‘Does Ladysmith have a place in your heart ?’
The town and it’s official kick off to the holidays sure does for three Ladysmith musicians who are set to perform in front of thousands during Light Up on Nov. 30.
Ted Puska, son Jeff and friend Ed Mulrooney are Rents Gone Up, a band that’s been together for about eight years and written tunes about Ladysmith.
The song they’ll perform live at Festival is appropriately named Light it Up.
“The whole time the song wasn’t for us it was for the town,” said Ed, a teacher who learned guitar from YouTube. “We’re not doing this because we love going out playing lots of shows but I think it will be kind of neat to sing in front of 10,000 people.”
The band is hoping their debut of the catchy tune, with lyrics like ‘Bouma’s Meats……..To the Buns…….Going to the Aggie, gonna have some fun’ might go on to become a tradition.
After growing up watching the Light Up parade from his grandmother’s veranda on First Avenue, it’s been Jeff’s dream for the past few years to jam for Festival crowds.
“I wanted to play live on Light Up on my grandmother’s porch,” he said. “ We had been playing cover songs and then we wrote a few of our own and I thought it would be cool to play them for people.”
Ed wrote all the lyrics for Light it Up and then Ted Puska, who along with his son are established DJs, added a Christmas jingle to piece it all together.
“The lyrics and basic melody started from me and then the layering and music all came from Ted and Jeff,” Ed said.
Ted adds that it truly is all about collaboration.
“Ed’s written a whole pile of really neat and interesting songs,” he said. “I’ll do a few different versions because I’ve got these sounds I’ll think of and just see what he thinks.”
The band has even tested out a country version of Light it Up.
But apart from the lucky crowd who saw Rents Gone Up perform at A&W over the summer, nobody has seen live what could be an instant hit.
Both Ted and Ed credit Jeff, who played at the Canadian Open in 2010, with being the one to push them to play live.
“I think the more people there is (at Light Up) the better because the odds are better people will like it,” said Jeff, laughing.
Light it Up also includes a bit of audience participation so make sure to check out the lyrics.
Ed said the welcoming spirit of Ladysmith and its premiere festival is deserving of a musical tribute everyone can share in.
“The whole town is just so connected and it will be so much fun being up there playing for everyone,” he said.
Light it Up song lyrics
There was a town they called Smity
And when the sun went down they lit it up pretty
People coming from miles around
To see the pretty faces when the sun went down
Light it up, Light it up, Light it up Now
Light it up, Light it up
Get to town around 4:20
Won’t trip that switch until you’re good and ready
All the people from the town agree
The spirits go high when they light that tree
Light it up, Light it up,
Light it up Now
Light it up, Light it Up
Light it up, Light it up,
Light it up Now
Light it up, Light it Up
From Bouma’s Meats……..To the Buns…….
Going to the Aggie, gonna have some fun
Light it up, Light it up,
Light it up Now
Light it up, Light it up
Light it up, Light it up,
Light it up Now
Light it up, Light it up
From Bouma’s Meats……..To the Buns…….
Going to the Aggie, gonna have some fun
Does Ladysmith have a place in your heart ?
To chase them blues when the winter starts
O’ make some time for Smity’s lights
We’ll have some cheer and set the season off right
Light it up, Light it up, Light it up Now
Light it up, Light it up
Light it up, Light it up, Light it Now
Ladysmith just lit you up