Mountaintop Sound Waves
“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”― Anais Nin
Luther Dickinson and I have been collaborating on projects for decades. We met around a recording of Otha Turner that Luther recorded and I ended up releasing in the late-90s. Ever since, one project has led to another….including the project of raising a family…and we have been collaborating throughout.
Opportunity has brought Luther to the Bay Area regularly these past years…his touring with his band The North Mississippi All-Stars, his time touring with the Black Crowes or The Allman Brothers Family Band…his prominence in Phil Lesh’s national pick-up band during the days of Terrapin Crossroads…and whenever he is here we get a few days to hang…listen to records….talk about crazy ideas. We thought up the concept for his first solo record (which was nominated for a Grammy), started work on an off-broadway show telling the stories passed down to Luther from his Dad, dream up crazy concepts for film scores and multi-media installations.
About four years ago we started talking about ambient music. Anyone who reads this newsletter regularly knows I have a enthusiasm for the drone….trance-inducing vibrations made by legends like Pauline Oliveros, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Ekin Fil and William Basinski. During one of the epic sunrises we see regularly from our mountain home, I threw a droned-out record onto the turntable and Luther and I started talking about the beauty coming from the speakers…and how we might try to make some drones of our own. Within hours we were in The Crows Nest, the small room attached to the house by a walkway that sits on three story tall stilts, and began setting up the amps and pedals and guitars we both had (borrowing some from Jon Blaufarb and Tony Mindel) and started recording. And we have kept recording for four years, off and on.
Yesterday, on 02202022, we added some piano at the end of one song, some colored sound waves from my Korg synth (that my daughter Kaya played), a few drones from my Dads cello and realized that after four years and a pandemic, we were done. The record was finished, The project is called Gravel Springs, named after the street where Otha Turner lived, and is highlighted by the beautiful guitar work of my partner-in-crime Luther Dickinson, who happens to be one of the country’s best players (it is always good to anchor yourself to incredible talent). With some long drawn-out abstract covers of old blues songs, to more free-form meditations that occasionally feature whisperings from Kaya and Asher and affected growls from Emma, The Gravel Springs project is the first piece of musical expression I have ever been a part of, and fits so nicely—yet apart from— the droned-out genre that I love so much. It is never too late to create.
With the time it takes to press a record these days, Gravel Springs will be out in the world sometime next year (there is a label interested)! And in the meanwhile, we are going to keep on keeping on with the alien sounds and the meditative drones.
Happy Monday
Perfect Sound Forever is a fantastic on-line music scene that has been around since the dawn of on-line music zines. The current edition features an interview Zombies’ lead singer Colin Blunstone, a history of German producer and artist Conny Plank (Kraftwerk recorded AUTOBAHN at his studio), a comprehensive look at the life of Del Shannon, and this incredible diary of life with Jonathan Richmond during the early days of the Modern Lovers.
Fight Club Author Chuck Palahniuk Kind of Likes China’s Censored Ending
The rare tale of censorship evolving art in a positive way: I am still unsure how I feel about Palahniuk’s somewhat-acceptance of the generally horrible act….but I guess I have never really come to grips on what I think about the Fight Club either. Oh, my Generation X was a strange, cynical generation.
Archaeologists uncover UAE’s earliest known buildings
“Archaeologists from the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) have uncovered the earliest known buildings in the UAE and the broader region, dating back more than 8,500 years. The discovery was made on the small island of Ghagha, where researchers found several structures dated using a carbon-14 analysis on pieces of charcoal found in situ, that places the settlement to almost 6500 BC.”
The revelatory art of Joseph Yoakum
My cousins gave us the Joseph Yoakum catalog of his current show for the holidays. I had never known of his work before, and his vision of the world as translated through his ball-point pen and pastels is a flowing, organic one that is a satisfying trip to dive into. It looks like I need to figure out how to get to Houston to catch the show. This CBS-created article, based around their Sunday Morning show segment, is a pretty great intro to Yoakum.
New Hank Williams Gospel Collection of Songs Set for March 11 Release
Years ago either Ross Blaufarb or Tex handed me some unmarked CDs that represented the complete collection of Hank Williams’ Mother’s Best Flour sponsored radio shows. Not knowing they existed (few people did then), they absolutely blew my mind, with performances that had never been heard since their initial airing. They have long since been made available to the general public, and now this production is being brought out: the gospel numbers that were performed on the show, one per episode. Not in Williams’ normal set list, this release provide a great way to take in this different side of the country legend.
From The Library Of Congress: STILL THEY HAUNT US II: Another Mystery Photo!
I love when the Library of Congress sends out a nationwide call to figure out the subjects of the random photos in their coffers. This might be my favorite so far…
Velvet Underground & Nico - S/T (A-Side Only) LP - Verve Mono 1966 TEST PRESSING
Chris Owen sent this opportunity to me over the weekend…it is selling for close to 3000K with a day to go on the bidding. Owning Velvet Underground history….or feeding the family…the choice is obvious!
If I Could Tell You
By: W H Auden
Time will say nothing but I told you so,
Time only knows the price we have to pay;
If I could tell you I would let you know.
If we should weep when clowns put on their show,
If we should stumble when musicians play,
Time will say nothing but I told you so.
There are no fortunes to be told, although,
Because I love you more than I can say,
If I could tell you I would let you know.
The winds must come from somewhere when they blow,
There must be reasons why the leaves decay;
Time will say nothing but I told you so.
Perhaps the roses really want to grow,
The vision seriously intends to stay;
If I could tell you I would let you know.
Suppose all the lions get up and go,
And all the brooks and soldiers run away;
Will Time say nothing but I told you so?
If I could tell you I would let you know.
