December –  Looks like the new disc is finally finished.  In all, it’s taken almost a year to pull it off and that’s with some pretty dedicated help, so my list of people to give thanks for this year will be a long one.

‘Lonely In America’ is the title of the new CD and titles that made the cut are ‘Shovel Under Load’, ‘The Walk Away’, ‘When Cailey Cries’, ‘She Takes Her Time’, ‘Not Jaded Yet’, ‘Love Don’t Happen Every Time’, ‘Northern Eyes’, ‘Coat of Steel’ and ‘Frozen Night’.

Some great musical moments to look forward to on this recording come from a diverse list. Earl Slick [David Bowie, John Lennon]  guests on 2 rockin’ tracks, Sting bassist Ira Coleman rounds out the bottom end with world’s best back beat, Gary Burke and guitarists John Platania and Jimmy Weider both return on several tracks as well.

I’d hoped to have hard copy available in time for Christmas, but it doesn’t look like I’ll make it now, so save a little fun money for the new year and I promise this record will help melt away your January blues...:)

The re-mixed track ‘Lonely In America’, now featured on this sites main page, is already receiving airplay in the North East US as well as certain locales South and is also being featured in independent film maker Jon Goldman’s feature ‘Occupy Santa’ as well as in a short feature film based on the song and the story behind how/why I wrote it....more on that soon!

June/July 2011 –  Songs....the last 2 months it’s been all about the songs [well, I guess that’s not ‘News’ to those who know me well....] but the difference is I’ve been focused on finishing off a good batch of them, some of which came out of my Southern US tour and some written since.

I’ve narrowed the field of finished tunes down to about 15, which I’ve started recording and 10-12 of these will be my new CD. Working title for the new record is still ‘Lonely In America’ and some titles on the hit list are ‘Shovel Under Load’, ‘The Walk Away’, ‘When Cailey Cries’ and ‘Frozen Night’.

Gig highlights included shows at The Bearsville Theater, with The Saturday Night Bluegrass Band from Woodstock opening and Woodstock, NY’s Colony Cafe with John Platania [guitarist for Van Morrison and Chip Taylor, among others] backing me and Sarah Fimm opening. John was amazing, as always and I loved Sarah’s voice – have always been a huge fan of the SNBB – that’s them I jumped up with on the impromptu version of ‘Goodnight Radio’ on my home page – expect to hear them somewhere on the new record as well.

A short blurb on my ramblings was posted by Poughkeepsie Journal entertainment writer John Barry ...you can read it on my ‘Press’ page or here... http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011107150312

Canadian music promoters [finally] took notice of me with this posting by Toronto based group ‘CHARTattack’, who found the single from ‘No Angel’, Lay Me Down’ had the right appeal for their listeners....here’s the link... http://chartattack.com/features/2011/jul/21/dean-batstones-lay-me-down

Lastly, I just added a ’62 Gibson B-25 acoustic guitar to the roster and am loving it, especially when finger picking – it’ll be prominently featured on the new CD – stay tuned!...SWB.

Upcoming Dates: Friday, May 20th, The Kaaterskill House, 18 River Street, Stamford, NY 12167  
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.211523875532622.62210.193564390661904#!/pages/The-Kaaterskill-House/193564390661904

Saturday, May 21st, Deitz Stadium, Kingston, NY as part of the evening of entertainment for the 2011 Cancer Relay for Life, http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLFY11EA?fr_id=29602&pg=entry

Friday, May 27th, The Bearsville Lounge, 291 Tinker St., Woodstock, NY with Special Guests [to be announced...] Admission $10.00 http://www.bearsvilletheater.com/

Wed. June 8th, Apocolypse-Varga Television Show, Woodstock, NY....live from 10-11pm.....tune in...:)

April/May 2011 – Gigs, radio shows and music conferences sums up the last 6 weeks, if you dial in an large amount of traveling with it. Not that I’m complaining – those who know me best know I love the sound of asphalt under steel [as long as there’s some rubber in the mix...;)].

