Old Bunch of Keys

Old Bunch of Keys
Item #: 1521
 
John Specker
 
Song List:
1. Lee Highway 2:59
2. Alligator Man 3:18
3. Cooley's Reel 3:46
4. Fiddler's Dram 3:43
5. Fisher's Hornpipe 1:55
6. Let Me Fall 3:30
7. Forked Deer 3:14
8. Jack O' Diamonds 3:40
9. Lark in the Morning 3:22
10. Louisville Burglar 3:56
11. Old Bunch of Keys 3:52
12. Same Old Man 3:13
13. Dusty Miller 2:36
14. Dance All Night 3:09
15. Musical Priest 2:35
16. John Hardy 4:31
17. Bonaparte's Retreat 3:12
18. Ring of Fire 3:22
19. Brilliancy Melody 4:17
20. Susanna Gal 3:42
21. The Morning Dew 3:15


Appearing on this recording:
    John Specker - Fiddle
Liner Notes:
RIGHT IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD

I've been in the record and TV business close to fifty years. Worked with some great orchestras and instrumentalists (Bernstein, Stravinsky, Mancini, etc.) all around the Western world and it's always been about cities. Cities, studios, concert halls. Carnegie, Abbey Road, Symphony Hall.

A few years back, (ten), I had had it with cities. My tolerance for noise and tension had vanished so I moved up to my farm in Belmont, Vermont to live and work. My work up here was mowing, sugaring, cidering, cutting wood. A different thing altogether. I would just travel to cities to earn my keep. Fine. Four or five days is no problem especially since I work with really nice people, mostly at PBS.

I did a few records up here. Got enough equipment so I could record, mix and edit right here and save a trip to you know where. Recorded two operas from the Holocaust and a Robert Burns CD in Burlington. They turned out great.

A chance meeting resulted in making a CD with a local band called Gypsy Red. That in turn led to a phone call from a guy named John Specker who said since I made records, would I be interested in hearing him play. With the thought that he might be a nut, I figured the most I could lose was a half hour, so I invited him up to the Belmont Community Center for an audition.

Well, he knew how to tune a fiddle and hold it -- so far, so good. Then he started to play. In thirty seconds I stopped him and said "Yes, anytime." What I heard was amazing. Maybe the acoustics helped, but I knew I was in my element and on the same wavelength.

We made a date in a local church and made the fastest recording in my memory. One take of everything. And he could sing too. And tap! I had to confess to him later that at times, the rhythm was so infectious that I had to leave my faders and get up and dance. This was not a pretty sight because I don't dance and I would have had to strangle anyone who saw me, but there it is.

Now I've found another good reason to live in Vermont. By the way, John, when are we working on the next CD?

John McClure

Recorded by John McClure
Cover Photo by Ethel Specker
Inside Photo by Wes Johnson
Graphic Design by Deanna Hall