Posts Tagged ‘Neal Casal Music Foundation’

NEAL CASAL – ” Everything is Moving ” and ” Green Moon “

Posted: December 4, 2020 in MUSIC
Tags: , ,
0
Listen to Neal Casal’s Final Two Solo Songs, “Everything is Moving” and “Green Moon”

The final solo recordings of Neal Casal, the prolific solo artist and in-demand guitarist who died in August 2019, have been made available. “Everything Is Moving” and “Green Moon” were released Thursday to both pay tribute to Casal and raise funds for the Neal Casal Music Foundation, a non-profit that aims to put musical instruments into the hands of kids and provide mental-health support for artists.

“I am just a shadow on your wall/ One day you won’t think of me at all,” Neal Casal sings on “Everything is Moving” one of his final songs before taking his own life in August 2019.

“Everything is Moving” – and its poignant video – arrive alongside “Green Moon” another new song, which dates back to 2013 but was only recently finished by Casal’s colleagues who took on the mantle of his final recordings after his death. “Working on these songs has been truly cathartic for me as I continue to process the loss of my dear friend,” producer Jeff Hill said via press release. “Neal writes in ‘Everything Is Moving,’ ‘I am just a shadow on the wall, you won’t even think of me at all.’ As much as Neal’s lyrics can be eerily prophetic of the tragedy to come, he was wrong. So many of us will be thinking of Neal for decades to come.” an accompanying music video directed by Ray Foley that compiles archival footage of Casal from various stages of his life. He’s walking city streets, meeting fans, and communing with nature in his favourite location: the surf and sand. 

Listen to “Green Moon” and watch the video for “Everything is Moving”

According to a press release, “In addition to being released on streaming platforms, the two songs will comprise a limited edition 7-inch on February. 26th by the Neal Casal Music Foundation in collaboration with Royal Potato Family who released Casal’s final solo album, “Sweeten the Distance.”

“Green Moon” is a bucolic ballad recorded at Casal’s California studio in 2016. Like “Everything Is Moving,” it too was finished by friends in 2020. “There’s a place for you in time, to be a witness to something so divine,” Casal sings.

In fact, Casal was that witness. Along with being an avid surfer, he documented everyday life as a photographer. Casal, who played with artists from Ryan Adams and Chris Robinson to his own solo band Circles Around the Sun,

The Band: Neal Casal – Vocals & Acoustic Guitar Jon Graboff – Acoustic, Electric & Pedal Steel Guitar Jeff Hill – Bass John Ginty – Piano & Hammond B3 Organ Joe Russo – Drums Jena Kraus – Background Vocals

To learn about the Neal Casal photography book, as seen in the “Everything is Moving” video, click here.

CIRCLES AROUND The SUN – ” All The Luck In The World ” Feat Billy Strings,

Posted: June 23, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , , ,
0

Circles Around The Sun and Billy Strings teamed up for a cover of “All The Luck In The World” by Neal Casal. The collaboration is the first single off of the forthcoming “Highway Butterfly: The Songs of Neal Casal” compilation album in tribute to the late guitarist who died last year.

Highway Butterfly will feature contributions from Phil Lesh, Warren Haynes, Steve Earle, Shooter Jennings, Jimmy Herring, Eric Krasno, and many more, with proceeds from the project to benefit the newly-launched Neal Casal Music Foundation. This non-profit organization gives instruments and music lessons to children in New Jersey and New York, as well as provides mental health services through organizations like Backline and MusiCares in memory of the musician who committed suicide on August 26th, 2019.

Taken from the forthcoming 2021 release, Highway Butterfly: The Songs Of Neal Casal. This double CD/triple album vinyl is being co-produced by Widespread Panic’s Dave Schools and 7-time Grammy-Winner Jim Scott and features almost 30 artists covering Neal’s songs.

“All The Luck In The World” comes from Casal’s 1996 album Rain Speed & Wind, his second of 12 solo records. Though he became more well-known for his instrumental guitar work, “All The Luck In The World” showcases Casal’s thoughtful lyricism and is done justice by Strings’s singing. The performance is given added reverence as Strings begins the video by discussing how he came to know Casal and his music through CATS’ Interludes for the Dead album, which played over the PA’s at the Grateful Dead‘s Fare Thee Well concerts in 2015. The song is set to an in-studio performance video featuring various Casal memorabilia, as well as Widespread Panic bassist Dave Schools, who produced the album. Casal and Schools worked side by side alongside Todd Snider and others in the band Hard Working Americans.

In addition to Highway Butterfly, there will also be a book of Casal’s photography released under as Tomorrow’s Sky: Photographs by Neal Casal in November. Produced by Jay Blakesberg, Tomorrow’s Sky features a selection of the more than 25,000 photographs Casal left behind in a curated collection. The photos chronicle Casal’s time playing with Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals, Hard Working Americans, Circles Around The Sun, his own successful solo career, and many more musical endeavors. Strings counts photos that Casal took of him performing onstage among his prized possessions.

“‘Tomorrow’s Sky’ is a look at the world seen through the eyes of Neal Casal,” Blakesberg said. “Neal was a stealth photographer who always carried his camera and documented the people, places and scenes as they passed before him. The photos are intimate, beautiful and from the hip. Nothing is set up, it is real life in real time.”

Visit the Neal Casal Music Foundation’s website for more information on the forthcoming projects, or to make a donation.

neal casal, neal casal tribute, billy strings neal casal, billy strings circles aroung the sun, highway butterfly neal casal, highway butterfly, neal casal music