Continuing with my obsession towards Michael Nesmith idolatry, I wanted to cover more of his Monkees-era tunes. I knew that I wanted to pay homage respectfully, and I also knew that I wanted to slow the song’s tempo pretty radically. What I did not know was how much I would gain in asking for contributions from Connor, Damon, Adam and especially Sean Allen and Erin Sullivan.

The idea of a duet came to me after reading the lyrics and looking for some angle to assert a different feel than the original Monkees recording had. It was good timing that Sean Allen came back into our lives just then: we’d run into him often enough during those months that I eventually got the nerve up to ask him to play on this track.

The duet part was a whim. I thought it would be interesting to play on the words and have a woman sing the very same lyric that Mr. Nesmith had intended for a man to sing. To me, it makes perfect sense. Both Sean’s and Erin’s performances speak for themselves. I am happy with how this song “fermented” and what it became. In my opinion, it came out sounding a bit like the Dewey Cox song Let’s Duet, which was unintentional and does not bother me one bit.

It might bother you one bit.

Listen to a sample…
Papa Gene’s Blues
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

The set list for that show included To Sir With Love. I was so enamored with our version…and especially Paul’s vocal performance…that I have yearned for many years to record it with Paul. He has stated that he has a recorded version which I simply do not recall having heard. So as per usual I chose to push onward and upward. For my new version, I wanted to get as many musicians from the many bands I have been either in or somehow affiliated with to play on the song. I damn near hit my goal, and with quite a few delays and miscalculations on my part, I am fortunate enough to say: everyone came through for me, and I am eternally grateful. The song is a finely wrought mosaic with a depth of character built from the unique styles of these many talented people I know.

Listen to a sample…
To Sir With Love
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

To Sir With Love – Written by Don Black and Mark London, 1967, performed by Lulu (with The Mindbenders)
Recorded June 2011 at Great Magnet Recording, Santa Rosa, California
Paul Bertolino: Vocals
Nathan Alfaro: Bass
Damon Kerr: Guitar
Phil Costello: Guitar Solo
Connor Alfaro: Guitar. Tambourine
Adam Sullivan: Mellotron
Aaron Nudleman: Drums

Listen to a sample…
You Just Gotta Know My Mind
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

You Just Got To Know My Mind –
Written by Donovan, 1967, performed by Dana Gillespie
Recorded May 2008 at Great Magnet Recording, Santa Rosa California
Paul Bertolino: Vocals, Drums
Pascal Garneau: Rhythm Guitar
Adam Sullivan: Lead Guitar
Nathan Alfaro: Bass
James Oterreau: Keyboards

Working for beer is the tender trap.

Adam relocated to Petaluma around this time, which meant shutting down Blue Room in Napa and constructing what would become the early incarnation of Great Magnet Recording. Following the completion of the hammer-banging, Adam and I also began work on some early versions of his solo material, which would eventually be monikered Great Magnet (the band) as well. when the studio was up and running. He and I brought in Paul Bertolino for drums as usual along with a considerable host of other great musicians, and we began recording demo versions (or at least they became demo versions in retrospect) of each song.

My son Connor’s band AdventuresInAPancake (A.I.P) recorded their E.P. at the new studio during that same period, and Connor was improving as a drummer and guitarist with stunningly rapidity. With all this going down around me, I was beginning to get restless to be in a band again. I wanted to record with my son and also begin fulfilling my dream of recording some Michael Nesmith tunes from his days with The Monkees. Connor was willing, so we recorded our first song.

The Xmas song was an idea of mine to create a gift for our families at Christmas. I wanted it to be simple and include Maria and Connor. We wrote the words, Connor arranged the song, and we wanted to get in some actual Hawaiian flavor, which Connor was interested in attempting. I borrowed some cliché choices from other Christmas songs, so although technically it is an original tune, it is truly meant as nothing more than a novelty to amuse our family and ourselves.

Both Connor and Maria were willing to have some fun with it, and I am grateful. Maria will say her vocals are bad and Connor will most likely dismiss his playing as amateurish, but I think they both shine and my fondest memory is how much fun we had creating and recording the song.

