The Little Wretches

Back in February, I was accompanied by bassist Chuck Nolan and performed 6 songs at CENTURY in Philadelphia. If you listen, you'll hear me say during the introduction, "I'm going to throw a lot of information at you, basically about other human beings." I realize that the content of my songs can come across as pretty heavy to people who haven't previously heard me, so I try to put things in context before playing a song, hopefully without violating the…

Palms & Crosses

(OK, so I fell behind on my posting and have not adhered to the schedule of posting a new video every week. I'm going to make it up with three new ones in rapid succession!)

I've been doodling around with this PALMS & CROSSES song for awhile now, a few years.

I saw a movie about the Baader-Meinhof Gang, a terrorist organization, kind of like the Weather Underground. As a former Maoist who was fortunate not to have done anything stupid, I felt sorry for the well-meaning activists who embraced a bad idea…

My Father's Monologue on Thanksgiving

Early in my college days, I used a manual typewriter. I'd compose a cover-letter and type two copies of my most recent poem, fold them, stick them in an envelope, lick a stamp, and mail my creation to the editor or publisher of some small magazine in the hope that I'd be published.

I was published with sufficient frequency that I kept at it, though all I ever really wanted to do was play in a band. I wrote poetry because it was a solitary activity, and I was good at being alone.

"My Father's Monologue on…

RED BEETS & HORSERADISH a song-cycle

About the Title

In many cultures of Eastern Europe, a concoction of red beets and horseradish is served as a relish or side-dish, usually on the holidays of Easter or Passover. The red of the beets is symbolic of the blood of our people, and the horseradish the bitterness of their suffering. The symbolism morphs in the Christian tradition to the blood of our savior and the bitterness of His suffering. People in the Jewish tradition also enjoy the dish, but there is no blood involved—the beets are merely…

Some Days the Best I Can Do Is Clear a Path for Light

I promised to try to post one new piece from Red Beets & Horseradish every week.

This week, I put together something for Winter's Grace, the opening piece in the song-cycle. I first encountered the poem that forms the foundation of the lyric when I wandered into Hemingway's on the University of Pittsburgh campus, and there was a poetry reading in the back room. Annette Dietz read, and when I praised the poem, she immediately gave me her copy.

I really wanted to set it to music, but the idea didn't come…

Trying to Get This Show on Stage

On the VIDEOS portion of this website, I recently put links to recently posted youtube videos related to the song-cycle, Red Beets & Horseradish. My goal is to get at least one video up per week, then go back to tweak and revise them. I have no skill as a visual artist or graphic designer, but if I can sketch this stuff out, maybe somebody with talent will come along and say, "I can do something with that, just send me the files."

Back in Western Pennsylvania, Dave and Ellen are still working on…