Every Song Tells A Story
JEFF DEDEKKER LEADER-POST

I was most captivated by Shane Chisholm, a songwri...

I was most captivated by Shane Chisholm, a songwriter from Calgary whose writing style was described by Cafe host Chas Hay as "light to dark with an element of danger."

Chisholm presented three songs and yes, they did vary in tone from light to dark to darker. The highlight was the story surrounding "Hitchhiking Buddha," which Chisholm wrote after traveling to Regina for the Western Canadian Country Music Awards. On his way into Regina, Chisholm saw a man hitchhiking in the westbound lane of the Tran Canada highway. The man was dressed in a bright orange sarong which led Chisholm to assume the man was a Buddhist. He told the story many times over the weekend in Regina and went as far as to say if the man was still hitchhiking when he headed back to Calgary, he would stop and pick him up.

Well wouldn't you know it, Chisholm just crossed the border into Alberta when low and behold, there was the Buddha hitchhiker. Did Chisholm stop? Nope. He said he didn't because "you can't be enlightened when you're tryin' to drive."

Truer words have probably never been sung.