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DIG

by Nick Swan

supported by
Linda Bryant
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Linda Bryant Well done! We all should do our best to dig out a new future. This takes courage trying to find hope in these crazy times. I like the instrumentals as they represent that not just humans inhabit this world. So let us all dig and we can meet on the other side. Hopefully with a new outlook for us all...
Updated 2021 I believe this your very best work to date done through the hieghts of the pandemic. This is a keeper for sure. I am glad to have the CD. Favorite track: Dig.
Barbara G
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Gary Crow
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nycdawn
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Nick Swan
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David Miller
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1.
The Prowling Wolf 01:28
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2.
All We Have to Fear 04:13
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Now I lay me down to sleep Pray I'll have a soul to keep If I die before I wake Won't give up my soul to take No I'm not gonna give it away Though you come on like a sheep I see the wolf underneath You tell me not to live in fear But I can see through your veneer I'm not gonna give it away If you wanna die my darling Go volunteer No one's gonna give you the "all clear" You can wait til kingdom come Is almost near Maybe God above will disappear That's all we have to fear Tryin hard to catch my breath Walkin through the valley in the shadow of death Where am I to go from here? Maybe another atmosphere I just gotta get away If you wanna die my darling Go volunteer No one's gonna give you the "all clear" You can wait til kingdom come Is almost near Maybe God above will disappear That's all we have to fear
3.
The Black & White Cat 01:28
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4.
A Stranger 03:45
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Don't know where I'm going Or where I've been Don't know what the future holds If anything Somedays I'm up Somedays I'm down Starin at the sky From on the ground Watching the flag Be unfurled Feel like a stranger In this world I could turn around And walk away Or I could keep moving In the same way Walkin on a tightrope A face in the crowd Wishin their voices were as right As they are loud Hear the epithets As they're hurled Feel like a stranger In this world Does anybody out there? In this world? Feel like a stranger
5.
Swim On, Salmon 02:33
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6.
Everybody's Takin' 02:55
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Well I woke up this mornin Turned on the news People pointing fingers "It's not me, it's you" Well I got so disgusted Had to walk outside Looked at my neighbor He said, "This side is mine" People got their hands out "Gimme this, gimme that" Well, everybody's takin, but Nobody gives a damn Well I turned on my motor Went down the road Almost got hit by a Man on his phone I got pulled over By the police "Hand me your license" I said, "Officer, please" People got their hands out "Gimme this, gimme that" Well, everybody's takin, but Nobody gives a damn Well I went to a church Talked to a priest He said, "Pray for forgiveness" I said, "Mercy on me" Well the man on the corner said "Please spare some change" Well I'll give you some money But this world won't ever change People got their hands out "Gimme this, gimme that" Well, everybody's takin, but Nobody gives a damn
7.
Circles 03:59
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I can't run and I can't hide Nowhere to go; I just stay inside Watching shadows on the wall Counting footsteps in the hall Am I really here at all? Been runnin circles around my head Beatin horses long after they're dead Can't tell the beginning from the end Keep movin but I feel I'm going nowhere I can see, but I feel blind Darkness darkness, in my mind Always searching for a sign What I seek, I can't find Maybe it's somewhere down the line Been runnin circles around my head Beatin horses long after they're dead Can't tell the beginning from the end Keep movin but I feel I'm going nowhere
8.
The Black Mamba 04:11
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9.
No Direction 03:59
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There's no direction to follow To get me out of this place No magic pill to swallow To cure the human race No intelligent leader With a master plan No prophecy from a reader Who doesn't understand Fade In/Fade Out No direction to wander But the path in your mind No questions left to ponder No answers do I find No devil at the crossroads For whom to sell your soul So take the road less traveled It's time for us to go Fade In/Fade Out
10.
Bear's Jig & Reel 01:38
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11.
The Last Man 04:49
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I'm the last man left in this town I'm the last man left in this town I'm the last man left in this God-forsaken town And I won't leave til I'm dead in the ground You can call me Ishmael of this town You can call me Ishmael of this town Well it may not be my name, but it could be just the same Not a soul who knew it now remains Cause I'm the last man left in this town I'm the last man left in this town I'm the last man left in this God-forsaken town And I won't leave til I'm dead in the ground Well a plague it came and hit this town Said a plague it came and hit this town Oh the wrath of the plague left so many in their grave Now there ain't no body to be saved I don't know if I'll go to Heaven or Hell I don't know if I'll go to Heaven or Hell I don't know if I'll go way up there or down below But I'll know, sure nuff, when I go I'm the last man left in this town I'm the last man left in this town I'm the last man left in this God-forsaken town And I won't leave til I'm dead in the ground
12.
Down the Rabbit Hole 02:02
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13.
Dig 04:16
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Been living underground Feeling lost, but maybe someday I'll Want to be found Growing older everyday But at least there's still a way to grow Up and away Cause when life begins we're in the dark Nothing else happens without a spark And I'm beginning to see the light Well the gold may rust and the dust may shine Everything happens in its time And I'm beginning to find that I'm On my way back home Time to shed my skin I'm beginning to find my way out Waking up again I'm beginning to find my way out Of this hole I've been Digging in Feels good to breathe again Haven't felt like this since I don't know Where or When Like a branch upon a tree I can spread my love for all to see Like fallen leaves Cause the roots of love go deep within Deeper than hate, or any sin And I'm beginning to see the truth That the only thing that matters is How you love is how you live And I'm beginning to live anew On my way back in Time to shed my skin I'm beginning to find my way out Waking up again I'm beginning to find my way out Of this hole I've been Digging in
14.
Night of the Iguana 02:28
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15.
The Dawn Chorus 03:11
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16.
Whipoorwill Moon 01:46
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about

When one can't go out, one must go within. Dig deep. Dig out. Dig it?

