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I am donating 100% of all money I receive in sales for this and all my other releases on Bandcamp. I am committed to the creation of a world characterized by dignity in life and death for all beings. The intense disparity between that vision and our current reality compels me to direct my energy and resources toward uplifting the dignity of those who are oppressed. At this time, I am bringing attention to the following three
groups:
1) Folk Arts Rajasthan/The Merasi: The Merasi are a people of Northwestern Rajasthan, India who have been master musicians for 40 generations and counting. They have also been oppressed incredibly, as they are part of the formerly-known-as Untouchable caste. I have spent time with them in their home in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, and also when they have been on tour in the US. I count several of their number personal friends, and I am pleased to be supporting them through my music at this time.
@folkartsraj on Instagram
3) The Yawanawa tribe, who live in the Amazon, in Acre, western Brazil. Along with many Indigenous populations, they are at tremendous risk at all times. This risk is amplified in the age of Covid-19. They have taken measures for their own safety, and are accepting donations which are being used to fortify and strengthen themselves, now and for the future. As they are stewards of the forest, their strength, health and vitality has a direct impact on the health of the planet and ALL her inhabitants. I have had the privilege and honor of spending time with them in one of their villages in the forest, as well as meeting members of the tribe for ceremonies in Europe over the last few years.
@campanhacura on Instagram...more
Time, an arrow bent
Love's been here and went
Wax has pooled around
The candles all burned down
Here in darkness dwells
Most magical spells
When you find your way inside
Keep your eyes open wide
May look like a lie
And it may be so
Memories of the seaside
Places loved and known
But do not fear the dark
By hiding in your past
You carry a lamp in your heart
Better coax a flicker fast
What befell this child
That he bruises so?
Yet lightly fords the stream
A play-like come and go
Soul is just inside
Burning to ignite!
He gathers beside the fire
Just to sleep for the night
I hear the crying of the hungry in the deserts where they're wandering;
Hear them crying out for heaven's own benevolence upon them;
Hear destructive power prevailing, I hear fools falsely hailing
To the crooked wits of tyrants when they call.
I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear the tearing of the pages and the roar of burning paper;
All the crimes in acquisition turn to air and ash and vapor;
And the rattle of the shackled far beyond emancipators;
And the lowliest who gather in their stalls.
I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all
So while you sit and whistle Dixie with your money and your power,
I can hear the flowers growing in the rubble of the towers.
I hear leaders quit their lying.
I hear babies quit their crying.
I hear soldiers quit their dying, one and all.
I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear the tender words from Zion, I hear Noah's waterfall,
Hear the gentle lamb of Judah sleeping at the feet of Buddha
And the prophets from Elijah to that old Paiute Wovoka
Take their places at the table when they're called.
I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all
I don't expect you to love me forever
I don't expect you to love me tomorrow
It wasn't expectation that brought this thing about
You were just a sexy red singer
And you like that I'm a guitar-slinger
Why go and fuck it up with anything more than that?
Now don't misunderstand: I love you!
And over and above all that I love to love you
I'm gonna treat you ike you're strong
'Cause that's just what you are
And I thank my lucky stars that they crashed into yours
I know goodbye is inside of every single one of your kisses
Loving you is like dancing on the point of death
But this moment's rare
You know you stung me with your gem-stone stare
And I don't mind if you take all of my breath
Now don't misunderstand: I love you!
And over and above all that I love to love you
I'm gonna treat you ike you're strong
'Cause that's just what you are
And I thank my lucky stars that they crashed into yours
Can you dig talking to me at 2 AM
Like I dig talking to you?
I've got searchlights and high-beams and beacons
I've got palms of giants under my feet
I cannot pretend I'm anything extraordinary
My heart like any other beats
And every beat underscores the poem
Told holy on Earth and every street
The hands that set to ringing the bells are cause for singing
The chimes are honey suckle sweet
Darling, Lover, a little bird brought you to me
You show your face in every glass of beer and cup of tea
Grateful that you're everywhere with me
If love is what you are into
Whether you've fallen in or climbed aboard it's wings
I know you know the way the breeze just blows a little sweeter
And your very skin will sing
Well, that's where you brought me to, my treasure
The luckiest lover that ever there could be
My teacher told me "Live in Love and that's enough, brother"
And that's what's worked so well for me
Darling, Lover, a little bird brought you to me
You show your face in every glass of beer and cup of tea
Grateful that you're everywhere with me
Her pale voice cried out on a moonless night
The sound haunted my vision
"The crow flies south," she said, "on wings of down,
Where are you?"