Live shows included the Elmendorph Inn in Red Hook, NY  [ http://www.elmendorph.org/ ] with Joe Tobin, The Virginia Wolves, Abbey Lappen, Tarryn Waz and Jim Metzner , The Kaaterskill House in Stamford, NY [http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Kaaterskill-House/193564390661904 ], where I’ll be returning May 20th, The Towne Crier in Pawling, NY [http://www.townecrier.com/ ], Cornell St. Studios in Kingston, NY  [http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cornell-St-Studios/63121833812 ], The Rhinebeck, NY Rec Center for ‘RhineStock’, a benefit for Bone Marrow Donorship, Club Helsinki in Hudson, NY as part of the Hudson Valley Songfest Conference and the Holiday Inn, Kingston, NY with guitarist John Platania, as part of the Woodstock Music Trade Show [http://www.woodstockmusictradeshow.com/ ].

Live radio appearances included ‘Local Licks’ on WRIP with Sonny Rock, Crackle Radio on WIOX with Terry Doyle, Live on WEXT Exit 97.7 with Chris Weink and I was joined by John Platania  for ‘Live @ 5’ on WDST Radio Woodstock with Jimmy Buff .

All this running around has given me lots of time to try out some of my new material and I’m enjoying playing these songs...looking forward to the process of recording them for the upcoming CD due out later this year....working title ‘Lonely In America’....stay tuned...DB

Mar. 2011 – Spent all of January and February on a radio promotion tour for ‘Lonely In America’, starting in Miami, FL and travelling West to Houston, Austin and Waco before heading North East through Memphis and Nashville. Put almost 7,000 miles on the BatBus, did some fun radio, including a live appearance at KPFT Houston  http://www.kpft.org/ as well as a pre-recorded half hour session of their popular ‘Lone Star Jukebox’ show,  http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=165572700163276#!/TheLoneStarJukebox hosted by Rick Heysquierdo and his able assistant Lauren Elizabeth Summerville.

Also visited and jammed with legendary drummer Garry Allen [Charlie Daniel’s Band, J.J. Cale] at the ‘Play It Again’ Jam in Nashville, TN and met some great musicians there as well. You can see a couple pics on their website, here: http://www.tennesseeconcerts.com/jam.html

I wrapped up the 9 week tour in Woodstock, NY opening for Nashville singer/songwriter Jonell Mosser, whose music and voice simply wowed me. Read more here:http://www.jonellmosser.com/

With my return home to Canada, I’ve had the opportunity to fine tune the 18 news songs I wrote on my trip and have begun the process of pre-production for another new record sometime later his year, which will likely also feature an album version of ‘Lonely In America’ – stay tuned!

Dec. 2010 – Mixed ‘Lonely In America’ at The Clubhouse and then whisked it off to David Glasser at Air Show Mastering in Boulder, CO before we finally released it on Dec. 20^th to Triple ‘A’, NPR and Americana radio across America, using both tradional mail outs as well as DMDS, for which I enlisted the help of Michael Trenholm and Atlantic Multimedia who will also be handling the tracking and publicity for my upcoming radio promotion and live tour, beginning in Miami, FL on Jan. 8^th and taking me across Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas before I head Northeast to catch the International Folk Alliance Conference in Memphis, TN on the weekend of Feb. 16, 2011.

In the meantime, pre-release versions of ‘Lonely In America’ are being featured on a couple of different websites, including The Acoustic Roundtable where you’ll find it on their Music Player with a 5 Star rating and on the very cool and influential New York based web site called Country New York where it’s featured on the Music Player, along with some other really fine singer/songwriters, so I’m honoured...:)

Also from the ‘honoured’ dept., my Christmas Song ‘Christmas Time Again’ just won a spot on the upcoming ‘This Christmas’ compilation CD being released in 2011 internationally on the ‘Blue Collar Music’ record label. The panel judge wrote of my writing, "I LOVE your lyrics. There are a ton of musicians that are good, there are few good wordsmiths. You, sir, are a master lyricist."

