“During that period of time, | met Elliot [C. Way] who would book our
band to play at his old festival ‘Moonshinin‘ he did at his cabin in Langley.
We played there and that day was sort of the inception of everything
that was yet to come.” At that time, Harold Donnelly was still in school to
become a music teacher and as the band toured the country, he would
often be caught up with assignments. As a result, Donnelly began to lose
interest in pursuing the live side of music and soon quit songwriting.
Shortly after, the band disbanded.

Sponarski explained this change by saying: “I had never felt deserving
of doing it [songwriting] cause | have always been too hard on myself,
but Harold’s positivity and support always balanced me out and allowed
for this very prolific time in my life. So, when he left, | just felt absolutely
incapable of doing it without him”

Portage and Main’s break-up left John feeling uninspired and lost. He
had gone from trying to be a professional guitar player to finding a purpose
in pursuing a singer-songwriter career and having his own band. When his
songwriting partner left, he took a break from writing songs and once again
found himself involved with a handful of bands.

While playing with local artist Rolla Olak, Olak randomly introduced
Sponarski as Johnny 99’. The name was taken from the title of a Bruce
Springsteen song, and although Sponarski did not choose it himself, he
found it fitting and decided to adopt it for his solo shows.

“If you want to talk about the story of Springsteen’s song: guy kills the
clerk[...] |have spent my whole life wanting to appear to be tough when
at the heart of it, |am the absolute opposite. | am a soft and sensitive very
communicative person. | really want to talk about feelings. | think in the
spirit of trying to look like a badass, it makes sense. It is a shield | wear to
[seem as if | were] hard.”

During this period, Sponarski still managed to create some of his own
tunes and play a few solo shows that came and went seemingly unnoticed.
Regardless, they were enough to make an impression on Andy Bishop

 

Photo by Victoria Black

(singer-songwriter in bands Red Cedar and White Ashfalls amongst others)
who approached Sponarski and offered to release an EP through Light
Organ Records.

Around this time, Sponarski got hired as a guitar player for Aaron
Pritchett’s band and would spend the following eight years touring with
them. The urge to remain creative combined with a recent breakup with his
long-term partner converged; Sponarski found himself writing one song
after the other, and it motivated him to create his first full-length album.

The pandemic hit while Sponarski was working on the demos for this
album alongside Matt Kelly (City and Colour, Ben Rogers). Working on an
album during those hard times was a silver lining since he could work day
and night on his songs. It became his sole focus for the next four months.

“Songs from this last album came out around a time after not only | had
come out from this long-term relationship but also my friend Erik and my
friend Bob did as well. So there [were] lots of conversations and time spent
around this topic of broken hearts and failed relationships. | was processing
my own heartbreak and also counselling my friends about their break-ups.”
As the time spent with his friends continued, Sponarski began to blend his
and their experiences into songs, fusing their ideas into a coherent piece.
Many of the lyrics that resulted, focused on interpersonal relationships and
how people treat one another.

As for the album's title, Sponarski admits: “I can’t remember when
| chose the title of the album, but | remember finding it was pretty
encompassing. We don’t say things because we think we are protecting
somebody or because we don’t want to make ourselves feel vulnerable. |
wanted to write songs about other stuff but it just did not happen. That was
all over the place.”

Sponarski’s guitar playing influences go from country old-timers like
Roy Nichols and Don Rich, to more contemporary artists like Nels Cline or
Jeff Tweedy. His songwriting draws from solid and robust storytellers like
John Prine and Neil Young. More than trying to emulate a specific sound,
Sponarski has successfully pulled from what inspires him. He has found
his individual way to craft and define his own voice. This only could have
been achieved by all the ups, downs and determination that Sponarski has
undoubtedly shown through his twenty-plus years in the music scene.

This commitment to Vancouver’s music scene does not end with
the music he makes nor the bands he is part of. Sponarski, alongside his
friend and bandmate Elliot C. Way (The Wild North), have cofounded North
Country Collective (NCC). This Collective was created to not only help those
involved in the project but also help other local artists grow and progress in
their careers. However, NCC is a collective, not a record label, allowing it to
reach outside of the music scene. People that will benefit from their project
range from photographers to food industry workers and venues here in the
Vancouver area. For the time being, four artists are part of the Collective,
but they are hoping to add more very soon.

“Basically, it is a group of close friends who have been trying and failing
for a long time, teaming up together and organizing to support each other
and hopefully support others. The idea is to help us grow in our careers
but also put a stamp [on] this scene and community that has existed in
Vancouver for a long while.”

Sponarski considers Vancouver's art scene to be contained and at
times separate from the rest of Canada and the world, but he rejects the
notion that what is happening outside of Vancouver is superior. “What we
have here is very special. We have gone through all these ups and downs
in this community. There was this golden era with all these people that
supported it and allowed us to have festivals and singer-songwriters from
different communities to come and share. It existed for a short period of
time and it stopped.”

“Words Left Unsaid” is NCC’s first release and you can check it out on
your preferred streaming platform or pre-order a vinyl on NCC’s website.