SHAKE THE DUST OFF YOUR SANDALS" (Back-story, Lyrics, & Link to Song on YouTube)

Back-story:

In the early 1970s my friend  Mark Warfel and his girlfriend gave me a Braille copy of the New Testament.  At the time, I was a “recovering Catholic,” and I was not in the market for any religion of any kind.  I initially started reading the book to improve my Braille reading skills, but as time moved along, I found myself drawn to the book every day.  I only read about a page or two, and then I gave myself some time for reflection and meditation.  Well, it is now 2021, and I am still a “recovering Catholic,” not in the market for any religion of any kind.  The book is old, and the Braille is worn down; but I still read a page or two a day, reflect, and meditate.  So, go figure!

 As I read these stories over the years, I would often find myself making connections with my life and the book’s episodes.  For example, in my classroom, whenever I would have to stop kids from selling candy for their fund-raisers, I would find myself chuckling, thinking about Christ turning over the tables of the money changers who sold their goods in the temple.  When I told the kids that my classroom was a house of prayer, not a den of thieves, no one got the allusion, and once again, I found myself laughing alone.

 

In addition to teaching, I also saw connections with the Bible and the music world.  Siobhan and I play a wide variety of venues, and some of these places have introduced us to some rather seedy characters.  I am very comfortable with these undesirables because I am just as much an outcast as they are.  The New Testament verifies this.  If you look closely, the stories of the Bible often lump the deaf, dumb, blind, crippled, prostitutes, tax collectors, and criminals into one group of rejects.  They’re all waiting around to be cured or saved.  Christ often gets criticized for spending time with these pariahs, but he responds by telling the Pharisees and Sadducees that he did not come to heal the healthy.  As a result, when I am with my outsider friends in some dive bar, I often look around to see if Christ has stopped by to spend some time with us.  Quite often he does, and when it happens, I usually hear his voice coming out of the mouth of one of my unsavory friends.

By now, you readers of the scriptures know where I am going, so I will quickly clear things up for you nonreaders.  In the New Testament Christ sends his disciples on their mission.  He tells them to go from town to town spreading their message.  If they are accepted, they should embrace the members of the community; however, if the people of the village reject the message, they should shake the dust off their sandals, and move on to the next town.

This simple story has inspired me for years.  Teaching and playing music have always subjected me to rejection, and this little tale has always restored my spirits and given me the confidence I needed to persevere.  As a result, the phrase, “Shake the dust off your sandals” has become a code by which I live.

“Shake the Dust Off Your Sandals” emerged into a song sometime in the mid ‘90s.  I don’t know where I was when it happened.  It could have been while I was practicing, on a walk, or riding in the car.  What I do remember is the song started with the chorus, so it probably got going shortly after one of my re-readings of the story.  Also, most likely I was rebounding from a defeating experience in either teaching or music.  The chorus developed as a code for living because that was what the phrase was for me.

 Because this code or phrase, whatever you want to call it, played such an instrumental part in keeping my heart and soul spiritually free, I decided the verses would reflect my own life’s experiences.  I created the verses into a ballad where I, the narrator, recount the trials and tribulations of my life.  At the conclusion of each verse, I indicate that my freedom has come from listening to my Friend.  In the final verse I reveal the identity of my friend.  It is my heart.  My heart has kept me free throughout my life, because whenever the message coming from it was rejected, my heart encouraged me to shake the dust off my sandals and move on to share the message with someone else.

 The song, a folk song with spiritual nuances, moves along in a somewhat free flowing manner falling somewhere in the middle of a tender ballad and a hard driving tune.  With a guitar, a mandolin, a harmonica, a bass, drums, and backup harmonies, John and Joe Dady (now members of the Rochester Music Hall of Fame) and Tim Chaapel (owner of Mobile Music in Canandaigua, NY), all quintessential musicians, helped Siobhan and me in creating one of those songs for contemplation, reflection, and inspiration.  I like it, and I hope you do, too.

 Lyrics:

Verse 1

When I was a young man just out of school

I was cautious and careful, and followed the rules

Searched for a good job, looked for a wife

Wanted a family, the so-called "good life"

But as I went down each one of these roads

For me, these things became too heavy a load

And the doubts that developed way deep down in me

Soon ended when a good friend said, "Set yourself free!"

