Released January 20th, 2023

Dark and Dirty World is a collection of songs meant to tell a complete story of a character searching for happiness, acceptance and a secure place in the world, as well as coping with grief and hardship in a sometimes humorous or satirical way, in the vein of Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks/Slow Train Coming, Tom Petty’s Full Moon Fever/Wildflowers, or Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run/Ghost of Tom Joad. There are two overall recurring themes. First, is the displacement of the working class and the corruption and greed that has spawned the current climate of popular unrest.  Second is the emotional struggle that accompanies a failed relationship and a longing for love, companionship, and a sense of belonging that is seemingly out of reach.  Some of the songs were written at various times and were used because they fit the storyline of the album. Dark and Dirty World, Some Things Are Never the Same, Lilly Likes Leanin’ on the Piano, and Runnin’ into the Fire, were written specifically for the album.  Lover of Unreason ended up on the album because the producer of Dark and Dirty World suggested it, I had one of my own songs of a similar style/subject matter that I was going to use but Norma was so excited about it, I went with it and it was the better choice, it book-ends the album perfectly. From end to end the content of the album goes from the macro, a global context of turmoil and struggle, to the micro, an individual context of an internal turmoil and struggle.