Cover of Peter Frampton's cover of Ringo for his 80th Birthday
Shan Frogel, Vocals
Glen Evertsen, Guitars  & Bass

It Don't Come Easy

An acoustic version of my tune about two Oil Tankers colliding and spilling oil all over my favorite beach. All parts played by yours truly.

Lyrics: 
Imagine swimming in the water
The sun is shining down
You’re approaching a small island
You don’t want to drown

Climb up to higher ground

In a moment you recover
So you start to leave
But you falter in the water
Oil on the beach

Two tankers sinking down 

Exxon Valdez, BP pipeline
C.E.O.’s have soared
Record profits hold us hostage
Forged upon the sword

Arms trading peace for war 

This is so you will remember 
Oil on the beach
Has a very strange effect on
Everything you eat

No more oil on the beach 
No more oil on the beach

Chasing the Sky

Oil On The Beach

Here's the classic tune from Pure Prairie League with some fast flat-picking on Salt Creek in the middle by Keith.

Pete & Keith a.k.a. Peter Trappen & Co performed at the Gathering roadhouse from 1978 to 1980. Booked as the house band for 6 nights a week in this popular spot in West Palm Beach Florida. Keith Rothschild sings lead on this one, rescued from a cassette tape, possibly off a reel to reel initially if memory serves.

Good Time Charlies got the Blues ... this is a live cover version with  Keith Rothco singing lead and Bill Canty and myself on Harmony. I'm playing the lead. Keith sent this to me recently and I must admit, it's a lovely mix. Live at O'hara's Club in Palm Beach around 1982. Keith is finger picking the main guitar, Bill is playing rhythm and Rick Rossano on Bass guitar.

"Good Time Charlie's Got the Blues" is a song written and performed by American folk singer Danny O'Keefe. It was first recorded by O'Keefe in 1967, but not released. It was recorded by The Bards and released in 1968.

Good Time Charlie's Got the Blues

Welcome to the Hotel California!  My version of this classic Eagles tune, although a few steps lower than Don Henley's high vocals. This version of mine is still very popular on the N1M charts.


(demo only - not for sale)

Hotel California

"Rock and Roll music's gonna take away my blues baby"
Lead Vox and Rhythm & 2nd Lead Guitar - Peter Trappen; Lead Guitar - Pat Malloy; B-3 Organ - Tim Babbitt; Bass Guitar - Pete Kittle; Drums - Dick Agostini. It was 1973 ... Buzz Walker had reformed after losing 3 key members to various events.  With the addition of Pete Kittle on Bass and Dick Agostini on drums we took on a bit of a "jazzy" feel.  We also enacted a communal style of managing the band in order to save some money for promotion/recording.  The recording session at a small 8 track studio in Potterville was the result of that effort.  6 songs in total were recorded that day and mixed in one manic afternoon.  
c)1973 P. Trappen

A Rock & Roll Tune

This song was recorded in 1979 in South Florida at a small warehouse recording studio (Brightwater?). With (now famous) Scott Henderson on Lead Guitar who was smokin' hot that day and accomplished this solo in 2 or 3 takes. Which is what I had anticipated after watching him play at local bars in those days. Soon after this he entered the Guitar Institute in L.A. where he eventually became a teacher and then went on to greatness playing with Chick Corea and Jean-Luc Ponty before making a name for himself with his band Tribal Tech. Also on this track: Steve Owen doing a tremendous job on Bass and the late, great Harry Johnston on Drums. This is / was a difficult song to pull off in a short 5 hour session with time changes in 7/8 and 4/4 time with an unusual bridge. 

