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HONEY ON MY GRAVE

ORDERING INFO | SONGS | MUSICIANS | INSPIRATION

ORDERING INFO

$15 + shipping

To order “Honey On My Grave,” click here.

SONGS

Click here for song lyrics.

  1. Honey on My Grave - click here for an mp3 sample
  2. I'm a Fool
  3. Ain't Misbehavin'
  4. One Love
  5. Caffeine
  6. Sweet Georgia Pines
  7. Ohio
  8. Hit The Road Jack
  9. Breathe Again
  10. Dreams   
  11. You Got To Move (duet with Pat Wictor)

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MUSICIANS

Matt Munisteri (guitar) - I met Matt when sitting in with Vince Giordano's Nighthawks, a big band specializing in early 1900's music. I was singing a Billie Holiday tune called “My Mother's Son-in-Law” and Matt was the regular guitar player for the band. As I began recording this CD, I felt more and more like a Dobro player and less like a guitar player.  Many of the tracks were recorded live (vocals and instruments at the same time) so I realized I needed a great guitar player. In came Matt.  I was so impressed by his ability to just show up and play on these songs he'd never heard before.  After listening back to the first two tracks, I decided to bring him back in for three more. www.mattmunisteri.com

Abbie and Matt. Photo by Mic Rains.

Peter Carr (banjo and vocals) - Pete is a long-time friend who started out as a closet picker.  Though I've known him since I was about 4, I don't think I knew he played banjo or sang until a few years ago. When I was just a kid I approached Ralph Stanley at a festival for an autograph addressed to Peter, because Pete was too shy and I didn't know enough to by shy around the legend!  Pete still has the autograph on his wall. His informal kitchen jam sessions taught me a lot about improvising in the bluegrass style. I just had to have his natural picking style and rough voice on this record.  “Sweet Georgia Pines” and “Ohio” were both recorded live in the studio, to get a bit of that kitchen band sound.


Peter Carr. Photo by Abbie Gardner. Pete and Abbie “back in the day.”

Laurie MacAllister (backing vocals) - Ah my Red Molly band mate and partner in music.  Laurie has always been supportive of my songwriting. We back each other up in Red Molly all the time, so collaborating on this record was natural for us. And it also reminded me how professional and talented she is.  Laurie took the rough tracks home and came up with great parts.  She learned my phrasing in “Caffeine” so well, it sounds like we're one person! Laurie also helped out with song choices and little tweaks to the music, lyrics, and artwork. www.lauriemacallister.com

Abbie and Laurie. Photo by Kathy Gardner.

Benny Rietveld (bass) - Benny has played with everyone from Miles Davis to Sheila E, and John Wayne Hooker to Wayne Shorter  and has been in Santana's band since 1990. Benny was gracious enough to lend his talents to the song “Breathe Again.” www.bennyworld.com

Benny on stage with Carlos Santana. Photo courtesy of bennyworld.com

Mic Rains (engineer) - Michael recorded Red Molly's EP and was a huge part of this solo recording.  Once I got hooked on the “live” thing, he was as excited as I was to re-record some tracks that didn't have the life I was after.  He nicknamed me “laser ears” during this recording. I dig that.  Mic is a great engineer who has also become a great friend.

Mic Rains. Photo by Abbie Gardner.

Pat Wictor (slide guitar and vocals) - Yeah, we slide players have to stick together!  Pat and I were looking for an excuse to collaborate on something and I happened to be making a record. So we picked out an old bluesy gospel tune and recorded it live, trading verses and lead parts. It was such a blast. We ended up recording Pat's stomping foot, as an added bonus.  Pat's doing his own mix of that recording for his next CD. Can't wait to hear it! www.patwictor.com

Pat Wictor. Photo by Jayne Toohey.

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INSPIRATION

“The Secret Life of Bees”

The title track was inspired by a book called “The Secret Life of Bees” by Sue Kidd.  It's not a literal translation of the book, but it got me thinking about death, about honey, about how maybe the hard part isn't dying, but living. This is one of the first songs I've written on Dobro.

“Ain't Misbehavin’”

You may wonder why I decided to record this one, since I recorded it on my jazz album “My Craziest Dream” in 2004. Well, after that recording I learned to play the song on guitar.  It completely changed the song and I felt more connected to it.  Then once I tried it on Dobro I was hooked! 

Genres

This album has a couple of jazz/blues tunes, a couple of bluegrass tunes and a few singer-songwriter tunes on it. When planning this record I considered making two different CDs, to keep the genres separated. But in the end, I felt very much that the mix of all these types of songs is who I am as a musician.  Just like the genes that were passed down from my parents- I learned to love jazz from my father and bluegrass from my mother.  My ears gravitate towards bluesy acoustic music. And my heart is filled with all these types of music combined.

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All contents© Abbie Gardner.