I’m nearly finished with vocal and harp overdubs for my record “The Lucky One.” I’d originally thought we’d have the record available for sale (and for distribution to the people who contributed to the Indiegogo fundraiser) by Christmas, but it’s looking more like January now. I apologize for the delay; rest assured that I will deliver the best damn stuff I can, even if it takes another week or two, and the results are worth waiting for.

I’ll take this opportunity to talk a little about this record. It’s no secret that I’m using layered overdubs with plenty of FX to shape the sound of this record. That’s not new in itself; artists like Scott Albert Johnson and John Popper have used FX very well on recent records, and Filip Jers, among others, created masterpieces on his first CD with overdubbed harps. What’s new is that I’m not simply out to produce new electric harmonica sounds with this work; I’m putting the harmonica into a range of roles in the band that it has rarely, if ever, occupied. Harmonica is traditionally a lead instrument in a rock band; I’m building on the work of Lee Oskar and Magic Dick to put it more deeply into the rhythm and horn sections, guided by the sounds of blues, the band Morphine, and the White Stripes.

The results are definitely new; these textures have never been present on any record I’ve heard, and I’ve heard a lot of harp records. Most importantly, I imagine that this music can be effectively performed live with a band that includes at least two harmonica players playing through the Digitech RP500 setup I’ve used for all the harmonica tracks.

Digitech RP500: It's all over "The Lucky One"
Digitech RP500: It’s all over “The Lucky One”

And why not? Plenty of rock bands have two guitarists; how about some equal time for harp players? This is not music designed only for the studio; this is music designed to be performed. (By the way, if anyone is interested in being part of some of my performances, please contact me. Qualifications include ability to play diatonic harps in multiple positions, the ability to play chromatic harmonica in multiple keys, and the willingness to use the rig I provide, which of course includes a Digitech RP500 and an Audix Fireball. Practical knowledge of chord structure and theory is essential, like for example knowing what notes are included in an Ab major triad and what scales work against that chord. Ability to read music in this case is deeply respected, but not required. New York/Philly area is tops.)

If this record goes as planned, it will be as definitive a statement about the role of harmonica in a rock band as my previous CDs, “The Act of Being Free in One Act” and “The Second Act of Free Being,” were for solo harmonica. That’s what I’m shooting for. I know it’s ambitious; the facts are that I’ve been working on this approach for ten years, the concept is fully formed, and I’m too old not to aim high right now. When Mick Jagger said in an interview recently that spending three full days in the studio recording the new Stones blues record was pretty hard on him, I knew exactly what he was talking about; I literally limped out of the studio in Philly after three full days and two nights of blowing my brains out on this record. Like I said: time to aim high.

Whatever else this record is, it’s not the usual, by design. And it rocks hard. You can check out samples of early rough mixes in the “Updates” section of the Indiegogo campaign for “The Lucky One”. (The campaign is closed, so you can’t make a contribution. If you like what you hear, just buy the download or the CD come January.)