Written and performed by Michael Montgomery and Parker Spranza. Recorded and mixed by Kean Grych.

Six Fords on Soberanes Creek

Olivella

This spring, for the first time in nearly four years, I had the honor to collaborate again on an original song with Joe Johnsson! He plays bass; I play guitar. Thanks to Pascale for recording and mastering. And feel free to check out our live performance of the song here: https://youtu.be/gXotpCZsc0c.

Circling Back

I wrote this song in August of 2021, while staying with my grandmother Shirley at her home in Seattle, Washington. For many years she and my grandfather owned a cabin on Roatan, an island off the coast of Honduras. I dedicate the song to her, and to the warmth in her voice when recounting her Roatan stories.

The track was recorded and mixed by Parker Spranza in Monterey, California. For a live performance, see the following: https://youtu.be/gLiZ1f1XDbQ. The watercolor accompaniment is my grandfather Roger’s.

Roatan

Until 1836, much of the American West, including the present U.S. state of California, was administered by Spain and then Mexico as Alta California, which is Spanish for "upper California," as distinguished from Baja ("lower")California to the south. I dedicate this song to that historical landscape.

Alta

This is an original composition. It is dedicated to the landscape of California and the American Far West, changed in many ways since Spain and then Mexico administered it as Alta California, yet still fascinating and beautiful. Parker Spranza plays guitar. I play ukulele. The track was mixed by Parker Spranza and recorded in Monterey, California, on January 3, 2020.

The title of this original composition refers to a geological phenomenon on the seafloor, with newly formed oceanic crust sitting higher than its surroundings at an "inside corner" of a right-angled mid-ocean ridge. The phrase also reminds me of being homebound for COVID-19, and the need to adjust and perhaps even thrive. Recorded on November 26, 2020.

Inside Corner High

I dedicate this song to the purple olive snail, scientific name "Olivella biplicata." All along the West Coast and well into the interior, traded as beads, their shells have been valued for beauty for ten thousand years or more. I feel lucky to be a part of that tradition.

Elusive Olivella

"If we are here for any good purpose at all (other than collating texts, running rivers, and learning the stars), I suppose it is to entertain the rest of nature. A gang of sexy primate clowns. All the little critters creep in close to listen when the human beings are in a good mood and willing to play some tunes." --Gary Snyder

Michael Montgomery

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