Radio-rock fan Leeroy Stagger borrows a boogie vibe from Tom Petty for Everything Is Real

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 27, 2009

By Steve Newton

Last year was a particularly rough one for Leeroy Stagger. Apart from the day-to-day struggle to survive as an independent recording artist, the Alberta-based singer-songwriter had to face down the spectre of his alcoholism. His problems came to a head while on a solo tour last summer.

“Somethin’ was just naggin’ at me and I couldn’t figure it out,” explains the 26-year-old tunesmith from his Lethbridge home, “and it finally just hit me in the face like a brick wall. I came to a point where I had to decide between my career or my party life, you know. I burned a lotta bridges and I let a lotta people down, but I was young, and those things happen. I think you kind of have to go through that in order to realize what you really want.”

The now-sober Stagger’s wish list is pretty basic: all he wants is a career where he can go and play anywhere in the world. And judging by the winning sound of his new CD Everything Is Real, that shouldn’t be a problem. Its upbeat opening track, “Petrified World”, reveals the fresh outlook he’s taken since beating the booze. “Ooo baby, it’s a petrified world but I ain’t scared,” he sings, “the sun is gonna rise again, I ain’t gonna take the fall.”

Everything Is Real was recorded at producer John Ellis’s studio in Ashcroft, B.C., and features a stellar lineup of Vancouver rockers, including guitarist Kevin Kane (the Grapes of Wrath), bassist Tyson Maiko (Gob), and drummer Pat Steward (the Odds). The music has more elements of classic rock than Stagger’s previous three albums, which were built on a rootsier base.

“I’m a big fan of radio rock,” he admits, “whether it be the Stones or Tom Petty or Springsteen. I mean, the record’s not like a throwback to the ’70s, but songs like ‘Stormy’ are a tip of the hat to a band like Little Feat.”

That hat gets tipped right off his head on Track 3, “Hell of a Life”, which blatantly borrows the boogie vibe of “Anything That’s Rock ’n’ Roll”, a song from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ 1976 debut. Stagger got hooked on the tune after watching Peter Bogdanovich’s epic documentary about Petty’s career, Runnin’ Down a Dream.

“That song just totally got me,” he says, “there’s something about the swagger to it that reminds me of my childhood and my parents. It’s not like I listened to that song and charted out the chords or anything—and I didn’t even mention it to the producer or the band—but it was exactly the reference that I had in my head.”

Stagger–who plays the Railway Club on Friday (May 29)—isn’t worried about getting sued for plagiarism, though. Having whipped the demon alcohol and delivered what he considers his best album yet, he’s too busy thinking positive.

“One thing that singer-songwriters suffer from is never being content with anything,” he relates, “and I am definitely guilty of that. But I’ve also realized that I am blessed, you know. I don’t have to work a day job, I own a house, I’ve got a tour van. Life’s pretty great.”