because of her
JPG | The Jack Pantazis Group
THE MAKING OF
When any thing comes to fruition; be it a terrific holiday to visit new and exciting places, preparing a tasty new dish, spending precious time with loved ones… we all know it all can go horribly wrong in an instant, or just give us an outcome that is less than we’d hoped for, and we’ve all been there!
Which makes those times when the stars align, just that extra bit special.
When I finally decided it was time to head back into the Studio after a LONG hiatus, my primary worry was “do I really want to go through this process again?”
Recording can be a challenging experience at the best of times, and I’d been around the block twice before - not to mention having gratefully worked on LOTS of projects as a session musician.
So what was most important to me - was that I was surrounded by musicians I could trust, not only with my compositions - but who I could trust as people. It’s my belief that a room full of good people will make for the best music making.
Having waited 12 years I had no shortage of excellent folks to choose from - and I am so grateful for that; however in the end - it felt natural to call on my brother Gerry, and bassist Adam Speigl and saxophonist Tony Hicks. These guys over the course of many, many performances just bring so much to my music, and I felt in very good and caring hands. These guys are some of this country’s best, and I’m honoured to have them on this recording.
Second - if I was going to put good people in a room… what room was I going to put them in??
Next was choosing a producer.
Would I produce this myself?
By this stage - I felt I wanted to focus on playing - and connecting with the other musicians in the room, so it was important to find a ‘fifth member’. Lee Bradshaw has planted the seed and had offered to produce a new Album while we were involved in recording another record. The experience of the other recording made me feel that Lee was the right choice.
We had the band in the studio to record for 2 days and recorded everything ‘live’ as a band… no overdubs (except me doing a few ‘little’ things on day 3).
What you hear on this album is a band performing. A couple of solo guitar pieces on top - and there you have it.
I really hope people enjoy the sounds you hear on this album.