Harvest Songs

A month or so ago, I mentioned on Facebook and Twitter that I was going to start a new recording project. I included this photo of several acoustic instruments that I said will be used in the recording. At that time, I didn't mention the concept for the project that I was mulling around in my mind.

Fall is my favorite time of year. I have such great memories of when I moved to Ohio back in 1980, and the smell of burning leaves during Autumn permeated the air. The Fall took on a different feel for me there; in Southern California, where I was raised, there really was never a change of seasons, just lots of rain preceding the spring, then the killer SoCal weather—for which it is so famous—until the Santa Ana winds blow through in late Summer, reaching all the way to the rainy season again. The Southeast, here in Tennessee, has a more mild temperature, but there are four distinct seasons, none the less. It has always been my desire to write and record a batch of songs that the Fall inspired; songs that bring that crisp air and beautiful foliage to mind.

Fall in Gatlinburg, Tennessee

I can think of records I listened to back in the day, like Neil Young's Harvest, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's Deja Vu. Later, I would discover artists like Emmylou Harris, Ricky Skaggs,  Linda Ronstadt and the Eagles—their music brings about a longing for wide-open spaces and beautiful vistas. I have always wanted to recreate that feeling in my songs (that's what artists do!), and I made up my mind to do a record during the Fall—for inspiration.

I started about 6 weeks ago, and I'm almost finished with the 9 songs on the record. I used a heavy dose of acoustic instruments like banjo (a "ganjo," in my case), mandolin, fiddle, and a smattering of steel guitar—thanks to my new friend, Mike Scaggs. I've written some new songs especially for this project, and there will be some old favorites from my past on there like "Only Always," "Garments of Praise" and one of my favorite camp song-hymns: "At the Cross." I've also included a new song, co-written with the great Ginny Owens (also on her upcoming record), called "I Am Yours."

I'm not sure what it'll be called, but I pray the project will be a delight to play in any season. It will definitely have you longing for the crisp days of Fall, and reaching for a warm sweater to break the Autumn chill.