TCX
An orbit is a repeating path that one object takes around another.
Friendships sometimes run in concentric orbits; close, then far, then
close again. For forty-five years Tommy Chris and Roger Hatfield have
orbited around the same musical sun. Unusual in this day and age, I
think, for a musical collaboration to bear fruit from such old roots, but
in this, the ne plus ultra work of their careers, that is exactly what has
happened.
Roger remembers when Tommy first turned him onto Eastern
Mediterranean music; Egyptian, Greek, Turkish, and others. “At the
time, we were listening to Soul Music, Motown, Jazz, and
occasionally the transcendent works of John Coltrane, Miles Davis,
and Weather Report. When Tommy showed me the “Eastern scales”,
it blew my mind. A whole new understanding of melody and
context evolved. It was liberating,” says Hatfield.
The years came and the years went. The orbiting friends came
close and then went on their way. Good memories are hard to forget.
One song, “Love Is Near” is probably thirty-five years old, and has
been recorded in so many iterations, they would be hard to count.
The version that appears on this CD is an absolutely joyful
expression of faith and spirit. The ending of this song is especially
fun as the artists let go of the reigns and let the music go where it
wants. I want to jump up and dance when I hear it!
This is a CD for mature audiences and tastes. No, it isn’t vulgar or
base, it just lyrically concerns itself with life as an adult. Tommy
Chris has a beautiful command of the language. It seems like a
memorable turn of phrase inserts itself in your consciousness in
every verse; beautifully, simply, and simply beautiful.
Its so simple
You’ve got to open up your heart
Let the sun in
Purify your thoughts
Throw it away, no more negativity, throw it all away
One can only hope that the orbits of these two artists continue to
coincide for a long time.
-Boj Daddo, March, 2010
*Two good friends and guests on the CD that deserve maximum
credit and thanks are Eddie Howard Jr. (Anita Baker) and Ronnie Marrone
(Commander Cody and The Lost Planet Airmen.)
All songs Chrisopoulos/Hatfield, Blues Cat Music BMI
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