Fans of historic Moosehead steamer singing a brand-new tune
By his own admission, Travis Wallace of Greenville is — with the possible exception of Tiny Tim — he most unlikely musical artist imaginable. He’s written song lyrics for years but never put them to use because he didn’t know how to play an instrument. “I finally said to myself, ‘Well, this is kind of dumb.’” He borrowed his daughter’s guitar and began learning basic chords. That was a year ago.
This spring, the 53-year-old made his musical debut with “Kate,” a tribute song he wrote for S.S. Katahdin, Moosehead Lake’s historic steamer-turned-cruise-boat and the crown jewel of Moosehead Marine Museum. Within days, the folk ballad had reached thousands of listeners via social media. Its reception caught the songwriter off guard.
“I’m frankly awed,” admits Wallace. He turns up his hands and shrugs. “People I don’t even know walk up to me and thank me. A lot of folks have even told me it made ‘em cry.” He pauses and smiles. “You know, in a good way.”
KATE TRIBUTE — Greenville resident Travis Wallace wrote “Kate” as a tribute to S.S. Katahdin’s 110th birthday. One hundred and 10 signed prints are available to benefit Moosehead Marine Museum’s “Keep Kate Cruising Campaign”.
The song had its genesis in a text from his friend Rich Daigle, a lifelong professional musician. Someone had asked Daigle to pen a song for Kate’s 110th birthday celebration. He passed the offer along to Wallace, explaining, “I write music, not lyrics.”
“I was tremendously flattered,” said Wallace. “Didn’t know if I could do it, but figured I’d give it a go.”
Wallace debuted “Kate” during Moosehead Marine Museum’s annual open house in May. It proved an instant hit. “The response was so overwhelmingly positive that I felt the song deserved to be recorded professionally.”
The songwriter laughs. “You know, with people who actually know how to play instruments.” He teamed himself with Daigle and local music teacher Joe Turner. The trio went to work.
“Those guys are awesome,” marvels Wallace. “Joe recorded my lyrics in the studio, then he and Rich took that very basic framework and turned it into something I could not have dreamed. Seriously. Steel guitar, bass, strings — amazing stuff, beautiful stuff.” The final product, though, left Wallace feeling melancholy.
“The Katahdin’s a living piece of history — local history, Maine history, logging history. And you know what? One hundred ten-year-old boats cost a lot of money to maintain. So here I am with this song that people seem to love, and I’m thinking, ‘Gosh, if this were the 1970s or ‘80s or even ‘90s, I could turn this into a CD, or cassette, or vinyl record, and the marine museum could sell ‘em. But it’s 2024 and people don’t buy those things.’ So, from a fundraising standpoint, the whole project seemed like a lost opportunity.” Not for long, though.
“Someone mentioned that she thought the lyrics would make a beautiful poem. Boom! Epiphany. It was really that simple.”
Thanks to Wallace’s epiphany, Moosehead Marine Museum is now offering a limited edition print of the song’s lyrics superimposed on a classic image of the historic steamer. Each black and white 8 x 10 has been professionally printed on museum quality paper and matted to fit 11 x 14 inches frames, with the photos hand-signed and numbered by Wallace. Quantity is limited to 110 in honor of Katahdin’s 110th birthday, with $50 from each print to benefit Moosehead Marine Museum’s “Keep Kate Cruising Campaign”.
Prints may be purchased from Moosehead Marine Museum, 12 Lily Bay Road in Greenville. And you can hear Wallace perform his song live this Saturday, Aug. 24 during Kate’s “110th Birthday Cruise to Kineo”. Tickets on sale at katahdincruises.com. Can’t wait that long to hear the song? Visit travishwwallace.com or youtube.com/@thww13.