 

Chorus

Shake the dust off your sandals when you start every day

Don't worry about scandals that may come your way

Shake the dust off your sandals, just continue the grind

And fend off the vandals who play with your mind

Verse 2

So, I travelled through my life with this advice

Some days were awful, and some, they were nice

Sometimes I lost, and sometimes I won

Some days were work while others were fun

Some folks were mean; some, they were kind

Some, they had vision while the others were blind

Some were imprisoned; some, they were free

The free ones had listened to what my good friend told me

Chorus

Instrumental Break

Verse 3

Now, as an old man, nearly eighty or so

I've started to place all my ducks in a row

Reflection has shown me that through the years

I've enjoyed some smiles, and I've coped with some tears

And I'm thankful that through life I took a stand

My soul did not submit to those in command

And I'm grateful for the guidance that my good friend gave me

I've listened to my heart, and it's kept me free

Chorus (Two Times)

 

Here is a link to the song on YouTube.  It’s an auto generated video created FOR YouTube by CD Baby, our distributor.  If an ad appears when the link opens, click to dismiss it, and the song will start.  Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XswPl-Orq1U&list=PLmaM3h4AoHN-pRSCzG9xMGkJuCeDDLaf4&index=26

If you Prefer, you can stream this song on all the major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Prime, etc.

SET YOURSELF FREE" (Back-story, Lyrics, & Link to Song on YouTube)

Back-story:

Ok, here’s the big question that often arises when discussing a song like this.  Do we fall out of love with our partner, or do we discover our developing identities are no longer compatible enough to sustain the relationship?  If you are a person who believes that love and identity have little to do with each other, this might not be a song for you.  On the other hand, this will be a song for those of you who feel a couple needs to share some common philosophical ground to enjoy a healthy and happy relationship.

From the mid-1960s up until 1982, when Siobhan and I started “living in sin,” I, like many young people, drifted in and out of love relationships.  Rebounding from these relationships was not easy, regardless of whether the decision to leave was mine or my partner’s.  During the time I spent healing from the loss of these lovers, I found great solace in music, especially song lyrics.  Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice,” Jim Croce’s “Lover’s Cross,” Dave Mason’s “We Just Disagree,” and Dave Loggins’ “Please Come to Boston” are just a few of the classics I wore out on my turntable as I recovered from the loss of each lover.  (Did I say turntable?  You younger readers will have to look up this term.)

Anyway, as these songs, and others like them, imprinted their themes into my soul, I took great comfort in becoming aware that falling out of love was not really the reason for relationships not working.  They simply do not work if you are not on the “same page” with your lover.  There must be some common denominators that will hold a relationship together.  Living simply or extravagantly, having or not having kids, traveling or staying at home, integrating with others or isolating yourselves from them, are just a few issues that can cause problems if you and your partner do not feel the same way.  These issues, along with many others, are the ones I confronted with my lovers until I got lucky and met Siobhan in the early 1980s.  Ironically, I wrote “Set Yourself Free” after I met Siobhan.

 In the mid-1980s, a close friend of mine was watching his marriage of fifteen years fall apart.  I knew him and his wife very well, and they were both great people.  As Dave Mason puts it so well, “There ain’t no good guy; there ain’t no bad guy; there’s only you and me, and we just disagree.”  These lines, and others like them, were the ones I would introduce to him as he struggled to find out the reasons for his failing marriage.  I worked at trying to get him to see that love was not the issue at stake here.  He and his wife were merely discovering that they were not the same people they were when they were teenagers.  The philosophies developing in their souls had been kept dormant by those attractive joys of youth, sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll.  While some couples are fortunate to emerge from the pleasures of youth with compatible philosophies, many, like my friend, do not.  If you are one of the unfortunate ones, you are confronted with the tough question.  Do I live in quiet desperation, or do I set myself free?  My friend chose to set himself free.

Arriving at this decision was not easy for him.  It took many beers and many hours of discussion.  It was during many of our long conversations that the lyrics of “Set Yourself Free” developed.  In fact, I merely took words from our talks and put them into a meter and rhyme scheme.  As you look over the lyrics, you will see that my friend was a guy who preferred a simplistic approach to living, while his wife discovered that she wanted extravagance.  Was either of them wrong?  Of course not!  They learned more about who they were and moved on to better lives.  Here’s something I’d like to run by you.  Try viewing divorce as an indication of growth rather than a sign of failure.  After all, isn’t that what it really is?

