I grew up in Chicago in the 1970s, an only child to a single mother so
I often entertained myself by creating action figure mini-epics complete
with dramatic soundtracks and sound effects. Classical music was also
big in our house and I wanted to learn the piano, but because of the size
and expense, my mom suggested I try the violin instead. I took a group
class at the music conservatory but all of my classmates were 3 to 6 years
old and I was the oldest at 10 so it was more alienating than fun.
Intoxicated by stories of Franz List (the ones where women would faint
during his piano recitals), I still wanted to play the piano. Eventually,
my mom bought me a beautiful mahogany upright piano. By that time though,
I was more interested in writing love songs to pretty girls than actually
practicing so I never advanced beyond a certain level. I also keep secret
most of those songs for more than a decade. Starting at the end of my
teens, my good friend Ethan Stoller and I would often improvise songs
in his basement. He'd strum a few simple chords and I would sing what
ever came into my head. A few of my best songs were born during these
late night sessions, and I refined them over time.
Music took a back seat during college as I studied film at NYU. But new
love-affairs still inspired the occasional song and I wrote many during
this time. In an attempt to marry my love of filmmaking and music making,
I wrote and starred in a short film about a mediocre street musician who
contemplates calling it quits. I was proud of the film but it wasn't well
received beyond my circle of friends and I put aside for the time being
most of my creative aspirations. For the next few years I worked treacherous
hours in the film industry with little time for anything else. I also
had my own internet company but it went belly-up after only 2 years, well
before I could take advantage of any IPO mania.
By my 30th birthday, I was stuck in a boring yet lucrative office job
longing for another life. The 9/11 tragedy shook me from my comfortably
numb state and I began to rekindle my childhood love-affair with music
starting with a solo concert of silly love songs in May of 2002 and an
album's worth of silly love songs completed in December of 2004.
This album has been a labor of love. Some of the songs have been with
me for almost 20 years. While it took far too long and cost far too much,
I feel very lucky, especially for the chance to have worked with so many
talented people. I'm very proud of the results and I hope you like it.
