Ari Joshua Releases “Help On the Way”
"Help on the Way" - Ari Joshua opens up the psychedelic vault, revealing an all-star version of the Garcia/Hunter classic “Help on the Way,” pairing poetry and form with Kimock, Hess, & Ladin.
Ari Joshua's forthcoming compilation of music includes a bountiful cast of incredible talent, about half dozen original compositions, and a pair of heady tributes honoring the legendary partnership between Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter. “Help On the Way”, the latest to be shared, sparks light featuring a celestial musical cast including drummer John Kimock, bassist Andy Hess, and keyboardist Eden Ladin. Ari Joshua led the band as vocalist, guitarist, and producer.
From the expansive first notes of a psychedelic intro, ever-present is the feel of the live ensemble in the room, and then enters the vocal:
"Paradise awaits on the crest of a wave, her angels in flame...”
The warmth of Eden Ladin’s analog keyboards meld with Joshua’s lyrical guitar as their improvisations build into billowy waves full of melodic colors and texture. This is a special band — Ladin is emerging as a leading jazz pianist on the East Coast. On the low end, Hess, a favorite among NY musicians, effortlessly weaves in and around the deep pocket of Kimock’s signature drum groove. If you have seen bass legends Mike Gordon (Phish) and Otiel Burbridge (Dead and Co) on their recent tours, then you have witnessed John’s drumming live. Ari has been turning stones into mountains with a steady flurry of releases as his collaborative spirit continues to bloom.
Ari Joshua paints a picture of how musical happenstance changed his life at about ten years old: “On the way to summer camp, an older kid with a battery-powered boombox had the cardboard double-disc version of One from the Vault, it must have made an impression, I bought the cassette and CD both. I felt a connection to the muses, the angels, & the cosmic forces, all perfectly reflected into poetry and melody. Later, I saw the original band play “Help” with Garcia. It's a beautiful song. It's a masterpiece. I am grateful to be able to team up with this incredible cast to share this recording."
Josh Jensen On the Making Of “Windbreaks & Waves”
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind "Windbreaks & Waves" and the story it tells?
The inspiration for “Windbreaks & Waves” came to me while I was playing my guitar on a picturesque Puget Sound shoreline and the song just came together. “Windbreaks & Waves” is an instrumental piece intended to put the listener into a place by the water where the waves lap the shore and the breeze puts your soul at ease.
Could you discuss the lyrical themes or messages conveyed in "Windbreaks & Waves?"
I like to think that the message conveyed in “Windbreaks & Waves” is one that brings the listener to their happy place.
How do you feel "Windbreaks & Waves" represents your artistic identity?
When I started getting into the guitar, I had a dear friend who exposed me to a variety of amazing musicians and musical styles. So, as a budding guitarist, I listened to a lot of fingerstyle guitar players, including D’Gary and Leo Kottke for example, and I think this song really picks up hints from many of them. “Windbreaks & Waves” definitely draws from those early influences that helped form my artistic identity.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got started in music?
I live in Seattle, Washington and am blessed with beautiful family including a wife and three kids. My kids are young, so my days are typically spent with them and then I escape to play music after everyone in the house is asleep. Music has always been somewhere I go to decompress. I started getting into music at an early age – I always loved singing and performing and was lucky that my parents enrolled me into piano lessons when I was 6 or 7. I started playing guitar when I was 13 years old, my first guitar was a Takamine acoustic guitar. Shortly after that I got a Fender Stratocaster and amplifier. I was hooked! Naturally, I continued performing and playing in bands or doing solo gigs because I have always been driven by music. In high school, my band Popular By Association got to record an album at Seattle’s famous Dutchman studio that Kurt Cobain referred to as “the grungiest place in Seattle.” We were flying so high after that experience. I have had so many unexpected but incredible experiences through music and it is something that I hope my kids get to experience someday with whatever drives their passions.
Are there any particular skills or techniques that you have been working on lately?
