For many artists, revisiting their archives can unearth a creative gem initially overlooked or forgotten about altogether. Montréal singer-songwriter, guitarist, and storyteller Danny Blueberry discovered such treasure by traveling back to his imaginative beginnings to bring forth a raucous, cautionary tale for his new single and video, “Space Guppies” – check it out YouTube here:

A trippy, rockin’ dive into the deep waters of Blueberry’s fervent imagination, “Space Guppies” has the perfect sing-along-able chorus that conjures up images of packed clubs of pogo-sticking fans shouting “Ahhhhhh - space! Ahhhhh- guppies!” while Blueberry and his band rock it out on stage.

“This is one of the first songs I wrote,” says Blueberry. “I was about 17 years old and I had a small aquarium in my room.”

Cashbox has been following the remarkable career of Danny Blueberry and we were impressed with the new release of a live recording of the song, “Contact High”.

“This song is about while watching a good friend struggle with addiction and not being able to help,” Blueberry says. “The audio was recorded at Cafe Shaika in Montreal in 2018 and was part of the first Bugs United performance - I am singing with Raquel Hoekman, with Allison Von der Land on mandolin and Elias Morkos on percussion.”

The poignant lyrics will hit home for anyone who has ever struggled with addiction or has had to watch a loved one fight the battle:

“The songs were not meant to be funny…” says Danny Blueberry (aka Danny Fonfeder) of his most recent release, Isolation — available now.

“I was writing about deep, personal pain,” he continues, “and yet the audience broke out in laughter.”

For some artists, a dramatic 180-degree pivot from their creative intention — especially one that involves such intimate, vulnerable feelings — would be devastating. But for Danny, it was another lesson in life. “This is what happens when you grow up in total isolation,” he reflects. “You write with the tools that you have without a frame of reference as to how the real world will react.”

The name of the release is quite literal; Fonfeder very much did grow up in total isolation as part of a strict, religious family. “I had little access to the secular world, but plenty of access to music in the forms of praise choirs and prayer psalms.”