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"ABOUT NOW"
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Friends:
If you've found your way to this page, there's a good chance that you either already have heard or are interested in hearing my CD, "about now." Thanks so much for that.
Preserving this material, some of which is not often recorded or, as with "My Dreams of You Keep Me Awake" has never been, has been a unique experience. The rewards of collaborating with extraordinary talents such as Mark Timko, Tom DiMartino, Jamie DiMartino and Emily Smith to produce these interpretations are beyond description. I am particularly proud to be able to record songs by my friends Brian Gari and David Lips.
I am deeply indebted to Michael Graham at The Lodge Studios. Michael maintained a steady and encouraging hand throughout the process to help keep my vision for this album intact. He is responsible for the incredible sound we were able to produce. Anyone who takes on a project of this scope needs Michael or someone like him.
Why the title? Songwriters write about circumstances and feelings experienced "then," when they composed the song. The singer's job is twofold: to know what "then" was all about and to convey a present-day urgency from within our own heart and mind. I've tried my best to communicate the meaning of the original work and yet truly make this album "about now."
What follows are stories about the songs, how they came to be included on this disc and what they mean to me. I hope you have as much fun listening as we did creating.
Roger Schmelzer
September, 2008
1. Concentrate on One Thing At a Time
(Jerry Bresler & Lynn Duddy)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Among other things, Bresler and Duddy scripted nightclub acts for Robert Goulet in the 1960s , including this song recorded from the 1963 Goulet album, In Person. I first heard it as a boy and had forgotten about it until one day I found a CD reissue of the album. I first saw Robert Goulet from the first row of Starlight Musicals in Indianapolis when I was nine. I never forgot it. In 2005 I finally saw him again on Broadway. I shook his hand when he came out of the Marquis Theater following his performance in La Cage and mumbled something about having last seen him " almost 40 years ago." Never use that as an opening line to any conversation!
The Goulet most people think they know from The Naked Gun, Beetlejuice and Will Ferrell imitations is nothing like the Goulet of the 1960s who won Tony, Emmy and Grammy awards. To see him in his prime, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQMhuH5DutA
2. Bewitched
(Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Synth: Mark Timko
Arrangement: Roger Schmelzer and Mark Timko
Wordy, intelligent songs always appeal to me and this is one of the best, a timeless jazz standard from Pal Joey, the last great success from the team of Rodgers and Hart. Vivienne Segal virtually made a career of this song; she introduced it in the original 1940 stage version of the show, performed it again in the 1952 Broadway revival and in between enjoyed a #1 hit record with it in July, 1950 (Rita Hayworth sang it in the 1957 film starring Frank Sinatra). It's been described as an "unabashed celebration of feminine sexuality," but that hasn't stopped the guys from singing it--it was of course a prominent staple of the Sinatra repitoire. For me, it feels best as a sweet, private and bittersweet remembrance.
3. Old Friend (From the Broadway Production "I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking it On the Road")
(Gretchen Cryer and Nancy Ford)
Piano and Synth: Mark Timko
Drums and Percussion: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Arrangement: Roger Schmelzer
Ms Cryer and Ms Ford wrote this song for their 1970s musical I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking it on the Road. It was originally written for a woman to sing about her male confidant. I first became familiar with it during a particularly challenging time in my life. Fortunately, I had such an "old friend" on whom I could rely. I still do and I think of Adrienne every time I hear or perform this song. The trio was especially inspired on this track.
4. Bring My Love Back to Me/A Kiss For Each Moment
(David Lips)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Synth: David Lips and Mark Timko
Background Vocals: Emily Smith
Arrangement: David Lips, Roger Schmelzer and Mark Timko
David Lips and I crossed paths in a way quite unrelated to music but discovered our mutual interest. About two years after our first meeting and after having no contact at all, I received a demo CD in the mail from David. These songs weren't even on it, but through our collaboration, David introduced them to me. Like all of his songs, "Bring My Love Back to Me" lays its emotions on the line simply and disarmingly. What grabbed my attention was the lyric "She'll shed a tear/I'll shed two." Classic David. When David later showed me "A Kiss For Each Moment," I eventually heard it as a companion to "Bring My Love Back to Me" -conveying the deeper feeling that once your love is restored you want to make up for lost time. While this isn't exactly a medley, we wanted to put them together more or less seamlessly on the disc to put across this range of emotion. David gives so much of himself to every note and every word. I am very grateful to him for allowing me to interpret his music and for his personal commitment to this project that helped make it a success.
