....All they want from you is your ears, and maybe to turn their dreams to careers.  But listen closely, the words quiver with fear, cause this could be the greatest thing that nobody ever hears.---Lyrics from "Smokey Cafe"

When I wrote the song "Smokey Cafe" several years ago in my son's playroom which we had jokingly dubbed "Playroom Studios", I wrote it while remembering my first dip into the deep end of the talented Philly music scene several years earlier and I was trying to capture the plight and struggle of artists trying desperately to get their art heard/seen/appreciated as time and circumstance try to close the window of opportunity.  At the same time, I was trying to pay homage to the fact that sometimes the greatest artistic music is often unheard by the vast majority of people, and some of the artists that have moved me the most are people that the majority of folks in this world may never hear.

Yet, when I wrote that song, I never expected it to be heard by thousands of people on the radio, featured in a critically acclaimed Indie Film ("The Graduates") and embraced by fans from all over the globe, and that fact still is humbling on so many levels and I have people like you (the reader of this wee little blog) to thank for where I have come musically speaking.)

Now, as I continue to keep pushing ahead, I, like so many indie artists all over the world must try to fund a record and release it to the masses on my own accord.

For those who know me well, I am also a proud husband and father of two lovely little children, and it is true what they say: Kids are very expensive and time consuming, and likewise, so is making great records.As anyone with kids knows, there is never enough hours in the day or money in the bank, but in those moments of madness often comes the sweetest of memories.

With this in mind, I am teaming up with the fine folks at feedthemuse.net to try to reach my goal of funding my upcoming "Tragic Figures EP" which I plan to record at Philadelphia's premiere recording studio MilkBoy Recording with the incredibly talented and MilkBoy brainchild Tommy Joyner, (whose discography includes Sharon Little, Gomez, Dave Matthews, Ashanti, Los Lobos, and Digable Planets)

There have also been serious conversations of bringing in the incomparable and Grammy Award Winning Songwriter Scot Sax to play on the EP as well who most recently travelled the country with CBS Recording Artist Sharon Little on a tour with one Robert Plant and Allison Krauss.  (Although we haven't fully defined Scot's involvement as of yet, your donations will certainly be helpful in making it from almost certain to "mos def")

With all that said, I have never been more excited about any project that I've ever planned and with your help, however small it may be, I know that we can meet the goal of $10,000 to pay for the studio musicians, the recordings, the mixing, mastering, pressing of the record, the travel expenses, the packaging, the promotion and all the things that must be done to get these new songs into your hands.

If you look at the donation scale, you will receive some rewards for your artistic good samaritan-ship and I humbly ask that you will help me reach this goal to make these songs that I wrote in my kids' playroom, songs that can be heard all over the world.  

I hope to have this record done by the fall, so the sooner we reach the goal, the sooner we can get it recorded and get it processed and get it in your hands.

Thank you, in advance, to friends, family, and perhaps those who I don't know personally who call themselves simply fans.  Your support means the world to me, and truly, this project can't get done without you....but if you are willing to donate a few of your hard earned dollars, I promise to deliver material that you can not only move to, but also something that moves you.

You all make up the fraternity of good souls in this mean old world.

--all the best--BR