1. Just A Matter of Time - Rock - This song was the end result of a yearning to be more than a friend to a close friend of many years. Soloists: Intro JD, bridge is a combined guitar part of JD, JN and LD.


2. Promises - Folk/Rock - This song was derived from a conversation I had with my fiancee once. I guess the main message is that rings and things aren't as good as keeping the promises we make to our loved ones. Soloist: JD

3. Give Me A Break - Rock - One of my newer songs, "Give Me a Break" is a self-evaluation of priorities that seems to have been prompted by the circumstances surrounding song #1 (see above). I saw how my life was falling apart, and how I had been fooled in many ways. Soloist: JD

4. The Shadows On My Wall - Progressive Folk - Written in a very early, dark, period of my life, this song has grown to have multiple meanings. I believe it was written shortly before, or shortly after a breakup which I initiated with a college girlfriend. Things were just going nowhere, and it yet it seemed I would always remember her. "Shadows" has taken on some rather autobiographical meaning since then, as I try to deal with my own darkness, and the fact that relationships don't always last. Special thanks to Mike Maguire for helping with the original version, and for creating the lead break. He never wanted a songwriting credit, but to this day I've tried to re-create his magic. Soloist: JD

5. Someone to Touch - Folk - This is just an analysis of people and motives. Kind of tongue in cheek, but true to some extent (I hope). My fear of flying kind of peeks in, and my distrust of money as well. Soloist: LD

6. Word Traffic - Country Folk Rock - For every 10 songs I write, many are admittedly ambiguous. However, this one hits the nail right on the head. In general it's about the music industry, told with references to driving and traffic. And, I suppose, there's some politics in there too. Now, if I could just come up with a verse about HMOs! Soloist: LD

7. Morning Blues - Blues - A true story if there ever was one, this song was written around 5 am at a close friend's apartment in Philly. We had seen some blues and folk entertainment that night at the Tin Angel, and I realized it was my turn to write a blues song. The song wasn't finished for a little while, and the girl I was visiting never knew it was about her until it was too late. For years I played it, right in front of her, and she never put 2 and 2 together. Soloist: JN

8. I Ran Away - Rock - This is the end result of songs #1, #4 and #7. The song pretty much tells the story. Soloist: JD

9. What Have You Done Today - Folk - Largely influenced by Buddhism and the writings of Joseph Campbell, this song is riddled with metaphors even I don't remember writing. I think it may have been the result of a writing exercise where I took various unrelated words, and tried to tie them together.

10. Taller - Folk - Every songwriter has one of those "Oh, I'm getting older, and I have to reflect on my life" songs. I am no different. The sample at the beginning is (you guessed it) me at 3 years of age. I left the naughty nursery rhymes out, but the one went something like this:

Mary had a little lamb
She tied him to the heater
And every time he turned around
He burned his little peter.

The children playing at the end was recorded at the lake at Gifford Pinchot campground, south of Harrisburg. Soloist: LD

11. Why - Progressive Rock - Even to me, this song is strange. It has gone through some changes in the past few years, especially for this recording. The song doesn't work well live because there are so many parts and different levels. In the studio, I was able to take it places, and maybe took it a little too far. This is from the same place as "Shadows" (see above), and comes from the same kind of self-discovery I talk about in "What Have You Done Today." Soloist: JD, filler part at end by LD

12. Breathe Deep - Folk/Rock - This song could not have come at a better time. It says neither too much, or too little, but says what needs to be said. It goes out to all the people I've written about above, and to all the people who have inspired me in the past. Soloist: JDIt goes out to my father, not just because he likes the song, but because he's in the song. It's really freaky to have your father go out of his way to learn and play one of your songs when it means so much to you. It's even weirder to sing it with him.It goes out to the friends I've lost along the way, (for whatever reason) and the tears that were shed in the process.It's about dying, (physical and otherwise); the fear of dying, and the threat of every day life.If there ever was a phrase that wraps up my existence, or the work I've done as a musician it is: "You are more than you can feel or see..."

Since 10/6/99, approximately 338 people visited this page and downloaded the MANDALA Sampler. After seeing numbers like that, I figured it was time to move the file over to MP3.COM where I could actually be compensated for each download. As of 12/22/01 there were 626 hits on this page, indicating an additional 300+ people came looking for the file. In mid-December 2001, I made longer clips available via MP3. When MP3 changed their policies (2002) prohibiting artists from posting more than three songs, I moved the audio to my own site. As of 11/22/03, 861 people viewed this page.