South Surrey songwriter Marc Burchell co-writes 'Hands Across the Border' celebrating Canada-U.S. friendship
The song, performed by Halifax's Terry Kelly, honours the countries' 150-plus-year alliance amid recent tensions and was inspired by Peace Arch monument gatherings.
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A new song by South Surrey's Marc Burchell and Halifax singer-songwriter Terry Kelly is celebrating the longstanding friendship between Canada and the United States as both countries approach their summer holidays.
Burchell is a singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and co-founder of the Canadian Walk for Veterans. Kelly is an Order of Canada recipient and award-winning performer. The two wrote "Hands Across the Border" remotely after years of collaborating together, inspired by increasing tensions in the relationship and local gatherings at the Peace Arch monument encouraging unity.
"We were both concerned about a lot of the rhetoric that was being thrown around regarding the relationship between Canada and the United States because, as the song says, we've always been friends and allies," Burchell said.
Local initiatives in South Surrey shaped the song's vision. The annual Rotary "Hands Across the Border" event at the Peace Arch and the Peace, Love and a Handshake gatherings inspired the pair. The song's final lyrics are "Peace, love and a handshake."
Performed by Kelly, the track celebrates love, freedom, respect, and pride while honouring the history of friendship and cooperation spanning more than 150 years. One lyric carries particular resonance for Burchell: "We laughed and cried together. We fought and died together." He said it reminds him of his father, a Second World War veteran, and the history of Canadians and Americans serving alongside one another in the Second World War and Afghanistan.
"There are few countries in the world with a shared border quite like ours," Burchell said. "We are at peace with our neighbors. That is a remarkable and rare thing. The song is an anthem and reminder of the peace, harmony, respect and affection that Americans and Canadians have always felt toward one another."
Kelly echoed the sentiment: "Today's troubled waters are just a moment in time. Canadians and Americans have shared more than 150 years of friendship, through thick and thin, and those bonds and shared experiences will endure."
