~Sepia~ is a song written out of concern for the Earth, our shared home. We offer it as well for anyone suffering the loss of home for any reason, which happens all too often in our own community and around the world.
We felt the wind in our sails with the musical arrangement - an intertwining banjo-mandolin duet and vocal harmonies at the core, extending into electric guitar from Luke, deep, dark bass from jazz bassist Patrick Reid, and strings from Kaitlyn Raitz, and Ben Plotnick (The Fretless) bringing a kaleidoscopic range of colour and texture, all tied up in nostalgia and melancholy. Released on November 16, it truly feels like a November song. Thanks for listening, dear friends.
The full album "Dear Friend" is out January 13, 2023. <3
Huge thanks to Graeme Campbell (co-production, recording, mixing, and many-a heart-to-heart) and J. LaPointe (mastering). Your work is truly magnificent.
Cover art by Luke Fraser - a photo captured in Brooklyn years ago.
The Bombadils are: Sarah Frank and Luke Fraser
Sepia - CREDITS
Songwriter: Sarah Frank (SOCAN)
Vocals, banjo: Sarah Frank
Vocals, mandolin, electric guitar: Luke Fraser
Bass: Patrick Reid
Violin, Viola: Ben Plotnick
Cello: Kaitlyn Raitz
Recording, Mixing: Graeme Campbell
Mastering: J. LaPointe
ISRC: CA7W42200008
Lyrics
Let me tell you
We ignored the alarm bells
Tried to call them wedding bells
Dinner bells
School bells
I'm looking at sepia
Trying to remember the
Colour we used to live in
The blush of our Mother
Has been smothered by a sickly yellow
Smog seeps in
Sepia
Do you remember
The sun would lift her lashes across the sky
Leaving a hush in my heart, a sigh
Gentle magenta giving way to blue
Oh, heavenly hue
Where are you?
I'm listening to static
Feeling nostalgic
For the birds and their morning song
I used to sing along before it all went wrong
The trees would tell their stories
Of gladness and glory
Now their leaves are ashes on the ground
The silence is thick
Static
Do you remember
The sun would lift her lashes across the sky
Leaving a hush in my heart, a sigh
Gentle magenta giving way to blue
Oh, heavenly hue
Where are you?
Ooh...
Tried to call them wedding bells
Dinner bells
School bells