It's been nearly 5 years since I produced music in any substantial way. After 15 years working in the music business, I was burned out and a little heartbroken. I had ridiculously high standards and expectations for myself and for my music, and trying to live up to them just wasn't fun anymore.
My musical soul seemed to go into hibernation, into some sort of chrysalis of indefinite duration. I poured my energy into personal development and spiritual practices, eventually finding the practice that was the right fit for me: the relational meditation practice known as Circling. I started a family, and finally acquiesced to joining the family business (silver jewelry production) and learning the ropes from my dad, a process which has brought us much closer.
But in the last few months, something has been stirring in me. My lifelong passion for The Beatles was rekindled. I started taking my guitars and basses out of the cases where they'd languished for years, cleaning them and giving them places of honor in my home. It was as if I were preparing for someone's arrival. And that someone has begun to arrive. My former love for music is reawakening, in some ways the same as it ever was, but also new in some important ways.
I still feel the familiar pressure to to excel, to create something of the highest quality. And I allow that to fuel and inspire me, but I no longer let it run me. Now I create for the sheer pleasure of creating, as I did when I first started playing music nearly 30 years ago. And as soon as it stops being fun and I realize that I'm being unkind to myself, I stop for a while. And I come back only when I really, truly want to.
The first product of this newfound inspiration is this track which I recorded at home over the past few months. It's a version of the Beatles song "Free As A Bird," one of the 2 tracks that the remaining 3 Beatles finished in the 90s, based on home demos left by John. It's always been one of my favorite Beatles songs, and it turned out that Liz also really liked it, so I got to work, recording all the instruments myself and then Liz and I recorded the vocals.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it, and I hope that wherever you may be on your own journey of metamorphosis and integration, that you're enjoying it.
