The Ascending Masquerade

TWELVE SONG CD

Music by its very nature demands definition, "is it loud or soft, fast or slow, how does it make you feel?" If it makes you feel sad does it have to be slow? Or how can Blues when it has a sad lyric, make you feel good somehow? When someone asks me what kind of music it is that I play and sing, I always start by saying that it is 'Roots Music', Country and Blues. It is usually agreed upon that these two kinds of music gave birth to the decidedly American phenomenon we call 'Rock & Roll.' Having many shapes and forms today; its audience or subculture frequently defines Rock & Roll. I have found that the roots of Country and Blues provide the source for a wide range of emotional expression. 'Teresa' song number ten on the cd with the tender sadness of its lyric, can be demonstrated best musically as a slow Country Ballad. On the other hand, 'Thelma James' cut number eight, heavy with Poetic Desire and the Saxophone taking most of the solos gives the song a distinctive Jazz vibe. A finger style acoustic guitar and stand up bass with a touch of Latin percussion provide the backdrop for the haunting spoken word narrative of song seven, 'Stardust Cowboy'. The Barroom Brawling Country Blues of 'Guitar Blues' and 'Cheap Reds and Whiskey' combining Blues Harp and electric lead guitars, slide guitar and horns respectively, define the danger you might encounter in any loud music, dim lit Road House, down some country back road or city street on any full moon Saturday night. I have done my best to give life to emotion, form to sound, strength to rhythm, and even to try and describe the result with words. But in the end it is you, the listener, who must give it a name.