Because of the nature of the topic of the song, I chose a sensitive delivery.  With a guitar, fiddle, and bass, John and Joe Dady help me create an atmosphere that deftly enhances the mood evoked by the narrator as he describes his feelings.  It’s far from being comparable to Bob Dylan, Jim Croce, Dave Mason, or Dave Loggins, but I like it, and I hope you do, too.

Big thanks to John and Joe Dady for helping me record this one!  For over forty-five years, John and Joe, quintessential musicians and now members of the Rochester Music Hall of Fame, brought much joy to the greater Rochester area as well as other areas of the United States, Canada, and Ireland.  Unfortunately, Joe succumbed to leukemia in 2019, a great loss to the music community in our area.  John, however, is back performing again.  Of course, the show is different, but he still delivers.  Catch one of his shows when you can.

Lyrics:

Verse 1

I like the country; she likes the city life

I wish she told me this before she became my wife

She likes to wander those canyons made of steel

I like to analyze the way those breezes feel

Chorus

And I'm not feelin' so good

And I don't get the peace I should

And my heart keeps on tellin' me,

"Set yourself free"

Instrumental

Verse 2

She likes the big house, pool out in the yard

I'm not the kind of guy who likes to work that hard

She likes to socialize just about every night

I like to sit at home by that firelight

Chorus

Instrumental

Verse 3

She likes those fancy drinks; I like those homemade wines

She worries 'bout most things when I think things are fine

I guess it's time for me to move on down the line

Yes, it's time to let my heart rule my mind

Chorus Twice

Instrumental

 

Here is a link to the song on YouTube.  It’s an auto generated video created FOR YouTube by CD Baby, our distributor.  If an ad appears when the link opens, click to dismiss it, and the song will start.  Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lRyWdMEeNc&list=OLAK5uy_kSbj9yfSEKDWEK5SeeIaMUH6BLcLQkh48&index=2

If you Prefer, you can stream this song on all the major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Prime, etc.

"BOOGIE WOOGIE THERAPY" (Back-story, Lyrics, and Link to Song on YouTube)

 

BOOGIE WOOGIE THERAPY (Back-story, Lyrics, and Link to song on YouTube)

Back-story:

I believe songs come out of the air.  They come into your soul and form from the ideas, feelings, and emotions you are experiencing.  Most of the time, the creation that takes shape is temporary.  However, when the concept will not go away, you are on your way to scoring a new song.  “Boogie Woogie Therapy” emerged when two unrelated ideas came together.  The first, my belief that action plays a major role in getting rid of the blues, merged with the thought of Siobhan and me wanting to create a new sound with her bass.  When these two notions would not leave me alone, I knew I was off and running with a new song.

We all encounter the blues, and here is what I quite often experience when it pays a visit to me.  I usually wake up with a real empty feeling inside of me.  Everything seems hopeless, and struggling with the daily activities of life seems futile.  All the negative aspects of my life bombard my spirit, and they take over.  I feel like I am in a boxing match with the world champion, Mr. Negativity, and he is kicking my butt all over the ring.  Each punch he throws at me reminds me of what I haven’t done, what I can’t do, or what a failure I am, and the only solace I get from this experience is I realize it is temporary.  Just like the weather, these emotional Thunderheads clear, and the sun comes out again.  I have discovered you can wait for these clouds to move on when they are ready, or you can precipitate their disappearance with action.  Since I am a person who does not like to wallow in negativity, I usually just start moving, and within a short time, my emotional lows start to drift away.

When I start moving, I usually begin by choosing rather simple activities.  For example, I’ll start cooking or cleaning, and after my head clears a little, I’ll put on my headsets and listen to some music or a podcast on my phone while I am working.  The actions of cooking, cleaning, and listening slowly begin to erase whatever grip negativity has had on me, and I start to feel better.  Walking in our neighborhood or on our treadmill, cycling on our tandem bike, playing the guitar, and going out to listen to music are just a few other simple activities I use to trigger the evaporation of my pessimism.  Occasionally, when I am out listening to music, I’ll get up and dance, but it is not one of my favorite actions for getting rid of the blues; I have gotten myself into too many bar fights by accidentally drifting into dancing with someone else’s partner.  Nevertheless, I have observed the tremendous positive impact dancing has on those who love to do it.

