This past Sunday I got together with Paul ‘Watty’ Watson for lunch at the cabin. After some homemade cider and hearty soup, we began to play through some Speckled Bird songs– Paul switching from cornet to classical guitar, to harmony vocal.
It brought back good memories. From 2001 to 2003 Paul and I performed regularly as a duo at old haunts like Betsy’s Coffeeshop and the original Chop Suey. Those years Paul not only supported me instrumentally, he took the time to give an early 20-something youngster advice on the craft of songwriting, lyricism, the blues, and introduced me to a new world of music which included Michael Hurley, Rainer Ptacek and Ron Sexsmith. For that I am forever grateful.
Before and during our collaboration I was a fan of the local groups he performed in: The Griefbirds, Broken Hips, Patrick Phelan, Them Against Them, Blasco Ballroom, One Ring Zero, not to mention Sparklehorse and the legendary Orthotonics.
The list goes on. He’s currently working on a solo album, and performs regularly in both New York and Richmond with Lynn Wright’s project: ‘And The Wiremen.’
I’m proud to have Paul playing with me again in the new incarnation of The Speckled Bird. We plan to take it slow, local, and laid back. I can’t wait to make some noise.
2008 at Chop Suey
