Here It Opens With A Prayer, But It Closes With A Song (2022)

From the CD liner notes: 

First! A deep, heart-felt “Thank You” to the folks whose prayers, kindness and goodwill made all this possible via the Kickstarter campaign that gave this record it’s birth! For many a record now, you folks “behind the scenes” have supplanted a record company, glitzy management, and superficial PR to make what I do as an independent Americana artist come to life. I am a blessed man, one who is deeply grateful to you all!

2nd: There’s lots of material here! The Rockies of northern New Mexico still inspire, harbor and nurture Muriah’s and my spirits. It’s a small, rural community of about 1,500 folks, many of them organic farmers. It’s been a good place to “wait out” the pandemic, pray for peace in the world…and a wondrous place to make new songs. A small adobe studio about 170 years old (with 2ft thick walls!) creates an environment that invigorates me every time I enter it. I whittled about 30 new songs down to 14.  At 70 minutes, “Here It Opens With A Prayer, But It Closes With A Song” is probably the longest single record I’ve released. I make songs and records that endeavor to “take the listener somewhere.” Always have. I try to “create worlds” when making a new set of songs for an album. My thoughts on albums lengths? We suspect we have all been “cursed” (due to the scatter-gun-rapid-fire-advertising-stimuli) with attention-deficit disorder. Our attention spans hit thresholds earlier. My response? Make an allowance. This is art. I think good art is indispensable. It can be life-giving. Good art sneaks up on us, steals our heart for a spell, makes them clean and then gives them back to us in a new and fresh way. Good art makes us more human, more in touch with that image-of-God-ness resident within each of us.  So, I have a simple request: If 70 minutes seems long, please, please, hang with it. Read the lyrics. Ponder the vocal and instrument maneuvers. Absorb the full-band chemistry here. I hope the great joy I had in making this record shines through and the “places it takes you to” resonate with your spirit. Good songs should help us blossom. You are welcomed to write me and ask me any questions about the songs themselves and what they seem to say. I’ll answer.

Bill Mallonee

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