5. Old Movies (Featuring Emily Smith)
(Craig Carnelia)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Finger snaps: Chris Robinson
Additional vocals: Emily Smith
Growing up, I couldn't wait to see the afternoon movie that aired right after I got home from school and today I love nothing more than a night with TCM. Carnelia is so sharp in his use of the names that relate us back to the plots of these great films. It sure brings back memories. I wonder who'll be in the 2025 version of the song? Emily Smith does a terrific job helping to communicate my enthusiasm for these films.
6. You're an Education
(Harry Warren and Al Dubin)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Written in 1938 by three-time Oscar winner Harry Warren and Al Dubin, Michael Feinstein included this "chestnut"on one of his early albums. While not well-known, Harry Warren was one the most popular composers of the 20th Century with more songs on Your Hit Parade than even Irving Berlin. This is by far not the most famous song he ever wrote ("You're Getting to Be a Habit with Me," "I Only Have Eyes For You," and "We're in the Money," only a small sample of his catalogue, are true American standards), but it's the one that stirred my curiosity about traditional American popular music and present day songwriters who are also not famous but share a similar sensibility. "You're an Education" is a clever and romantic song (lyrics like "There are poems and romances/in the glamour of your glances" just don't come around every day) with a charming melody. I have yet to meet a person who's heard it before I've either played it or sang it for them. How many more of these forgotten gems are out there? As it turns out, a whole bunch. It's a thrill for me to present it here. For more on Harry Warren, there's a chapter devoted to him in Feinstein's 1995 book, Nice Work If You Can Get It: My Life in Rhythm and Rhyme.
7. Those Who Want the Best (Duet with Emily Smith)
(From the Off-Broadway Production "A Hard Time to be Single")
(Brian Gari)
Piano and Synth: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Arrangement: Brian Gari
My first contact with Brian Gari was in 1996 when, based on a single telephone conversation, he generously sent me the lead sheet to an unpublished song of his. I eventually directed a cabaret show with his songs as the centerpiece and he later came to encourage me to undertake this recording. I admire greatly the way Brian melds contemporary pop influences (Jimmy Webb, Brian Wilson, Rupert Holmes among them) with an earlier time in American entertainment when his grandfather Eddie Cantor was the biggest star in the country. He's devoted a great deal of his life to honoring the talents of these great artists while establishing a sound that is uniquely his own (the goal of anyone who has ever opened their mouth on stage). I have always admired this song because it sums up how we all feel or have felt, but avoids any hint of depression. Emily Smith and I do it as a duet similar to the way Brian produced it for his off-Broadway revue A Hard Time to Be Single.
8. You'll Never Know
(David Lips)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Synth: David Lips
Arrangement: David Lips, Roger Schmelzer and Mark Timko
Ever run into an old love who still does it for you but has moved on? This song says it all and then some. In this tune and its lyrics, David captures precisely the bittersweet feeling you get in your gut; the balance between "I'll show you" and the loss of what we think could have been. We recorded it as a smooth jazz piece that makes it even more poignant.
9. My Dreams of You Keep Me Awake
(David Lips)
Piano and Synth: David Lips
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Arrangement: David Lips
David brought me this song late in our recording process and I immediately took to it. The juxtaposition of dreaming and being unable to sleep appealed to me as did the sweet sentiment. As a singer, being able to dictate the tempo of the song in places provides a unique opportunity to set the mood. It's one of David's best compositions. I was fortunate to have three talented accompanists on this project and am especially delighted that David was at the piano for this one.
10. Nice 'n Easy
(Alan & Marilyn Bergman and Lew Spence)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Frank Sinatra first recorded Nice 'n Easy in 1960 and it became the title song one of his final albums for Capitol Records. With its swing style, it's not usually thought of as a love song, but it is; a testament to how simple it can be to find yourself "in love" if you just kick back and enjoy the journey instead of focusing on a destination. The trio is at their finest on this recording which is funny because we hadn't even intended to do it. We were in the middle of a difficult session and looking for something we knew to help ease the tension. I remembered we had done this song several months previously. Amazingly, Mark still had the music in his car. All told, I think it took us about 25 minutes from when Mark retrieved the music until we'd laid down the tracks.
