Norman's Rockwell

That is my producer Adam's new one word review of the work we have wrought so far at Karma Frog. Shameless like Black Eyed Peas. Shameless like Culture Club. Shameless like Chic. I'm-a take it. I don't know if I could make an earnest album. In fact, most of my favorite records are shameless. Tom Waits may not be pop but he isn't ponderous. The second word that comes to mind with these sessions is fun. I am making the album I want to listen to, that I want to dance to and this has been an utterly joyful experience and I think you'll be able to hear it in every performance. Last night was a night of harmony. Literally. One of my favorite recording sessions ever. I got to work voice-to-voice with the Ladies of Chaos, Teresa Cowles and the inimitable Evie Sands , on three part harmonies for five tracks on the new record. In this context, I was the weak link; but better that. As I figured, Adam and the three of us put down sweet vox. We started with the album's big b...

Today, we wrapped guitar parts for the LP. Bryan Farrar added his rock and roll axe to "Supermodels With Gatling Gun." He also put down wah-wah tracks for the album closer "A Miracle Is On The Way" and the ballad "Our Love Is Known By Name." While we were listening to playback of "Miracle" I kept thinking about how much fun this record will be for dancing. Last week, we passed the 100 hour mark in studio time. I looked back at the notes on my lyric sheets and saw that it was four months ago today that I arrived at the rearrangement of "Miracle." Time has flown; but this has truly been the most fun and satisfying album recording experience for me yet. Matched only by the session for the single of "A Talent For Loving" at Monnow Valley. My producer Adam said that their are moments that the record channels everything good about 1979. I'll take that. On facebook, I put up a post asking, "Who has roller skates?" It...

Soul Citizens, today marked the end of the principal recording of lead vocals for my new album. Wow, it took a little under three hours to get good takes for the last three sides. The songs I sang are "She's My Go To," "A Miracle Is On The Way" and "Saffron Dancer." Lots of disco/dance going on. The basic tracks are stunning and the studio was a particularly conducive setting this afternoon. That made getting the work done a lot of fun. I thank God that I got through all of the principal vocals without being sick once or having an laryngitis issues, etc. And yes, that has usually happened in the past. We passed 100 hours of studio time for this album, but Adam has kept me on target and we have maximized the time. This coming week, we have sessions with Bryan Farrar who will supply lead guitar parts on a few more tracks. Then we bring in the backing vocalists (the Ladies) and this is something that will be a thrill. Adam is brilliant at arranging vocal...

More video has been posted to YouTube from Saturday's supersonic soul show at the 5 Towers on CityWalk. Check it out: The show stopping U Had The $ . The show closing A Talent For Loving . More to come. Enjoy these and get up off that chair and dance.

Click on the title, Fall Out , to view video taken by Phillip Mottaz of Me and the Band on the 5 Towers Stage, Universal CityWalk, 9/3/11. Dig it, share it, love it. Peace!

Salutations, Soul Citizens. Last night's show at the 5 Towers on Universal CityWalk was simply epic. The stage was dazzling, the audience was beautiful and the band was jumping! I'm so grateful for every opportunity to entertain the masses and there were many hundreds of people at this show. Did I mention the band. They were tight and the mood was joyful. It helped that the sound crew for the 5 Towers were handling biz expertly. We started the show with Fall Out . It was nice to be able to make an entrance at the top of the show. Adam Beesley, the MC, did a fab job of the introduction. But we came out amps ablazin'. From the top of the show, the energy was tremendous. Bryan's playing last night was on point and he kicked off our second number, Everyone's Ingenue . His guitar work was so much fun; and since I didn't play bass, I really got to watch and hear what he was doing. Omar D. Brancato, who handled the low end strings, was also a marvel. He was all ove...