In February, James Deely released his 8th studio album, "This Train Is Running Out of Track". The former South Jersey artist may have moved to the West Coast years ago, but he's got his Jersey Shore musician friends on this album and hearing these tunes kind of feels like he never left. In fact, a few of these songs would undoubtably find their way on to a Deely greatest hits collection. It's always good to catch up with him, so we reached out to learn more about the latest record.
You describe this album as "10 New songs about Loss, Hope and Redemption." I think one of the toughest things about growing older is having friends and family pass on. Tell me how writing and recording these songs helps you after such losses?
Well as a songwriter, I am a observer of those little moments in Life that others might miss, and some of these memories have a huge impact on me; they keep rattling around my head, and eventually find their way into songs, otherwise, the memories just fester and disturb me, like walking with a small pebble in your shoe.
For instance, in "His Time Is Coming", that Song is about my Father's Funeral in Brant Beach. It's a conversation between a widowed Grandmother, who gently tells comforting lies to a concerned Grandchild, to ease the child's pain from losing the Grandfather. As I was leaving St Francis Church in Brant Beach where we had the Funeral, I turned around to see my Father's casket, and My Mom with all her grand children hanging on her trying to comfort her. I could not get that image out of my mind, it haunted me for a long long time, and from that memory the Song "His Time Is Coming" was Born.
I think it really makes it easier for me to understand the pain, and hopefully you as a listener can get some relief too. The Hope and Redemption part is about trying to move on and not get dragged down by the Sadness of Losing some one very close to You. And I had a run there, it was brutal. Just brutal.
Some of these tracks were released over the past few years. How did the album come about? Do you write a new track and get people to come and record them? Are the singles you release intended to be just singles at the time or are they always pieces of an album?
The songs were always a part of a Larger picture, but I have a full-time job out here in L.A., and stopping the day job and going in to make a full album does not work, but one song at a time I can manage. Plus, as I get older, I kinda want to slow the process down a bit and enjoy the moment more!
My Old buddy Norman Nardini said to me the other day, "People don't listen to albums anymore" and I said, "well it's all I know"!
Also we had to wrestle with COVID , and some of the songs were written during the delays of the COVID shutdown.
You have a lot of guest players on the album - many are old friends of yours. How cool is it that you're able to get these people together for your records?
Well any time you can get Eddie "Kingfish" Manion to record on a Record, I mean Come On! We had Kevin Kavanaugh on Piano and Organ on the Last record, so Original Jukes playing on my Records, I mean, Wake Me, am I dreaming? I am a Jukes fan since I was a wee Lad! Lisa Lowell? Ya Kidding Me! Layonne Holmes!
And then the usual suspects, Jimmy Devaney, who was the Original drummer in the Valiants, Chuck Manich stood in Paulie's shoes on Bass, the great PK Lavengood has been recording with me ever since the Valiants ended, Ron Haney, Judy Tint, and the Great One Bruce Tunkel! All Life long friends. So it's Really a Love Fest!
Where did you record the album? Did people record at different places and it all gets send to Bruce Tunkel?
We originally recorded the first 5 songs at Retro Media in Red Bank with Adam Vacarelli before COVID hit. Me, Jimmy Devaney and Bassist Chuck Manich, Rocking it like the Old days, but when COVID hit, we all scrambled, and tried to figure out how to move forward, then we started recording remotely in Ireland, New York City, Los Angeles, CackaLacky North Carolina, Arlington Virginia, New Jersey,
COVID really dictated that we all record in different places, safely in studios and at peoples Homes. And Bruce Tunkel is so talented, right there in his Home studio he can do all kinds of amazing things!
Please tell me a little about a few tracks.
Prisoners of Ourselves: In Prisoners of Ourselves, I was trying to articulate the idea that sometimes, there are these invisible prison walls around us are self imposed. Almost like a self inflicted pain, and maybe if we step back a bit, and try looking at some things with a little different perspective, we might feel a lot different, and its got that great line; "You're all I've got there's nothing Else, I've seen your Heaven I've seen your Hell."
This Train Is Running Out of Track: The Title Song This Train Is Running Out of Track is a love letter to Paul Ford, it never would have been written if Paul did not pass away. The Train is a metaphor for Us the Living, and the Track is a metaphor for Father Time, and everything is finite, the final verse, says it all for me, "Someday We'll be Together again, out past the Blue Skies and Wild Winds, And no More Tears will Fill our eyes, There're be no More Painful Goodbyes"
Streets of Dublin - this is one of my favorites on the album. I can picture the photos you've posted on Facebook when I hear this song. Did you visit Dublin a lot when you were growing up or just in recent years? The pride in walking those streets really comes through and I get that...
First as a little background, My Family came to the U.S. in 1895, they didn't even get to go to Ellis Island, they took them straight up the Delaware River and dropped them in Philly!
My Mom has these letters from Ireland, "Uncle Jim's horse died" and things like that! Then as Kids, my parents and Uncles and Aunts and Grandparents were going "Home" as they say, but to be honest it really did not register too much with me at that time. Some Rebel songs here and there, then something big happened, U2 hit the US and everybody was Irish!
