Ken's latest cd release, Breaking the Glass

1. Annie 2. Moment by Moment 3. Fly Away 4. I Oughta Know 5. Shout 6. Holiday/Belly of the Beast 7. Mama Don't Worry 8. Another Day

Ken Selcer - guitars, slide guitar, lead vocals Mark Shilansky - piano, organ on #6 Lou Ulrich - bass Chris Billias - Hammond organ Larry Finn - drums Eguie Castrillo - congas, percussion Billy Novick - horns Tim Kelly - lap steel Jill Stein, Felicia Brady, Lauren Wool, Marlene Tholl, Mark Shilansky, Andy Solberg, Noah Rohrer, Ken Selcer - backing vocals. • Engineered by Huck Bennert and Ken Selcer Mixed by Huck Bennert • Recorded at Wellspring Sound(Acton, MA), Jill's house(Lexington, MA), and piano at Ben Schwendender's house(Jamaica Plain, MA). Recorded and mixed 2001-2005 Šp2002 BMI - Ken Selcer

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Some song descriptions - more to follow

Mama Don't Worry

I wrote this song when I was 19 or 20. My memory's a little fuzzy on this. I was in a band(Canyon Sparrow) that played this song. It was a "cult" favorite. People really loved this one. I guess it was the absurdity in it. And of course the uptempo and catchy beat. I recorded it in 1980 or so. It got a little airplay on the novelty shows in the Boston area. When I re-recorded this song for this CD, my friend Felicia Brady said she wanted to sing on it. I said sure thing. She then pointed out to me that it was Texas swing with some off the wall lyrics and delivery. Since she's from Texas, she brought just the right touch to the song, essentially completing it. My lead solo is some of the fastest playing I've done. Coherent and melodic too. Check it out!

Annie

Annie is a song that I wrote using a riff as the basis. I also wanted a uptempo song with a funky rhythm(guitar and the rest) and a chorus that hooks you in. It's based on some experiences of mine, but as in most of my writing there is fiction mixed in with the autobiographical. The song is basically about the frustrations of a relationship, wanting to get away from it all, trying to transcend everyday experience, and trying to talk someone into seeing my vision of what's possible(chorus). And everything under the sun too. Look for my technique of variations on a theme in each bridge part: "Find me a piece of land," "Find me a big old house," etc. And "song and fortitude," "air and solitude," etc. A good all around song.

Holiday/Belly of the Beast

One of the few songs I've written with sarcasm in it. Wanted to express my view of being with folks who have an inability to think about what they are doing. Or should I say that have little awareness of what they are doing, saying or thinking. And I, of course, have a tendency to lose myself in what's going on with these others. Hence the chorus "I gave my love away. It's a Holiday." The la la la part brings out the sarcasm even more, along with the chromatic lines of some of the chord changes. The jam in Belly of the Beast was a live jam - drums, bass, guitar and keys. Very cool. Everything else was overdubbed: vocals including "Peacock" vocals from Marlene Tholl, the slide guitars, and the incidental percussion. Belly of the Beast refers to our living our lives in these confusing, chaotic and dangerous times. This is the Beast. We're in the Belly.