Lawrence Maxwell hails from Prince Edward Island, but his music sounds like it’s straight from Nashville. Well, maybe that’s not quite true. You see, Maxwell has found the sweet spot between sophisticated pop production and a driving rock sound that could be at home in a dive bar. On “Better You,” Maxwell cautions freshly single lovers to take things slow before jumping into the next big thing. His warmth and sense of humor keep the song from being morally prescriptive, and instead sound like Maxwell is sitting you down in a bar stool at your favorite watering hole and giving you a firm talking-to, imbued with concern for your well-being.
When travel and performance prospects were looking slim, Prince Edward Island singer-songwriters, Lawrence Maxwell and Ben Chase saw an opportunity to write. After two co-writing sessions in Cornwall, P.E.I., the country musicians penned “Better You.” The song’s narrative comes from the perspective of a man who “never could learn twice,” jumping into relationships before giving himself sufficient time to heal and learn. While the details of the narrator’s story remain open to interpretation, he speaks from a place of awareness, sharing his hard-earned wisdom to the listener.
Maxwell says this of the song, “When we experience loss, we’re encouraged to grieve, but to do it fast. The truth is, healing often takes more time than we anticipate. The ‘get back on that horse’ mentality paired with the allure of the nightlife can make it difficult to focus on self-improvement.”
The song was recorded by Lawrence Maxwell and his band at The Hill Sound Studio with producer/engineer Adam Gallant. It was recorded as part of Maxwell’s third studio album, set for release in January 2022.
“Better You” features musicians: Ben Aitken (keyboard), Josh Langille (drums), Isaac King (mandolin), Justyn Young (guitar), Rob MacPhee (backing vocal), and Sam Langille (bass).
For some more upbeat numbers, check out the other songs of Maxwell’s that I’ve featured in the past.