In style, this is a reggae song. I’ve not played a lot of reggae, not since I was in a band with a bass player from Jamaica who loved reggae and we worked some of it into our sets. In my mind, reggae is associated with resistance to oppression. I’m not a reggae artist nor…

I’ve heard many people say they’ve thought about fleeing the United States right now. I can understand that. Our country has taken an alarming turn. Anyway, it brought to mind two ways of looking at fleeing the country. One might be to get out before it becomes worse and it becomes more difficult to emigrate.…

This is a straightforward acoustic instrumental. I was thinking of the chimney swift when I was writing at least parts of this song. They are amazing flyers and how they drop into chimneys and cling to the side is nothing short of miraculous. The song is a very simple arrangement. There’s a guitar in the…

This song has a kind of power pop feel, something like what you might have heard in the 90s. I like that kind of groove, the driving beat and the melodic structure. The song is about a relationship where their commonality is eroding. The bridge in this song is kind of where they once overlapped.…

I’ve written a few songs, couldn’t help it, about the occupation of Minnesota by the federal government. I’m not sure the actual experience of this is easy to communicate to people and other states. This is a folk song that attempts to accomplish a little bit of this. I wrote it in less than an…

Trapezoid is an instrumental. It’s a fusion of jazz, a bit of funk, and rock. It started as a simple idea, but steadily grew more complicated as I began to work with it. I had a chance to play some interesting parts on a number of instruments, something I always enjoy. The song is available…

At least in my opinion, this is one of the prettier songs that I have written. The lyrics and music, hopefully, work together like taking a deep breath, a touch of optimism in a challenging life. And we all have those, in their own way. That was my goal for the song and I hope…

This is a quiet, gentle acoustic instrumental. I’ve written and performed a number of these and I’ve thought about creating an entire album with this style of music. They are as relaxing to write and perform as I hope they are as a listening experience. The song is available on all streaming services, and if…

A friend that both my wife and I have had for decades passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. It was during a week where there were other tragedies, including a relative whose house burned to the ground in Altadena, California in the Eaton fire. All of this makes you pause and reflect on things that may…

Heartland is another one of my instrumental songs. This one has a lot of pieces to it. There are densely layered guitars, kind of reminiscent of the band Queen, but a different kind of groove than that.

The title, Heartland, evokes the Midwest where I live, but also a certain set of emotions.