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"I knew pretty much as soon as we all started playing together
that it was going to be the record that I'd been waiting to make
for so long".
Kirk Swan's debut CD It's About Time has
been a long time coming but worth the wait for Kirk's devoted
following and a worthy introduction for those new to his stunningly
diverse guitar work and probing songwriting style. In his guitar
playing you're reminded of the precision and feeling of Richard
Thompson or the soaring electric abandon of Big Star one moment
and then the sparse, sparkling tones of Tom Petty's "Wildflowers"
or Steve Earle's "El Corazon" the next. His songs search for a
greater understanding of the dark and lonely side of the soul
like his contemporary Paul Kelly or the legendary Townes Van Zandt.
"We went for the take that had the right feel and groove. All
the decisions were done on a gut level. It just felt good right
from the start."
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It's About Time has been brewing since his final
days in the seminal Boston band Dumptruck which he co-founded
with Seth Tiven in 1983. The band released two critically acclaimed
melodic pop albums, D is For Dumptruck, and Positively
Dumptruck before Kirk packed his bags and guitars for sunny
Los Angeles. He briefly fronted Boo Radley (not to be confused
with the British-based Boo Radleys), with some L.A. mainstays
before taking some time to concentrate on his guitar playing and
session work. "It wasn't really until after Dumptruck that I started
being a guitar player", interesting words coming from a man with
such an influential sound. His guitar style was an inspiration
for pop-minded college kids who were tiring of formless punk rock
bands that were de rigueur for the day.
It was after Boo Radley broke up in 1991 that Kirk was called
upon by Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate fame to add his distinctive
guitar style to Steve's second solo record, Dazzling Display
which also included cameo appearances by notables such as Peter
Buck of R.E.M, Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde, Howe Gelb
of Giant Sand and Chris Cacavas, formerly of Green on Red.
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Through the next 7 years Kirk honed his songwriting skills and
played acoustic shows around L.A. in between recording and touring
with longtime friends like Russ Tolman of True West. Kirk laid
down some fine country licks on Russ' 1994 album Sweet Spot
followed by a European tour in support of that recording as well
as backing fellow Blue Rose recording artist Steve Wynn
on his marathon 1998 tour of Europe in support of Sweetness
and Light. It was on this tour that the plans were laid for
It's About Time and Steve was asked to produce this long awaited
solo album. Steve's drummer Linda Pitmon was recruited for the
project as well and upon returning from 5 months on the road,
the 3 friends decided to hole themselves up in an old firehouse
in Brooklyn with famed engineer Adam "Red" Lasus and ace NYC bass
player Scott Yoder to start recording this stark masterpiece.
When asked about the personal nature and underlying themes of
these songs Kirk responded, "I always wrote rather introspectively,
probably even more so in Dumptruck when my songs were a little
more raw lyrically and a bit more limited in scope also. Some
of these songs like "One More Time" and "Goodbye"
are from things that happened in my life but most of them are
extensions of imagined ideas. Time, fear, loss and loneliness
tend to be prevailing themes. I don't feel these things constantly
but no matter how happy or well-adjusted you might be it's through
recognizing and dealing with these issues that personal growth
is allowed to thrive."
And now, it's about time to settle in for your first listen of
Kirk Swan's long awaited debut album.
IT'S ABOUT TIME.
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