Listen to a sample…
The Kind of Girl I Could Love
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

The Kind Of Girl I Could Love – Written by Michael Nesmith and Roger Atkins, 1966, The Monkees
Recorded June 2007
at Great Magnet Recording, Petaluma, CA
Nathan Alfaro: Vocals, Bass
Adam Sullivan: Guitar, Backing Vocals
Connor Alfaro: Guitar, Drums, and Percussion

It’s A Family Xmas – Written by Nathan Alfaro, Maria Taylor-Alfaro and Connor Alfaro
Recorded June 2007
at Great Magnet Recording, Petaluma, CA
Maria Taylor-Alfaro: Vocals
Nathan Alfaro: Vocals
Connor Alfaro: Guitars, Bass, and Drums

I have no image to go with this post, so here is a kitten in a cowboy hat.

These two songs, written by my friend Monette Shirley, were first introduced to me as acoustic versions recorded by Monette. I thought that it would be nice to put a studio backline together and record a full band version for her to sing on. I asked Adam and Mitch to help out, and we secretly practiced and worked out arrangements. I considered these to be interpretations of Monette’s songs, never fully assuming that she would truly endorse the arrangements. They were simply meant as demos which she could reject or modify at will should she find them lacking.

She was a good sport and very appreciative. As was I…of Adam and Mitch. And as it turned out she did come in and add vocals in her usual pitch-perfect and fully-immersed fashion. Whether you like the songs or not, from my perspective the creative work of both Adam and Mitch…and the end result…are impressive. They began as simple acoustic versions and what was coaxed forth exceeded my hopes. I am particularly proud of these tracks.

Both of the songs have a slightly grungy vibe to them, which could not have been even close to how Monette envisioned them coming from her folk rock and/or cover band background. But again such was not the intent from our (the band’s) slightly subversive perspective and I think we really just wanted to give these songs an “edge” for lack of a better word. In retrospect, I think Money Is Time seems a thinly veiled rip off of Mother Love Bone’s Chloe Dancer/Crown Of Thorns…but not intentionally. It just happened because of who we were, musically, at that moment.

Listen to a sample…
Down in Your Valley
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

In Your Valley – Monette Shirley & The Hairy Shakers
Money Is Time – Monette Shirley & The Hairy Shakers

Recorded February 2004 by Monette Shirley
and The Original Hairy Shakers
at The Blue Room, Napa California

Monette Shirley: Vocals
Adam Sullivan: Guitars
Nathan Alfaro: Bass
Mitch Norwick: Drums

Adam takes on the guitar solo with gusto. In today’s climate of internet collaboration, we could easily have emailed the track to Phil and had him play on it for a “Virtual Impossibles Reunion” if we so desired. No need: the song stands tall as-is. The screams on the song are yours-truly. Paul is such a great vocalist and surely could have performed a decent scream, but for that day, I laid it on thick.

Listen to a sample…
Gonna Find a Cave
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

I’m Gonna Find A Cave – Written by Jimmy Radcliffe and Buddy Scott 1965, The Banana Splits
Recorded January 2003 by The Hairy Shakers
at The Blue Room, Napa, California
Paul Bertolino: Vocals, Guitar
Adam Sullivan: Guitars
Nathan Alfaro: Bass, Backing Vocals

The reason for this endeavor…as with many of the recordings on Starch…was purely our own amusement. For my part, at the time I was going through a period of gorging on a lot of Abbey Road and Rubber Soul (and some other mid-60s stuff) on vinyl. Listening on an old solid-state component system from that era which sounded amazing. This was during a period where I was “discovering” the Beatles from a musician’s standpoint and deciding that Paul McCartney was officially my bass hero. After listening to Paperback Writer and playing along with it, I suggested we record it with Paul.

