Hello, one and all -

With frigid weather in northeastern Pennsylvania, we've had some spare time to work on the package for the CD. Bill loves to sketch the design and hover over all the details. When the manufacturer receives the PDF of his wishes, everything is laid out clearly for the art staff of the manufacturer.

However, there is no assurance that the artist will proofread what they have done. For instance:

See the issue? We have no idea who "Presbybob" is. Perhaps he is a distant friend of "Presbybill." Since we don't know him, he does not belong on the face of our new CD. We had to reject the design.

Of course, that has caused a four day delay. Same deal with the other two identical "Presbybop" mistakes that we found. 

The good news is that it will be an easy fix - or two, or three. And we should be able to set the release date for the middle of March.

As one of our supporters, you will be at the front of the line. Thank you for that.

The Presbybop Team

Hello again - 

OK, we're done asking for funding. And we are ecstatic that, once again, our friends have come through with their support for one of our projects.. As the campaign drew to a close, we reached 106 % of our goal. It's fantastic. Thank you again. 

Meanwhile, the project is moving on. It's time to prepare the CD "package." Bill's daughter Katie took a photo at dawn during a family vacation, and it's the natural cover of an album called "Brand New Day." We will interview her soon to tell the story. 

Also, Jeff Kellam is working on a video to describe the making of the album. He's done this for us before, and we anticipate his video will be full of rich insight and good humor.

More soon,
Bill and the gang 

Last night, after a flurry of ten generous donations in the past few days, we went over the goal for our crowdfunding campaign. Thanks to 65 donors (so far), the Presbybop Quintet is going to release its best recording yet. And it's all due to the incredible support of friends like you. We are deeply grateful.

Now the pressure is off. The stress is over. We know this project is going the full distance. We are thrilled to have a successful campaign, thanks to you! This is when it gets fun. One of our supporters asked, "Can we still provide more funding?" Well, sure! Click here. Better yet, let's enlarge the circle and invite others to join in. Forward the campaign link to them. 

In the meantime, can I tell you two things?

First, it is difficult to ask for money. Especially from friends. The relationship matters more to me than the bucks. Always. So many of you have supported our music for a long, long time. Thanks to your encouragement, I have grown as a composer and a musician. That means more to me than anything else. I took a huge risk in asking for your support. Now, I can breathe and simply produce the best jazz album I can. Thank you!

Second, this is going to be a really fine recording. The guys love the tunes. They play their tails off. The recording engineer is first-rate. We nailed a lot of "first takes" - because the band was ready and they brought their best efforts. I can't wait for you to hear this album. Thank you, thank you!

In the meantime, two concerts of this music have already been scheduled. Here are the dates:

And, of course: we would love to bring our music to your place, too. Get in touch here.

Special videos and treats will soon be on the way. Stay tuned.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Bill and the Presbybop gang

Hello everybody!

Yesterday the Presbybop Quintet spent a long day at Red Rock studio in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. It's our favorite place to record. Kent Heckman, the engineer, is a sonic genius with great audio equipment in his hand-built facility. And he knows how to use it.

The Yamaha piano was well-tuned and the musicians were in good spirits. Well, mostly. It was a demanding session. The music is challenging and that kind of environment requires a blend of concentration, passion, and imagination. We began to play around 11:00 a.m. and knocked off at 7:30 p.m.  Thanks to your generosity, I was able to pay them a fair wage for their hard work.

Better yet, we are going to get a heck of an album out of this.

In those eight and a half hours, we recorded ten tunes. The original plan was to tackle only nine, but in the day before the session, I sketched out a five horn (and bass) arrangement of one of my "old" tunes. Five horns? Yep. We overdubbed flugelhorn and French horn (Jeff) with tenor sax, alto sax, and flute (Mike) to create an update of "Cohasset Point." Now titled "Return to Cohasset," That one reaches back to our "Dancing Day" CD in 1999. And naturally, it's a piano solo feature.

We are so grateful for your ongoing support. Please check out the video clip linked to this note. It has not been fixed, mixed, or edited yet, but it offers the first few minutes of our new tune, "Shuttlesworth," interspersed with a few photos from Jeff Kellam, an important member of our team who was present to document the session.

Also, Lois Heckman (Kent's spouse) caught a brief burst of our new tune, "Finding Our Way Home." She put it up on Facebook. If you are able, click the following link to give it a listen:
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1597235417600357

I will take Mike Carbone with me to the studio on Tuesday morning to mix the album, put the tunes in sequence, and prep a CD to send off to the manufacturer.

I can't tell you how much your support means to me. As of today, we have surpassed 75% of our goal, with a week and a half to go. Please share the campaign with other music lovers (here's the link: https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/presbybop-music/campaigns/184). We welcome all gifts of support to get this music out to the wider public. It truly will improve the quality of our days.

I'll be in touch again soon,
Bill Carter, for Presbybop Music

Hi everybody - 

THANK YOU for your support of our recording project. We are off to a great start! 

As our first update for supporters like you, we are attaching a clip from one of our recent concerts. The new tune is titled, "For Twenty Years." It is one of the first pieces that we will take into the studio for the recording. All of the music is being "road tested." That will minimize the mistakes - and make a better album.

The campaign e-mails will resume tomorrow morning. We want to keep the financial begging to a minimum (it's as cumbersome for us as for anybody else), but it's important to raise awareness for the project. Please help us spread the word!

We are grateful for your generosity. Thanks again.

Bill and the gang at Presbybop Music