DREAM OF A KINDER WORLD is Janina’s most EPIC SONG! It is a cry for peace and harmony between all peoples of the world. Kindness is King! Let’s all be kind to each other, no matter our status or background; let’s live in harmony and work things out together. There are so many riches to enjoy!
All songs composed by Janina Russell (Janine Desjarlais) and are registered through SOCAN and under copyright through Angel Whispers Music
DREAM OF A KINDER WORLD – Piano version by Randy Kalsi
RANDY KALSI: It was late September 2022. Janina had written this beautiful song on the ukulele. Six months before this she and I had joined an online course that taught how to get your music in to film and television. Through this course we met Randy Kalsi, who was living in Thailand at the time. We set up a zoom meeting and arranged for him to produce the song.
I sent him a version of the song with Janina on ukulele. After a week or so, he sent back a piano track for Janina to sing along to. She went over the track many times. I kept asking her to record it, she kept hesitating, saying she wasn’t feeling well. One, morning I asked again and she agreed to try it. She was tired, didn’t even stand up to sing and recorded that vocal that you hear in the song! Magnificent! We made a couple of tweaks and added in a few things, but she basically sang it all in one take!
I sent Janina’s vocal to Randy. A few weeks later he sent us back the track you hear above.
ALMOST A MOVIE: We sent the song to several music supervisors. Around this time Janina also made a connection with Bettie Edie, author of the famous book, EMBRACED BY THE LIGHT. Hollywood wanted to make a movie based on this book and exploring near-death experiences. Betty Eadie wanted Janina’s song, ‘DREAM OF A KINDER WORLD’ in the movie. She loved it so much! She even asked Janina to write more songs for the movie! Janina actually finished another song for Bettie called ‘BEAT OF YOUR OWN DRUM’ that I have somewhere and will share it as well.
PETER ALLEN: Janina also sent this song to her close friend Peter Allen, who had moved to Vancouver from Winnipeg around the same time as Janina did. Peter had performed with her back in the nineties, had helped her with her music over the years, and had stayed good friends.
Peter loved the song, and especially the message of kindness that the song conveyed. He said to Janina, let me play with it, and asked me to send the original vocal tracks that Janina had recorded, which I did. About a week later Peter sent this most incredible symphonic version of the song that you can hear below! Zowee! It was so beautiful! And he did this without even asking, or expecting anything in return, just based on his pure heart and belief in Janina and her music.
Peter Allen is a world-class composer who has written the music for hundreds of movies in his long career!
We sent Peter’s version to Bettie Edie. She loved it even more! Unfortunately, months later in the new year, Hollywood put the movie on the shelf. So, the song has still not been released to the world, or found a home!
DREAM OF A KINDER WORLD – Symphonic version by Peter Allen
OH LORD
Janina sat down in the studio and sang this song acapella. Two days later she was gone. This is her last recording. I added some music to it a few weeks later.
ONE MORE TIME
Inspired by the death of my Father, Janina actually wrote this song for her Father, Russell Desjarlais. It can now by used when thinking of anyone! Remember to say I Love You lots to those you hold close in your heart. Fortunately, one of the last things I said to Janina was ‘I Love you, Aidan Loves you, and the children Love you, remember who you are!’ I gave her a purple feather to also remind her of her indigenous heritage!
TOFINO SUNRISE
This beautifully produced song was written for childhood soul-sister Melena who had died at an early age, I think just in to her 40s. She and Janina were childhood and teenage buddies growing up in Winnipeg together. As adults they kept in touch, though they were several provinces apart. When Melena died it hurt Janina deeply and she wrote several songs for her. This song recollects a pact they had made to meet in the skies around Tofino, BC after they both had passed.
THE VOYAGE HOME
This is another song written after the death of Janina’s first soul-sister, Melena. She and Janina were childhood friends and stayed in touch throughout all their lives. So sad Melena died so young too! This song was never fully produced, but still is expressed beautifully!
CHILDREN ARE THE HEALERS OF THE WORLD
This is Janina’s anthem to the world. “LOOK TO THE CHILDREN, FOR THEY ARE THE LIGHT!” is one of the lines in this most magnificent song! If everyone focused on the children, helping them grow, there would by no time for any conflict in the world. Children teach us how to love!
Julie Blue’s piano track is the music. I play solo flute. Produced by Peter Allen.
Watch the video and read more of the story on the VIDEO PAGE.
BEAUTIFUL
Janina wrote this song for all women who have ever been insecure about how they look. She would often say now dedicates this song to indigenous artist Kelly Fraser.
COLOUR PURPLE
Janina wrote this song with me in mind around the year 2005 or so. We both loved the colour purple.
COME DANCE WITH ME
Janina wrote this song for me around 2002. She used one of Julie Blue’s magnificent piano compositions for this song. I cried tears of joy and wonder when I first heard it!
THAT’S THE WAY I FEEL YOUR LOVE
This song was written for me around 2020 or so. We never finished production on the song.
SUNDAY MORNING RAIN
Written around 2005 or so, another song longing for our love to blossom and grow. Unfortunately, we broke up around this time. We got together again about 10 years later. We were so deeply connected, it was inevitable that we would live together to do music again!
Janina has many more songs to come! I will do my best to go through the recordings we made and piece these songs together for the world. Please contact me for changes, updates or comments. (Yurgen)