The official CD release event for Excellent Trouble will be Sat., Nov. 20, 7:30pm, at the Church of the Redeemer in Squirrel Hill (5700 Forbes Ave.) This is the same church where we recorded strings for Again, How it Ends, Keep it to Yourself, & Horses. The event will be all-ages, with complementary food & beverages. Tickets at the door are $15 for adults and $10 for students; children 12 & under are free (though no child care will be provided). As of right now, I’m opting to not do advance ticket sales. 


I’ll be playing with a full band, of course, plus lots of special guests. Opening will be recent Pittsburgh transplant Judith Avers, and fun Brooklyn folk-popsters Pearl and the Beard. ——>
You can read the very first review ever of “Excellent Trouble,” along with a nifty interview, done by Alise of Big Mama’s Blog.

After 3.5+ years of work, Excellent Trouble is finally out, and I couldn’t be more excited about how it sounds, and looks. (check out Seth Clark’s terrific original art here.)
The packaging features a 6-panel (3 “squares”) matte digipak, with a 24-page booklet glued into it.
There is also be a 6-panel lyric booklet, in the same pouch as the CD. The music, engineered, mixed, and co-produced by LURCH (Canadian ex-pat Chris Rudyk), is dark, layered, lush, and, according to Vivian my “best work yet.” (thanks, Vivian!)
You can order this disc from this website, of course. (I’ve sold 55+ at this point).

This next CD has been mixed, by Lurch, and has now been mastered by Toronto’s Fedge (Jeff Elliott). After 3 rounds of minor tweaks and changes, a final version of the music should be done shortly.
Here are the songs featured, in the order they’ll appear:
1. Again, 2. How it Ends, 3. Some Strange Algorithm, 4. Keep it to Yourself, 5. Someone to be Lonely With, 6. I Will Only Let You Down, 7. Lovely Trap, 8. I’m So Glad You’re Over Me, 9. Horses, 10. Leave Like This, 11. Love is All I Have For You, 12. Excellent Trouble, 13. Card Tricks, and 14. At the Table. Four songs, Again, How it Ends, Keep it to Yourself andHorses even have strings, thanks to Roy Sonne and the Fauré String Trio (arrangements by Chris Massa).
On the art front, Seth Clark will be working to complete the design work in the first half of June. The design will resemble a sketch book, and will feature a 24-page glued-in booklet. Check out his website, in particular his sketchbooks, to get a sense of his work. You can also see my round draft of the credits’ page, which I think will be fun:

So, the good news is that I should finally have “new product” here, maybe by July sometime. Meanwhile, you can still pre-order Excellent Trouble, and help me cover the costs of mastering/duplication.

hi, friends—happy holidays, all!
When I run into folks, I’m often asked “how’s the music going?” This is a question I’m never quite sure how to answer. My inner cynic/cranky old man likes to complain, if I let him (“I’m so broke! The album’s still not done! The turnout at my last show was light…”) You get the idea—the inner crank is unhelpful. :7
For me, success has always meant continuing to do things I love to do: write new songs I’m excited about, play them for people (mostly at small shows), play sax & harmonize with others, enjoy the great songs so many of my talented musician friends write, and getting excited about new music. The fact that I’m still doing all those things, having put out my first cassette tape release in 1992, seems pretty miraculous to me! As a writer, you always wonder if it’ll “dry up” some day (do chefs or shoemakers have this problem? a fear that inspiration will vanish overnight? I doubt it.) So, I’m grateful that I’m still writing songs that matter to me, 10 so far this year:
nothing rings as brightly, two left feet, carnival balloons (written while doing my annual Bethel Park H.S. residency), stalking poetry (inspired by a trip to Germany & Switzerland), just in case,better with practice (big & catchy, very ADHD!), mulberry tree (quiet & pretty), I was a terrible waiter (funny, and a contest winner!), ghost of me, and what God likes (a sermonette, really, advocating for my GLBT friends.) I just rehearsed those last two new ones last night, with the super-talented Jason Rafalak, who continues to patiently learn my new songs and rehearse older ones, and whose musical depth and insight always make any show I do with him more fun, and way better.
I also have 3 unfinished songs with nifty music and incomplete words (which I really want to be playing right now! :] )
This year, I got to:
—back up Jon Vezner (on sax) at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival—tons of fun, and great songs!
—play at a wedding in Germany, then travel and see old friends in Germany & Switzerland (and speak some German & French.)
—open for the unbelievable Bobs at Caffe Lena, a club I’ve wanted to play for years (now I have!)
—organize the “Musical Chairs” showcase at both the International Folk Alliance & NERFAconferences, & play with amazing people, including Pierce Pettis!
—got the next CD ready to mix (a process that should start any day/week now?)
—continue to work at my very fun day job, coordinating a Tutoring program for East End Cooperative Ministry here in Pittsburgh. So, I have a lot to be thankful for. Thanks to you, for listening, coming out to shows, and being connected to my musical life.

Once again, I’m activating my “undercover” rock band, consisting of Ryan Socrates on drums, Jason Rafalak on bass, and Corey
Congilio on electric guitar, for a show. We’re playing this Friday, Dec. 11th, at 8pm at Yoga Matrika, (6520 Wilkins Ave., in Point Breeze). Should be a fun show, and probably the last full band show till the next CD release!

Opening will be Maine’s Putnam Smith. I got a copy of his newest CD, Goldrush this year at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, and really loved it.

I got to play the 2009, 4th Annual Apple Festival, including 2 of me & Ryan Socrates (on percussion) playing music there at the Union Project (on Sat., Oct. 24, 2009). The pictures were taken by Larry Rippel.
Needless to say, the Apple Fest was tons of fun, with a Pie-ku poetry contest, music by us and also the Unitarian Folk Orchestra, and we even got to taste the winning pie!