Great Lake Swimmers, led by singer-songwriter Tony Dekker, are based in Toronto, Canada. Steeped in the whimsical sounds of melodic folk rock, the band released their self-titled debut album in 2003. Over the years, they’ve experienced a few lineup changes but have continued to thrive, releasing their fourth album, ‘Lost Channels’, in 2009 to growing critical acclaim. Their last album, ‘Uncertain Country’, was released in 2023 marking it their first new music in nearly five years. The album was inspired by a trip to the north shore of Lake Superior in the summer of 2019 and was developed during the pandemic in Ontario, Canada.

Working with long-time collaborator Erik Arnesen, Great Lake Swimmers have toured with many notable acts, including Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, The Album Leaf, Feist, Andrew Bird, Celine Dion, and Tom Waits. I caught Tony Dekker fighting off young fans backstage in Berlin to get his response to the all-important P13.

1. The album I live my life by… Leonard Cohen, ‘Self-titled’

2. The song I wish I had written… Townes Van Zandt, ‘For the Sake of the Song’

3. The song I’m glad I didn’t write… Guns N’ Roses, ‘Patience’

4. If I could stalk one celebrity rock star… Roky Erickson

5. If I could resurrect one rock star it would be… Roky Erickson

6. Celebrity Death Match Opponent… Celine Dion

7. My best gig ever… La Cigale, Paris [Opening for Andrew Bird]

8. If I could get one band to cover one song… Tom Waits, ‘Imaginary Bars’

9. If I could wipe a music genre off the face of the earth… New Country

10. The first record I ever bought… Bruce Springsteen, ‘Born in the USA’

11. On my iPod/mp3/walkman device right now… The Vaselines, ‘All The Stuff’

12. Superpower I wish I had… Aquaman

13. Does your musical style influence your underwear? Ummm….

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For more information, visit https://www.greatlakeswimmers.com/
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This after concert interview was done in Berlin circa: 2010.