It’s…a CD!

Posted by on Sep 22, 2017

It’s…a CD!

As many of you know by now, either through social media, or better yet, by having seen us on tour this summer, we have a new CD out. Because it arrived in Illinois in July, same as we did, we had it with us all summer long in the red Jeep and at concerts, but were too busy to get it up and running online until earlier this week.

CD-COVER 2017

 

As my friend Clay pointed out, September seems to be the month we do this (a few years back, we combined the release Big Plans with my birthday party and his wife made the BEST cake ever), and I guess that makes sense because fall is my favorite time of year. This year, I spent my birthday uploading files to CDBaby so those of you don’t have our new CD can get it, and those of you who do can tell all your friends to get it. (You didn’t know there would be homework to this blog, did you?)

Sharing is caring.

SHARING IS CARING.

 

This is not going to be a long blog today. Just a quick word to acknowledge the release of Whins and Weather. I am proud of it, and I think it is our best CD yet.

Some say you always feel that way about a new CD, but hands down, no question, I LIKE THIS ONE BEST. THERE I SAID IT. And I want to say this, too, at the risk of annoying you. I mean, I really worried about talking about this part…

I am proud of this CD because it’s hard fought and won to have finished it in the middle of cancer treatment. I know, I know, others have done it. I thought often of Deb Talan (The Weepies), and was inspired when I read about how she had gone into the studio every second she felt good while making their Sirens album. It made me suck it up and get to work. Still, there is something really odd about leaving for tour three days post-radiation. Or leaving the hospital grounds to go finish your CD, but heading back there to sleep, and start radiation again the next day. This CD was a surreal experience for me.

The biggest (and most pleasant)surprise with this CD is how much we didn’t see coming, and yet, how fitting the songs are. Most were written (or mostly written) before diagnosis, but as we were on tour, it’s funny how many thought that we had written these lyrics in response to it all. The themes are of transition, challenges, and perseverance in general – stuff we can all relate to at one point or another in our lives.

Over the next few blogs, I hope to highlight some of the people who helped us make this, because it is a really interesting cast of characters, all of whom I am proud to work with, but let me start with my favorite:

Randy and Conor at Camden Studios in Dublin

Randy and Conor at Camden Studios in Dublin

Randy Kerkman was above and beyond organizing all this crazy internet file sharing, guitar playing, writing, hours and hours in the studio, dealing with my ups and downs medically and emotionally, and juggling it all with a crazy travel and hospital schedule, depending which half of the process we are talking about. He deserves a big hand. Actually, just leave a nice review on CDBaby and he’ll be happy. (Ok the blog is getting long.)

I’ll end this with our quick MUSIC TRAVEL SERVICE update, not necessarily in that order:

Randynerd

TRAVEL
We’ be traveling shorter distances until school breaks. In addition to the music, Randy started a theology degree at IBI in Dublin this September. Go Randy!

MUSICsweetlife
At of now, the only performance booked is to sing at my brother’s wedding (!!!!) in November, but we’re working on that. We are settling into a new country, which takes time…more so than we had anticipated, so we are working on our Irish driver’s licenses, residency renewals, and working to make connections for concerts here at the moment. Some of the kids at their home, a shanty town where many of Arad's Roma live.

SERVICE
Randy and I plan  to volunteer at Vis de Copil in Romania this December again where we will help with daily tasks at the day center, as well as Christmas parties and shoebox distribution for Roma women and children living in poverty as well as adults living on the streets of Arad. We will also help out with a classical music concert and fundraising event for Vis de Copil.

Your support through hosting and attending concerts, buying CDs and downloading our songs, allows us to get through this transition time, and fund projects like the trip to Vis de Copil, so thank you thank you thank you for all you do to keep us singing and serving. If you have ideas of where we should play in Europe, or know of places in need of volunteers, drop us a line. (Truth is, we could use some help this side of the ocean.) You never know what might work out!

And, lastly, but certainly not leastly, if you haven’t got your copy of Whins and Weather, what are you waiting for? Have a listen below.

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