Most of these songs are about or inspired by adventures in the Olympic Mountains

Hiking Adventures

I got a little inspiration from the chord progressions on the Beatles’ Free As a Bird for this one. Might have been the first time I used the parallel key of the relative key in a deliberate way. The lyrics stem from my use of a fanny pack when mountain biking. Regarding the third verse, my motion-detector cam often gets roughed up by bears. The bridge is a paraphrase of a John Muir quote: “In every walk in nature, one receives far more than he seeks.” Vocals are performed by Nick Russ of the UK. 

Expeditions

Fanny Pack

The song was originally inspired by a hike to Ghost Mountain in California. It’s an older, nearly forgotten song, but a few revisions quickly brought this ghost song back to life. I think of the instrumental section as being a gypsy style but technically it’s not the Hungarian or gypsy scale being used. That leaves it open for interpretation. There are similarities with South American and Celtic music but I still think it’s closer to a gypsy style. Spirits on the Mountain features the vocal talents of Kate McGill of the UK.

Spirits on the Mountain

In honor of my grandfather’s banjo being 100 years old I incorporated it into a song called Hole in the Mountain. It’s kind of a mix between rock and old timey folk. Lead vocals are performed by Nick Russ of the UK. In the lyrics Tubal Cain is mentioned. He is the oldest known blacksmith according to the bible and was a character in a movie called Noah (2014) with Russell Crowe. Tubal Cain is also the name of a copper and manganese mine in the Olympic Mountains that was started in the early 1900s. It goes over a quarter of a mile into the mountain. I’ve hiked there several times and gone all the way in. There’s water flowing out of the mine and at one point you have to walk through a waterfall inside the mine to access the inner shafts. In the winter I’ve seen Townsend’s big-eared bats hibernating. The bridge part of the song is in the key of Bm. It’s the relative minor of D, the key for the rest of the song. So having “relative miner” in the lyrics is a play on words.

Hole in the Mountain

The intro and the second instrumental section were an instrumental piece by themselves. The rest was an older version of the song. Seems the two pieces were meant for each other. The song format is unorthodox with no chorus. The three verses have what I think of as a pre-verse introductory line. There’s a descant (counter-melody) during the verses. The descant could be considered like a chorus. It just happens to be simultaneous with the verses. The time signatures also make it unique as some parts shift from 4/4 to 3/4 or 6/4. The lyrics are inspired by my experience walking under an old-growth tree canopy. It gives me a sense of peace and is especially beautiful when the sun is low and the sunbeams go through the trees. The last verse was inspired by TS Eliot: “… and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” Guitar was performed by Vladimir Gapontsev of Thailand who is a prize winner of many international competitions. Mandolin was performed by Nicolas Sokolic of Argentina. The ney was played by Ido Romano of Israel. Vocalists are Viktoria Sunshine of Romania and Greg Van Kerkhof of South Africa.

Tree Canopy

Sometimes you just need to get away for a while, be inspired by nature, and recharge. It can do wonders for your mental health. The verse and chorus were written first on the guitar. The bridge was added later. The instrumental parts with lead guitar feel like a chorus even though they’re not. It was fun to add a horn section after being a Chicago fan for many years. It consists of three types of saxophones and a trumpet provided by Dima Faustov of the Ukraine. Lead vocals are performed by Katie Burke of Los Angeles. Christopher Galen of Colorado performs most of the other vocals with Viktoria Sunshine of Romania joining in near the end.

Retreat

Some of my songs are about my adventures in the Olympic Mountains

Tree Canopy

Decajoule