My friends Amy Chen and Chris Fan are getting married this weekend in the San Francisco Bay Area. Back in October, when I was in Berkeley for Rum & Rebellion's mini-Bay Area tour, Chris asked me to be a part of the wedding. Of course I was honored and said I would. Not long after, he asked specifically that I, and their friend Billie, perform the song for the young married couple's first dance. It would be "The Rainbow Connection," the beautiful tune that opens the Muppet Movie. Remember Kermit, sitting on a log with his banjo -- that one. I've know Chris and Amy since 2001 when we were all interns at Mother Jones magazine. They have since left journalism -- him for academia and her for a career in law. But I was present in the cave -- the sunless room at Mother Jones where most of the interns were more or less stored -- when the couple first met. Fast forward to March 2007. At the tail end of recording what will some day be Rum & Rebellion's second album, I recorded "The Rainbow Connection." "Just in case something comes up and I can't make it," was the reasoning behind the recording. I also thought it'd make a cool gift. Funny -- Paul was actually in Salinas, in the room, when we recorded the song. So here it is. My dear friend, Scott "maestro" McDonald recorded and produced this track. He did a great job mixing the guitar tones (reminds me of Tom Waits' "I Don't Wanna' Grow Up") and devised this ingenious way to record the bass. I chose to mumble the lyrics on purpose because I wanted to give the song a darker tone that reflects the lyrical content (which is kind of twisted, if you ask me). Since I can't do it in person, we'll just do this via the web.
felicidades chris y amy.
rainbo_connection2.mp3
(P.S. 3:32 p.m. Still figuring out how to get the MP3 posted or linked or whatever)
(P.P.S. 4:04 p.m. My brother Richard figured it out in about two minutes. thanks richard!)
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3 comments:
Dude, we loved the track so much. It's one of the most amazing things we've ever received. Something about your rendition is particularly special, though. It's dark, yes, but airy and somehow hopeful. I can tell ya, I wasn't just grateful for the recording, I was impressed. =)
oh Kermy!
i love it george.
@Chris Fan & Amy Chen: please update your address for Megan, Eliot, & Theo. This is the 2nd year we have received your holiday postcard to them.
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