SongwriterView: Hindsight in 2020
By Patty Castillo Davis
The past year has been full of paradigm shifting moments, too many to count. January was ushered in with velocity and literally set the tone for 2020 when it found the U.S. creating a substantial initiation of force in the President’s authorized assassination strike against Iraq’s Gen. Qasem Soleimani-while in China a new virus would soon change the trajectory of life all over the globe and dominate every moment of everyday thereafter.
We might call this The Year Of Great Loss. We witnessed a great loss of innocence, a loss of amenity and sadly, a great loss of humanity.
I’d like to think that all that was sacrificed or stolen created a wave that resulted in discovery. We learned of hidden racial bias, indifference and prejudice that encouraged us to examine and educate ourselves on where we lie in areas of ethics, compassion, morality and social justice.
**FLASHBACK
The last normal gig I had was on March 12 b.c. ( Before Corona )at the Boardroom with Tim Allen. I remember every detail about that night. I loaded in a little after 8 pm and went across the street to Lo-Fi for a cocktail and then back for downbeat. The rumblings of things to come were already on the forefront of our minds. Tim and I were carrying around antibacterial hand sanitizer and wipes and our stage plot was altered for social distance. We would elbow bump club patrons instead of our usual embracing because we did not want to tempt the unknown and we had a good night, a fun time and were looking forward to returning in a couple weeks.
**FLASH FORWARD
Improvement has been fleeting. Fluctuating at best. These days everyone can say they know someone who has tested positive or died from COVID 19. Socializing has become the savior and the culprit. Musicians have been exposed, therefore exposing venues and patrons and community wide-a vicious cycle. At press time we are in the midst of a statewide curfew until December 21. A vaccine is a promise. Many business people have called it for good.
BUT.
Whether it was-alone in a sheltered area, virtual and mechanical, clandestine with friends, bootleg and shifty through a loophole in a public space or awkward and just a facsimile- THE MUSIC KEPT HAPPENING. The music found its way and the Makers persevered. The times have become the fodder and inspiration for composition.
In a time where we’ve had to rely on our local essential workers to deliver us safely into the future, we are fortunate that we are in the good hands of local music hero and favorite son, Patrick Durr.
Random Acts of Music is his ten song selection of original compositions completed over a three-year journey. The range of eclectic styles featured on this album range from swampy rock to mellow love songs to country dance music. Extremely talented collaborators in completing this project feature Patrick’s Son, Andrew Durr, musical brothers from Homegrown-Michael Lingg and Bruce Johnson all tied together by production wizard, Don Setaro of IAC Records. Cheryl Barney Durr, Patrick’s wife and muse, share writing credits on two tracks. Available now on all streaming services and digital stores. Physical CDs are available on Amazon December 11 and through PDRecordings.com. Music video is currently in production. Visit the IAC records website for more info.
Singer, Songwriter, Producer Traevor Carlton has his first full length album in nearly three years getting huge positive response online available now on Spotify, Bandcamp and soon to Apple Music and other digital platforms.
…A Little Bit
https://carlton.bandcamp.com/album/a-little-bit is a project that was written “throughout a better part of the year” inspired by the electronically based music this Bay Area transplant was reared on in the 90’s. It’s a beautiful amalgamation of Curtis Mayfield meets Payami meets H.E.R. including electronic elements in R & B, borrowing from ambient and down tempo EDM. Grab a listen and share widely.
Cheers to all the venues who gave space to musicians to keep the morale alive. Looking forward to all the new music dropping in the next year.
Best wishes for a new year filled with resolve, health and prosperity.
