STORY Written by David Russell, based on his stage-play "Lensville" Recorded by Eric Eagle at Skoor Sound, Seattle Script Consulting and voice coaching by Susanna Burney Narration and Sound Design by David Russell MUSIC All songs by David Russell End of the Beach ASCAP Tracks 2,3,8,10: Recorded, engineered and drummed by Eric Eagle Trumpet by Al Keith. Tenor Sax by Kevin Nortness All other instruments and vocals by David Russell Tracks 1,4,5,6,7,9: Recorded and engineered by David Russell and Eric Eagle Drums by Dan Tierney. Select guitars and basses by Pat Munson Guitar, bass, keys, cello and vocals, arrangements by David Russell CD Art and Layout by Jason Puccinelli Mastered by Roger Seibel at S.A.E. LENSVILLE INFLUENCES First and foremost, Lensville would not exist if Harry Nilsson had not written The Point, which I absolutely adored as a kid. The Point is the story of a town where everyone has a point on the top of their heads, except the hero "Oblio" who is round headed. It had the standard Disney-style record format: a bit of story, a song, more story, another song, etc. but the story was funny and socially subversive (based on an acid trip, according to Harry) and the music was the sweetest Beatle-esqe pop music. (Of course, that influence went both ways, as the Beatles were much enamored of Nilsson). Lensville has been produced three times as a children's play. Theatre is wonderful, but it is ephemeral--once the show is over, it vanishes forever. I wanted to make a document of this tale to give to my kids and friends and curious acquaintances. I also took on Lensville as a personal art challenge: I'm not the greatest writer, singer, composer, guitar player, keyboard player, bass player or actor, but I can do all that stuff and I thought it would be fun to take it all on as a sort of versatility test. So I did. Eventually, I would love for Lensville to be a feature length animated movie, but in the meantime, I made this audio document, so you can make the movie in your head. When I got the idea to do Lensville as an audio document, I went back to The Point and other records of my youth and childhood. I remember first hearing the Beatles' White Album as a ten year old, and having my mind blown in the greatest way. I still don't think kids music has to be simple or linear, or to only contain things kids can understand. I loved the mystery of feeling like there was more information in there, than I could figure out in a single listen, or maybe ever. Lots of my favorite albums from that time, tease at a kind of narrative: Sgt. Pepper's, Dark Side of the Moon, Ziggy Stardust-- all had me trying to piece together a story that wasn't all the way there. Sometimes I wished the narrative could be more overt, and as engaging as the music, like The Point. So I tried to cast myself back, be a kid in his bedroom in the early seventies, studying a record sleeve, trying to figure out the story. A story like The Point, that kids could enjoy on one level, and adults could enjoy on another. Musically, I thought it would be fun to wear my influences on my sleeve. The chords and the melodies were mostly done, but the arrangements and the sounds on the record would be an homage to stuff I like. Lensville starts with a Morricone influenced spaghetti western song, but then heads for the psychedelic late sixties and stays there. I hear a little Benefit of Mr. Kite, in "Red or Blue" Penny Lane in "Optometrist Song" and Tomorrow Never Knows in "Million Ways to See" as well as some 12-string in the spirit of the Byrds' Eight Miles High. Dear Prudence in the Optometrist Song coda. Maybe some of Jefferson Airplanes' White Rabbit in "Artesia Windblown" Harpsichord, Farfisa, Mellotron, Strings and Brass, very fun to try to recreate the sounds, (with my limited skill-set) that had such a huge influence on me. Story-wise, I love Vonnegut and Roald Dahl. Most of my plays have ended up being about perception and the subjective nature of "truth". This one is no exception. It is also about the absurd notion that God would pick a side. What happens when our separate beliefs become more important than our common humanity? It's also a love letter to my hometown, Brigham City, Utah. THANK-YOUS Lensville started life as an Empty Space Theatre, Seattle, kid's outreach project in the mid 90's. My friend, Becca Shenfeldt invited me to participate. In the early 2000's, Youth Theater Northwest in Seattle, commissioned me to make a longer version and feature it in their season. Director john Gordon Hill signed on to direct. He was a big fan of the material, insightful and fun to work with. My buddy, Jason Puccinelli signed on to do sets. (The past ten years, Jason and I have continued to geek out to the visual possibilities of Lensville, lately culminating in the album design for this project). A theatre colleague, Mark Nichols, volunteered to record the performances. Mark and I continued to talk after the show closed and embarked on an audio project of Lensville that never saw the light of day. Mark did ask some great dramaturgical questions that helped develop the material further. Years went by, I did lots of other projects, but around 2008, I got the Lensville itch again. I turned it into a screenplay, fleshing it out further. I also started to poke around at the music again. I invited close friends Dan Tierney (drums) and Pat Munson (guitars) to do some recording with me in my rehearsal bunker. Some of these sessions made it on to this disc. More time went by, Finally in 2014 I booked some time with another friend Eric Eagle (engineer, drums) and bit by bit, we finished the thing musically. In making an audio version of the story, the writing went through another transformation. I called my buddy, Susanna Burney, to act as an outside ear. (Susanna is a stage actor I know from the theatre scene, and also a voice-over actor who does lots of books on tape). Working from a screenplay treatment, I tried to turn the narrative into a kind of audio movie. With Susanna's coaching and Eric's audio expertise we were finally done. (for the time being?) I hope you like the result.