I appreciate everyone who came to my shows this past year and all the radio stations that got behind my music, especially WDST, WKZE, WEXT and WRIP, to name a few.

Nov. – Took possession of the BatBus and updated the interior to suit Dean Tourland specs – leather, CD wall, entertainment center [and wine rack?]. Official inaugural first US trip was to NERFA [North Eastern Regional Fold Alliance] Conference in Kerhonkson, NY where I met tons o’ songwriters, musicians, radio personalities, agents, promoters, festival organizers and mostly played songs with a crew of very talented peers for 4 days. Oh yeah, we ate and drank too, and the BatBus proved to be more than up to the task of housing the Skinny White Boy and his bag of tunes.

Right after NERFA I headed back into The Clubhouse in Rhinbeck, NY to record the first in a new batch of songs loosely hung together under the banner ‘Lonely In America’, also the title of the new track. I pulled off another American All-star first by pairing guitarist John Platania [Van Morrison, Don MacLean, Chip Taylor] with Jim Weider [Levon Helm Band] in the same studio on the same song. They’ve been on the same records before, but this was the first time they played simultaneously on a track and I was lucky enough that it be on one of my songs. [ I should also point out that the first and only time they’ve appeared together live was also with me, 3 years ago at an outdoor concert for the ‘Family of Woodstock’ and it was an amazing moment – only regret was not taping it, though there are pics]. Rounding out the line-up was Ira Coleman on stand-up bass [currently on tour with Sting], Gary Burke on drums [Bob Dylan, Joe Jackson, Shania Twain] and Woodstock session master George Quinn on mandolin. The final mixes are currently en route to Boulder, Colorado to be mastered by multiple Grammy winner David Glasser, after which I’ll be sending them out to Radioland USA – hey, maybe even Radioland Canada, too [could still get surprised this late in the game...;)]

Will be playing one night only in Ottawa, Canada on Dec. 18th at the New Edinburgh Pub on Beechwood Dr. and will be finally adding a ‘Live Shows’ page to this site shortly, now that my US O-1 Visa is sorted out and dates are lining up for the new year.

Aug/Sept. – OK – so ‘fair enough’ to everyone who’s been giving me crap for not updating my news often enough – I should know by now that not every is on Facebook and not everyone who is, actually reads everything they get sent...I get it (now...).

The summer festivals were a blast and the RV worked out great, both for travelling and layovers, so I’ve decided to upgrade and find myself a more long term solution to the ‘home away from home’ issue – I’ve landed on a classic MCI converted highway coach that promises to keep me in the poor house, but will at least replace my house when I’m away from it.......

As for mentioned in my last news note, I’ve just signed an exclusive contract in Canada with Atlantic Multimedia  http://www.atlanticmultimedia.ca/ for market, promotion and bookings in the Canadian marketplace. Very active on the East Coast and recently expanded into Central Canada, their early efforts have landed me a showcase date in Ottawa in October at the OCFF Conference [Ontario Council of Folk Festivals] – stay tuned for exact show time here!

Other cool gigs this past couple of months have been opening slots for Al Kooper at The Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, live radio on WDST Radio Woodstock and WEXT 97.7 with Chris Weink. Next week I open for NY based singer/songwriter Charles Lyonhart and his band, the Junkyard Angels, again at the Bearsville Theater, on Oct 8th.

I’ve had a very productive couple of months writing – I have enough new material for 2 more CD’s and will likely head back into the studio next month to record a new single for radio in anticipation of the next project. Much of the new material was written about my experiences travelling across America this past year and I’m itching as much to record it as I am to get back out on the road....

To that end, I’m off to pack....stay tuned....DB.

