It only took a little gentle persuasion to get this kiddy playing on repeat in my head, so I had to get it out there..had to share this one today, my mind wasn’t letting go of this one!! In fact, from having a few dry musical days, my head is now submerged under a tidal wave of prospective songs, so its happy days for a few weeks now at least!!
Doug Hream Blunt has an unusual sound that appeals…I’ve only heard a few of his songs, but he represents a world of experimental wanderings. His creations almost reflects his musical path, a little off the beaten track, but a journey worth taking. His avenue into music is unusual too; he didn’t start learning to play music until he was in his mid-30’s and started out by taking an adult class in the 1980’s. The class, organized by a high school music teacher and his wife, was held in their small garage in the Golden Gate Park neighbourhood of San Francisco. The other students of the class became Doug’s band members, whilst his teacher joined on vibes, and his wife on bass.
To promote his music, Doug would play acoustic-solo shows for patients and elderly people at a hospital where he worked as a support worker and on a few occasions, he also brought the other students together to play on the City Visions Public Access television show.
Gentle Persuasion was the title track to the debut album he released in 2010. Self-released, this record wasn’t put out on a label and was followed a couple of singles and EP’s – also self-issued. At some point David Byrne’s label Luaka Bop intervened and discovered this rather rare and unpolished gem. They put out a 12″ remix of Gentle Persuasion in 2015 and followed that with a compilation entitled, My Name Is Doug Hream Blunt.
Now, what I’d like to know is why did he stop there? Why is there no more music after 2015? I’m trying to get the timeline right in my head if he was recording in the 1980’s? It would be good to know…does anyone out there know?
I like his sound, I like the freshness of it, untouched and pure! If you like the sound of Gentle Persuasion, I can wholly recommend you listen to the record that Luaka Bop put out, it’s kind on the ears and easy on the spirit! Check it out here and enjoy today’s song.
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