. 

 

As a Long Islander, how much does the area play a role in your creativity?

Very much so. I’m an island girl. I love the smell of the ocean, the sound of the waves, the feel of the fresh sea air. It renews my soul. We are very lucky to live right on the water and next to the woods. I am so inspired by nature and it is prevalent in all of my songs. It’s very easy to just walk on the beach or through the woods and get full story songs inspired by the surroundings. Nature is magical. It grounds you, it keeps us in awe. Seeing a sunset or a shooting star or the first snow fall through the eyes of a child reminds you that there is real magic and miracles happening in front of us all the time. We just have to look to find it. 

 

VIDEO: Candice Night “The Last Goodbye”

Do you listen to any current music? I’d love to hear what’s on your playlist or car rotation these days.

My musical tastes are very varied. I grew up with my dad listening to big band sounds and my mom loving show tunes, but I was a child of the 70s and 80s were my teen years so of course listening and enjoying the classic rock music or rock bands from those eras are very nostalgic to me. I love great harmonies and the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac. But Rainbow was one of my favorite bands growing up- funny how that turned out …I love story songs and I think that country music is just amazing for really well crafted story songs.  And of course my kids listen to the current music so I am well versed in Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran and Pink too! Im all over the place with my tastes. If it has a strong melody line and interesting lyrics I’ll be listening….

 

Now that you’ve wrapped up your short tour of the Northeast, are there any plans for Blackmore’s Night for the rest of this year?

Yes. We are four songs into the next album and we are releasing anniversary editions of our albums. We’ve already done Shadow of the Moon and Fires At Midnight. I think we will do Under A Violet Moon next. Ritchie and I are always writing so we have a lot of songs in the arsenal ready to record.