Then as the older folks in my family stopped going to Ireland, my generation in my family started going, pretty cool having lunch in Galway with people who knew my Mom, Dad and my Grandmother!
It has been the most amazing experience in my Life to walk around Cobb, (formerly Queensland), the last Port
O Call for the Infamous Titantic, to walk those streets, knowing my Great Grandfather walked them very
same streets before he shipped out to the Americas! Wow! Just Blew me off me bar stool!
American Heart -- another of my favorites. Was there any one incident that inspired this or a series of things?
American Heart is song that takes a look at what we, the United States, became during the Trump Years, the vitriol, the nastiness and the anger that we all turned on Fellow Americans, it reminded me of the Vietnam War days, We were not United at all, we were toxically divided, and its really about the American Heart rambling aimlessly on a lonely Highway in this American Land, searching for some kind of Redemption in the aftermath, In the closing verse, the character in the song realizes the person sleeping next to him is one of those "others";
"Last night I Saw it in my Lovers Eyes,
So much Sadness and I wondered Why,
They say that the Eyes are the Window to the Soul,
We've Come so Far with Such a Long way to Go"
I try not to give away whether the singer is of the Left or right, hoping the lyrics can apply to both sides. I really believe the only way forward, is if we all find some way to drop our collective grievances a bit, and come together as much as we can and Move on. Otherwise, its a Cormac McCarthy book for Us! The notion that Man, in all his wisdom, will inevitably destroy Himself.
Until the End -- was this from your father's funeral? It is a beautiful tune that sounds it could have been on Springsteen's "The River"...
Yer killing me, bingo! Funny you think its a Funeral, its actually a Wedding, Me and Paul just loved the River, we thought of the River as Our Bible! It's really about the promise of marriage, making that promise is one thing, but staying true to it is another thing all together, and so many folks don't make it, so the singer is asking questions, saying to his Dad, you have been through it, so tell me, is it all its cracked up to be?
Asking the Father, if there some advise or warning he wants to give me before I hit the Tunnel of Love, Kind of giving the Father one last chance to tell him not to do it, which does not happen, the guy gets married, he is going to get married no matter what anyone thinks, he is just thinking out loud a bit, in the 2nd verse he ask the perspective Bride, "Patti, am I the Man you Dreamed I would be"? them age old doubts slipping in just before the big Day! And then finally Promising, I will be here, Until the End.
Even When I'm Blue -- anything inspire this Steve Earle cover? Or did it seem like a fitting when to end the album?
I have always just loved Steve Earle, and I always loved this song, and yes, it is a fitting way to end the Album and it's also a precursor to the next album, "Songs For a Irish Funeral", The song has that great line "I know she's looking for me too" and it reminded me of my Wife, who I lost a few years back, the idea that two people are looking for each other, one here in the earthly world, and the other is out there in the after life, Two Lovers searching for each other, out among the Celestial stars, Hoping to be Re United again, It reminded me of a lot of the mystical Celtic writings I have been reading about the relationship between the living and those who have moved on to the afterlife. John O'Donahue is great with stories like that, the "The Space Between" and "Anam Cara", which means Soul Friend in Gaelic.
Tell me what it's been like to work with Bruce Tunkel on the last few albums?
Brucie T, what can I say, we became fast friends the day we met, 35 years ago. And we both, always seemed to looking at the same North Star. We did so many gigs with his band the Red House, all great guys too! Tony, Bob and Ron. I mean any guy that loves pints of Guiness and clam chowder! He was amazingly talented then and he is even more talented now. Just a great musician and he really knows his way around a recording studio.
I will tell anyone who will listen, when you record and do music with this Lad. Your imagination is your only limitation! I would say to him "I hear a pump organ on this song" and he would say "Oh have have I got a pump organ for you"! and the whole record was like that, just fantastic to work with him, and he has the greatest Family, Sally and the 3 Boys! and Ollie the cat and Riley the dog!
Watch out for his son Sammy, a great Singer Songwriter in his own right, Just the Best! I literally could not do it with out Brucie Tunkel! The River Runs Deep, When the Valley is Low.
If I may, add one more, one of the things that happened to me along the way is that I never got that ever elusive record deal, and though it may have been a bit disappointing at the time, over the years I realized, that with out a record deal, I had no one to answer to when it came to writing and recording music, so I had the incredible opportunity to do exactly what I wanted to do with music, and that has been very gratifying. This is my 8th record, so I am really proud of that, and to have long time fans say, "this record is the best you have ever done" just blows me away! Me and Bruce Tunkel, and all the others here, still pushing that rock up the hill.
Finally, how about them Eagles?
My Mom and Dad and their families were all born and raised in Philly! My Grandfather was transferred to the DC area around 1955, and the clan moved south, so I was born in DC, and later moved back to the Jersey Shore while in High school, Southern Regional, So back in the day, before cable TV, the only stations we got in South Jersey was the Philly Stations, then north of Toms River, it switched over to NY stations, so we were all into the Flyers, 76'ers, Phillies and the Birds!!!! Gonna be a Great Philly Cheese Steak Super Bowl!
