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When my daughter Kate was small, I would sing her to sleep, and the songs on this album were the top three in the bedtime hit parade. I would wordlessly croon (I didn't know all the lyrics), sometimes with guitar accompaniment, sometimes a cappella. By the time I finished, someone was usually well on the way to dreamland. Sometimes it would be Kate.
I wanted to make a minimalist meditation-relaxation recording, and decided to use our sleepy-time repertoire as my source material. The central concept was to radically slow the tempo, so that each quarter note would equal thirty seconds, or, as a metronomic marking, (quarter note = 2). Thus, a half note would last one minute, an eighth note 15 seconds, et cetera. Each of the three pieces on this album consists of one verse only. To offer as much variety as possible at this greatly reduced tempo, I reharmonized the songs. The melodies, however, remain as I originally learned them.
This album was recorded onto four tracks: 1) the drone, 2) the sounds of the Santa Monica surf, recorded late one night under the pier, 3) the chord changes, and 4) the melodies. Each selection features sequential entrances and exits of tracks, beginning 1-2-3-4 and ending 4-3-2-1, with the drone continuing throughout the entire 71+ minutes.
For meditation and relaxation, I would recommend two approaches to this music. The first would be to focus on "hearing" the tunes (the lead sheets are included to aid in this endeavor). Concentration on the deliberate evolution of the songs will slow your heartbeat, respiration, and pulse, helping to induce a meditative state. The second approach would be to close your eyes, breathe deeply, and let the sounds wash over and swirl around you, forgoing strict attention to the melody and chords in favor of John Lennon's eponymous advice. Either way, a restful time is guaranteed for all.