Lessons learned

During preparations for a new album you learn all kind of new things. For instance, today I skyped for the first time in my life, going back five hours in time. No big deal really, which figures when you are seeing good friends again. There was a small effort from a provider to sabotage our rendez-vous, but we are a tough breed of musicians and never did we panic. Anyway, all the rest is going according to plan and I must say I am getting pretty excited about these recordings. A webcam shot of the studio confirmed my high hopes with stacks of amps, a Hammond organ (!), two banjos (!), a pedal steel (!) and loads of other instruments. And there will be people to play them too. And all that just a couple of steps from the beach.

The Notebook

Where does a new album start? With songwriting, of course. And in my case it starts with words and ideas scribbled in a notebook. Once in a while I browse the pages, combine words and sentences and start a train of thought that ends up as a lyric. I pick up my guitar or my banjo and usually some melody and chords will surface and behold: a song is born. For the Rocket Swing album I did something very daring. I made the arrangements and set a recording date when I had about four songs more or less ready. And in a few months I wrote six more and I must say I am quite happy with the results. Now this may not sound as a big feat to you. But I am a slow writer and very critical of the results, so I am kind of proud of myself.

The Diaries

This year will be a crucial year in my career as a singer-songwriter. I will be thinking out of the box, leave my comfort zone, get on a plane and fly to Canada to record my next album with working title “The Rocket Swing”. I use the word crucial, because several signs point in that direction. I wrote ten new songs that I truly think are good songs. I will be recording in a studio from which I have heard some great productions. And I will be working with some musicians that I admire very much. How lucky can one man get?  Because I want to keep a record of this adventure and all the highs (and the lows), I am starting this blog.