June/July, 2010 – The summer is cruising by a little too fast, as it always does, but lots to report. I’ve been busy writing new songs, as I’ve been feeling very inspired as of late. The Batabago is proving to be a cool environment for accommodating my lifestyle – I like the move/park/move/park option and am enjoying seeing lots of new pieces of America. The option of jumping on the Harley once I’ve found a suitable locale is particularly appealing to me. I’ve reconnected with my old road engineer, Kevin Cameron, whose new home studio in Brockville is proving to be a productive location for demo-ing new Bat-songs. We’ve already put a few down and I’m planning on heading back mid-August, schedule permitting.

I had a great weekend at Mountain Jam VI in June and made many new friends, fans and contacts. Looking forward to next year’s festival and in the meantime I have several other outdoor shows booked this summer, including The Rosendale Street Festival and Avalonfest in Paw Paw, West Virgina.

I have been spending some time at home in Canada as well, both enjoying my family/friends and working on the house [mostly painting, which I’m needing to be done with soon...;)]. While home I managed to catch the Levon Helm Band [with guitarist Jim Weider, who played on my last 2 CD’s] at Ottawa’s Bluesfest, where they put on a great road version of their classic ‘Ramble’ show – a must see for music lovers everywhere!

I’ve also been looking into a mutually beneficial coupling with Canadian based, world market player’s ‘Atlantic Multimedia Inc.’, who’s recent expansion in to the US market after a growing presence on the Canadian Music Scene. More on that to come....

May, 2010 – Lots of happenings this month, starting with winning 1st place in the Spring, 2010 edition of the ‘Tennessee Concerts’ song writing competition for my song ‘Cage of Memories’ from the ‘Love Do The Talkin’ CD. Judge and music icon, drummer Gary Allen (The Charlie Daniels Band/JJ Cale/Stonewall Jackson) said of me; “Dean fills the shoes of Harry Chapin in my world, and impresses me as not just a  charismatic singer with great songs, but a full blown artist.”  Read his full review here http://www.deanbatstone.com/index.php/press

I’ve upped the commitment to touring, both for gigs and radio promo, with the addition of the ‘Batabago’ RV, complete with Harley hauler in tow. It’s made all the moving around I do a little more comfortable and I’ve been using it on the second leg of my US radio promo tour, currently in full swing.

Gig highlight this month was the Bob Dylan Birthday Bash in Woodstock, NY hosted by folk legend ‘Happy Traum’ and attended by a sold out house who watched varied performances of Dylan selections by the likes of Frank McGinnis, Seth Rogovoy, Kelleigh McKenzie, Doug Yoel, Charles Lyonhart and myself, among others. It was a great evening!

Mountain Jam looming big on the Bat Radar this month, with a Mountain Jam Preview Party this Sunday, May 30th at the Rhinecliff Hotel in beautiful Rhinecliff, NY, followed by a live appearance on WRIP 97.7 on Tuesday, June 1st at 5:30pm where I’ll be performing some songs live with host Sonny Rock, as well as sharing DJ duties for the show. It’s then on to Mountain Jam for my Friday, June 4th performance on the ‘Awareness Village’ acoustic stage. View the full weekend schedule at the above website.

APR. 2010 – Finalized the last bits of my US O-1 Visa and am looking forward to being able to accept more of the work being offered, starting with a couple of WDST sponsored gigs in May and Mountain Jam VI on June 4-6. I’m slotted for the Acoustic stage on Friday June 4th and already have a small posse heading down from Canada [some riding] to offer their support to my show.

I spent a good portion of April in the US promoting my CD and single, ‘Lay Me Down’ to Triple ‘A’ and NPR radio stations in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine and will be heading down shortly for the second leg, which will see radio shows in NYC, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, Illinois, Ohio and Michigan, if all goes as planned.

Special thanks to WDST Radio Woodstock for being the first to add my song and a big thanks to all the other stations adding it, especially WKZE Red Hook, NY, WEXT Troy/Albany, NY and WMWV North Conway, NH....

