MOJO: A magic spell, hex or charm
(Miriam Webster Dictionary)
This album started almost as soon as we had released our JUST A NUMBER album. This time though, we wanted a more organic sound. JUST A NUMBER was a great album but because it was recorded during the pandemic we were forced to record almost everything on a keyboard. It was the fall of 2021 during a photo shoot with our web designer, Alyson Miller. “Pretend like you’re playing a song”, she said, holding a camera. Briggs started playing chords on one of her ukuleles and I began singing, what became the song, MY SWEETHEART.
Briggs playing ukulele
Kevin recording vlog
This song would become the start of the making of MOJO. The date was November 4th, and we finished the song by November 20th. Throughout the spring of 2021 we recorded many songs, almost none of these would be included in the album. One came about when Briggs purchased her first acoustic guitar. One morning, soon after she started playing it and learning chords, I walked through the room and said, “Play those chords again!” The date was April 8th 2021 and the song was, MISSISSIPPI ON A SATURDAY NIGHT. We recorded the song but felt something was missing. We needed a fiddle and did not want to resort to using too much synthesizer instrumentation on the album.
A few months later at our local Farmers Market, we heard Roma Ransom, a duo that was playing a style of music unique to themselves. Gordon Lewis was playing guitar, cajon, and had an alto sax with him. Grace Easley was playing violin. Briggs and I approached them and found out that they would be playing at the opening of a new restaurant in town where we arranged to meet. The opening came and we were mesmerized by their talent and stayed until they were finished playing. Afterwards, we helped them pack up their equipment and I asked them if they would come over to Half Assed Acre, our home studio for lunch. The afternoon turned to magic as we ate pizza, drank beer and began recording fiddle, bass guitar and cajon on MISSISSIPPI ON A SATURDAY NIGHT. We added background vocals and the song was finished.
Kevin recording Grace Easley on “Mississippi on a Saturday Night” in our home studio Half Assed Acre
Kevin recording Gordon Lewis on Mississippi on a Saturday night.
At this point things were on the back burner because I had gotten a cancer diagnosis. However, in September of 2022 before my surgery, I locked myself in the studio and created MOJO, the title track of this album. I struggled with trying to play true chords at points in the song where I knew they should be. I asked Briggs if she would be willing to help out playing chords and MOJO was finished. My cancer surgery was successful although it took some months to recover.
Kevin in the studio
About this time, we found a nice little bar and restaurant nearby called, Over Ice.
Briggs and Kevin with Sara Snook from Over Ice
Soon we were playing live shows and meeting new people, something we hadn’t been able to do during the pandemic. One of those people was Six String Dave Sauer who also did shows at the bar. A collaboration was struck between the three of us over beers and burgers. Dave agreed to come over to the studio and start writing original songs with Briggs and me. The first time Dave worked with me, in December of 2023, we worked for three or so hours. In those three hours CULPEPPER ROAD and LOUISIANA WAY were born.
Dave in the studio
It was clear that there was chemistry between us. Over the coming months Dave worked tirelessly laying guitar tracks down on the songs. During this time, OVERDRIVE and JACK AND FOOL were written. It was also in this time period that we met a talented young piano player, Dalton LeFever, who graces this album on three songs.
Kevin and Dalton LeFever working out piano parts for “Louisiana Way”
On a break Briggs and I took a trip to Santa Fe. It was there I began writing the idea for a new song. This time is was destined to be a duet. We often find that Santa Fe gives us a lot of inspiration. Briggs always brings her travel ukulele and she picked out the chords for this new song. This tune was experimental. Singers are just actors and we want to have a song we can truly act out. It had to be funny, and it had to be based on human failing and foibles like a couple’s first misunderstanding and fight. “GONE” was born!
Kevin, Dave and Briggs rehearsing “Gone”
Back at home recording sessions began again. It was during one of these sessions while Briggs was laying down background vocals, the mixer/recorder froze halting all work. We discovered that there was bleed-over on some of the other songs. In desperation Dave and I tried to back the files up on my computer and unintentionally deleted every song with the exception of LOUISIANA WAY. All the others were lost and had to be rerecorded from scratch.
In a panic, I reached out to the only man I knew could possibly help, Larry Burger, who I had worked with for over thirty years on several successful projects as a producer-engineer. He was able to piece LOUISIANA WAY together file by file and track by track. So rerecording on the lost tracks began and as they say, “ Everything happens for a reason.” The new songs became better recordings than the previous ones! Again, we all rolled up our shirtsleeves and worked tirelessly. It was clear that this album was something special so when it came time for a final mix and mastering Larry Burger of Casper, WY was the man for the job.
In January 2025 Dave sent Briggs a couple of new riffs. One became LONESOME STATION BLUES and the other became DRIVIN’. These are blues/jazz fusions that show off Briggs’ smokey voice. This gave her the inspiration to sing out of her normal comfort zone and to explore new heights with her voice. Work began immediately laying the tracks down for these new songs. MOJO was stating to come together.
Briggs and Dave rehearsing.
At this point I knew that Briggs should do one more song with Dave and he came up with the riff that became, LOOKING BACK. These would be the last tracks we laid down at Half Assed Acre studio.
Now, memory cards, all instruments, a camper, Briggs, Dave, and Dalton and I (pictured) all headed to Casper, Wyoming to Larry Burgers’ studio.
The time had come to mix, master and record any final tracks, to fix any mistakes and finish MOJO. Briggs and I wanted slide guitar added to the song, MY SWEETHEART, while bass was needed on a couple of others. Hand claps and some vocals needed to be fixed. The work was not quite done yet. Recording in this studio is a real joy. It is a professional studio using all the latest technology with an 80k, 1970’s, analog mixer to put the right warmth into the songs and microphones most singer would die for. Top that off with a fantastically talented engineer/producer. Almost there.
Larry Burger, Co-Producer, at the sound board
Larry, mixing tracks for MOJO
The last song that needed to be finished was Briggs’ song, HOLDING ON, which she had written over six years ago. This song came straight from her heart and was written a few months after her husband had passed away. Many musicians had tried to help her bring it to life but she and I always felt that it really needed a cello part. Neither of us wanted to use a synth cello so piano was it. The morning Larry ad Briggs started to work on this song it was discovered that the lead vocal track had accidently been recorded over. This meant that Briggs had to rerecord the entire song. While she was singing I went outside to take a break, and met a man, and we struck up a conversation. It just so happened that he was the first chair cellist for the Wyoming Symphony, Tim Jones, and he was there at the studio to give a private lesson. Asked him if he would be willing to play on this song and to my delight he said yes! What happened during that recording session was nothing short of miraculous. Tears were flowing that this talented musician poured his heart out through his instrument.
One more small detail needed to be added to the song in order to make Briggs’ dream come true so I asked my old bandmate, John Jennings from Rock Farmer, to perform acoustic guitar behind it and voila! The song was complete.
At the end of the week, back at the camper, Briggs, Dave, and I listened to the work we had created with smiles on our faces. It is a wonderful album but it needed a name. Somehow we had reached into our souls and had created snapshots of American life. It was almost like magic! MOJO. A magic spell, hex or charm. We believe we have done just that.
~ Peace, love and music,
Kevin Leis, The Thorn.