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A hundred million accidents brought us here today.
A hundred million missteps speed us on our way.
With a hundred million coincidents that had to come before,
I don’t believe in accidents anymore
- “No Accidents” by Ned Massey
Accidents, missteps and coincidents.
It was no accident that Ned Massey, a young singer/songwriter from the midwest, moved to New York city in the mid-eighties. His goal was to have his music heard by the famous producer and talent scout, John Hammond, the Columbia Records A&R man responsible for signing and recording such acts as Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen.
By coincidence, while working his first week in a downtown restaurant, one of Massey’s customers --who just happened to be reading John Hammond’s autobiography--turned out to be a recording engineer who had just worked with Hammond on Stevie Ray Vaughn’s album, “Texas Flood.” The two struck up a conversation and the engineer gave Massey Hammond’s office number.
Massey, after months of phone calls and letters, finally got to play his music for Hammond who promptly announced in the national press(L.A. Times, Wall Street Journal, CBS Morning News) that he had found “the next Dylan, the next Springsteen.”
Hammond took Massey in the studio and began recording what was to be Massey’s debut release for Epic Records. Then, one day, while in the studio with Massey, the elderly Hammond suffered a serious stroke from which he never recovered. With Hammond no longer championing the project, Massey’s deal disappeared.
Then came the missteps: a disastrous management deal; a development deal with a major label where the executive involved was fired; signing to an independent label that ran out of money right when Ned’s album was released. And so on. The kind of stories that are unfortunately the norm in the music business.
Over the years, Massey’s performances have drawn rave reviews and a devoted following(a solo acoustic performance in St. Louis by Massey for a crowd of over ten thousand was ranked as one of the top ten concerts of the year by the Riverfront Times -- St. Louis’s version of the Village Voice).
And, finally, we have Ned Massey’s new album, “A Brief Appearance,” a mere eighteen years after John Hammond discovered Massey. The album is an at times fiery, at times meditative, examination into the mystery of faith, hope and love in a troubled world. Anchored by Massey’s rich, resonant voice, “Brief Appearance” is a collection of songs that doesn't turn a blind eye to the the darker side of the human condition, yet ends with a hard-won optimism born from the wisdom of experience.
If you like powerful lyrics sung by great voice, this is your kind of music, and it’s no accident that you’re here. So listen.
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| Acoustic guitars, lush harmonies, and a warm, rich lead vocal wrap around lyrics about loss and the strength we find for the ones we love.ort |
CD: A Brief Appearance
Label: Nick Missouri Music
Credits: Produced by Ned Massey, Missed by Joe Costa |
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| A beautiful acoustic ballad about faith. |
CD: "A Brief Appearance"
Label: Nick Missouri Music
Credits: Produced by Roger Greenawalt |
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| A reaction to the reactionary John Ashcroft› |
CD: "A Brief Appearance
Label: www.nedmassey.com
Credits: produced by ned massey |
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