Lately, I have been working on bluegrass flatpicking and fingerpicking. I’ve been listening to a lot of Doc Watson, Tony Rice, Billy Strings, Sierra Hull, Punch Brothers, and other artists of that ilk. I have found that bluegrass is catchy and pleasant to listen to but is played proficiently by such skilled artists that can play fast and accurate. A lot of the recent material I have written leans more towards Americana and bluegrass, which is a bit of a departure from what I was writing with my last band, Water Felon, before the pandemic hit.
Rusty Reid On the Making Of “Our Love's With You”
What was the creative process like for this particular "Our Love's With You?"
This song was one of my earliest songwriting efforts (this version is recently re-recorded). At the time, I was still struggling to get my balance as a singer-songwriter, still writing some not-so-good songs. But this one stood out as a quality effort. As the melody came together, I knew I had a winner here. Now it was just a matter of finding words that would adequately serve the melody.
Were there any challenges or breakthrough moments during the songwriting process for "Our Love's With You?"
In retrospect, this seems like it might have been a challenge, but it actually flowed through me (as songs and other art often do) fairly effortlessly. I wrote this song on piano, a different approach from my usual guitar starting point. That turned out to be key. My piano songs end up quite different from my guitar songs. I think that's mainly due to sticking closely to a chord progression on guitar, while allowing the melody to more freely evolve on the keyboard. I don't think this song would exist at all if I had tried to come at it via guitar.
What do you like the best about this track?
Well, there is a lot to like about this song. The melody stands out as one of my best, I think. It was written for my little sister, who was at the time graduating high school and soon to leave for college. So it has that personal aspect to it, for me. But I tried to write it so that it might have a more universal interpretation.. Somebody, a "baby," is leaving home. The reason why is not addressed... or where they may be going, except to to escape "the cold" and seek the "sunshine," which I suppose could be any number of things. Some kind of collective (thus the "Our") is offering a final counsel that includes, 1) trust in your young idealism, 2) live life fully, don't hold back, 3) persevere, stay focused, 4) be confident you will succeed, and, most importantly, 5) rest assured that no matter where you go, you are loved. So for a relatively simple love song, it has some valuable messages.
How do you approach collaborations with other musicians or artists?
It's true that occasionally I play all the instrumetns on a song, but I actually don't like doing that. The only reason would be that I like something I did in the demo, and just settle for that version rather than possibly losing the vibe. But I prefer to work with other, better, musicians, who can bring their ideas and skills into the production. I've had very few experiences where that just flat didn't work out very well. This track only has one other person playing. Jed Demlow is a multi-instrumentalist in Nashville whom I count on quite often. All the parts Jed is playing on keyboards were on the earlier version, as well. He nailed the parts, and threw in some of his personality, as well.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got started in music?
I grew up on the plains of West Texas. It was not an exciting place to be, so you had to invent your own entertainment. Like many musicians, music was always around my house as a kid. We had a lot of good to great players and singers on my mom's side of the family. I started piano lessons around the age of 8, then a few years later moved over to guitar mainly. Shortly after I got my first guitar, I started to write songs. I really don't know why I thought I could do it. None of the others in the family were actually writing songs. But I just had this confidence that this is what I should be doing. Literally no one else would have shared that confidence if they had heard the songs I "composed." Even I didn't like them; I knew they were awful... just rote melodies and the blandest of lyrics. But that confidence never went away. I kept at it... for years... until I finally got a song I liked. In retrospect, it wasn't very good either... but it served its purpose as a little reward for my struggles, propelling me onward. Yet, constantly I would hear a song by real songwriters like Bob Dylan or Paul Simon or Gordon Lightfoot and think, "This is hopeless; I'll never be able to write anything like that." Well, that much is still true... but I finally was able to start crafting some songs that I liked, and that - whoa! - others liked, too. I'm still trying to refine the craft and write songs that are memorable... and actually say something unique. I'll probably never reach the mountaintop, but I'm still trying to blaze my own path up through the melodic foothills of the popular song.