Recording my debut album has been a dream come true for me - though I've been singing professionally for years, I've always had to sing to satisfy others... be it producers, composers, or music directors. It was a real challenge to find my own voice with this music, and the journey has been incredibly gratifying.
The Musicians:
I was blessed to have so many wonderful musicians perform on this album. It was a family affair as well! - my husband Joel Alpers produced the record, as well as playing all the drums and percussion, and my brother Mike Fahn (trombone) and sister-in-law Mary Ann McSweeney (bass) are also featured. The rest of the players are some of Los Angeles' finest: Justin Reinhardt (piano and keyboards), Chris Clermont and Jamie Findlay (guitars), Dan Lutz, Derek Frank, and Zac Matthews (bass), Lee Thornburg (flugelhorn), Mike Todd (saxophones), and Chris Clermont and Rob Trow on backing vocals.
The Songs:
Making the Saint was written by Joel and is inspired by Maya Deren's Divine Horsemen, a firsthand account of spirit possession. I love the dreamy, otherwordly quality of the song, it's so mysterious and evocative. This was the last song we finished for the album and it became the opener!
Cold was written by our friend Jude Swift, a great singer and songwriter. I identified with this song so deeply the very first time I heard it and I tried to pay homage to Jude's version of the song while still bringing my own voice to it. Thank you, Jude!
Avignon was written by Joel, about the night we fell in love. I can't imagine a more magical combination than discovering your true love while walking through a beautiful foreign city before dawn, having the old streets all to yourself & we tried to paint that picture for you.
Luna is another song of Joel's, and it's about longing. Sometimes, when you can't be with the one you love, your only consolation is the moon... no matter where you both are, you can both look at the same moon.
Cinematic is dedicated to all divas everywhere. You know who you are, divas! Joel wrote the lyrics and the music is by Justin Reinhardt, who gave so much to this album... thank you for everything, Justin!
Woman in Chains was written by our great friends Deanna Johnston and Chris Clermont - this is another one that spoke to me right away. Having Chris sing this with me was magical - he truly became the voice of the angel in the song. Thank you, Chris!
My Old Addiction was written by David Wilcox, and eventually covered hauntingly by k.d. lang. I love this song, it's so beautiful and sad, and it was quite an amazing experience to sing it. It was also a family reunion - my brother Mike and my sister-in-law Mary Ann played on the session with us.
The Lotus Eaters is another Joel and Justin collaboration, using the myth from the Odyssey as its starting point - it turned into a dreamy epic, and all the musical threads on the album seemed to come back together for this one.
In You is our little epilogue - the first song Joel and I ever wrote together, and a very special one for both of us.
Avignon is available NOW on CDBaby or Digstation (digital download) - COMING SOON: iTunes.
In the studio:
Click here to see photos from some of the "Avignon" sessions - the color pictures are our candids, and the beautiful black and white photos are by Amy Theilig.
