Barbara Tilsen and I drove to the Children’s Music Network conference last weekend. We talked almost the whole way – 7 hours and 7 hours back. We’ve been friends for many years, something like 35 and have sung, shared and organized together. Barb is a wonderful singer, songwriter, community activist and spirit. And when these …
I feel new to writing. I’ve written all my life, but something has changed. So often I’ve written on the run, sitting in a restaurant whispering song ideas into a voice recorder or outlining a chapter for two hours on an unusually free morning. I’ve rarely been able to be deliberate in time to write. …
If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine…Paulo Coelho At Yale, the most popular class is on happiness. Read about it here. It’s taught by Laurie Santos, and, while the topic speaks to all of us, it’s interesting that at Yale, filled with elite students, happiness seems to be in short supply. The stresses of …
I wrote this song a few months ago. It’s another challenging guitar song. I am learning a lot about recording, but not enough. And mixing is its own quandary. My friend Laurie died 19 years ago yesterday. I lit a candle for her that night, as is, I heard, the Jewish custom. She understood the …
I was walking along Willy Street last December and I saw the sign above in a door window. By the time I reached Schencks Corners I had written this chant in the rhythm of my walking. I did alter it from the original a little, but the inspiration is pretty direct. It’s an interesting exercise …
Last fall I visited the National Museum of African American History. I went back again in July. It’s an amazing museum, one of my favorites. So dense with artifacts and stories, and powerful emotion. It’s impossible to come to terms with even a small part of the stories of suffering, atrocity, and evil that slavery …
Every few months, and I wish it were move often, I sit with my dear friend Peter Berryman at what used to be Cafe Zoma, and we talk. Every conversation fills me with inspiration, recognition, wonder, and reflection. And lots of joy at the connection. One of our topics is music and songwriting. He said …