Listen to a sample…
Paperback Writer
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

Paperback Writer- Written by Lennon/McCartney, 1966, The Beatles
Recorded January 2004 by The Hairy Shakers
at The Blue Room, Napa California
Paul Bertolino: All Vocals, Drums
Adam Sullivan: Guitars
Nathan Alfaro: Bass

Roddy Love and the Hairy Shakers

Roddy Love, a friend of Adam’s, asked us to help him record this song as a potential soundtrack cut for a 2005 movie called “Window Theory”. Adam supplied the studio and the band, which was myself on bass and Mitch Norwick on electric drums (Yikes).

I was pretty confident on how I was going to play the bass line, but was given direction, regardless. I was a bit put out by this, and in retrospect, maybe being a bit of a prima donna. The bass line is pretty righteous for a basic pop song.

Unfortunately the original multitrack files for this song are long gone, so the MP3 version we DO have access to is as good as it gets, unlike most of the other songs on Starch which were privy to some as-needed remixes.

A bitch.

Listen to a sample…
It’s a Bitch Just Being Me
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

It’s A Bitch Being Me– Written by Roddy Love

Recorded June 2002 by Roddy Love & The Original Hairy Shakers
at The Blue Room, Napa California

Roddy Love: Vocals, Guitar
Adam Sullivan: Guitar, Backing Vocals
Nathan Alfaro: Bass
Mitch Norwick: Drums

Dark moments in personal style.

This is the first song that Adam and I recorded at the earliest incarnation of his dedicated recording space, which at that time was called The Blue Room. He and I were playing together in a band called iiii (Four Eyes) with Brian Nash and Gordon Adams at the time, and as a band we had this acoustic rendition of Wicked Town that we sometimes performed under our acoustic-rock alias 7 Fingers. I think either Adam or Gordie was the singer on this song for the live version.

I love the song (from the movie Hedwig and The Angry Inch) and suggested that we record it. For whatever reason, we did not bring Brian and Gordo in, and recorded the track without drums. I think part of the reason we recorded the song was for experimentation purposes. It truly was an experiment because we decided after recording the acoustic version that we would ask Mitch Norwick to add drums AFTER the fact. Not the wisest choice, as any one will tell you, but Mitch and Adam were willing to give it a try.

Listen to a sample…
Wicked Little Town
…and then get the entire Festival of Starch CD (for free) from me!

Wicked Little Town – Written by Stephen Trask, 1999
Hedwig And The Angry Inch Motion Picture Soundtrack

Recorded February 2002 by The Original Hairy Shakers
at The Blue Room, Napa California

Nathan Alfaro: Bass, Vocals
Adam Sullivan: Guitars, Backing Vocals
Mitch Norwick: Drums

I’m handing the mic over to guest contributor Nathan Alfaro for a volley of posts to chronicle a project ten+ years in the making, his sweeping arc of cover material entitled Festival of Starch.

And you thought I was taking you out to Dim Sum. Sorry.

Each new post (with a few exceptions) under Nathan’s benign dictatorship will give an overview of the genesis for a single track, followed by a preview of the final track itself for your listening pleasure. If you’d like to hear the rest of the track (and album) in it’s intended order and fidelity, all you need do is contact Nathan and he will happily ship one to you free of charge.

On most posts you’ll see me poking my head in (just in case you were lonely) to wax technical and add some more salient points as-needed, and you’ll also be hearing from some of the other key players such as the amazing Mr. Paul Bertolino.

This project represent more than just a collection of “quirky-cover-tunes-some-you’ve-never-heard-of”. It also represents an arc of learning and adaptation on the part of Nathan  and myself…along with our ever-evolving cast of characters. It begins with toes dipped tentatively in the waters of production, engineering, and arrangement. From there it spans a decade of missteps and successes, back slaps and gut punches. We think you’ll hear that arc, and the few cringe-worthy early moments are thus all the more precious: well worth laughing your way through on the way to the epic reward of the album’s immensely satisfying middle and late-period tracks.  It is about the music and the production to be sure, but also about how the personal relationships between each party involved (friends all) informed the creative decisions. And how all those moments of creation returned the favor…by informing our own evolving personalities as both musicians and as people.

‘Nuff said. Over to you, Nathan…