Duet with Katie Corrigan! An old staple by Ken and the Achievements re-imagined as an excuse to get Katie into the Media Mechanix studio! Produced by Paul Brokaw in glistening fashion, this '70s chestnut gets new life from Kate; acoustic GTR by Joe Refano; and electric lead by Greg Meade. Katie fans unite!
THIS was Ken and the Achievements' big, fat, cynical ROCK song from 1979 and our Stonybrook U live show on WUSB-FM. One of our old friend Jake Barnes's favorites, "Sold American" was engineered to rock socks for those who ignore lyrics!
Mid-80s synth-pop fun with Ken and producer Paul Brokaw. With a firm nod to contemporary John Waite's "Missing You," here we also steal from Little Richard, Jayne Mansfield and Leonard Cohen. It still sounds like summer...
The late-70s vintage Meade Bros. Band reached a zenith (one of their many) with Rich and Greg Meade, the stalwart Zach Stern on drums, Tommy Rizzo on bass (a future Achievement!) and the inimitable Ben Rosenblatt on keyboards. People have been asking where they can obtain one of Rich Meade's very best tunes -- well, right here! Produced by Joe Powell.
Big, loud fun with Rich Meade, Greg Meade, producer/one-man-band Paul Brokaw and Joe Refano. Greg is the basso profundo and plays GTR duel with Joe Ref. Joe Powell, back after all these years, helped mix. Concept: What would you say to A-Rod or Lance?
Enjoy the apocalypse on a Caribbean beach with a reggae band pulsing in the background! Rich and Greg Meade re-rejoin Ken in the studio for ethereal harmony vocals (arranged by Greg) and guitar (played by Greg). This is one of the new songs saluting the Meade Brothers' 40th anniversary and a like number of years of association with Ken. Maestro Paul Brokaw at Media Mechanix created the reggae band in his studio. Check out the Hammond!
Thanks for checking out my bifurcated recording efforts over the decades. (The other vein being the great support provided by the Achievements on the other "Songs" page.) This page has some wide-ranging and far-flung material that exists thanks in large part to Paul Brokaw in the '80s and, this century, Broke and Joe Refano at Media Mechanix. There also are chestnuts recorded by producer Doug Wood in the 1977-78 period prior to the Achievements.
"And Friends" involves some super opportunities for me to sing with greats like Kate Corrigan and Shannon Rae and features the return of brothers Greg and Richard Meade to the studio! (Check out "She Changes Everything" and "You Are the One.") On that note, Greg and Rich are re-returning to record new songs which will appear right here! Soon! (It being our 40th anniversary or so of collaboration.)
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Probably the apotheosis of working with only one other guy, keyboardist/drum-programmer/bassist/arranger Paul Brokaw. Still proud of this effort despite the decades of electronic improvements that have transpired since. (Check out the sub-bass foghorn!)
Every state should have it's theme song; still waiting for the governor to give this one the nod. Two mid-eighties guys: Paul Brokaw on almost everything, me on guitar.
Mid-80's techno angst. Ken (GTR + vocals) and Paul "Broke" Brokaw (everything else) at Saber Sound. A brisk look at a guy grappling with the possibility that he's been kissed off.
This is a 1974(!) Meade Bros. Band song re-imagined in the studio by producer Doug Wood of Omnimusic in 1977. Mark Gaide on drums, Nick Tarantola on GTR, Doug on acoustic GTR and bass, and the inimitable Kate Corrigan harmonizing. Concept: trying to evoke romantic longing, dammit!
Got despair? If not, enter here. Everything, including a stack of unpaid bills, is less desperate after hearing this. Paul Brokaw and me at Saber Sound in the latter-day '80s. Concept: Dude wants his illusions back.
Got Shannon Rae? The respondent in this here song also sings "Whenever You're Around"(! -- elsewhere on this site). This is fun (small "F") from 2009 at the Media Mechanix studio with Paul Brokaw and Joe Refano. Concept: Grizzled shrimp-boat captain expresses disbelief at the level of feminine pulchritude he's subjected to on land after a long day plying the oily Gulf waters. And, suddenly, there's an homage to the "Teaberry Shuffle"!
Mid-80's techno/apocalyptic with, again, Ken and Broke. Try this if you like end-o'-world lyrics. Concept: Virgin Galactic makes an end run around NASA, China and North Korea and squeezes off one last rocket launch bearing this woeful explanation for any curious interstellar passersby. Holds up pretty well, I think, after 25-plus years, given our current status.
An early (mid-'80s) experiment -- Paul Brokaw and I, just we two, hatch an in-studio test tube baby to see if it rocks. (It does.) Concept: complainant contends that, despite his romantic woes, he can do just fine with what little remains in his pocket.
From 2009 -- the Meade Bros. Rich & Greg rejoin me for a tearful studio reunion at Media Mechanix. Bass and first lead GTR by Joe Refano; Paul Brokaw producing and providing e-drums and much more. Fun: Ken plays arena-rock GTR riffs with only one finger on a synth! Concept: pretend you are Robert Palmer!
Mid-80s techno-reggae with Broke playing almost everything and Rich Meade dubbing super-high vocals. (And my GTR!) Concept: narrator is optimistic to a fault. Myopic, too.
An off-center rock salute to appreciating photographs of loved ones. Recorded in 2008 at Media Mechanix with Paul Brokaw and Joe Refano, the English Beat is paid tribute. Check out Joe's lead GTR!
From our mid-eighties techno period, Paul Brokaw and me with GTR dub by Allan Varela. Concept: obsession. Ah, the smell of it! (One listener described this song on Facebook as "sexy." A triumph of sorts after all these years.)
This song was written in 1978 for the Ronstadt-with-soulful-white-guy genre and produced by Doug Wood of Omnimusic. Then, 30 years later, Paul Brokaw and Joe Refano of Media Mechanix gave it a new feel, featuring the great Shannon Rae. (Visit shannonraemusic.com for more.) Imagine having your way-most-listened-to song be sung by someone else! What does that tell us??