Oh yeah....I’m damn happy to be riding again, too...SWB.

MAR. 2010 – I’ve had a great month, though one of the recurring themes over the last couple of years with my peers both sides of the border has come to focus again this month, namely “Where is the Canadian support?”. In truth, I’m somewhat responsible for my lack of profile in Canada. I certainly used to have a much clearer presence, having had a band on the road for over 15 years as well as radio airplay and videos on Much Music, tons of press and a Canadian record deal.

I made a conscious decision in the early ‘90’s to take my music South and try the fit, more out of opportunity than preference and it has turned out to be a productive decision that I’ve never regretted. Accept it or not, there is a stigma attached to recognition on your home turf that probably holds true in most parts of the world. ‘He’s local – he can’t be as valid as someone from Toronto, New York or London’. As soon as you’re away from that stigma, in my case, playing the Hudson Valley, for example, you’re judged on your music and your abilities alone, independent of the ‘stigma’. Simply, I’m enjoying that choice.

On the same topic, word from Canadian radio friends and icons is that there really is no format anymore in Canada for my music. In the US, I fit into several formats, including ‘Triple A’ and NPR stations. So, to my Canadian fans who keep asking why they don’t hear me on their local radio station, I can only suggest they call local radio and start asking for me ...or listen online to US stations – maybe that’ll open it up a bit in Canada...:)

This piece of press, printed in the Ottawa Sun by Ottawa Valley journalist Tom Van Dusen speaks to this as well:
http://eedition.ottawasun.com/epaper/viewer.aspx

Feb. 2010 – I don’t believe I’ve mentioned lately that there are no shortcuts!...so if you’re not willing to bend your back to the shovel, get outta my ditch...:)

I’m back in writing mode again – not a place I actually ever leave, truthfully, but have found some quiet moments to get into some new songs this month and am really enjoying it.

Big news is confirmed by the banner on my main page – I am performing the acoustic stage at  Mountain Jam VI at Hunter Mountain, NY [near Woodstock] being held this year June 4-6, 2010. I also believe I may be the only Canadian in the line-up so far, so hopefully the Olympic hockey final will be a distant memory by then....;)

I’ve also managed to fit in a [first time] visit to Arizona, where I spent 8 beautiful days riding a rented Harley over some amazing country side [see pics on my Facebook page] and dropped in on a couple of radio stations for some promo while there.

Big shout out and congrats to my friend and bass player Chris D. on the launch of his worldwide music licensing site, Fliktrax ...all the success you deserve, bro...and to all the crew at the Levon Helm camp, especially Barbara O’Brien, for seeing Levon through some tough times and rising him back on top where he belongs – and singing again too....it doesn’t get much better!

Jan. 2010 – We’ve added a press page to the website to showcase reaction to the new CD from the publication world, so be sure and check it out! January saw me back in the Hudson Valley for an extended visit dedicated to writing, some really fun ‘impromptu’ guest performances and some radio promo as well. Learned from talented writer and performer Lucy Bonilla that her single from her new CD, penned by friend/guitarist Jim Weider and yours truly, peaked at #15 in the top 100 indy charts – good for her and good for me, as she called looking for another song from the Dean camp and I can tell you I was more than proud to offer her some – will keep you posted on the follow up single! We did a radio edit [almost a minute shorter at the request of the ‘powers that be’....love you guys.....honest!!!] which was just shipped to US radio last week – hoping to spot the map with some more radio adds this next month. Final word is not in yet, but it also looks like I’ll be performing the acoustic stage at this year’s Mountain Jam – the 6th year for this famous 3 day outdoor festival hosted by WDST Radio Woodstock at Hunter Mountain, near Woodstock, NY June 4,5,6. Get your tickets early and make the short [or long, as it may be] ride to this great weekend of live entertainment.

