Album Notes

John Lenny Rancher started playing around portland oregon in 1978. He started a band called the Malchicks with his brother Billy and friend Peter Jorgusen in that same year and proceeded to play the Northwest for another 18 years. Taking time off to rest his lungs and climb some trees, he is now back with activist vengeance with this self-produced album "Emotional Stew". Thirty songs in all, the album reveals the Stones - Ronnie Wood-John Lennon type influences Lenny carries about. Recorded at a small basement studio in Portland(Herbert House), it definitely has an organic feel to it. Lenny played all the instruments except drums and keyboards getting help from old Malchick drummer Peter Jorgusen and from keyboardist Mel Kubik....Longtime bandmate Franklin Stewart also provides some crucial bass on Waterfall, I'm Alright, Emotional Stew, and Belly of the Beast.... Lenny has come a long way from the days of wanting to get a"record deal" to realizing that music is more than just a journey to satisfy ones individual desires. He now believes that music should entertain, but also motivate and inspire people. "Emotional Stew" shows Lenny at his activst best, making statements about everything from overt materialism to the plight of the natural world.Using plain language and simple melodies, he makes a strong case for walking lighter on the planet and for helping the powerless prosper.