First demo. Male vocalist (tenor) with mezzo-soprano and alto vocalists backing. Thanks to Bryan Adams for providing me with the 'accidental' that enabled me to escape my compositional blockage, just when the studio recording clock had near counted down! Lead singer, lyrics and melody: John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

Tender

The Huckleberry Finn theme is captured through a simple, music box melody whose pattern varies throughout the piece. Imagine a raft and two people adrift on the enormous sheet of dirty gauze, that is the Mississippi river. Sunlight pierces the cloud cover and the waters take on a yellowish purple hue, the colour of a ripe bruise. The river spins and tumbles, then doubles back, in swirling eddies. The river winds on, like a snake through an empty backcountry. Desolate trees edge dark and close to the lapping waters. A storm beckons. And for that minute a bluebird sings. Close by, and round it, mistier, farther and farther, all the birds of Illinois. Melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

Passage To Cairo - instrumental. Songwriter: JF Tatlow

First demo. A preacher sings of his earlier life addiction. He tells us that he was once a heavy alcoholic and a glutton with an insatiable appetite. That overall, he was an utterly selfish man. Then one day came the change that turned him to the Lord. He rejoices in the discovery that he believes has saved his life and soul. He now dedicates himself to the holy cause of saving others by criss-crossing the land singing this, his own salvation song. 'Sometimes it seems like God is difficult to find and impossibly far away. We get so caught up in our daily duties and irritations that they become the only things that we can focus on. What we forget is that God's love and beauty are all around us, each and every day. If only we would take the time to look about and so see.' 

The original tune is from my play 'Forest Heart,' an Irish Folk/children's piece that has paroles quite different. However, nothing to stop me using the same melody for both. I envisage this work being sung with a more upbeat tempo, with a strong male vocalist, accompanied by fiddle, percussion and acoustic guitar. Lyrics and melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

He Sees You

Demo. Female vocalist - mezzo-soprano. Pop-flavoured, modern jazz idea. Would improve this piece by introducing breathy vocals + tom-toms for a strong backbone + keyboard effects + acoustic guitar accents = warm and blissful sensuality. Spoken bridge. Could fashion it into a soul number. This first demo is produced on 'Fruity Loops' studio. There is potential to make this piece more emotional charged than it currently is. Lyrics and melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

A Flush With Love

First demo. Spanish guitar + female vocalist. Through fantasy, a woman escapes her mundane world, to step out from between alder 'n' cypress there about with red cassias in her hair. There, to the south of Madrid, she hears the sweet melody of guitar music and becomes one with Sevillanas dancers; a lover finds her hand; they escape the crowd; the heady perfume of the night and the music are aphrodisiacs working on her senses; a romantic tryst; scents of orange blossom; tastes of saffron and spice; the drowsy sounds of crickets and cicadas. Love exquisite! Produced on 'Fruity Loops' studio. Lyrics and melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

Latin Spice

Male vocalist + acoustic guitar. A sailor catches the dawn tide, leaving the woman, whom he has loved that night, slumbering. He follows his natural trait of moving on after another short affair. As his sailing ship moves toward the dawn edge of the world, he looks back at the soft light that still shows at her bedroom window. He ponders his life and the possibilities that he might be missing through not settling in a relationship. He examines the novel stirrings in his heart. Is this love? Is he making a mistake by leaving this woman? He steers toward the emerging cusp of the sun, deep in thought. Singing, lyrics and melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

Pegasus Bay

African protest song. Male vocalist + fingerharp + bantu drum + guitar. Set in Luo country, Kenya. Song tells how a farmer struggles to support his family though: he can no longer grow cotton; his food crops are affected by poor rains; there's no money for his children's school fees; he is afflicted with AIDS; local farmers and herders are at war over water; today he has buried his eldest son. The mandala lyric structure is metaphorical in that it captures the cycle of life-death through Luo cultural greetings that are dependent on the time of day. Thus, in the morning one says 'Ichiyo nade?' (How are you?) The usual, stoic reply is, 'Achiyo ma ber!' (I'm fine!) Then in the afternoon one says 'Irio nade?' (How are you?) Reply: 'Ario ma ber!' (ditto) The evening: 'Idhi nade?' (How are you?) Reply: 'Adhi ma ber!' (ditto) Finally there's 'Wanere kinyi!' which means 'Goodnight!' The little end of the day is symbolic of the Greater Ends experienced by the cotton farmer in his life. Singing, drum, lyrics and melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

'IN TO NADE!' - (I Am Fine!)

