Recordings

This was the first recording I ever played on. Recorded in Bloomington, IN in 1976. Stellar cast though all were unknowns then: 

• Produced by Mark Bingham
• Singer/Songwriter Bill Wilson
• Caroline Peyton of Screaming Gypsy Bandits fame
• Ken Aronoff – drums
• Randy Handley  – keyboards
• Jeff Foster – mandolin, guitar
• Steve Harlos – keyboards
• and others

This recording session was memorable for me because (besides being my first time in the studio) I had just come from hearing George Crumb’s “Voice of the Whale” performed and was intrigued by the seagull sounds in the cello part made by doing an artificial harmonic glissando. When they asked me to play some sound effects for Bill’s song “Lighthouse” I immediately thought of that. They liked it and had me record it over and over again. Never having done that before I quickly wore through the callous on my thumb and after the 6th or 7th take I had blood all over the strings. The sessions were also unusual for me in that they started at midnight and went on until 6:00 AM. Fortunately, there was a donut shop around the corner that took fresh cinnamon rolls out of the oven at 6:00. The line had already formed by the time I got there.

From Danny:

repast is a double CD. I spent about two years on it; it is a special project to commemorate turning sixty and being (more or less) in one piece. I have a huge supporting cast, and the music reflects my eclectic tastes: An original mandolin waltz, a Puerto Rican cuatro piece, Count Basie’s “Down for Double”, a solo ukulele rendition of “Something”, you name it. The one real departure for me on this album are the tracks featuring some good friends doing lead vocals. Thirty-two tracks; about an hour and forty three minutes of music. If “Guitarheel” was my magnum opus, this is a double. A very filling “meal”….Guaranteed.

Recorded at The Rubber Room Studio, Chapel Hill, NC

All lyrics and music written by Isaac Derr.
Isaac Derr, Vocals, Guitar
Sarah Derr, Vocals
John Heitzenrater, Tabla, Sarod, slide guitar, Organ
Rob Ladd, Drums
Robbie Link, Bass

I played on this album (released on vinyl) in 1981. It has recently been re-released on CD.

From the All About Jazz article:

“Num Dia Azul is a record that is very special to us. We were just kids when we made it in the early 1980’s– living like musical gypsies, touring the country and raising our first child. The record encapsulates this youthful spirit.”

Num Dia Azul is the first recording Minas has ever made. Orlando Haddad and Patricia King had just finished their degrees at University of North Carolina School of the Arts where Minas was established for a few years. Before they moved away, they decided to go into a studio in Greensboro, NC, and invite several musicians whom they had been doing gigs for the past few years, to cut several tracks.

Orlando and Patricia moved down to Brazil in 1981, where they lived and performed for two years, and released the album independently at the end of 1983. They pressed 1,000 copies, distributed 300, brought 100 with them when they moved back to the US, and the rest was lost in a fire at Orlando’s mother’s house. An edition of 500 cassettes was issued in Philadelphia in 1985, and the album has been out of print ever since.

Over the years Minas has received requests from all over the world regarding the album, specially for the vinyl. A German producer found it in a second hand store in Canada and licensed one of the songs for a compilation in Europe.

Num Dia Azul is consistently sought-after by collectors and is listed as “rare.” In an internet search the record was being offered on eBay for $175.

Acoustic Bass – Robbie Link (tracks: A2, B1, B3)
Drums – Bruce Martin (7) (tracks: B3), David Via (tracks: A2, B1), Manoel Monteiro (2) (tracks: B2)
Drums, Percussion – David Licht
Electric Bass – Greg Hyslop (tracks: A1, A3), Richard Marshall (9) (tracks: A4), Rick Heyman (tracks: B2)
Electric Guitar [Solo] – Greg Hyslop (tracks: A3)
Flute – Kofi Burbridge (tracks: A1), Ron Rudkin (tracks: A2, B1)
Guitar, Vocals, Producer, Liner Notes – Orlando Haddad
Percussion – Dennis Licht
Percussion [Batucada] – Manoel* (tracks: B2), Orlando* (tracks: B2)
Piano – Ron Rudkin (tracks: A2)
Piano, Vocals, Producer – Patricia King
Recorded By, Mixed By – Bob Kelly, Ron Schrank
Soprano Saxophone – Scott Adair (3) (tracks: B3)