Music & Goodwill

Bryan Owings, Chris Donohue, and Phil Madeira - Phil Madeira Trio in Rhode Island August 2024

What an interesting day we live in.  Old friends are no longer friends, now wondering how the bonds disappeared.  Some rejoice, while others mourn the ascent of our current President. It seems unlikely that we will ever unite.

I’ve had my moments of writing songs that address schisms- “King” and “By Now”, along with “Religion” that Will Kimbrough and I wrote a while back.  (All recorded by Red Dirt Boys)

At the Mercyland Songwriter Workshop, I tell attendees that the best songs come from the worst times.  Trauma is often part of the equation that causes artists to create.  My record “Bliss” is all love songs, all positivity, but some pretty sad days had to precede the days of literal bliss for me to celebrate them.

I’m now midway through Kickstarting the new record “Falcon”, and for a moment, I thought I would reflect on what the record is about.  

The first thing that comes to mind is the word goodwill.  “Falcon” is about celebrating friendship, family, and the desire to shine a brighter light.  

There’s a song about my father that celebrates how he walked humbly through the world, and the mercy that he was all about.

“Gene” is about my college friend who passed away a few years ago.  It’s tender and soulful, and doesn’t help me miss my old pal any less.  

There are a few other songs like that, that look back at my youth, wistfully and kindly.  And, if you know my song called “Maybe”, recorded by both Alison Krauss and Garth Brooks, you’ll hear a new version here.  (Can’t be a great record without a sad song!)

It took me the better part of 2 years to make this record, and after it was mixed and ready to master, I discarded one track for being a little too snarky for another I had just written that seemed to embody the kind of goodwill a listener might need.  

That song is called “Lesson Of Love”.  I had been pondering the unsettled relationship between an old friend and their child.  It might be the most compassionate song I’ve ever written.  I hope it does some good.

As we speak of division and bewilderment, I’m grateful that most of us love the language of music.  Sometimes it’s a song that heals a wound, a song that stitches up a rift, or a song that gives us pause to reflect on what we are projecting in the journey.  

Perhaps a song can inspire us to be people of goodwill.