 One day while Siobhan and I were in the midst of a rehearsal, I thought about how dancing helps to shake off the blues.  We had just finished playing “Shotgun Boogie,” an old boogie tune by Tennessee Ernie Ford.  This was the first boogie tune we ever learned, and we were psyched because it gave Siobhan an opportunity to create an awesome new sound with her bass.  Unfortunately, while we were ecstatic about the sound of the bass, we were not very thrilled with the content of the song.  Learning a song is somewhat similar to writing one.  You learn it, rehearse it, and try it out on your audience.  If it doesn’t feel right to you, you scrap it from the playlist.  Unfortunately, “Shotgun Boogie” did not feel right, and we got rid of it.  However, learning the song was not a total waste of time because it gave birth to “Boogie Woogie Therapy.”

 Unwilling to give up this great new sound we were getting with Siobhan’s bass, I spontaneously broke into the first verse and chorus of “Boogie Woogie Therapy.”  We played it over and over again, and it felt right.  I then added a harmonica break, and we played the verse, chorus, and harmonica break until we were exhausted.  Being so juiced from the new song we created, I went to my computer, and within a few hours, I had the remaining verses to the song.

“Boogie Woogie Therapy” is pure Americana.  It is an upbeat tune depicting a philosophy you can use when the blues gets its grip on you.  The philosophy is simple.  Whether you are eighteen or eighty, you will always encounter emotional lows.  You can either wait until these lows move on of their own accord, or you can trigger their disappearance with action.  Of course, the song suggests you get up and get going.  By the request of many, Siobhan and I recorded this song without the help of any studio musicians.  In addition to our basic sound of the guitar, harmonica, vocals, and bass, I gave the recording some depth by dubbing in some additional harmonies, an electric guitar, and blending harmonicas.  Pay attention to Siobhan’s bass in this one!  It’s exquisite!  I guarantee it will jumpstart your day!  Hope you have time to check it out!  I like it, and I hope you do, too!

Big thanks to Rich Cooley, a great singer/songwriter, for letting us record this one in his home studio.  Rich, a great neighbor who lives around the corner from us, showed Siobhan the ins and outs of recording and mixing, and started her down the road to creating her own home studio, where we now do all of our own recording.

 

Lyrics:

Verse 1

Well, I got something you can do

When you’re feeling sad and blue

It’s so simple, it’s nothing new

Well, get up and boogie woogie, it’ll get you through

 

Chorus

Boogie woogie,

...Boogie woogie,

Get up and dance around

...Get up and dance around

Boogie woogie,

...Boogie woogie,

You just can’t stay down

...You just can’t stay down

Boogie woogie,

...Boogie woogie,

It’ll free your mind

...It’ll free your mind

Well, it’s the best damn therapy you’ll ever find

 

Verse 2

When you’re feeling sad and low

And you’ve got no place to go

And time seems to move so slow

Well, get up and boogie woogie, and just let it flow

 

Chorus

 

Instrumental

 

Verse 3

Now, when your heart’s about to break

And there’s no more you can take

Here’s a move that you can make

Well, get up and boogie woogie, it’ll ease the ache

 

Chorus

 

Verse 4

Now, when the world has you on trial

And you feel you’ve lost your style

And each step feels like a mile

Well, get up and boogie woogie, it’ll make you smile

 

Chorus

 

Instrumental

 

Verse 5

When you meet folks who are blue

And they don’t know what to do

Tell them just what works for you

That Boogie Woogie Therapy’ll get them through

 

Chorus

 

Here is a link to the song on YouTube.  It’s an auto generated video created by CD Baby, our distributor.  If an ad appears when the link opens, click to dismiss it, and the song will start.  Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nonYzAdW9g&list=PLmaM3h4AoHN-pRSCzG9xMGkJuCeDDLaf4&index=20

If you Prefer, you can stream this song on all the major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Prime, etc.

"LEAVIN' ALL OUR TROUBLES FAR BEHIND" (Back-story, Lyrics, and Link to Song on YouTube)

 

LEAVIN’ ALL OUR TROUBLES FAR BEHIND (Back-story, Lyrics, and Link to song on YouTube)

Back-story:

Folks, is there anything better than a road trip?  It has to be one of the top ten great experiences.  In addition to letting us let go of our anxieties and responsibilities, it gives us time to relax, reflect, and renew our commitment to whatever personal goals we have set.  It lets us live in the moment, the most satisfying place we can be.  Most everyone I know has been on a road trip, but if you haven’t, you owe it to yourself to get out there and try it!

