Paul Roalsvig has released his fourth musical CD Album “The Longings of Paul Roalsvig,” by Yod Crewsy and Musical Friends. This two-CD compilation is available for purchase on iTunes, Bandcamp.com, and can also be found for streaming on Spotify and YouTube. CD’s are also available for purchase at CD Baby. This album was recorded and produced by Paul Roalsvig at Viking Ship Studios in Long Lake, N.Y. and mixed by Justin Rose at GCR Studios in Buffalo, N.Y.
This musical collection of 31 songs was selected by Roalsvig to convey a combination of songs that are classic campfire, open mike, crowd-pleasing covers he has performed over the years in a variety of bands and venues along with heavier, darker themed political anthems, and originals reflecting the anxiety and unsettling last four years in the American political arena.
An original called “When They Stormed the Capitol” was written and performed by Paul Roalsvig as an emotional response to the January 6th attack on the Capitol in Washington D.C.
This production of the music was underway as early as 2013, but picked up steam in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic lock-down. Roalsvig reached out to musicians including Bobby Lebel, a studio musician from Buffalo, New York and band leader for the Bobby Lebel Orchestra. Bobby performed on 20 of the tracks bringing his unique style and instrumentation including guitar, slide guitar, mandolin, and banjo. Kurt Reil from The Grip Weeds performed and recorded drums and percussion on 23 of the tracks.
Other artists performing on the CD include musicians, Cathy Carfagna and Dave Meinzer, Russ Steinberg, Bud Redding, Kilissa Cissoko, Jeff Beeman, Frank Vigilante, Buck Quigley, Glen LaBlanc, Steve Signell, Eric “Shoeless” Pollard, Jonathan “Rocky” Belcher, John Weyl, and Alexandra Roalsvig.
Of special note was a collaboration between Roalsvig and poet Alan Percy. Percy and Roalsvig met in 1983 during the birth of Buffalo Punk scene and reconnected through social media in 2019.
Alan Percy was making the rounds in the UK at poetry readings and reached out on social media to see if anyone would be interested in setting some music to his poetry. Roalsvig jumped at the chance to collaborate in the midst of the lockdown. Roalsvig wrote the music and included five of the poems/songs on this latest project. The songs include Bomber’s Lullaby, Highway Song, Broken Headlight, Lazarus, and Edie. There are two versions of Highway Song included. Alan Percy died in December 2020 from Covid-19 and never heard the final mixed cuts from the collection.
Roalsvig’s musical career started out when he was a new wave/punk rock disc jockey for WBNY radio station in Buffalo. From there he created an authentic 60’s sounding garage-rock and power pop band in Buffalo, the Dark Marbles. Roalsvig also known in the musical circles, as Yod Crewsy, was a member of Buffalo’s original music scene having been in proto-punk band, The Splat Cats and garage-rock band, The JackLords. Bands that had opened for The Ramones and Roy Orbison.
In 2005, the Dark Marbles released a three song CD entitled “Let’s Go!” consisting of one song by Roalsvig as well as a song by songwriter and former JackLord bandmate Buck Quigley and Bernie Kugel of bands, The Good and Mystic Eyes.
In 2011 Roalsvig and his band issued an 18 song CD, “Variety Pack” with a version of Arthur Lee and Love’s “She Comes in Colors” The CD received favorable reviews in Timonthy Gassen’s book “The Knights of Fuzz,” the definitive bible of neo-garage and psychedelic/freak beat artists for world-wide connoisseurs of that genre of music.
In 2017 the Dark Marbles released a 21-song CD “Back to the Garage,” featuring cover songs the band had performed live over many years. Some songs include “I Got a Line on You” by Spirit, “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone” by the Monkees, and “Too Much to Dream” by the Electric Prunes.
In 2019, Yod and the band issued a 20-song CD “Brit-Pop Faves!” with a collection of British and British Invasion cover tunes.
Over the Years, Yod and the Dark Marbles have opened for such acts as: Ani DiFranco, Scott Carpenter and the Real McCoys, the Irving Klaws, the Outlyres, the Howling Thurstons, Hazy Jane, the Von Ghouls, the Coffin Daggers, Mondo Topless, the Insomniacs, the Trash Mavericks, Sky Saxon and the Seeds, the Nines, Muck and the Mires, the Demands, Jason Ringenberger from Jason and the Scorchers, the Anything People, the Anderson Council, the Black Hollies, Mod Fun and the Grip Weeds.
With The Longings of Paul Roalsvig this 31-two-CD set Roalsvig hopes to take listeners on a ride covering all the ground that makes listeners dance, think and reflect on the times we are currently living in.
