This recording is a memoir of a time when I came of age in North Carolina beginning in the late 60’s. The first piece that I arranged for this collection was Al Green’s Let’s Stay Together, followed by Mama Tried by Merle Haggard, (I was introduced to this song by the Grateful Dead). Then came an adaptation of Floyd Cramer’s iconic roadhouse anthem, Last Date. Gradually more songs presented themselves as opportunities for exploration, and my guitar cultivated a patois of post-modern jazz blended with country chicken pickin’ and southern blues, wrapped up in an orchestral style that is a nod to the influence of pickers like Tommy Emmanuel, Duck Baker and Lenny Breau.

Most of the songs in this collection are in standard tuning with the low E string tuned to D, a tuning which offers a bounty of counterpoint fingerings and rich chord voicings. I originally encountered this approach in the work of Segovia and Barrios, and later got some notions of applying it to Travis style picking from Buster Jones and Dakota Dave Hull.

Eventually, after succumbing to an overdose of sunshine and Dolce Aqua while perched on the balcony of Luca Ghielmetti, a wonderful Italian tunesmith, I stumbled onto the idea that when you play in keys related to D using this tuning, a fat D chord’s arrival can be a very interesting musical moment. Take for example my version of John Lennon’s If I Fell For You, where the key changes between the verse and chorus, D flat major to D major.

There are also two original compositions featured here, (not in drop D tuning), that I co- wrote with James Buckley who is killin’ it on bass, and to whom I am grateful for the tremendous effort he put into this collaboration. Buckley has played in a wide variety of situations from straight ahead jazz to folk-Americana, funk, electronic noise and free improvisation, giving him fluency in diverse dialects and a fearlessness to roll with whatever tangent I may veer on to. This recording wouldn’t have happened without him.

The same goes for our recordist Steve Kaul, who brought his very special gifts for listening, dialing in the music, keeping us honest and making us sound way better than we deserve!

I want to give a shout out to Peter Finger for introducing me to his schnapps collection, as well as his support and commitment to so many, many guitarists. Peter has curated an important library of guitar music that will serve as a roadmap for future generations of acoustic shredders and I am proud to be part of this legacy.
-Tim Sparks

Tim Sparks plays a Charles Hoffman Koa Wood and Spruce Custom OM Cutaway.

James Buckley plays a Kolstein double bass.



“You may say that I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one” -John Lennon


This recording is an accumulation of tunes that have grown on me over the past couple of years. I’ve picked a few that hold a special charm for the way they blossomed on my guitar and flowered over time. With James on bass, it plays like a road trip across an American landscape scattered with broken hearts and dusty jukeboxes. We hope you enjoy the ride. -Tim Sparks