I’m pretty excited to share with you my cover of “Tonight You Belong To Me!”
I visited New Orleans for an environmental conference, took advantage of the location and explored every chance I had. A pal of mine mentioned checking out the Spotted Cat, a music venue on Frenchman Street. The final night was unforgettable. I heard one of my favorite song played live for the first time. The Jumbo Shrimp Jazz Band performed “Tonight You Belong to Me” and I belted along from the audience.
The song was originally written in 1926 by lyricist Billy Rose and composer Lee David. The versions I’m most familiar with are Patience and Prudence and the adorable scene with Steve Martin and Bernadette Peters in The Jerk.
There is a creature that roams the Pacific. The calls and travel patterns have been documented for over 20 years. At 52 Hertz, the frequency is 2-3 times higher than the calls of a blue whale. The cries drift on unanswered. It has been named the loneliest whale in the world.
For music Monday I decided to mash up some old footage with this song. “52 Hertz” was recorded live by Jeff France at EarthQuaker Audio Recording Laboratory. The shaky footage was shot by yours truly from a 2013 trip to Cape Cod, MA and a whale watching tour in Provincetown that J Mascis happened to be on.
This song was written in 2015 by Christa Ebert, Tarl Knight, and Dan Smrz in Sturgeon Bay, WI at the Holiday Music Motel. You can hear the original version here(Performed by: Christa Ebert – vocals, saw / Tarl Knight – Rhodes keyboard, vocals / Dan Smrz – drums, cymbals / Julia McConahay – violin).
I visited EarthQuaker Devices in Akron, Ohio to record this new song I wrote, “Underground.”
Video by Chris Tran, Brad Throla and Jess France. Audio recorded by Jeff France at EarthQuaker Audio Recording Laboratory.
EarthQuaker Devices built me a pedal board and now my sound library feels limitless. I’m sonically inspired – like a jolt to my creative process. I’m playing around with Avalanche Run, Disaster Transport Sr., Levitation, Arpaniod, Bows, Afterneath, Transmisser, The Depths, Night Wire, and the Organizer. Check out each device here. EarthQuaker Devices pedals are handmade by fellow musicians and music lovers in Akron, Ohio and have a lifetime warranty.
AKRON, OH – “Cleveland’s Christa Ebert is a one-woman choir. As Uno Lady, she’s dazzled, confounded, and delighted audiences since 2007 with loop-based compositions for voice, found sounds, and effects pedals. Her avant-garde pop tunes combine doo-wop harmonies and ethereal soundscapes with layered and processed vocals, which range from a smoky tenor to operatic outbursts of melody.
In this performance of “Underground” she uses the Bows’ treble mode with the Afterneath and Disaster Transport SR to craft an ambient, slightly overdriven wordless backing vocal that sits tight in the mix before adding the melody. From her DIY suitcase podium, she builds layer upon intertwining layer of call-and-response vocal patterns that lift off into a dreamlike fugue state before engaging the Avalanche Run at the song’s end, using the reverse function to bring it all tumbling down, down to the “underground” of the song’s namesake.” –Arron Rogers, EQD
Yesterday I was fortunate to record a new song at Earthquaker Devices with the rad pedals they let me try out. The pedals are magical and the staff is super talented and incredibly nice. Songs are pouring out of me now that I have these awesome new babies. I’ll share the song and video when its up!
“Washed Away” was recorded by Christa (Uno Lady) Ebert January 2017. Song written by Christa Ebert, Anna Jo, and Marcus Trana during Dark Songs at the Holiday Music Motel, Sturgeon Bay, WI, October 2016.
The Holiday Music Motel is a magical place that invites songwriters from around the world. Musicians travel to Sturgeon Bay to take part in the three songwriting festivals at the Holiday Music Motel (February’s ‘Love On Holiday,’ is happening this week! June’s ‘Steel Bridge Songfest’ and October’s ‘Dark Songs’). You can listen to the songs recorded at the Motel, year round at www.steelbridgeradio.com/listen
For the last three years I have participated in Dark Songs and a favorite from the last trip is “Washed Away.” It was co-written by myself, Anna Jonson who is a Wildland Firefighter and simultaneously the nicest and very badass, and Norway native Marcus Trana, recording engineer, entrepreneur and all around swell guy.