Dec. ’09 – A busy year ended in a busy way – guess that’s typical for a lot of us. I’ve been working closely with Paul W. Brown, my US radio promoter, getting ‘Lay Me Down’ heard across America. Caught a great Midnight Ramble @ Levon’s Helm’s with guests ‘The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’ and ‘Eric Church’ – both excellent! Closed my year in New York at a super fun holiday party at Paul Antonell’s Clubhouse in Rhinebeck, where I had the pleasure of seeing many old friends and meeting several new ones. On Dec. 25th [yes, a Christmas edition] I was gifted with the first (of many, I hope) positive reviews of the new CD ‘No Angel’, written by reviewer/musician David Malachowski for the Kingston, NY Daily Freemen. Review header says “Dean Batstone’s ‘No Angel’ a World Class Album” [Full article Click Here ] I’m back in Canada for the remainder of the holidays and we’ll be updating the website with a ‘press’ page and upcoming gigs shortly, as 2010 is shaping up to be even busier than ’09. Ottawa Valley fans can watch for a CD release party near the end of Jan./early Feb. to be announced shortly.

Nov. ’09 – Started the month off right with an opening slot for singer/songwriter Shawn Colvin and have spent most of the rest, so far, back and forth between home in Canada and home in the Hudson Valley promoting the new CD to radio. Joined Facebook about a month ago [was a reluctant ‘old dog’ not ready for new tricks] but have been pleasantly surprised with the ability to re-connect with old friends and fans as well as new. Cool to find ex-Ottawa radio/music icon Kath Thompson happy and deep in it at Mix 97.7 in Calgary. A few more US stations now turning on to ‘Lay Me Down’, the first single from ‘No Angel’, with WDST Radio Woodstock still leading the way, being the first to ‘officially’ playlist the song – thanks again everyone @ WDST!

There have been a lot of requests for my older material and though I am currently out of stock of all but the 2 newest CD’s, I’m happy to say that you’ll again be able to download 2 free tracks from each CD shortly on this website, as well as buy digital copies of all the songs soon on iTunes and others – stayed tuned for news and links!

Oct. ’09 – I’m back in Woodstock and Rhinebeck, NY promoting the new CD this month and having lots of fun doing it. I got back out this week to jump up with the ‘Saturday Night Bluegrass Band’ at the Bearsville Theatre in Rhinebeck [watch for a live album in the future with myself and these guys doing a batch of stuff I’ve never recorded – I love this band!]

I also managed to catch live [and meet backstage] one of my favourite songwriters, Steve Earle. He gave an inspiring, sold out solo show in Woodstock with his wife, Alison Moorer, opening.

The first single ‘Lay Me Down’ from the my  new CD  goes out to radio this week, with Radio Woodstock WDST jumping the cue and playing it already – thanks all! Just got word that powerhouse NYC Pop/R&B singer/songwriter Lucy Bonilla's cover of the Dean Batstone/Jim Weider song 'You Are My Refuge' is slated as the radio single from her new album 'Rolling Higher' - thanks Lucy - your voice slays that song - congrats on the CD's release!

Sept. ’09 – I was home in Canada for a couple of weeks of family time and home reno’s and then back down to NY to begin work on promoting the new record. Early reaction to the record is great, including some early radio adds of the likely single ‘Lay Me Down’. Nancy Austin, Dave Doud myself and some new friends were fortunate enough to attend one of Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble’s and we were suitably ‘blown away’ by the evening – great band, especially friend Jimmy Weider on guitar – and a musical experience I’ll never forget. I was also fortunate enough to be invited up to play a couple of songs with the Saturday Night Bluegrass band, featuring the legendary Bill Keith on banjo and am impromptu video captured by audience member Barry Butterfield of the new song ‘Goodnight Radio’ can be viewed on YouTube and on this website’s main page.

