Donnie Takes The Bus

FACT: Yes, that is Don DiLego’s brainscan portraying Jim Carrey’s brainscan in 2004’s “The Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind”…just in case that mystery has always been dogging you. Further proof the world, as Don sees it, does indeed move in mysterious ways. Growing up in the hills of Western Massachusetts, Don often could be found wearing yellow polyester pants while also claiming to have actually met The Lone Ranger. First record he owned was Glen Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy", but mostly listened to his dad's Frank Sinatra and Al Jolsen records. Currently splits his time between New York, NY and Velvet Elk City, where his crushed-velvet recording studio is located. Drinks too much coffee. Talks to himself a lot, and has about 200 or so unfinished songs. Is quite confident that "Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid" says all there is to say. There are banjos, harmonicas, guitars, tambourines, mandolins, basses, accordians, and a wurlitzer strewn across his studio in various states of disrepair. A Betsy Ross edition piano sits handsomely in the corner, a full and melodious half-step out of tune. A fact that doesn’t sit too well with his band. Knows that if he can't decide what to listen to, "Sweetheart of the Rodeo", "Being There", "Harvest Moon", "Pink Moon”, or any album with “moon” in the title never feels wrong. Wishes he wrote “Red-Headed Stranger” by Willie Nelson, but to this day, refuses to wear a bandana. Spends an unhealthy amount of time in the studio. Some of the most talented people he knows are his friends and they're all broke too. NEW ALBUM: Recorded in equal parts New York City and Portland, OR, "Photographs of 1971" is Don’s latest and third full-length album. It was self-produced along with Portland’s engineer auteur Gregg Williams (The Dandy Warhols). Having stumbled across some old stained and tattered family photographs from the 70’s, Don was inspired to write a song that grew from the ashes of the collage at his feet. That would later give way to the album’s theme of celebrating our life’s misadventures and failures. A much more personal record began to take shape within the varied instruments and sounds that Don had begun experimenting with. Prior to it’s release, "Photographs" had consumed over two years of Don’s life as a constant and evolving album that grew along with his extensive travels and touring. Performer Magazine remarks that “Photographs of 1971 is a great album for anyone embarking on a trip across the country.” HIGHLIGHTS: Don's first release, "The Lonestar Hitchhiker," was recorded for Universal Records shortly after his move to New York. Featured musicians included Jay Bennett (ex-Wilco), Gregg Williams (Sheryl Crow, Wallflowers), and Paul Garisto (Jesse Malin, Ryan Adams). Since then, he has toured extensively in support of all three of his releases, slowly building national recognition as a touring artist. He has opened for the likes of Norah Jones, Graham Parker, Jackson Browne, Duran Duran, Roger Clyne, and many more. His songs have been featured in both film and tv (MTV, VH1, Disney, Discovery, E!...), and he just recently wrote the score for the feature-length film, “Ranchero.” His latest work had recently been added to regular rotation on the increasingly popular XM Satellite Radio. Radio stations such as the influential KCRW and WXPN have also begun to feature songs from the record, so too NPR’s “All Songs Considered.” For his first album, Hear Music selected Don for their “Emerging Artist” campaign, and Rolling Stone would state that “New York City's emerging folk-twang songsmith, Don DiLego, is alt-country's next poster boy.”

Bug Fixes & Performance Improvements began as a joke, between drinks number 6 and 7 (7&8? numbers unconfirmed) at a bar down the street from my apartment in Brooklyn, NY. Upon further research (Google), I could not believe there was not an album or book that bore this title so, I set out to write one. 300 songs, 2 years, and 1 near nervous breakdown later, here it lies. In 2015 I released "Songs From The Hive," a love letter to the music of The Band and Bob Dylan, a tip of the cap (wide brimmed, brown, with a feather) to my folky heroes. And then I hit the road. I played for anybody and everybody, played everywhere anyone would take me; living rooms, cafes, clubhouses, big theaters, small theaters, movie theaters, listening rooms, college cafeterias, etc. Boasting nearly 300 shows in the year and a half that followed, I ended up finding myself in some surprisingly cool circumstances-- and some uncool ones (statute of limitations does not yet allow for me to reveal details). But what I found most liberating was that being a relative unknown had it's perks-- I was beholden to nothing. No one was expecting anything of me, except my cat, and he doesn't give a shit what goes on my record. So it was with this in mind that I set out to write the next project. Equipped with the title only, I needed just to come up with things that I liked. Should be easy. As it turns out, I don't like anything. Also, according to the finest head doctors of New York City, I am clinically insane. And while having a conversation with my good pal Liz Longley, who sings with me on track 5 of this here record, she said very simply "well, write about that." And there it was. Not that this record turned out to be anything like that. Everything takes on a life of it's own, I suppose. But it was the inspiration behind the lead track, "Tell Me Something,” and the others came to me following that one. "Taxi" is a song about the pursuit of something invisible and intangible, and the risk that comes with it. "You Got Me Good" is a song about being a sucker that I wrote so I could sing it at the top of my lungs. “We Don’t Talk About It” is a reflection on how we treat the people we’re closest to, and “Chelsea Hotel” deals with the crutches we lean when our lives are too difficult to withstand. But the record didn’t really take shape until I came up with “Don’t Give Up On Me” one afternoon, sitting at my living room table. It seemed to sum up my mission statement for the whole record. It’s about the devotion to maintaining your idealism as the world makes you more cynical. It’s about putting your chips back on the table after you’ve suffered a big loss. And if you have to lose again, lose in a big way. I love that idea. With my friend Andrew Sarlo (Big Thief, Nick Hakim, lover of burritos) at the helm, we hit the studio with a great band and tried to flesh out the musical sounds I was hearing in my head (and the other noises). After many pre-production meetings with me rambling about if Lindsay Buckingham had fronted the E Street Band, or Jim Croce on speed or something, we came up with a sound and a vibe that is the trademark of this record. If I tell you anymore, I’ll give it all away. Bill Graham said “always leave em wanting more”. I don’t do that very often. New paragraph. I hope you like it. I’m incredibly proud of it. I’m gonna go take a nap. Brian Dunne, Brooklyn, February 2017