"One patch at a time. I wish I could, I should, I would...but no one gets another shot at life.... "

Technology creates an opportunity....
In December of 2016 I looked on Google to see if there were any interesting tools for Indie Artists. I had shifted gear from Music to Technology in 1999 and for the next 15 years played out very rarely and wrote next to nothing. Then I found Catapult and decided to try my hand at expanding beyond my web site. Below is my history of activity since I set up my relationship with Catapult as a Distributor. Starting with a half dozen songs recorded in 1996 and left on the shelf, I found some other material to remix and remaster from the Simple Folks sessions in 1993. Now in April of 2020 I've just released a live recording from this past October. Here's the "Modern Catalog".

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This is the first material I've actually recorded since 1997 that is "Internet Distribution" worthy. "What The", "Running with Troubadors" and "The Gold Key Sessions" were remixed and digitally mastered but the recorded performance was done years prior. "George Washington Drank Here" is live performance from 2016 but not of sufficient quality for anything but a "back yard" download from my site. The Kelly Center was a great opportunity to get involved in supporting the community and stage a show for Chris and I. Dave Young is a guy I found on the web who is a performer that also has his hands in video production and digital recording. More on Dava at Widget Studios. Digitally Released on Online Music

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The Live Concert Recording in 1993 was the foundation of "Simple Folks and Heroes" but here are 10 songs that have been in the vault since then. At one point I had a rough mix burned to CD from the DAT format and dumped them onto an iMac to play around. Voila, you have a follow up called "What The?". The title was a combination of the old photo I found and a look my cat threw me while we had a guy fixing a plumbing problem. Honest! Cat people will certainly get that look from time to time. Nothing like a condescending house pet to keep things in perspective. Digitally Released on Online Music.

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By 1997 I had become engaged and though I still played for a living until 1999, I was seriously planning the next phase of my life. I had enjoyed a great run but was looking for the exit ramp. In February of '97 I spent a month playing in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was there I wrote a song that I ended up playing every night and when I returned Stateside, I wanted to at least get it on tape with guitar and vocals, so back to Gold Key Studio to lay that down. I also successfully pitched and wrote a feature article ("Solo Gigging in Copenhagen") that was published in "Gig" Magazine in May of 1998. Digitally Released on Online Music

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In the spring of 2016 my wife was interested to see if I would play at the Grange Estate for a fundraiser. These past 20 years I've occasionally played a bar gig here and there and even got to more recently do a set at the Haverford Music Festival. I saw this as a chance to do a "concert" type thing for the first time in decades. Chris McCord agreed to do it with me and we really had fun. We got together a few times to rehearse songs we had not played much in years. The result of that is George Washington Drank Here. Digital, MP3 downloads.

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Ok, maybe it's NOT just about writing but here I was, back in the studio. In 1996 I wrote a children's jingle for Comcast Metrophone and made some extra cash. I'd used Gold Key Studio for the Comcast gig so I went back in with the latest incarnation of my band to do a few of my songs. Some we were doing live and most were never recorded. Chris and Laura Forman arranged and did the backing vocals, Chris did his guitar magic and Matt Cantwell (bass) and Mark Beecher (drums) completed the band. This project sat in limbo until 2017 (it's official iTunes Release). Digitally Released on Online Music

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The Decade of chasing the dream....
From 1985 when I returned home to Delaware County until 1996, I wrote like a man possessed and did some type of full-length recording project just about every year. Below is a history of those efforts with a little background on each. As I revamped this site to mobile friendly and split my catalog between "ITune Ready" and "Analog Oldies", I've designed this to accommodate that division. What I've come to understand is how music decorates time so some of these much lesser known recordings still have a place in people's memories. Here is a path to access everything I've ever managed to save. So there! :)

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This was the first "thing" I did that was strictly my own music. I had just turned 25 years old and was making a modest living just playing music. That summer I went into Strata Studio in Folsom, PA and laid down 10 songs from what I'd written since college through two years in Georgia and back to Pennsylvania. Really sparse production on cassette only, Analog, MP3 downloads

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"Superficial Man" had won me some gigs and soon I was playing with a rhythm section for the first time in my life. A car accident inadvertently led to me having some "found" money in my hands so I did what any 26 year old fledgling singer/songwriter would do: I bought a 12 string guitar and made another tape at Strata Studio. This time 3 of the songs were with a full band and a few more piano songs went into the mix. This included some stuff I wrote while working on the first tape. Cassette only, Analog, MP3 downloads

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By this time I was playing a good bit on the Cabaret Circuit in the Philly area. A few opening slots at the Chestnut, headlining and opening with my band at Ambler and 23East. This was my first "full blown" production that was released on cassette, CD and vinyl (seriously!) and was recorded at Four Star Studio in Media. Also hosted my first Album Release Party Weekend at the Rusty Nail. Crazy tie-dye T-shirts and rubber duck noses. I even did the artwork that created the DERF "Duck". Digitally Released Online Music

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1990 was a busy, busy year. Lots and lots of gigs now playing some local colleges. Now that the digital age was here, I went back into Four Star Studio and remixed most of the '85 and '86 stuff. There were also a few things that didn't fit on WDYRD. For a few years I was also performing in a trio with Chris McCord and Zan Gardner (who'd done some pretty powerful stuff on WDYRD). Although this was a digital recording, I only created cassettes since there weren't enough people that owned CD players at the time. Analog, MP3 downloads

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Without question, THE most obscure thing I ever did. This was essentially a demo package that became 12 new and sparsely recorded songs. Forge Recording Studio in Phoenixville had a "Demo Special Package" and the Crepepaper Poet thing was all mixdown and no new recording. I needed to record more because of everything I was writing! A few of these showed up on other albums down the road. The cassette jacket was a DIY package I provided. Arts and Crafts with beer. Cassette only, Analog, MP3 downloads

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Some other minor successes and adventures in the early 90's. I did well in the Marlboro Talent Roundup, went to Nashville and Austin, made a few trips to play in NYC and kept on writing. By 1991 I was at it again; this time I found a place in downtown Philly, Second Street Productions, and enlisted the help of some other session people. Chris McCord and I were working a lot as a duo and he contributed heavily to this album (hence the equal billing on the cover). He played bass and guitars on everything. This was my first venture into serious radio promotion and saw some decent airplay. I even collected a few small royalty checks. Digitally Released Online Music

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In May of 1993 George Pierson recorded myself, Chris McCord, Jim Stager, Erik Johnson and Laura Forman at 23EAST Cabaret in front of a hometown crowd. There were a lot of great "Pier-co" people we met that night and I treasure that experience as magical. Sadly, we lost George in 2016 but I feel fortunate and honored that he and Cindy popped out to surprise me at a Frankie's Bar gig just a few years back. Cindy told me George was really proud of what we did that night and I agree completely. Think of George's mastery when you hear this thing. This was also re-released for US/European Distribution in 1996. Digitally Released Online Music

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Obsession. Every bit of sane advice I got in the Music Business said, "stop putting so much stuff out". I get it, but I would go into the studio for some other reason (This time it was to record a song I'd written for an original 2 act play at Big Sky Studio) and end up using a whole reel of tape throwing out my latest songs. Though I do think I started to feel the tank emptying out at this point. Stitched this one together, called it "Quilt" and started thinking about where I was headed as opposed to where I'd been. Digitally Released Online Music

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