Don't let the title confuse you. "Northern roots" refers to Canadian musicians, and Whispering Pines refers to the title of a song from
The Band's second album. This, then, is a book about the writers and composers who hailed from Canada, everyone from Gordon Lightfoot and Neil Young to Joni Mitchell, the aforementioned
The Band, and Leonard Cohen.
The author has interviewed a lot of authorities on the Canadian music scene and undergone some extensive research to give substance to the notion that Canada has its own sound and
musical identity. Though nowhere near as important as the American or English music scenes, Canada
has produced a number of important players, singers, and writers.
If you're from Canada, this book might appeal to you more than if you're not, but it is carefully written and contains some illuminating stories about Mitchell, Young, and members of
The Band.