Midwinter Blues

 I recently finished a demo of a new song that just might be the title track of my next project. 

    It's a straight ahead Blues number, a genre I don't write in very often. In fact, I only have a few Blues songs, with most of them falling in the "country Blues" category. It's possible the reason I have revisited this form is related to spending more time upping my game as a guitar player, in particular honing my guitar solos and improvisation. It's been said that no two guitarists play the Blues the same, and I think there's some profound truth in that. It's a very personal style, even when I try to emulate one of my heroes. The opportunity for personal expression is available with every note, with the aspiration to evolve a signature style all your own. The simple fact is that I could easily spend all my time exploring traditional and contemporary Blues styles, there is that much to learn. It would be time well spent.

BB King     

    A friend once had an original BB King record, probably released in the 50s, and when I heard it everything I knew about the Blues took on new meaning. Prior to that, I had heard "The Thrill is Gone" but not too much else. These recordings were not so polished. The feeling I got was the musicians were expressing their passion without reservation and the raw emotion came through loud and clear.

    The Blues are a uniquely American invention, a genre that came from the deep South and is a reflection of the African American experience.  There is a thread that goes from today's rap and hip hop right back to the Blues artists from the early 1900s. It's a telling of stories from a unique tradition, one that shows the spirit as well as the pain. 

    The Blues are the foundation for all the genres that followed; Chuck Berry's rock and roll was Blues based, and the Rolling Stones were a band that paid homage to the American Blues artists they admired. You hear the Blues in everything from Beatles to Beach Boys to Beyonce. 

     "Workin' On It" was inspired by the title, with the rest flowing from there. With it I explore well established themes; a hard life and lost love as well as a sense of hope with a touch of the spiritual. It's the first track I've done in my new studio space and was a fun shakedown of the setup. One of the cool things on the track is the sparkling guitar work of Gary Dunsmoor and I appreciate the collaboration along with Paul Sandberg who mastered the track.

"Workin' On It" is available on Soundcloud. 

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA

Singer/Songwriter Rick Millward lived and worked on the West Coast until moving to Nashville in 2000. He was part of the Music City songwriter community, collaborating with other artists and producing projects in his boutique studio, including two EMMY nominated soundtracks. Now in Southern Oregon, Rick has discovered a vibrant local music scene centered around the many tasting rooms. 

His records: "Limited Edition", "Home for Good", and “Loveland” are available on Spotify and other streaming platforms. His new recordings, "Astronomy", will be released later this year.

LOVELAND ON SPOTIFY