Art documents time and preserves memories, and has done so since paint was put to canvas, words were printed to paper and sound etched into vinyl, tape or lesser-quality medium.
When musicians make a record, often that piece of music serves as memento, a nod from musician to loved one as well as a method of remembrance for fans. For local musician Lisa Blue, her latest release is a gift to her grandkids.
“Once in A Lullaby” has been a two-year project. The multi-layered release includes guitar player Gary Cook from the Bar-D Wranglers, Music in the Mountains performer Sterling Proctor and members of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, a local children’s choir and Molly Morningstar and Sheila Lane from Celtic group Patrick’s Crossing. Blue, along with guitar player Ralph Dinosaur and bass player Glenn Keefe, will celebrate the release with a show Sunday at the Lost Dog Bar and Lounge.
The record was influenced by Blue’s daughter and her toddler grandchildren. Anyone with kids can relate to the change of sounds that come out of your stereo when there are toddlers storming around your home. It’s necessary to have something to soothe those loveable kids off to sleep that isn’t predictable, run of the mill music.
“My own daughter thought it would be nice to play my music for her kids,” Blue said in an email interview. “So the project began. I decided I wanted it to be a keepsake that my grandkids would cherish.”
The 13-song release has three Blue originals, along with familiar cuts of rock, roots and pop. It came together through a simple selection process. Blue asked friends what songs they remembered from childhood; she compiled the most popular and recorded them. All kids love The Beatles; the most popular of the bunch was “Hey Jude.”
The project grew into a multi-instrument affair involving Cook and other musicians.
“We kept adding on,” Blue said. “Gary and I thought we could do this one night a week and just knock it out. But every time I’d go back to the studio, he would be excited to show me what he had added. So it took two years to actually complete it.”
Other vocalists were added, and Blue reached out to friend Proctor, who arranged and recorded the string sections for the record in Texas.
Sunday’s event will feature cuts from the record along with a traditional Lisa Blue Trio set and perhaps some guests. Blue has had different lineups of musicians who make up the trio; the current makeup with Keefe and Dinosaur remains a band of friendship over business. They just like playing music together.
“There’s no drama, just fun and good music,” Blue said. “We have all gotten to be really good friends. They are like brothers to me.”
Liggett_b@fortlewis.edu.
Bryant’s best
Saturday: Texas bluegrass with Bottom Dollar String Band, 4:30 p.m., no cover, Ska Brewing, 225 Girard St., 247-5792.
Sunday: Lisa Blue Trio CD Release Party, 4 p.m., no cover, Lost Dog Bar and Lounge, 1150 Main Ave., 259-0430.
