Early in 2018, I read an interview with Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones. At age 72, he had recently overcome an aggressive cancer, his girlfriend gave birth to twins; he had an art gallery showing of his paintings, wrote a book, and was about to head out on tour with the Stones. When asked how he copes with this-that-and-the-other, his response was: “I just let it all go, man. Just let it flow…let it all go.”—A seeming cliché that never the less spoke to me like hearing it for the first time.

The exploration of “letting go” became the heart and inspiration of this album, and touching back into the lyrics continues to be my polestar in this world of madness. “Inner Light” is offered in gratitude to the Music Muse. God may very well be a sadistic tyrant, but the Muse is an independent spirit and does as she pleases. She laughs at his folly, and any time I turn to her, she comes. Thank Dog for music, the only sanity.

Special thanks to my buddy, Nelson, for his inspiration and keyboard performance on “Black Belt.” Nelson IS the black belt.