Label : Rob Mathes Music, Inc.
DISC 1: LONDON & NEW YORKCome With Me (A Short Cycle)
01 - Sweep The House Clean (Lyric from the poem "A Love Song" by William Carlos Williams)
02 - A Drinking Song (Lyric from the poem of the same name by William Butler Yeats)
03 - When You Are Old (Lyric from the poem of the same name by William Butler Yeats)
04 - A Tanka (Alone) (Rob Mathes)
05 - She's With Me (Rob Mathes)
Three Love Songs For Tamara
06 - The Rose, The Lily, The Sun, The Dove (Lyric from a poem by Heinrich Heine -Trans. Unknown)
07 - I Have Wondered (Phil Galdston & Rob Mathes)
08 - Embroidered Cloths (Lyric from the poem "He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven" by William Butler Yeats)
09 - Valentine's Day (Far Away) (Rob Mathes)
10 - This Winter (Rob Mathes)
11 - Sweep The House Clean (Trio) (Lyric from the poem "A Love Song" by William Carlos Williams)
DISC 2: NASHVILLE
01 - Nobody Told Me
02 - Mother Prelude
03 - Mother Of My Children
04 - Lullaby Prelude
05 - Lullaby
06 - Finally You Appear
07 - That I Can Do
Bonus Cut: MIAMI
08 - Want You, Miss You, Love You
This is private music, written for anniversaries and birthdays; on the whim rhapsodies if you will, all written for my wife Tamara with one exception. Sentimental but also descriptive of the weeds love gets lost in ("A Tanka (Alone)", "Valentine's Day (Far Away)", "This Winter"), these are love songs. "This Winter", the exception, was written for and loosely based on an e-mail by Vanessa Williams, who was going through a time in the weeds herself.
They were recorded with remarkable musicians at my favorite place in the universe, Abbey Road in St. John's Wood. Just Walking into Studio One Brings me to my knees.
The first disc is music recorded this year. The second disc is a series of songs and tiny preludes recorded in Nashville in 1998 & 1999. I Include the first orchestral song I Wrote for Tammy ("Want You, Miss You, Love You") recorded in Miami in 1996. I was just Beginning to write for orchestra but the song itself remains one of Tammy's favorites.
Some of these songs are settings of classic poems. I am not particularly strict when I Set Them. I go back to phrases repeatedly and beak up the lines. The poems will always be more powerful than any setting of them possibly could be.
Listen on a decent pair of speakers or headphones if you can; straight through from "Sweep The House Clean" to "Sweep The House Clean (Trio)" if you have the time. I recorded it both intimately and on a larger scale because of my love for W.C.W. and his words. I hope you find your time well spent.
One last thing: "Wichita Lineman" & "If These Walls Could Speak" are just two of Jimmy Webb's gems, two that, in particular, served as signposts for me, not to mention "The Moon's A Harsh Mistress". The fact that Jimmy took the time to listen to this music and write a liner note is humbling. His words about the music are way more gracious and kind than I Deserve.
DISC 1
Produced by Rob Mathes & Jan Folkson
Recorded & Mixed by Jan Folkson
ProTools Editing by Jan Folkson & Alex Venguer
Additional Engineering by Mark Mandelbaum at Legacy Recording, NY & Ben Wittman at Ben's Magic House of Mojo, Brooklyn, NY
Orchestra Recorded by Jonathan Allen at Abbey Road Studios, London, UK
Assisted by Stephen 'Scrap' Marshall
Additional Orchestral Recording by Simon Rhodes
All Music Preparation by Mike Castle & Lori Castle
Mixed by Jan Folkson at Times Square Recording, NY
Piano, Guitar & Vocals : Rob Mathes
Acoustic Bass on #04, #09 & #11 : David Finck
All Drums & Percussion : Ben Wittman
Loop on #1 Programmed by Shawn Pelton
Shakuhachi : David Weiss
Orchestra Contracted by Isobel Griffiths
Concertmaster : Jackie Shave & Gavyn Wright
String Quartest Contractor & 1st Violin : Sandra Park
DISC2
Produced by Rob Mathes
Programming by Jan Folkson
Recorded & Mixed by Ronnie Brookshire & Todd Robbins at The Tracking Room (Masterfonics), Nashville, TN & Mole End Studios, Franklin, TN
Orchestra Contracted by Carl Gorodetzsky
Concermaster : Pamela Sixfin
Drums on #06 : Shawn Pelton
Bass on #06 : Zev Katz
"Want You, Miss You, Love You" Recorded & Mixed by Rob Eaton at Criteria in Miami, FL & Right Track Recording, NY
Contractor & Concertmaster : Alfredo Oliva
Solo Trumpet : Jeff Kievit