Reflections on my upbringing, fatherhood, and trying to be a better person.
In this week’s issue I…
1) answer a FAQ “How’s your hand? Can you play guitar again?
2) share a story about how I think the Court Report became a section of the newspaper, and
3) talk to my fellow songwriters about avoiding the awkward cowriting start.
(Photo by Laura Johnson from 1999 Roseau High School Yearbook.) 1 I am 11 or 12. Josh Broten is a year younger. His family moves down the street from me. It’s a small town, so we of course already know of each other. But this is when we become friends. 2 Josh mows Dr. VandeWege’s …
My wife Heidi and I realized we weren’t talking that much. We were becoming parents wrapped up in logistics, forgetting how to hang out with each other. So this is what we did about a year ago. We agreed to meet up for 20 minutes, twice a day. Once in the morning with coffee, once …
We all have our Christmas traditions and for some reason one my family’s is to watch The Sound of Music. As you can see in the photos below, my son August really gets into it. The movie is why I recorded this version of Edelweiss on my 2017 Christmas album This Time of the Year. <a href=”https://aaronespe.bandcamp.com/album/this-time-of-the-year”>This …
My dad’s birthday falls around Thanksgiving. It lands square on it every few years. This is one of those years (Happy Birthday, Pops!). I don’t think he minds sharing the day with Thanksgiving because my dad likes to eat. In fact, that picture above represents my father at one of his happiest moments: four bites …
When you self-produce and mix your own music, you lose perspective. Why? Well, you’ve been listening to all the instrumental and vocal parts that make up the entire song for so long that your ears and brain hurt. If you’re lucky, you have a friend like Jeff Linsenmaier to give you feedback and maybe even …
I’m always conflicted about adding banjo to a recording because it’s such a specific and recognizable sound. Nobody hears a banjo and thinks, My goodness, what is that instrument? But I think the sound works in “The Kindness of Strangers.” It helps keep the song lighter. I bought this banjo in Fargo, North Dakota. I …
About four months ago I was excited to announce my Bandcamp subscription service. Creative freedom and autonomy, here we come! Why hadn’t I done this earlier. I hate being tied to The Man and streaming algorithms. I just want to make folk music about my feelings! But on the day of the announcement, nothing …
My answer is in this throwback Thursday video clip circa 2013. Starting to write songs was one thing; sharing them was a whole different thing!
I was 15 years-old. My middle-school PE teacher Mrs. Glassmann was having a garage sale. Among clothes and trinkets, I saw this Silvertone acoustic guitar (originally black with a sunburst body). Up until that point I’d been borrowing my grandpa Omer’s guitar. But what kind of grandson (or human, for that matter) doesn’t swiftly return …