You're traveling through another dimension, a dimension, not only of melody and rhythm, but, of mind--- a journey into a curious land of musical imagination. There's the signpost up ahead – its says:
“Next Exit---Songlines, Prepare To Be Surprised.”
You wake up half slumped-half sitting at the end of a 20 foot long mahogany bench at the center of the station. You look up into the underside of a massive iron chandelier suspended from a whales belly of a ceiling some 40 feet above you. The cavernous space is nearly empty. Arrayed in front of you are the thirteen gates leading to tracks where the trains await. The clock at the end of the hall ticks off another minute.--- its 6:10 AM. –As you shake your head free of fog. You wonder, “Where am I and how do I know all this?”
You reach for the inside pocket of your jacket, grasping the envelope you somehow knew was there. You feel the thickness of the tickets. There are 13 in all, each with a different track number and destination; strange places, like Kossi on track 9, Green Plastic on 2 and Refried Beans at number 5. The first, in the stack, Art & Upheaval says it leaves at 7:00 AM from track number 1.
By 6:45, the place is crawling with people ---sitting, standing, milling, and meandering. Peering towards the gates, you notice a small cluster of people forming around a little stage in front of the gate with a big red one above it. A man in a blue and white striped top hat and white tails steps up and begins to shout.
“Listen up, everybody. Ladies and gents, friends and neighbors, auditory adventurers all, come on up or come on down, but, most importantly, gather around, because no matter your musical tastes, predilections, or proclivities, you must prepare yourselves for a magical melodious journey of sonorous stories, tempoed tales and rhythmic yarns that are guaranteed to beguile, and bemuse, entrance and entertain, seduce, and, most assuredly, amaze.”
The voice in your head says “Poppycock,” but you find yourself moving toward the strangely magnetic voice with the others who are following suit. It’s a strange lot ---more like a mardi gras parade than a typical rush hour mob.. There are cowboys, choirboys, soldiers, and shaman, there’s a kid on a big wheel, a man waving a bible and a poet on fire. And there are musicians everywhere --- drummers drumming, guitarists strumming and horn players blowing till they are blue in the face, There’s a fiddler, a cellist, and a tabla player at the foot of the stage keeping a hypnotic beat for the man in the top as he continues his harangue.
“Look folks, no matter your cares or concerns, your circumstances or station, there is a song and a story that is right for you beckoning from one of these many melodious gates. Look around if you will, sirs and madams, at the incomparable coterie of characters and cranks, troubadours and tunesters who will accompany you on this astonishing Odyssey of the opus eclectic. I ask you my friends, How can you resist, how can you restrain yourselves from joining one of these enticing Songlines. Each track is distinct, each saga is different, and if by chance you find yourself unmoved or uninspired, all you have to do, ladies and gents, is close your eyes and the slides will change. Yes folks, that is because you are about to embark on the New Zealand of musical journeys—every time you blink there is a new landscape, a new ensemble, a new story.” You can’t miss, you can’t lose You mustn’t wait!”
You know its crazy, but you join the queue for track number 1. It’s quite a crowd, Serb and Australian soldiers, women in leotards, the smoldering poet, and dozens of the musicians. As you stagger down the aisle you notice portraits of fellow travelers hanging above the train car windows. There’s Bruce, Salif, Lucinda, Otis, Hank, that young guy Sam with the big beard Bobby and many more. A tattered broadside with the title “The Altclectic Manefesto.” covers the door at the end of the car. The moment after you find your seat, the train lurches forward. In no time, you and your fellow passengers have visited Belgrade, Watts, Phnom Penh, and the Great Victorian Desert of Australia. You wonder, “Was this the right thing? Will I ever return from this Songline railroad rabbit hole?” You sit back, watching the dancer and the poet turn cartwheels down the aisle -----“Maybe not.”
Songlines
Produced by Alan Freedman
Arranged by Alan Freedman and William Cleveland
Restless Wind was produced and arranged by Anne Cleveland
Recorded and mixed at Live Oak Studio, Berkeley CA by James Ward
http://www.liveoakstudio.com
Mastered at Trakworx Recording and Mastering by Justin Weis
http://www.trakworx.com
Art direction and graphics by William Cleveland
Cover Art, The Hanged Man, by Carla Cleveland, 1997
All songs written by William Cleveland copyright © 2009 (ASCAP) except where otherwise noted.
Refried Beans by William Cleveland and Martin J. Cohen, copyright © 2009 (ASCAP)
Restless Wind by William Cleveland, Charles Cleveland, and Anne Cleveland, copyright © 2009 (ASCAP)
Kossi by William Cleveland and Alan Freedman, copyright 2009 (ASCAP)
"Pimping Leaning and Feaning" used by permission, copyright © 1996 Amde Hamilton (BMI)
"Ella's Song" used by permission, copyright © Bernice Johnson Reagan 1988 (BMI)
Released by CLEAN DRINKING MUSIC
Cleveland PlainSong are:
Laura Boytz Cello: 2, Violoncello: 8. 13
Rob Carroll Electric Guitar: 11,13
David Carroll Drums: all songs except 9, 10,
Bill Cleveland Lead Vocals: all songs except 9, Acoustic Guitar: all songs except 6, 9, 10
Anne Cleveland Background Vocals: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 12, 13
Casey Cleveland Lead Vocal: 9
Arthur Cohen Background Vocals; 1, 5, 8, 10, 11, 12
Marty Cohen Background Vocals: 5, 12
Alan Freedman Bass: all songs, Percussion Samples: 1, 2, 8, 10, 13
Steve Gibson Electric Guitar: 1, 2, 5, 6, 10, 12
Ray Green Trumpet: 1, 2, 5
Susan Hayward Lead Vocal: 7
Robert Keller Background Vocals: 11, 13
Ben Krames Percussion: 1, 2, 13, Conga: 10, 11, 12, Shekere: 11
Chad Manning Violin: 2, 7, 13
Jon Mitguard Pedal Steel Guitar: 3, 7
Gus Scherer Lead Guitar: 1, 2, 8, 11, 13, Slide Guitar: 10
Robyn Thaw Background Vocals: 5, 6, 12, 13
Don Vidal Trombone: 1, 2, 5
Aharon Wheels Bolsta 8, 10, Tabla: 8, 10, 13, Dumbek: 10
Bob Stanley Keyboard: 12
Muchos Gracias
Carla
The Cleveland Family
Al Cleveland
Jane Oulahan
The Nebbe's
The Johnson-Cleveland Clan
Buckhorn
Warren Robinson
Colorbow
Silver Spring
Trooper
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