Album Notes

All of the Morningbirds finds Zeb Gould at his creative best. While the record fits comfortably within the category of a "fingerstyle guitar record", Gould never limits himself to the the scope of this genre alone. Rather, he uses the medium as a departure point for his own explorations. The kind of songwriter who can infuse technical prowess with a wellspring of emotions is a member of a rare breed. Zeb Gould is just such a songwriter, and All of the Morningbirds gives us our first glimpse into his world.

While pursuing a degree in Bloomington, IN, Zeb immersed himself in the study of fingerstyle guitar music, learning and deconstructing the works of John Fahey, Leo Kottke, and Michael Hedges. He developed a repertoire of instrumental works for 12- and 6-string guitar. His work found devoted fans in a wide array of musical circles, and he played the opening act for an accordingly diverse group of performers, including Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Kim Ritchie, Edith Frost, and Sue Garner. He also became involved in a number of side projects with the members of a then-developing Magnolia Electric Co. (most notably the Cinnamon Girls, a Neil Young cover band that played entire records as sets, and in which Zeb played lead electric
guitar with fingerpicks).

Following the completion of his education, Zeb moved East to New York City with Megan Weeder (an accomplished performer in her own right, whose violin graces "Two Sisters" on this recording). Always intent on expanding his musical vocabulary, Gould took up work as an archivist for classical composer Philip Glass. It was in Glass' studio that he began work on a new set of songs, which would become All of the Morningbirds.

Recorded in Looking Glass Studios over a period of three days, All of the Morningbirds embraces ideas of melody and dissonance rooted just as deeply in the songs of Elliot Smith and Neil Young as they are in those of Fahey and Kottke. From the frenzied cross-picking of "A Drunken Beggar on Horseback" to the rich piano-like tones of "Hedwig", Zeb allows us glances at an unfamiliar world through the abstracted eye of his 12 string guitar. Recording with a variety of ambient microphones in place, Gould was able to capture each song from a variety of perspectives. This shift through these perspectives in the final mix gives the record a nearly cinematic vantage point.

"Locomotive Blue Streak", the only vocal piece on this record, lends the most aptly poetic summation of the endeavor. Here, Zeb describes a locomotive cutting across a wilderness where:

All of the morningbirds were flying round the steam
As they sang a little song with their expressions.
Not one among the men was brushing them aside,
They just raised their caps and watch the great migration.

Despite the power and strength of the locomotive hurtling through the first light of the new day, the workers of Gould's world are enraptured with the majesty of the beauty that surrounds them.

Like those linemen of the "Locomotive Blue Streak", Zeb uses technique as a vehicle for his own discoveries and revelations. Drawing together a broad collection of inspirations and textures, he melds that technique and traditional style with a distinct songwriting voice. Zeb Gould represents the very best of a wide array of music in a style that is entirely his own.