Lafe
Am I Gone
© 2005 SkyHunter Records (783707076904)
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A fan of songwriters including Tom Waits, John Prine, and Lyle Lovett, Lafe rhymes with "waif") brings a new perspective to universal themes. From the pleas of a farmer ("Praying for Rain") to the meditation of a spurned lover ("Paint Me Blue").
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I'm Lafe (short for Lafayette; rhymes with "waif"), born on a Vermont farm and raised on jacked deer and food stamps. I picked up the guitar at 13 and soon hit the road, sleeping under a set of stairs at Goddard College and crisscrossing the United States by thumb and boxcar. I managed to finish high school at an alternative school, mostly for street kids, and became lead singer in Chesterfield, a country rock band. Soon we changed the band's name to the Harbour Hideaways to accommodate a restaurant that offered us a steady gig if we'd adopt its name. Given the artistic principals we held at the time, we immediately agreed. Before long, the band was playing 4 and 5 nights a week.
In the summer of 1980, the city of Burlington hired me to play while walking up and down Church Street every Saturday. Nobody listened for more than a minute or two, so I made up words constantly. Bob Dylan would shoot me if he knew what I did to "Blowing in the Wind." I've been writing songs ever since.
I met Mark Greenberg (Grammy nominated producer and owner of Upstreet Productions) in 1972, when he was the director of the alternative high school. He converted me from a guitar "banger" to a finger- and flat-picker by showing me Reverend Gary Davis songs, Doc Watson tunes, and other tradition-based goodies. I became a "dropped D tuning" addict. Eventually, Mark and I became "Blue Moon," playing weddings, coffee houses, restaurants-anywhere people would listen. Once we even waded through a river to get to a gig. We've been playing off and on for 30 years now, much of it in our living rooms until recently. Mark now tells people we've just "come out of retirement.
I've just finished my first recording-the CD "Am I Gone" (all originals), which Mark produced as well as played a bunch of instruments on. Our friend Coco Kallis (of Lonesome Road Band fame) sings on it too. I never took the plunge to play full-time, so making an album seemed like a "wannabe" thing. Now it seems strange I didn't do it 30 years ago.
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This is an exceptional songwriter!
author: Chris'Am I Gone' is a tremendous example of compelling songwriting and song arrangements...Truly fun to listen to. Great vocals, great musicianship. I recommend it highly.
Buy two copies--you'll wear the first one down to the raw silicone.
author: Jae C. SteeleBuy two copies--you'll wear the first one down to the raw silicone. Lafe delivers. Hard to believe this is his first CD. The songs are beautifully crafted, meaningful, and well delivered. Lafe's hot buttered vocals are attached to his soul, his command of his instrument is a treat to the ears. Add to this, the genius of Mark Greenberg's incredible talent as not only a multi-faceted musician, but also as a producer and audio engineer, the fine-tuned percussion of Bim Edson, and the mellow, straight-from-my-heart-to-yours vocals of Coco Kallis, and you've got a first CD that states the obvious: these people are really good, and the CD is long (30 years, perhaps?) overdue. Although Lafe's guitar style demonstrates a subtle hint of blues amidst the folk, this CD is highly recommended to chase the blues away. Even his sad songs will make you feel great. Highly recommended! Glad he finally decided to do what he was meant to do--bring his musical spirit full of joy to the world.