The song refers to a little-known law that would allow someone to receive a "misdemeanor" charge for using MaryJane. And also, the boredom of small town America. I wrote the song, played Rhythm Guitar and sang Lead vocals. Rescued from a cassette tape and remastered.

c) 2020 p. trappen umpteen music bmi
photo by Geoff Livingston

Section 47

Recorded in 1977 at Uncle Dirty's Studio Kalamazoo Michigan.  This was a regional hit over the summer that year. The guitar riff came to me in a dream and I woke up to write this song. We did this in an afternoon on a 16 Track 2" tape reel with a $500 budget. The version you hear here was copied from the 45 rpm record so, you can still hear some pops and needle noise. As I had no management or money to promote the record it didn't go far. 

Hal Beveridge on Bass guitar and Tim Quinn on Drums, I played a Les Paul through a ProCo Rat foot pedal, sang lead and harmony vocals and overdubbed the cowbell. 

The intro song is called "Blue Dot Cafe" and was part of the original 45 record just because. 

c) 1977 and 2020 p. trappen umpteen music bmi

It was 1987 at the 264 Club Palm Beach Florida. We were the house band and this is just one example of the great times we had there. The club officially held 72 people but on any given Friday or Saturday night there were 150 of us whooping it up. Rick Rossano on guitar, Kevin Kaufman on bass, George Anderson on drums and I was playing a Vox Jaguar organ and singing lead vocals. What great memories...

Good Lovin'

As I was growing up in Michigan, there were still Indian trails to explore where we could find Arrowheads made of flint rock. Tales of native Americans included the great chief Okemos who settled near my hometown in an area known as Shimnecon. Various sources say this means "Ox Bow" or "Apple Orchard" in the Chippewa language. Either could be true in that this area was along the Grand River which has a large bend in its path which resembles an Ox Bow - but also, there was an apple orchard there. Anyway, this is a place we used to go to have "grassers" which were parties with bonfires and kegs of beer outside the city limits where we could party without bothering anyone. This song is a low-key, acoustic style with harmonica, recorded in my home studio in Michigan.

Riding the trails through the hills with my horse
I’ve never seen the skies any bluer
Thinking about all my friends in the north
Wondering what they’ve been doing

Hey! I’ve never seen brighter days
Where we weren’t doing something
Like tumbling weeds in Shimnecon
Oh Shimnecon

Say, I just remembered one time 
Back at Okemos Road’s beginning
There’s a ghost you’ll hear them say
That walks among the living
Be respectful of the life
That Mother Nature’s giving
The Chief himself is watching you, so…
Keep yourself a singing
Keep yourself a singing

Hiding away from the crush of the world
Searching the woods for his gravestone
Feeling my spirit in touch with the earth
Taking the time to be reborn

Hey! I’ve never seen brighter days
Where we weren’t doing something
Like tumbling weeds in Shimnecon
Oh Shimnecon

Shimnecon

A romantic farewell song from my CD 'Chasing the Sky' with a Tropical Rock feeling.  The CD was recorded and produced in my home studio and released in November of 2007.  The album features guest musicians Gerry Kraus on Keyboards and Bass and Mike Willemin on Drums & Percussion.  All other parts were performed by me on lead & rhythm guitars, harmonica, bass, & sequencer keyboards.

Lyrics:
Sailing away, it's time to save the day
Nothing to say, I know you want me to stay
You had me with goodbye
Now I'm just chasing the sky
…Chasing the sky

Full speed ahead, it’s not supposed to rain
Something you said, it sounded so inane
I know you meant to say
Something more, in a different way
…In a different way

Here comes the rain, to spite the weatherman
This is insane - I'm doing the best that I can 
You used to be like me
Storm clouds are wild and free
…Wild and free

SOLO

Sailing away, it's time to sail away
I’m breaking the chains, you know I wanted to stay
You had me with goodbye
Now I’m just chasing the sky
…Chasing the sky

(c) 2007 P. Trappen Umpteen Music BMI
cover photography by Kevin Philips

Chasing The Sky

I was born in a cross-fire hurricane, raised on good scotch and earned my degree at the University of Hard Knox.

Oil On The Beach

Peter Trappen

Related tracks