Organizers from the 2011 Alberta 55 Plus Winter Games have found a theme song that embodies the spirit of the games.
Lyricist Bruce Lecky and his composer son Stephen, 19, wrote Bring It On., an eight-verse song with a lively bluegrass vibe. “It’s a nice feeling to have won,” says Bruce Lecky, a plastics company manager by profession. He used to write poetry as a teen and has recently reprised the literary art.
Although this is a first-time win for Lecky, Stephen is no stranger to awards. Just this year, he scooped up several awards at Futures Fest, won St. Albert Idol and was invited to perform at StArts Fest.
Until now, however, few were privy to the songwriting duo’s artistic compatibility.
“We connect well. We’re a lot alike. We’ve had the same experiences. He has a deep passion for life that I’m attracted to. He helps me look at different points of view. He’s a really positive person and a really good teacher,” explains Stephen.
They heard of the competition during the St. Albert Idol contest, however it was dad who took the initiative. “I started thinking of the games. I looked at the website and wanted to see what it meant. I also wanted to incorporate the ‘cultivate life’ motto,” says the elder Lecky.
But it wasn’t until this summer when he travelled to Paris, Brussels, Croatia and Bosnia to celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary that the lyrics spilled out. “It came to me all of a sudden in a moment of inspiration. I had it in 15 minutes.”
Once home he passed on the song to his son. “I started tooling around with a harmonica and I wanted to make it an up-tempo song,” Stephen adds.
There were eight songs entered into the competition. “There was everything from ballads to new wave electronica to a bluesy entry to a more contemporary pop,” says games manager Stephen Bourdeau.
“Bring It On speaks about the challenges and invites everyone to come and give it their best while having a fun day.”
Judging the event were Leslie MacEachern, Martha Livingstone, Sherri Urkow and Pat McInnis. “They commented that it was special to St. Albert, to the games and that it was fun, upbeat and catchy. The main comment was that you could easily sing along with it and tap your toes to the music.”
The Leckys receive $500 in cash and a professional recording of the song at V-Studio. Bring It On will be used in all promotional material and Stephen will sing it at the opening ceremonies on Feb. 24, 2011.
Listen to Bring It On> at YouTube under the Alberta 55 Plus Winter Games site.
