Beverly Glenn-Copeland’s ‘Laughter in Summer’ Is a Work of Aching Beauty

Group of diverse comedians and performers at Toronto comedy event.

You might find yourself with a pleasant lump in your throat as you listen to Beverly Glenn-Copeland’s Laughter in Summer. Featuring new songs and reinterpreted old ones from across the 82-year-old singer and composer’s career, the album is an extraordinary act of celebration and reflection; of looking back on the joyous memories that make up a human life.

The album, made in collaboration with Glenn-Copeland’s wife — the theatre artist, writer and singer Elizabeth Copeland — was recorded shortly after Glenn-Copeland was diagnosed with a form of dementia similar to Alzheimer’s. Recorded live with little more than a choir and a handful of instruments, each song contains an aching sense of beauty and gratitude, and pulses with a desire to hold on to the light against a creeping darkness.

“This was a time when we were both just sitting with the news of Glenn’s illness, and we decided that we want to enjoy every moment while we have the capacity,” Elizabeth, who sings on four of the album’s nine tracks, tells The Grind.

Glenn-Copeland has been making music since the 1970s, but his work was largely unknown by the broader public until the last decade. Today, his music is celebrated across the world, and, as a trans musician, he’s been embraced by younger queer audiences.

“It’s hard some days to be joyful with everything going on on the planet,” Elizabeth says. “But all the young people who come to our concerts end up crying and laughing. It’s very special.”

Here’s my conversation with Elizabeth Copeland, lightly edited for length and clarity.

Thanks so much for taking the time to chat today, Elizabeth, and congrats to you and Glenn on the Polaris nomination.

Thank you so much. If we hadn’t been in the midst of moving for the second time in a year and just so much else going on, you certainly could have spoken to both of us. But Glenn knows this is happening, and said please give Richie my best. He’s here with me in spirit.

Tell me how Laughter in Summer came together.

Well we didn’t actually record these songs with any intention of making an album. We were setting out on what was supposed to be our final tour for Glenn because he just had this [dementia] diagnosis. The plan was to go into the studio, which we’d been so kindly offered at Hotel2Tango [in Montreal], and just record with the choir that we’d be singing with. This was mostly for archival purposes, and it was just going to be a joyous little romp. We played every song once and then we left, and I think we fixed a few things after the fact. And then of course the label heard it and went, “Oh my God, it’s stunning. We have to release this.”

The album has a mix of new songs and reworked older ones. How was the track list curated?

These are all songs that we love. Alex Samaras, who is our music director, knew that one of the things on Glenn’s musical bucket list was to be able to sing with a choir. If you listen to a lot of Glenn’s compositions over the years, they have a real choral feeling, but he was never able to afford to hire a choir. So Alex brought in a choir, and we started coming up with these arrangements to collaborate with these stunning singers.

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The album explores themes of love, memory and spiritual concepts of renewal. Is there an overarching message or theme that you hope listeners take away?

A friend of mine told me the other day that caring for another is caring for the universe. And I think the album has that message of care — that we need each other, that community cannot be found in devices or through AI. We need to be with each other, singing together, in person.

Glenn and I think of when we were younger, and almost everyone in our community sang, danced, acted, tap-danced, told stories. More and more we’re just leaving these things to the professionals. But what we know as artists is that when you leave any kind of art to just the professionals, it becomes less and less relevant to people. When people sing together, it’s the best way to come together.

Glenn’s next album is going to be songs with no words, and he wants people from different cultures to create their own lyrics. “Laughter in Summer,” which is the title track from the album, is actually the first song with no lyrics that he wrote. Because I’m his wife, I said, “Honey, do you mind if I write the lyrics?”

Do you have a favourite track from this album, one that you love to perform or that holds a special place for you?

For me, it’s definitely “Laughter in Summer,” because it is about all of the memories that I have about me and Glenn’s time together, and the sense of grief that comes with what has been lost, but knowing that the depth of grief is equaled by the depth of one’s love. So, when we perform it in concert, it is my favorite one to sing.

Glenn’s influential new age album Keyboard Fantasies from 1986 has been honoured by the Polaris Prize via its Heritage designation, but this is the first time he’s been nominated for a new album. How does it feel to be recognized by the jury?

It feels pretty amazing for both of us, really. Glenn and I have been working collaboratively since we met as friends in 1992, and though we have written music together and performed music together, this is sort of this first sort of big collaborative project that we’ve done that has been acknowledged. So it’s wonderful for our relationship at this time in our life, when we’re both in our old age [laughs]. You know, I’m in my 70th year, and Glenn’s 82. To be in the august company of so many of these [other nominees], it’s such an honour.

A lot of Glenn’s fans, and a lot of people who love this record, are relatively young, often in their 20s and 30s. Why do you think younger people are connecting with it?

I think because it encourages us to stand together in this very difficult period that we’re living in, but to stand with joy. Glenn and I really feel like we came here for these difficult times. We’ve always been very mission-based in our work together. One interviewer called the record “revolutionary,” because it has such a feeling of lightness and goodness, while also encouraging people to stand for the world and for each other. Also, many young people, especially young queer youth, say they don’t see many examples of aging queer couples who are doing well.

I saw Romy perform in Toronto a few years ago, and one of the highlights of the show was when she played “Enjoy Your Life,” which samples Glenn’s 2004 song “La Vita.” You could tell the crowd was really moved by the song, and by how she had reinterpreted Glenn’s music and vocals.

Yeah, we were blessed the last time we were in the U.K. to have Romy come and join us for “La Vita.” It was magical, there’s no other word.

Thank you so much for taking some time to chat about this record.

Thank you. We’re looking forward to seeing so many of the people there, some of them we’ve met, some of whom we’ve performed with at other times, and it truly is an honor to be in this kind of company. And to be playing Massey Hall, that’s a dream come true.

Richie Assaly is one of the 200+ music experts who make up the Polaris Prize Jury.