Siobhan and I have been going on road trips for the past Thirty-nine years.  As with much of what we do, we keep it simple.  We take very little with us: favorite audio books, favorite music, and just the essentials regarding clothing.  In the 1990s, after Siobhan started playing bass, we began taking the music along with us so that we could practice and play some impromptu gigs if the opportunity arose.  The focus of our trips has been, and will probably continue to be, visiting family and friends.  So far, our destinations have been New England, Ohio, Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia, West Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Florida.  Unlike many travelers, we do not rush to these destinations.  Instead, we take our time, staying in little interesting towns we find along the way.  We love to meet new people and listen to the stories they have to tell.

In the mid 1990s, we traveled to Alexander, North Carolina, a little town just north of Asheville.  Our friends, Marianne and Raymond Jacque, retired there, and built a beautiful home up in the hills outside of Alexander.  “Leavin’ All Our Troubles Far Behind” was born on this trip.

 We were on highway 81, an interstate that starts in upstate New York and ends in Alabama.  When it passes through western Virginia, it travels along the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.  Somewhere between Winchester and Christiansburg, with the music blaring, the details of the first verse of the song came together.  The imagery is nothing special.  I merely put the sights, sounds, feels, smells, and tastes of the road into a simple meter and rhyme scheme.  I felt good about this first verse, but I did not immediately know where to go with it.  Here is what happened.

 When we arrived at Marianne and Raymond’s house, the awesome setting of their home inspired me and gave me an excellent opportunity to complete the song.  I am an early riser, and usually have at least two to three hours of alone time before everyone else gets up.  Sitting in the sunroom located on the deck in the front of the Jacque’s home, I composed the second and third verses of the song as the dissipating fog dawned another beautiful Carolina morning.

 When it came to creating the chorus, it was simple.  Road trips allow us to detach from our past and future, and, if we let it happen, they let us get into the now and enjoy the moment.  I have been working at living this philosophy for most of my life, and as I get better and better at it, I find life becoming more and more rewarding.  Many folks who listen to my songs wonder if I am a Buddhist.  I’m not, but I sure think they have some cool ideas!

 The song is a fast moving somewhat folk, country, Americana  song.  With a guitar, a fiddle, a mandolin, a banjo, a harmonica, a bass, drums, and backup harmonies, John and Joe Dady (now members of the Rochester Music Hall of Fame) and Tim Chaapel (owner of Mobile Music in Canandaigua, NY), all quintessential musicians, help Siobhan and me create one of those hard-driving road tunes.  Big thanks to these guys!  The song is  far from being anything like the classic road trip song “Take It Easy” by the Eagles, but it has that feel to it.  I like it, and I hope you do, too.

 

Lyrics:

Verse 1

It's August and the summer's nearly over

Here we are on Highway 81

The Blue Ridge, the Smokies, and you right by my side

It's time to take a break and have some fun

As we roll along and sip our cups of coffee

The sun is rising in the eastern sky

The leaves upon the trees blow so gently from the breeze

The truckers nod and wave as they go by

 

Chorus

And here we are without a past or future

Suspended once again in space and time

Enjoying each and every precious moment

Leavin’ all our troubles far behind

 

Verse 2

Way back up in those woods outside of Asheville

Off the beaten path, out of the way

All alone sits a little home from where no one would want to roam

A place where time just seems to fade away

It's here we sit and play our good time music

Bluegrass, country, folk, and rock-n-roll

And as we sing, the hills soon ring, and suddenly everything

Harmonizes to become one soul

 

Chorus

 

Verse 3

And sometimes on those Carolina mornings

The fog is like a lazy hazy dream

So we reflect, select, reject, and finally connect

With that sun that carves a bright and vivid scene

And often on those Carolina evenings

The thunder rolls and rumbles through the hills

We watch each flash, feel each crash, listen to that water splash

'Til the moon returns serene and still.

 

Chorus

 

Instrumental Break

 

Repeat first half of Verse 1, and then the chorus 2 times.

 

Here is a link to the song on YouTube.  It’s an auto generated video created by CD Baby, our distributor.  If an ad appears when the link opens, click to dismiss it, and the song will start.  Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvMmUbPQBgU&list=PLmaM3h4AoHN_cKb13jMDd4mDim-mU_khW&index=13

If you Prefer, you can stream this song on all the major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Prime, etc.