This album features all original compositions written and recorded during the Spring and Summer of 2020, the Year of the Rat (Or bat? Nm...)

Like many musicians, I was forced off the road due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. I played my last gig on St. Patrick's Day weekend in Chicago to a packed crowd of drunk 20-somethings either oblivious or defiant to the oncoming reality of shutdowns and quarantine.

Initially, my focus, like most Americans', was on keeping safe and healthy. Once it became clear that we were in this for the "long haul," I settled in to a daily routine of reading some classic novels, watching old movies and generally just existing without the unwanted nuisance of being dead. Gradually, I began to relax and accept the situation for what it is - a chance to step back and reflect. Sometimes you don't realize how fast you're going and how tired you are until you stop. I needed this break - physically, mentally and spiritually.

Of course, these past few months have not just been a constant meditative state of bliss, either. Outside the world has been ready to combust on matters of race, economics and basic freedoms that we all took for granted. Over 170,000 Americans who started the year with us are gone due to this virus. An entire race has had to assert, yet again, that their lives matter. People refused to wear masks, or mask their opinions. The president has... well you know.

When the pandemic first started, I couldn't write anything. It was an overwhelming barrage of information and I just took it all in. The first thing I did, musically, was to record a tribute to two of my National guitar heroes, Chris Whitley and Rainer Ptacek. That was incredibly rewarding and I hoped that by doing it I could push my own music into a different direction. Over the next few months, that is what happened.

My greatest moments of happiness during this time have been when I've been outside or working on music, or both. This album and these songs reflect that. I played a lot of guitar outside, just listening to the birds and other sounds, soaking up the atmosphere and becoming a part of it. Many of the songs that came to me at first were instrumentals I composed while picking around outside. I've named all of them after animals. It's become a running meme to say that nature has reclaimed the world and that humans were the virus, but to a degree it's true. We're just a small part of this planet and taking the time to realize that isn't the worst thing that one could do in-between tweets...

There are seven songs on this album with lyrics. While not overtly political or specific, they all reflect the times we are in. I didn't want this to just be a "pandemic" album that would sound dated a year or two from now. The themes expressed are both of this time and eternal. That being said, I very much feel that all of these songs - instrumental and lyrical - are representative of this moment. I could have released just the songs with words as an EP, or just the instrumentals by themselves, but both felt like something was missing. Both are needed to tell the story and they compliment each other. This is not the kind of album that you blare while cruising down the interstate. It's more a "drive around the neighborhood" album, or better yet, a "put on at home with a nice kettle of tea" album...

Though this has been an isolating time - I didn't make this album alone. My longtime battery partner Rory Faciane contributed his always solid drumming on 5 tracks, recording remotely at his Drum Ninja studio in Mt. Juliet, TN. Brother Doug the Mug Swanson came over to the house to lay down some bass one day as we had a nice "socially distant" recording session/hang. He recommended his fellow Venice, CA, friend Mike Malone, who has played with former Black Crowes guitarist Marc Ford among others, to lay down some harp, and he added some badass playing to "Everybody's Takin." I put out the call for trumpet on Facebook, and multiple people recommended fellow Nashvillian Emmanuel Echem, who added just the soulful vibe I needed on "The Last Man." Finally, I reached out all the way to Australia to my new friend Grant Cummerford, who added a really nice melodic bassline to "A Stranger." Grant played on one of my favorite albums called "Dislocation Blues" by Australia's Jeff Lang and Chris Whitley. And the logo and artwork was done by my longtime friend from Knoxville, Jeremy Parker. So in a strange way I've done more collaboration on this album than any other that I've done.

A final note on this recording is that I have done all of the mixing and mastering myself. While I've always thought of myself as at least a decent mixer, who can make things "good enough" most of the time, for a release like this I'd normally hire a professional to bring it to the next level. But things being the way they are, I decided it wasn't really possible to sit next to an engineer for multiple days and hours at a time, and I didn't want to send it off to anyone and thus lose control over the process. So, for the first time in over a decade, I upgraded my computer recording set-up. Most of the album was recorded on a simple Zoom H6 personal recorder which is great for capturing live performances but not so great for editing. The edition of Pro Tools I've been using the past several years is very out of date and running on a 2002 Dell desktop that doesn't even have the internet. So I got a new laptop and the latest version of Pro Tools, which gave me access to a much greater degree of flexibility and options, especially with plug-ins. I also got a midi keyboard to experiment with adding different sounds to some of the tracks. This added over a month to the process but was so worth it. I've had so much fun learning more about mixing and experimenting that I didn't want to stop. But finally I had to reign myself in and let this be what it is. But I'm anxious to start the next one now...

So that's it. If you've read this far, you've probably already decided to buy the album. Or you're very, very bored. Either way, dig in...

credits

released September 4, 2020

Nick Swan - All guitars & vocals, keyboards, dulcimer, bass on 2, 6 & 9
Rory Faciane - All drums
Doug Mug Swanson - Bass on 11
Grant Cummerford - Bass on 4
Emmanuel Echem - Trumpet on 11
Mike Malone - Harmonica on 6

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Nick Swan Knoxville, Tennessee

Tennessee Troubadour. Playing a mix of America's best roots music, from blues & folk to classic rock & 90s grunge.

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