-
My Baby Girl 0:350:00/0:35
-
Crooked Ways 2:570:00/2:57
-
Heart of Stone 3:400:00/3:40
-
A Year To Forget 3:230:00/3:23
My Baby Girl
Ready, Set, Go! Every evening when I came home from work, my daughter would be waiting across the room for me to come through the door. I would take a knee and say “ready, set, go!” Grinning ear to ear, she’d run full speed across the room with her little bare feet pattering on the tile floor, and jump into my waiting arms - almost knocking me over every time! The best welcome home ever!
Now she’s a grown woman, and this year we married her off to a wonderful man. It has been a time of letting go and expressing to her all that she means to me.
This song captures my delight in her and how proud I am of her. And even though I treasure those little princess days, I’m inspired by the woman she’s become; her fearless ambition, her vibrant spirit, her beauty, and her grace.
So go conquer the world, my baby girl. You have everything it takes!
hōd
My childhood nickname. My annoying older brother made it up out of thin air. I despised it as a kid: Hode, Hody, Hodell, Hode the Toad. I mean...ugh! It didn’t seem to let up and dang if it didn’t catch on among my family and close friends. It took forever to outgrow, even though I’ve heard there are still a few folks out there who refer to me as Hode.
Fast forward to now. Here I am, 57 years old, and looking for a short brand name to use for releasing some of my own personal music. I look up the meaning of the name “Hode” and it means “to ordain; consecrate; admit to a religious order.” Well then, let’s use it...if we can get it! Turns out, it’s available! So here we go...
I’ve been a music business professional for over 35 years. As a producer and songwriter, I’m always working with and for other artists. I love it! I wake up and make music. Like they say, I feel like I’ve never worked a day in my life!
I have recently been processing a long and difficult season, like so many have. I just do a lot of my processing at the piano. I have a beautiful baby grand in my living room that a friend of mine is letting me caretake, so that’s where I’ve been. With my wife working full time, and our 4 kids pretty much out of the nest, I’ve had a lot of quiet time to sit and create whatever comes out of me with no real agenda.
photo by Haydin Olivia Photography
I decided that I would start recording some of these songs by myself. Just me and a piano. I’m known for my overproduction, so it's a challenge to rely only on pianos and my voice. There are no limits to how many pianos or vocal tracks I want to create. There’s great freedom in that. I can manipulate the sounds any way I want. I don’t have to answer to anybody. I don’t have to be cool, and as a bonus, it costs me virtually nothing to create and put my songs out there.
So over the next season, I’ll be releasing some original tunes that I’m super proud of. I‘m pulling from six decades of music, so you’ll hear the music that influenced me throughout my lifetime. From my musical sandbox to yours - I hope you’ll hear something you enjoy or find meaningful.