I've walked a hundred miles just to fell you
Your scent still comes to me on the warm breeze of June
And the moon I wished to give you I can't see
Oh no, I can't see
'Cause yours is the one that's been blazed on my mind
All these many years
And in the presence of Love, I have seen it
Your specter appears
Bringing me to tears
You're always bringing me down to tears
Everyday
Bigger than a bubble
Your reservoir
Even one of those great ones
With rainbows in the park
I only need a little
To get me on my knees
Or lay my head flat
On your table made of trees
My cords rattle in my throat again
Ripple and double that perfect note again
And then for every holy breath that I have ever drawn in
My thanks and embraces to you
I lift my head up to you
I risk getting stung in your sight
Honey dripping toxin in your bite
But if you were to bite me
And you plant that perfect kiss
Knowing your love
What poison would I resist?
What poison would I resist?
Thank you for what's given
When I look into your face
My bowl grows bigger in that secret place
And you fill it up and then
I'm full again of heart
Melt away the margins
And we're not apart
y cords rattle in my throat again
Ripple and double that perfect note again
And then for every holy breath that I have ever drawn in
My thanks and embraces to you
I lift my head up to you
I risk getting stung in your sight
Honey dripping toxin in your bite
But if you were to bite me
And you plant that perfect kiss
Knowing your love
What poison would I resist?
What poison would I resist?
It's your love
And my lover's here
I'm the sand and stone
The brown river runs fat
I'm hiding under my hat
I'm never far from a laugh
Sometimes I do forget
I've got to face facts
And remember that I am snake-bit
Well, I remember when I last lay dying
Around my body ones I love
They planted and watered me
I grew up to be a pomegranate tree
And all who ate the seeds they loved until eternity
And my lover's here
Here with me
Well, I remember when I last lay dying
Around my body ones I love
They planted and watered me
I grew up to be a pomegranate tree
And all who ate my seeds they loved until eternity
And my lover's here
Here with me
about
Welcome!
In 2016, Ian Turner and I began work on a new collection of my songs. We cut basic tracks for 16 tunes. We completed 9 of them in 2017, and I released that collection as “Hey Day,” (available on Bandcamp, Spotify and all the other major streaming platforms). In late 2019, while I was living in Brazil and Ian was in Brooklyn, we began working remotely on the other 7 songs from those initial sessions. In May 2020, we completed them. This collection, titled “A Lamp in Your Heart” is the result. Each song on this album represents a different period of my songwriting life, and each reflects the ghosts of songs that were written, sung and forgotten along the way. I have written and recorded several albums' worth of songs since some of the ones here were written. And yet, I can say confidently that this collection represents the peak of my recorded work thus far. I am amazed anew at the power of the creative process.
'Spectre' was written before I even graduated from college in 2005. Since then, I have lived at least three lives: been married, divorced, had a full and thriving career as a performer in New York City, traveled the world, re-married, become a father, lost my father...and this song still rings true.
'Time, an Arrow Bent' was written on a beach in Mexico in 2012. At the time, I thought the last verse was about me, but since my father's death (from suicide), I've begun to see that it might be about him ("what befell this child/that he bruises so?") I am repeatedly grateful for the quantum nature of the artistic experience.
In 2013 I had the pleasure of teaching drums to the son of Diana Krall and Elvis Costello. Both parents were very warm and friendly, and one night, Mr. Costello took me as his guest to a variety show at Town Hall, which featured, among others, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. I have been a huge fan of Gillian's music for many years, but this was the first time I heard David take the lead. He sang 'I Hear Them All' and I was transfixed. I thought it was a Dylan tune -- it felt well-traveled, and I was sure it was older than David. Of course, it turned out to be his (co-written with Old Crow Medicine Show's Ketch Secor). I am over and over again moved by the power of this tune.
'Super Collider' was a 2014 attempt to rekindle a dying love affair, written at the entrance to New York's Central Park on a borrowed ukulele.
'Searchlights' was born of a late-night solo set in a Flatbush, Brooklyn bar in early 2016, and is dedicated to the holy muse, my longest-running darling.
'What Poison Would I Resist?' is another dedication to the transcendent power of divine love, particularly in Her destructive and renewing form. I wrote 'Poison' on my knees in front of my desk in my small Brooklyn apartment in 2013, just after returning from a month of solo travel in Japan.
Finally, 'My Lover's Here' is yet again an ode to the Divine Lover, written sitting beside the ruin of a several-hundred-year-old water mill in the middle of a nature preserve outside of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico in early 2015.
I bow my head and give thanks for the presence of the myriad magical musicians who supported the creation of this album. First and foremost, Mr. Ian Hafiz Turner (aka Rubycon), without whom these songs would still only exist as iPhone demos. He went above and beyond as a producer, engineer, instrumentalist and thorough collaborator across the whole record. The fact that he remains one of my closest friends 17 years after we met is one of the bright spots of my life, and I look forward to many more years of friendship and collaboration.