Aug. ’09 – First pressings of the new CD ‘No Angel’ are in hand and will be available for sale online shortly and for distribution soon. In the meantime I’ve secured new personal management through an introduction by WDST Radio Woodstock DJ Dave Doud. A chance meeting with Studio Woodstock promoter Nancy Austin gained me first a new fan of my music, but more importantly a new partner in my future, as she’s taken on the key position of navigating the marketplace to help find a welcome port for the ‘ship of Dean’ and its crew of salty dogs....:) I’m proud to have her working with me and excited about the partnership.

July ’09 – Paul Antonell and I flew to Boulder, CO to master ‘No Angel’ with Grammy winning engineer David Glasser at Airshow Studios. A class ‘A’ operation and a beautiful city as well made for an overall excellent experience. Back in the Hudson Valley veteran designer Kenneth Cooke put the finishing touches on some great artwork and the package was sent shortly after to Canadian manufacturers ‘Healey Disc’ for quality pressing and packaging. Now we wait.......

June '09 - Had a great ride down to the studio in Rhinebeck - only 5 minutes of rain on an otherwise perfect day. Partied in Woodstock @ the Colony Cafe where we managed to catch old friend Gary Burke and new friend guitarist Josh Colow backing songwriter Tim Moore - great stay in the Wild Rose Inn with owner/hostess Marti taking very good care of us. Timing is everything, they say, and I think mines finally getting sorted! - we lucked out on our scheduling, as the largest vintage motorcycle show in America was taking place in Rhinebeck. We spent most of Saturday in the heat, looking and buying some great stuff, and then overdubs and mixing began on Sunday. Chris Davison, bassist and long time NY friend, sang on a couple of tracks and enjoyed the 'hang' - check out his new business catering to licensing new songs to TV and Film at www.fliktrax.com Rhinebeck singer Anni Krueger lent her voice to 3 tracks and there was also an impromptu harmony coaxed out of Josh Colow. Paul Antonell and ProTools Master Eli Walker bore the brunt of some intense mixing days, but I'm happy to say that I'm very pleased with the outcome. Dave Dowd dropped by from WDST Radio Woodstock to hear some of the new tracks and we'll be doing a show on air when I return in a couple of weeks. Also, photographer/designer Ken Cooke stopped in with the first draft of the CD design and once again all were pleased with the outcome. I'm hoping to have this CD ready to release by the end of July, so stay tuned - SWB.

May '09 - Spent almost 2 weeks at 'The Clubhouse' and cut 11 new tracks, 10 of which will appear on the new CD, [new working title 'No Angel'], re-named after the latest song conceived, written and recorded one day in the studio.  As hoped, drummer Gary Burke, guitarist Jim Weider and bassist D. James Goodwin formed the core band, with great Hammond organ or Wurlitzer piano parts added by New York keyboardist [and incidentally, my new favourite] Jason Crosby [Art Garfunkel, Tao Seeger]. Robbie Dupree lent his classic American Pop/Blues voice to harmonies on a track and old friend Chris D. is due in when I return in early June for final vocal tidbits and mixing. Also planned for June 8th is a motorcycle tour with some of my close friends from the Ottawa Valley, through the Adirondacks, ending in the Hudson Valley for a night of celebrating the finishing of the record. Pics and more to follow so check back.....:)

Apr. '09 - It's official  - after a fun night of pre-production in Ken Friesen's  'Signal Path' Studios,[Almonte, ON] I'm back down to 'The Clubhouse' in Rhinebeck, NY the first week in May to record my 8th and latest project, working titled 'Goodnight Radio'. Paul Antonell will again be engineering and co-producing and the band will be recorded live off the floor, as much of the 'Love That Shine' CD was done. Confirmed for the session are drummer Gary Burke, guitarist Jim Weider and bassist D. James Goodwin. I'll be recording mostly new songs written over the last year, several in the last month and a couple of previously un-recorded older songs, including a remake of a tune from my very first [vinyl] album recorded back in the '80's. I'm very excited about this project and will update progress here - stay tuned!