Bert & I...rebooted

In August of 2012, Robert (Bob) Bryan and Tim Sample agreed that the time was right to make a new album together, their first since 'How to Talk Yankee' in 1983. They started by spending a fall weekend swapping stories (and laughing until their sides ached) at Bob's salmon fishing camp in Tabusintac, New Brunswick, Canada, working on new material for the album. They wanted their new album (CD) to draw from the same 'DNA' as the original Bert and I records that came out between 1958 and he late 1970's, so along with never-before-recorded material, they came up with some new twists on classic old themes. And--they wrote 'A Ride on the Bluebird II with Bert and I,' a brand new sequel to the very first Bert and I story about the destruction of 'The Bluebird' (lobster boat) by the enormous 'Bangor Packet.' They worked for months rewriting, editing, recording, adding more stories, trying them out, re-recording, tweaking, and finally winnowing their copious material down to the 22 terrific tracks that comprise Bert and I...

Rebooted. The tracks reflect many influences. Bob's 'French accent' stories are variations of tales he heard in Quebec and Labrador, where he was an Anglican priest and bush pilot for 50+ years, serving remote villages on the North Shore of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Others reflect the unique storytelling styles of Tim's lifelong home, the state of Maine. Born in Aroostook County and raised on the coast, he has heard plenty of Down East stories, as has Bob, who spent summers in northern Maine from the time he was a baby. Putting the CD together, Bob and Tim had great fun revisiting the timeless world of 'Bert and I.' As ever, they gave credit in the album notes to the storytellers and others who inspired and encouraged them to 'keep at it.' Bob remembers with gratitude the stories and example of Alan Bemis, Dana Lamb, Adrian Blanchette, and Marshall Dodge. Tim is indebted to Captain Kendall Morse, Joe Perham, Captain Eliot Winslow, Douglas Carter, Michael Parent, and Leah Sample. Bert and I...

Rebooted is the first album produced and released by the Bert and I Company of Maine, LLC, a new company formed in 2012 under license from Bert and I, Inc., which was founded by Robert Bryan and the late Marshall Dodge in 1958. It was a great privilege (and loads of fun!) to work with these two legends of Down East storytelling, and we are proud to bring you this direct descendent of the original four Bert and I albums. ~ Cherie Hoyt, Producer.