THE LONELINESS OF NIGHT
Album notes
After recording Country Tales and Hobo Trails album with all it’s ‘soundscapes’ – thunder, trains, crickets, jail cell doors and more, I wanted to make a much more organic album.
I wanted to get that intimate, "I'm in your living room sitting opposite you with my guitar and singing my songs to you" feel, and I think we've achieved that. Okay, like in all the best musical movies strings occasionally appear out of nowhere or a harmony vocal, but it is pretty bare and basic - naked and emotional, and honest.
This is possibly as close to a live album a one man band could probably get - one takes, recorded over six days on a MacBook in my living room; you can hear the clock ticking, dogs barking outside, even a door closing.
Time was a major problem, Tim (Palmer, engineer and co-producer) had a busy schedule and I was coming back to Tennessee so we basically recorded Loneliness over six days over four weeks. Given that I’m a one man band and play all the instruments and provide all the vocals that was some going.
I also wanted to keep the arrangements simple so it’s primarily guitar and/or piano, bass, some percussion, strings and drums.
After the story songs on Country Tales I wanted to create a very romantic album. Loneliness features new songs and some older ones of mine.
FALLEN
I wrote this last year in Tennessee, playing around with the tuning. I wanted a very straightforward love song, very bare.
WHEN A HEART BREAKS
I had the basics of this song a few years ago, the ‘riff’ but finished it last year. I’d been playing with chords on the piano and almost stumbled on this.
WHY CAN'T YOU LET ME GO?
Written as a duet this is one of the older songs on the album, again I wanted it to be as naked and emotional as possible whilst powerful. Hopefully we achieved that.
PIECES
Inspired by Jesse Colin Young and the Youngbloods I wanted that late sixties/early seventies West Coast feel.
ROOM
This song took thirty years to write! The verses I wrote when I was thirteen or so. I had filed it away but then a few years ago came up with the chorus and it seemed an ideal ‘fit’. The guitar solo I’ve had in my head for ages; makes me wish I had practiced more when learning the guitar! I’ll never be a lead guitarist!
A WHISPER AWAY
This song came very quickly. The guitar pattern/riff is the core but the whole song seemed to write itself. We recorded this very quickly. Not being a vocalist the key challenged me, the range in the song.
DO YOU REMEMBER US?
I had the hook, the idea and again this song came fairly quickly. We actually recorded this last year but the song complimented the others and the feel of the album.
LOVE IS NOT A GAME
One of the newer songs it’s simple, it’s straightforward, no pretentions.
AFTER ALL THIS TIME
This is probably the oldest song on the album. I love the middle eight in this song but also the guitar progression.
HOW DO YOU TELL SOMEONE IT'S OVER?
I remember writing this as if it was yesterday. Playing around with chords on the piano and the ‘run’ just came. The song soon followed again quite quickly.
COULDN'T LOVE YOU MORE
I like the guitar feel on this and the backing vocal arrangement too. A simple song.
WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT GOODBYE?
I wrote this a few years ago on the stage of the theatre I used to have. I remember playing it a few nights after writing the music after a show by All About Eve. Vocalist Julianne Regan sat on the piano stool next to me and told me that it was ‘lovely’, which was great to hear and encouraged me to finish it.