I’m home from the retreat. As much as I love the country, San Francisco is my home and I love it here. Plus it was nice to crawl into my big and firm king size bed last night.
We culminated our rehearsal retreat with a concert at The Orchard Spotlight on Saturday night. The Orchard Spotlight is an old church building that is now a theater. Last summer I was the artist in residence there. The sanctuary, with its big beautiful stained glass windows and thick reverb, was my bedroom. It was the perfect place for me to develop this material that is going on the album. It was nice to bring the material back with an ensemble.
The show went incredibly well. The ensemble was subtle and nuanced. The theater was sold out and the crowd was so warm and receptive. We received two standing ovations. I was thrilled to be able to show my Sonoma County crowd what I’ve been up to. Most of them had never seen me with an ensemble.
This morning I woke up with butterflies. This will be my first studio album of songs in 8 years. I’ve released two live albums and I’ve recorded two film scores since then, but this is different. There’s a different feeling when recording songs in a studio. I think I put more weight on it.
I get nervous about my voice. I don’t want to get sick this week. But worrying about it does me no good. My job now is to relax and take good care of myself, warm my voice up every day, and stay in the moment.
Mark – the Santa Rosa show was terrific. I saw the band as a trio at the Dark Room a few months back, and at one of the Center for Sex and Culture dates last month, so I’ve really appreciated hearing how the songs have changed and grown with the addition of more band members and your rehearsal process. The music is so rich and nuanced now, with every musician adding another layer of beauty that takes the whole sound to the next level.
It was a particularly special show because I drove up from Oakland with a new sweetheart who came to the Dark Room show with me as “just a friend.” The love you infuse into your music really touched us that night.