Prior to the Spanish Civil War, Dorotea, a Spanish dancer, regularly performs to crowds in  Andalusia, Spain. Her musicians are three brothers from Córdoba. The eldest, José, has such love for her, such that she inspires him to become a maestro guitar player. Her passion for dance, combined with his - on guitar - for her, makes them famous throughout Spain. 

Dorotea however loves Sanchez. He is away in Madrid, preparing to fight the Republican cause against General Franco's forces. He pines for her, as she, for him. Finally, Dorotea decides to join him. She leaves Córdoba with José, and journeys to Madrid. The two lovers meet before a major battle, José at their back, their friend and chaperone. 

The last verse of the song describes those nights when José is called on to perform by the people of Córdoba. Playing his guitar, José sings of his love, conjuring Dorotea once again to dance for him 'in the tears that well up in his eyes'.

Strong emotive undercurrent to this piece. This first demo produced on 'Fruity Loops' studio, but there is potential to make this piece more emotional charged by using acoustic/ Spanish guitars and a flamenco background rhythm/beat. Lyrics and melody by John F. Tatlow. Composed and produced by John F. Tatlow.

Dorotea Sonia Calvino

I produced the 'Mississippi' album in Kisumu, Kenya in 2005. These are the works you can download. The vocal recordings here need instrumental backing, so are not yet ready for downloading. The tracks on 'Mississippi' are first demos only. The album itself is an eclectic mix, but then I wanted to 'out' all the tunes that were just bursting my head to capacity! There's no particular theme. Some of these tunes are over 25 years old! The musical arrangement was done by my hired hand Simon, using his 'Fruity Loops' studio. However, no amount of electronic sound was going to emulate the 'truer' sound that's still lodged there in my work, no matter the valiant efforts of my hired singers, Caroline and Gerald. The title cabaret track for instance is a performance work with a big band sound. 
Imagine the swing of a New Orleans jazz band; the vitality of the solo trumpeter doing his riff; then the saxophonist's bridge on 'Blue River'; finally the climax, a power play of brass, string and voice, with soprano 'Mississippi' signatures, an evocative echo. 
My ambition is to continue writing melodic tracks and to share these with the world. I listen to a wide range of music. I'm ever seeking out magical 'lost chords'. Those are the ones that shout 'Work me; tease me! Here's a new tune! Yours, for just a little effort, sahib!' I love fashioning songs in this way. 
For instance, tracks by two African singer/songwriters spring to mind. Geoffrey Oriema's 'The River' and Abdoulaye "Laye" Sow's 'Mauritania'. These two songs twirled about in my mind, getting mixed up with my desire to attend the 'Festival in the Desert' in Essakane, Mali. All this combined to create the song 'Come Sweet Again'. Then there's Patrick Leonard's lyrics for Madonna's hit 'La Isla Bonita'. To my ear, that song was pregnant with another. 'Latin Spice' was the result. 
It's not always music that inspires though. As a youth, I was influenced by the poetry of Wilfred Owen and that led to my penning 'Until The Sun Rises – Owen's Ballad'; then first love stirred and, born of unrequited love, out came 'Josephine'.
As I grew older, I voyaged this world. The sounds and mystique of Spain brought forth 'Dorotea'; California lessons in love made me tell the world of 'Deception; hard life's witness in Kenya inspired me to protest 'In To Nade'. 
Meeting with fellow songwriter Jen Juniper led to my writing 'Pegasus Bay,' in a few hours, as she'll vouch.
Writing is a solitary pursuit most the time and there comes a time when words on paper need to be performed; to capture ears and (if possible!) hearts. This is where I'm at now in my life. I seek to make my sounds a communion of crafted melody and natural musicianship and to have them performed before the world's audience. For too long they've rested in my notebook, being sung solely by the sweet muse in my head. She has long told me they're ready to be let loose on the world. I have come to wholly agree with her, and hence I declare "Enough of selfish delights! Time to share!" 
All song tracks are original, only just released and ever so under performed! I am the sole copyright holder. 
I am up for collaboration with musicians; fellow singer/songwriters and the all too elusive 'Money,' (No disrespect intended!) so if you, dear reader-listener, are able and willing, spread the word within the music community. Let the aforementioned come visit this, my stall, and assess my wares and so... well, let's see. Magick comes when and where it's least expected! God Bless!

Red Bard Composer

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