The value of an album

So I'm in the process of recording a CD. This is a project that has dragged out for about 2 years now, and at times I wonder if it might drag out for 2 more years. There is just way too much to think about. Picking the music has proved to be one of the harder things for me. I have decided and changed my mind a million times and finally I think I have the right combination of pieces. I'm trying to create an album that sounds somewhat cohesive, but at the end of the day, I think this album is just characterized by having some of my favorite pieces on it. Well, the ones I like playing the most. Recording is such a nit-picky process that I know I must play music I love, or the process will take longer than I can afford.

Since everything is so accesible now, it's easy for any independent artist to put an album together and distribute it without the help of a label. Easy enough, that is. Along the way, there were a few things giving me a headache. First, it was having the finances to start the project off. So I went home one summer and played a concert at my home church and the donations were generous. Unfortunately, that nice little installment went to paying my rent that summer since I was broke at the time. But since then, the fund has been somewhat restored. Next, I had to find a professional recording studio. This fell into place easily through a recording engineer that Paul met at one of my friend Victor's shows, who had helped him with some editing in the past. I booked a few days with him in the studio in New York on a sweltering, sticky week last June. Unfortunately, we moved before I could finish the rest. Assuming it goes well, I'll be finishing the rest of the album next month in NYC with the help of a JetBlue sale and some credit from a delayed flight I had leftover.

I've also started thinking about the album cover and what I want it to feel like. This is very important to me as I often judge a book by its cover and can't help but do so. I also have a deep appreciation for good design. I had some headshots taken by our wedding photographer last year and was fortunate to meet a graphic designer at our current church who has agreed to design the cover and insert. I got really excited when he showed me what he had started working on- there was little I had to explain about what I had in mind since somehow his design style was something I was drawn to right away. The next thing to do is make sure all the copyright stuff is in order- this is a thoroughly annoying process that will probably take longer than I want it to and end up costing some, too. After that, getting it reproduced won't be difficult, assuming I can front the costs, and figuring out the best way to distribute should be pretty easy since cdbaby.com is great and so are many of the online music services.

The funny thing is that CD's might be outdated in a few years. In fact, I can't even remember the last time I physically bought a CD from a store. After Tower Records went out of business, I didn't even know where to buy CDs. And why have all the clutter of jewel cases when you can buy it on iTunes and have the album art too?

I need to continue believing that the music on this album will be worthwhile for people to listen to, that it will inspire them and give them new perspective on things that are beautiful, meaningful, and real. This has been challenging lately as part of me is losing steam. The inspiration seems to come and go daily. Hopefully at the end of it all, it will have been worth all the effort!