Eric Lane delivered glorious electric piano and synthesizer parts on many songs, including 'Time,' 'Super Collider,' 'What Poison' and 'My Lover's Here.' He also took the lead in producing 'Spectre.' He took the existing basic track, removed everything except the vocal, and built the song from the ground up. Working hand-in-hand with Lautaro Burgos (percussion) and Rubycon, a here-to-fore unknown sonic landscape emerged, in the midst of which sits a story of the unshakable sorrow of loss.
Alisha Neverson lends her glorious voice to 'Super Collider,' 'What Poison' and 'My Lover's Here.' We were nearly finished with the tracks, but something important was missing. We called Alisha, and she brought exactly what was needed. Powerful, clear, sensitive, full of grace and attitude, I thrill when I hear her sing.
J. Hoard shows up on this record (as he did on "Hey Day") and delivers crushing vocals on 'Super Collider.' He and Alisha are a dream-team of vocalists, and their contribution to this song helped create the stellar explosion suggested by the title.
'Searchlights' features a very special guest, my pal and songwriting hero Billy Jonas. His albums "Life So Far" and "Get Real" sit right at the top of my musical Mt. Olympus. One of his songs ('God is In') says "live in love and that's enough," which is the source of my line "my teacher told me 'live in love and that's enough' brother" -- which he ("my teacher") then harmonized with me on this song!!! What a gift from life.
I'm blessed to be a part of a very musical family, and many members contributed their time and talent to “A Lamp in Your Heart” as well. On 'Time,' the voices of my astounding wife Josefina Moreau Schiller and my sister-in-law Dora Moreau Stroeter play the part of the ghosts at sea in a thunderstorm. I recorded their parts in a small bathroom in their grandma's house in Brazil, and they managed to capture the wide expanse of a dark oceanic night.
Continuing with the family appearances, my mom, Clair Oaks (a frequent and beloved collaborator) is my duet partner on 'I Hear Them All.' Joining her on the chorus is my mother-in-law Gisela Moreau and cousin-in-law Celeste Antunes, and my dear friends, the ever-incredible Gaura Vani and Visvambar Sheth (aka The Juggernauts) and Ian Turner. If you listen closely, you will indeed hear them all.
Daniel Meron drew fire and life from Ian's little spinet piano, and you can warm yourself to his playing on 'Time,' 'I Hear Them All,' Searchlights' and 'What Poison.'
Bennett Miller plays bass. Really well. It is always a pleasure to tune in to the low end on 'Time,' 'What Poison' and 'My Lover's Here' and let it hold steady as the tunes unfold.
Maria Caribé created the beautiful cover. This was my first time working with her, and I’m so glad she was involved. Now, the album is good to look at and listen to.
I am donating 100% of all money I receive in sales for this and all my other releases on Bandcamp. I am committed to the creation of a world characterized by dignity in life and death for all beings. The intense disparity between that vision and our current reality compels me to direct my energy and resources toward uplifting the dignity of those who are oppressed. At this time, I am bringing attention to the following two groups:
1) Folk Arts Rajasthan/The Merasi: The Merasi are a people of Northwestern Rajasthan, India who have been master musicians for 40 generations and counting. They have also been oppressed incredibly, as they are part of the formerly-known-as Untouchable caste. I have spent time with them in their home in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, and also when they have been on tour in the US. I count several of their number personal friends, and I am pleased to be supporting them through my music at this time.
@folkartsraj on Instagram
2) The Yawanawa tribe, who live in the Amazon, in Acre, western Brazil. Along with many Indigenous populations, they are at tremendous risk at all times. This risk is amplified in the age of Covid-19. They have taken measures for their own safety, and are accepting donations which are being used to fortify and strengthen themselves, now and for the future. As they are stewards of the forest, their strength, health and vitality has a direct impact on the health of the planet and ALL her inhabitants. I have had the privilege and honor of spending time with them in one of their villages in the forest, as well as meeting members of the tribe for ceremonies in Europe over the last few years. @campanhacura on Instagram
It is an honor to support these dear people.
PLEASE ENJOY THIS MUSIC
Elijah Tucker
July 2, 2020
São Roque, Brazil
credits
released July 3, 2020
Tracks 1-4, 6, 7 Produced by Ian Hafiz Turner and Elijah Tucker
Track 5 Produced by Eric Lane, Lautaro Burgos and Ian Hafiz Turner
Recorder, Mixed and Mastered by Ian Hafiz Turner at Sounds Human NYC and Generous Music Studio, Brooklyn, NY
Additional recording by Elijah Tucker at Casa das Mangas and Sitio Maritaca, Bahia, Brazil
All songs by Elijah Tucker except Track 2, by David Rawlings and Ketch Secor
(c) 2020 Generous Music
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