11. Only One Person's Opinion (From the Off-Broadway Production "A Hard Time to be Single")
(Brian Gari)
Piano: Mark Timko
Arrangement: Brian Gari and Roger Schmelzer
This song has always resonated with me as great advice to pass on to your children. This was confirmed for me when Brian explained that he wrote it about the comfort his father gave him after Brian's Broadway musical Late Nite Comic had received a particularly rough review. Jana Robbins does a terrific version so haunting that it was the only way I could imagine the song could or should be performed. Brian was open to my ideas for arranging it so it would be unique to me. Mark Timko brought it to life with his sensitive piano interpretation. It's a little low for me, but I decided not to change it because I thought it lent itself to phrasings and intonations present in a private conversation with a child. This song is for my sons Drew and Scott because it is the best thing I could ever tell them.
12. Sweet Words Don't Scare My Lady (From the Off-Broadway Production "A Hard Time to be Single")
(Brian Gari)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Background Vocals: Emily Smith
Arrangement: Brian Gari and Roger Schmelzer
Vocals Arranged by Emily Smith and Michael Graham
Reading a magazine in a waiting room I came across the quote, "I used to spoil my woman with jewelry, but now what she really wants is sweet words." Now what exactly does that mean? This song is completely different from anything else on the disc, filled with pop hooks and a 1960s-era energy. But if you listen closely to the lyrics, you will hear that a suggestive subtext that belies the bouncy feel of the song. After all, why would sweet words ever scare any lady? Emily Smith joins me once again.
13. Someone There (Featuring Mark Timko)
(David Lips)
Piano: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
Synth: David Lips
Arrangement: David Lips and Mark Timko
This was the song from David's demo that I played over and over. The melody is very reminiscent of the songs to which I was listening in 1979, the year it was written and the year I graduated from college. You should know that the extraordinary Mark Timko, off the top of his head, added the piano riff that introduces the song. We loved it so much we decided to leave it in.
14. This Guy's in Love With You
(Burt Bacharach and Hal David)
Synth: Jeff Olmsted
Arrangement: Roger Schmelzer
Herb Alpert was primarily known for playing trumpet as leader of the Tijuana Brass, not for his vocals, but this was actually his first number one record (he's also the only artist who has scored number ones for both a vocal and an instrumental). I loved Herb Alpert and wanted to play the trumpet because of him. Unfortunately they had too many 5th grade brass players at Moorhead Elementary School in Indianapolis and I had a wicked overbite so they moved me to clarinet (which I hated and dropped after one semester). I worked with Brian Gari's long time collaborator, Jeff Olmsted to create this version which is upbeat and playful without sacrificing the softness of the original. Take a trip in the Wayback Machine to see Heb Alpert's original rendition of the song on a 1960s Tijuana Brass at www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqmhXmTsCpw
15. Fallin' (From the Broadway Production "They're Playing Our Song")
(Marvin Hamlisch and Carol Bayer Sager)
Piano and Synth: Mark Timko
Drums: Tom DiMartino
Bass: James DiMartino
When They're Playing Our Song opened on Feb 11, 1979 at the Imperial Theatre in New York, this was the first song audiences heard. Starring Robert Klein and Lucie Arnaz with a book by Neil Simon and score by Hamlisch and Bayer Sager, the show went on to run 1082 performances but is barely produced today. It was a minimalist period on Broadway, so this show not only had only two cast members but a very compact score. Nevertheless, almost every song was a winner, even if they are seldom performed or recorded today. It's a shame that this song doesn't receive more attention because everyone has probably felt like they were-"lovin' someone/losin' myself/I've only got me to blame."
I thought I understood this number until I sang it for Lina Koutrakas and Rick Jensen. By the time they were done with me, I had a whole new perspective on how to present this song. Love is such a desperate tradeoff; we entrust your very essence to the care of someone with their own hopes and dreams and we think they can help us realize our highest aspirations for happiness just as they expect the same from us. Is it better to plunge in without guile or are we better-served to keep our emotions and our hearts in check? It's an age-old, unanswerable question to which we will forever seek clues until the day we can assure ourselves it's okay to stop asking.
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