Music Friday: The Trews' Frontman Colin MacDonald Pursues 'The Pearl'

Welcome to Music Friday, where songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics take the spotlight. Today we revisit Canadian rockers The Trews and their 2005 track “The Pearl (More Than Everything).” The song casts love as a treasure, with nautical and jewelry imagery weaving through Colin MacDonald’s storytelling.

In the lyric threads, the narrator adores his beloved as “the pearl,” and he compares her beauty to a diamond ring. He sings of pursuit and longing, noting, “Though the pearl eludes me while I’m sinkin’ still there’s no finer thing,” and adds, “I want you more than everything.”

The ballad paints a winter tempest as a backdrop for a vow to persevere, with the sea’s siren call echoing in the background. The moment of clarity arrives as the mist lifts and reveals the cherished prize he’s sought.

He sings, “Now I can find the gold and silver that I prayed tomorrow would bring.”

“The Pearl” appears as the eighth track on The Trews’ Den of Thieves album. It marked the band’s second studio album and climbed to #6 on the Canadian Albums Chart, signaling their growing national footprint.

The band formed in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, in the late 1990s and broke through in 2002 after winning a contest with Ontario rock station CHTZ-FM, which led to a Bumstead Productions deal. They earned Juno nods in the mid-2000s, including New Group of the Year (2004) and Single of the Year nominations for “Not Ready to Go” (2005). A standout moment came in November 2010 when they performed the Canadian National Anthem at the Grey Cup in Edmonton, a televised moment that echoed the country’s musical pride.

In 2024, reports highlighted the three principal members’ invitation to perform their 2010 release “Highway of Heroes” at Juno Beach, Normandy, for the D-Day 80th anniversary — a moment broadcast worldwide and watched by leaders and fans alike. As of 2026, The Trews — still featuring core founding members MacDonald (vocals), John-Angus MacDonald (guitar), and Jack Syperek (bass) — remain active on tour, with the band promoting their latest material and celebrating a heritage of rugged, melody-driven rock.

Check out the video of their 2009 live performance of “The Pearl” at the Myer Horowitz Theatre in Edmonton. The lyrics are here if you’d like to sing along…

“The Pearl (More Than Everything)”
Written by Colin MacDonald, John-Angus MacDonald and Gordie Johnson. Performed by The Trews.

The search of one true heart
Deep within you
The ocean will part
The clearness of blue
Though the pearl eludes me while I’m sinkin’ still there’s no finer thing
Diamonds do you justice only cause your beauty shines like a ring

I want you more than everything
I want you more than everything

The four winds on high
Of virtue they sing
It sharpens my eye
Determines these things… determination

Though the pearl eludes me while I’m sinkin’ still there’s no finer thing
Diamonds do you justice only ’cause your beauty shines like a ring
Fighting through the winter tempest I can hear the sea sirens sing

I want you more than everything
I want you more than everything

I feel your heart
It fades into view
The mist pulls apart
And reveals the…

Pearl that I've been seeking while I’m sinkin’ see there’s no finer thing
Diamonds do you justice only ’cause your beauty shines like a ring
Fighting through the winter tempest I can hear the sea sirens sing
Now I find the gold and silver that I prayed tomorrow would bring

I want you more than everything
I want you more than everything
I want you more than everything
I want you more than everything

More than everything
More than everything
More than everything
More than everything…

Credit: Photo by Lildreamer22, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.