Canadian singer-songwriter Ronald Eldon Sexsmith hails from St. Catharines, Ontario. At the 2005 Juno Awards, he won the songwriter of the year award. At the age of 21, he started releasing his own recordings, and since then, he has made seventeen albums. He was the focus of the Love Shines documentary that was released in 2010. Grand Opera Lane was independently released in 1991 by the duo after it was turned down by numerous Canadian record labels. Grand Opera Lane was credited to "Ron Sexsmith and the Uncool"; the backup band also featured electric guitar players Sarah McElcheran and Kim Ratcliffe in addition to Don Kerr and Steve Charles. Due to the popularity of the song "Speaking with the Angel," Sexsmith was offered a contract, which resulted in the 1995 release of his self-titled album. Elvis Costello, for whom Sexsmith later opened, liked the album.