Recording of the Week, Beverly Glenn-Copeland - The Ones Ahead

Last month, Beverly Glenn-Copeland delivered the convocation address before a large assembly of graduates at St Michael’s College, University of Toronto, as he received an honorary doctorate from the same institution. In his speech, he spoke of his new album, The Ones Ahead, “its purpose [being] the same as my purpose here today: to encourage you to find your inner gold.” 

This, of course, comes as the latest chapter in the fascinating backstory of Glenn-Copeland (who now goes by Glenn), a Philadelphia-native, who, having undertaken a course in classical singing at McGill University, Montreal, emerged on the Canadian folk scene in the late sixties. His self-titled debut, which rivals Joni Mitchell in its highly emotional and musically daring range that incorporates elements of jazz, classical and blues, was released on the CBC’s in-house label in 1970 and was exclusively distributed upon release via the state broadcaster’s own radio network. In the following years, the singer-songwriter enjoyed a handful of performances here and there along with two more studio releases, in addition to a long-standing feature on the children’s television show, Mr. Dressup (Canada’s answer to Mister Rogers' Neighborhood). In spite of this modest career, however, popular interest soon dried up thereafter.

It’s fair to say that Glenn-Copeland’s legacy owes its remarkable second wind to the rediscovery of his privately-pressed electronic album, Keyboard Fantasies (1986), unearthed by a Japanese collector nearly a decade ago. The musician’s self-taught enchantment with computer technology, a skill picked up during his time spent working in television, led to his bringing to life new musical sounds and visions the likes of which he had only been able to imagine previously. By the time of its rediscovery in 2015, Glenn-Copeland had all but packed in the career in music, choosing instead to focus on his devotion to Buddhism and a private life of domestic bliss while living as a transgender man. By contrast, this inviting and otherworldly recording, which had initially known an insubstantial cassette run of 200 copies, was not only re-gifted to the world but, more importantly, to a newer generation of listeners. For the dormant artist, the sudden arrival of global recognition and fandom came almost overnight. 

The One’s Ahead is Glenn’s first studio album since 2004’s Primal Prayer, which he released under the pseudonym, ‘Phynix’. Before today, his latest piece of new music in over 15 years came in the form of ‘River Dreams’ – an unusual but calming number for strings, piano and djembe, which featured as the lead single for the back-catalogue retrospective, Transmissions (2020). This expansive compilation is testament to the artist’s newfound admiration, rapid yet well-earned in its fruition, as he traces the ins-and-outs of a journey lasting over five decades. Like so many recent releases, the new album was largely inspired by the pandemic; a rocky period for many, but one that equally saw Glenn and his partner, Elizabeth, lose their home. Following crowdsourcing efforts set up by the pair’s daughter, the couple acquired a stable residence in a procedure that restored their faith in the kindness of strangers and the power of hope. It was through similar means that funding was raised to help produce the independent biographical documentary of the performer’s first tour at the age of 74, also titled Keyboard Fantasies (2019). Both campaigns reveal the immense reciprocity shared between Glenn-Copeland and his supporters, not to mention the significance of the belief fans must place in his compassionate message.

The album itself offers 43 minutes of sublime meditation and wonder. In a bid to gain wisdom and insight, the musician shares the process by which we can all hope to undertake the path to self-actualisation over the course of nine eclectic-sounding tracks. Exploring themes of resilience, possessing courage in the face of adversity and the ability to find even the smallest of gifts in the midst of life’s difficulties, The Ones Ahead comes from this most intimate of performers as a soothing antidote for our times. Such a mindful approach can be felt all over Glenn-Copeland’s body of work, rippling from its origin within his personal lifestyle and philosophy to the outward expressions of his gifted and unique artistic voice. Glenn has often spoken of his preference for relinquishing control as he opts to follow the untraceable hand of the creative flow, a seemingly mystical force to which he assigns the moniker: ‘Universal Broadcasting System’. Describing the inspiration of this immaterial presence on his own wordless chanting during the aforementioned ‘River Dreams’, Glenn-Copeland stated: “That was a trance — literally, a transmission. I really appreciate that there were no words attached to it. You can relate to it without having to know a language.”

With its title suggesting the perspective of an individual who has always envisaged the future with unrestrained optimism, Beverly Glenn-Copeland once again provides us with plenty more to which we can look forward. The contemporary audience that answers for his latter-day success comes as no surprise, since his music offers respite to both the weary and dismayed; it perfectly encompasses the trappings of human frailty in a way that ultimately manages to transcend them.