The original concept for these liner notes was to have a graphic representation of the relationships between the forty-five musicians who perform on this CD, with lines between them, and notes explaining the connections. It soon became clear that such a chart would be anything but clear, and a thorough chart would reference the fact that four people on this CD were in the seminal Cleveland band Tiny Alice, three others played in the Mr. Stress Blues Band, and there would be so many other connections among and between the musicians that such a chart would wind up looking like one of those maps in the magazine in the seat pocket of a plane which shows everywhere the airline goes. In such a representation, all of the lines would begin and end with David Krauss. He would be the hub.

Over two years ago, at the urging of Abdyos Studio's producer and engineer, Jeff McConocha, David began to record some of the songs he had written beginning in the early 70's, and got the idea of having lots of Cleveland area musicians perform twelve of them and to use the recordings to benefit the Food Bank. He intuitively matched each song with a singer and/or group of musicians who he felt could use the songs to make a strong musical statement, trusting the musicians to take these musical blueprints and bring their own interpretation to them. All but one of the songs was recorded at Abydos Productions, and David played harp (harmonica) on every song as well as autoharp on a tune or two. (He also sings here and there.)  The result is this eclectic collection of music.

If this music, taken as a whole, were food it would be a big crusty loaf of wheat bread. It's rich and satisfying, a straightforward combination of natural ingredients that have been around for years, (I'm talking about the instrumentation here, not the musicians, but it's a safe bet that most of the people on this recording remember where they were when Kennedy was shot.) While the songs reference Chicago, DC, the highway, and the sea, the musicians on this project are all based in Northeast Ohio. The artists' collective experience and collaboration on each song results in a collection of layered, evocative, fun music.

Ann Weatherhead with David Krauss

Ann hosted "Annie's Blues Show" on WRUW, FM for "years and years".