New Songs From Old Guitars CD (2016)
12 songs, 46 min 26 sec
Dedicated to heroes, friends and angels.
This album is an exciting departure for me in both the way the songs were written and how they were recorded. It was inspired by a 1955 Martin D-28 named Olive Gail that I found in a small music store in St. Louis on my birthday in 2014. "Olive Gail" was written in gold on the headstock of the guitar. She was very road worn and had been hanging high up on a wall above a door for two years. No one had played her during that time, and I swear she called to me as i walked out the door. I walked back into that room, saw her hanging in the dark and asked to see her. She needed a home, much love and repair, and I was the one to give Olive all of that. Olive's first song was OLD GUITAR. It was so amazing to sit down with her and have that song be born. That was the spark for all the other songs that would come out of both of us. The next song i wrote about her was OLIVIA GAIL, a tribute to the original owner, co-written with and performed on this CD by Cory Batten. More songs started coming---songs about folks that inspired me and songwriting friends whom I've met along the way. So many songwriters come to Nashville with a dream and little else. Every story of the ones who make it has an element of magic. Dylan was a big influence on me like he has been for so many others. I wanted my song FOOTSTEPS OF DYLAN to convey the way he went from folksinger to pop star at the Newport Folk festival of 1965, a turning point in music. i had fun creating the song's morph from acoustic to electric, and the players did a great job of making my idea come to life. The entire "electric side" was produced live in the studio with my band in a single session one afternoon, much as musicians worked in the sixties. I thank Olive Gail and all the wonderful beings who helped bring this project to life.
12 songs, 46 min 26 sec
Dedicated to heroes, friends and angels.
This album is an exciting departure for me in both the way the songs were written and how they were recorded. It was inspired by a 1955 Martin D-28 named Olive Gail that I found in a small music store in St. Louis on my birthday in 2014. "Olive Gail" was written in gold on the headstock of the guitar. She was very road worn and had been hanging high up on a wall above a door for two years. No one had played her during that time, and I swear she called to me as i walked out the door. I walked back into that room, saw her hanging in the dark and asked to see her. She needed a home, much love and repair, and I was the one to give Olive all of that. Olive's first song was OLD GUITAR. It was so amazing to sit down with her and have that song be born. That was the spark for all the other songs that would come out of both of us. The next song i wrote about her was OLIVIA GAIL, a tribute to the original owner, co-written with and performed on this CD by Cory Batten. More songs started coming---songs about folks that inspired me and songwriting friends whom I've met along the way. So many songwriters come to Nashville with a dream and little else. Every story of the ones who make it has an element of magic. Dylan was a big influence on me like he has been for so many others. I wanted my song FOOTSTEPS OF DYLAN to convey the way he went from folksinger to pop star at the Newport Folk festival of 1965, a turning point in music. i had fun creating the song's morph from acoustic to electric, and the players did a great job of making my idea come to life. The entire "electric side" was produced live in the studio with my band in a single session one afternoon, much as musicians worked in the sixties. I thank Olive Gail and all the wonderful beings who helped bring this project to life.