5/09/04

Just about all of these tunes were written as they were recorded… so I guess you could say they are baby photos. Though I recorded and performed them with a lot of flaws, I felt it necessary to keep the spirit of the moment intact. It was the best I could do at the time and was a great learning experience. Also- I didn’t intend on ever releasing this collection as an “album”, but after hearing them together I realized that they are a sonic snapshot of the years 2001-2004 for me.

Everything was recorded all by my lonesome on a Roland VS 880 digital 8 track in the wee and not so wee hours… in various bedrooms and living rooms in California.

I’ve provided “Side 1″ on this site as an appetizer- to hear “Side 2″(4 songs) you can hear some more samples and also purchase at CDbaby.com.

Daylight Savings: Recorded in one night, the night before I went on vacation to Japan. (I probably should have been packing) I wrote this tune for my uncle in Japan who passed away way too soon at the age of 50. I never got to say goodbye, so this is my feeble attempt.
The melody is something I use to hum to myself in times of need or when driving past the valleys on 280 south.

Pigeon Toes: A Salty song. It’s not really aimed at anyone, just a composite of the “anima”. This was recorded in my garage in Pacifica- the street I live on is extremely noisy with planes flying overhead (we live near the SF airport) and people speeding down the street. Somehow I managed to capture the song in the silences I was granted by said planes and cars. I don’t know why the girl in the song is pigeon toed, it just came out that way. (note: this is a 3rd draft- the first was aborted by PG&E pulling the plug on the power in the middle of the afternoon…)

Alphabet Song (cottonpick): Recorded in my parent’s living room. This is a different version than on the CD- featuring the Cottonpick technique my mom taught me.

N.P.: The lyrics to this song were written as a joke based off of an Instant Message chat with a friend. In the original draft- I ended up with Natalie Imbruglia instead. It was the first thing I recorded in this litter of songs that I “birthed”.

I recorded the guitar part, (which was improvised) a long time ago and then forgot about it until I paired it with the crazy lyrics. I find that songwriting is a lot like a dating service for words, chord progressions, verses, choruses and bridges.

Embarcadero Blues: This was recorded and mixed on the same night I recorded Daylight Savings. Lyrically, it is a kind of prayer- working as a busboy and not making money, but having faith that everything’s gonna be alright. An anthem of hope for the lonely and underpaid and dissed.

El Camino: Another old tune that I revamped for this project. I wrote this after visiting my elementary school playground, the memory of childhood was so great that I had to make a soundtrack to it. I recorded this at my parent’s house in one long night. My mom likes this one.