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| Music, Mountains & Memories |
Deep in the recesses of the mind we all have these special places, unforgettable people, and definitive moments that serve as mile markers along our highway of life. Occasionally, a spirit of reflection overtakes us, and we find ourselves back in time walking familiar paths; retracing these mile markers as best as we can remember in our mind. The details are always elusive, and even when we physically return to the historic sites of our own days gone by, the nostalgia we experience is tempered by the changes we see and feel in the here and now. I suppose that is why so many connect with the well known book title, as well as the sentiment behind it, penned by novelist, Thomas Wolfe, that goes, "You Can't Go Home Again." There is a seductive melancholy embedded in the adage that on the surface seems to testify to its inherent wisdom, but what if it's not entirely correct...what if you CAN go home again? Singer-songwriter, Scott Mehaffey, presents a compelling case for that very possibility in his reflective, sometimes autobiographical, new bluegrass release, "Music, Mountains and Memories."
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| Air Force C-17 Pilot |
I caught up with Scott yesterday morning to discuss the release of this new project, and just catch up with my long time friend. Talking with Scott is like talking with a family member, or a friend from the foothills of upstate South Carolina. His down home accent quickly betrays his full status as a son of Appalachia, and it's so easy to forget that I'm sharing time with a man of many accomplishments and extraordinary experiences. Scott is a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, and current Delta Airlines Airbus A-330 Pilot. He's been to every continent save Antarctica, flown missions over the North Pole, and conducted risky maneuvers and landings during wartime missions over and in Afghanistan and Iraq. These days, it's not unusual for me to get a text from him while he's having dinner in Belgium, at a stop over in New York, or even while touring a ukulele factory in Hawaii. If ever there was a person, at least on paper, who seemed very far from home, far from where he started, and just as unlikely to return, it would be Scott Mehaffey.
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| Mountain Homeplace in NC |
The liner notes tell a story of a man who seems far less traveled, and deeply rooted in the life of his upbringing. It tells the story of a man who learned his first three guitar chords from his father, while getting hopelessly hooked on the life stories revealed in the songs of his bluegrass hero, J.D. Crowe. It is in these types of stories where you find the heart of the songwriter. Each song has a story, and those stories not only find expression through the lyrics, but also through the very thoughtful and eloquent personal thoughts in the liner notes. Just like the lyrics, every word is carefully weighed and conveyed in such a way that seems to reach out beyond the here and now, and forward into the mind of readers unknown...even yet to come. It is volume one of a life memoir; a memoir that doesn't boast of the many accomplishments that decorate his careers as an Air Force Officer, wartime pilot, and world sky traveler, but of the simpler things of rural life, time passages, and of loves lost and found. It focuses on the makings of a man more so than on the things he made.
The cover art sets the scene. Scott is seen holding his 1960s era Brazilian rosewood Martin guitar while standing in front of a 1937 Studebaker pickup that is no prop...it belonged to his grandfather, and has literally a lifetime of memories attached. It's as authentic as each of the 12 songs on the album. Songs like "Do the Mountains Miss Me," and "My Last Time," reveal the rolling mountains, fields and hills that always seem to be near to the songwriter's heart. Songs like "Georgia Maple," "Plowed Fields," and "I Wonder Where You Are," reveal the life experiences of a man not yet old, but advancing in years. These are not the thoughts of a young man, but of someone who has been around long enough to have experienced the gains and losses that are foundational to wisdom.
"Music, Mountains and Memories" features some truly world class musicians such as Edgar Loudermilk, Russell Moore, Glenn Crain, Zack and Jeff Aurtry, Marc Pruett among others. Scott also receives some wonderful backup from his daughter, Shelby, on a couple of tracks to add just another layer of authenticity to this memoir. Reflecting on the "dream team" that helped produced this work, Scott seemed to value most the opportunity to work with friends...friends who not only possess incredible musicianship, but also shared his passion for getting every detail just right.
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| Scott Mehaffey |
In the end, "Music, Mountains and Memories" is a collection of experiences that reveal as much about the songwriter as they do the mountains and memories that fill the songs. Scott's Summerville home might be a good half days drive from those mountains, and further still are the distant lands that he flies to week in and out, but listening to these stories, and the passion behind every line, I can tell that in his heart he is truly never far from where he started. Perhaps Wolfe was wrong, and you can go home again after all.
Available on CD Baby, Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, Apple Music, and Amazon
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