Just got back late last night from spending a few days in Napa with Josh. Such a vibrant and romantic time we had. I felt like I had the space to breathe for the first time since finishing recording. It was re-energizing and inspiring. And I smelled crisp fall air for the first time in years.
We were celebrating our 3rd wedding anniversary and almost 8 years total together. It’s insane to me that at such a young age I have been blessed to find such a great person with whom to spend my life. But I try to embrace it at every moment.
We drove up the 5 Tuesday evening and stayed the night in Oakland with my friends Taryn and Eddy and their new baby Eden. I met Eden last month when I was in the bay area, but this was Josh’s first time with the little one. She is amazing. It’s nuts how suddenly everyone I know has a baby. Time passes so quickly. Just when you get comfortable with life as it is, the landscape shifts.
Wednesday morning we had breakfast in Oakland with T and E and E and then drove an hour and change north to the beautiful hills and vines of Napa. We met up with my Dad, who flew in from Wisconsin, and had lunch at a great Italian place called Uva. We dove right into the wine, sharing a bottle of Mount Veeder cab. After lunch we napped, then went out to dinner, where we, of course, had another couple bottles of wine. What a great way to live. Sleep, wake, wine…sleep, wake, wine.
Thursday was our designated vinevard day. We drove north on the Silverado trail and I played ‘Never Was’ for my dad for the first time. He got really emotional and expressed how much he loved it. As we listened a second time, winding on country roads through neat rows of grapevines, I was reminded again how blessed I am to have the belief and support of those around me.
We stopped first at the Joseph Phelps vineyard. The 1997 Joseph Phelphs Insignia was the first amazing bottle of wine Josh and I ever had, so it made sense to start there. Joseph Phelps’ tasting room is a large library-like room with dark wood furnishings and gigantic oak barrels all along one wall. Near the ceiling, lining the circumference of the room is a collection of memorable bottles Joseph Phelps drank.
Our tastes were poured by a lovely lady named Geraldine, who managed to be really knowledgable and welcoming and nurturing all at once. She poured us through a flight of 6 wines and Josh and I left my dad to chat with her and wandered out on the the patio, which overlooks the vineyard. Stunning.
We ended up spending more than 2 hours at Joseph Phelps and the wineries are only open for tastings until 5pm. So we grabbed a quick bite to eat at a restaurant in St. Helena, then headed back south on the Silverado trail, stopping briefly at Grgich Hills, Stag’s Leap, and Darioush, which was closed (Next time, SM!)
We ended the day just sloshed enough to forgo a dinner out and in its place get a pizza delivered.
Josh and I drove back down to LA yesterday listening to Joseph Arthur, Ryan Adams, and Thom Yorke and I started to get excited about releasing my next EP! Its all uploaded to iTunes through Tunecore and it will go live on the site in 2 to 4 weeks.
This EP is very different from ‘Never Was’ but it shares some fundamental common ground. It was recorded in the same studio with Rachel and Barrie producing and we tracked it the same way as ‘Never Was’– getting as close-to-perfect as possible live recordings of me playing and singing the songs, then adding the other instrumental elements around that to ensure that what grew was still very true to the way that I perform live.
It was a total accident, this EP. It began as a joke, but for me it ultimately transcended that joke to become something really cool and fun and spooky. And very Christopher Dallman. And I felt like I had no choice but to release it. So get ready.
Have a beautiful weekend and make sure to say hello 
You can see some pictures from my trip HERE if you are interested.
xoxo,
cjd
November 14th, 2009
I’m drinking earl grey tea and listening to one of my favorite records – Bitter – by Me’Shell Ndegeocello. I love the lush, melancholy tones of the production… Sad songs have always made me happy.
I remember listening to this album in the fall of ’99 (wow TEN years ago.) I was living alone in Queens and was new enough to the city that I was still relatively friendless. I was nursing a broken heart and a stifled spirit. I listened to this record over and over and felt it deep in a way I hadn’t felt music before.
I’m so grateful for all of the positive feedback I’ve been getting about ‘Never Was.’ To hear that people can GET so much of what you are trying to convey and also find and be affected by things that you never even intended is an amazing, almost intoxicating feeling.
I uploaded the songs to the online store just before I went to sleep Monday night. I woke up Tuesday morning to a few dozen sales and raves from some die-hard fans that I would be a little disappointed not to please.
Last night, I celebrated by toasting a tiny perrier jouet split with Liz. In Hollywood, we were gifted with a beautiful fall night that felt all crisp and east coasty. It was perfect.
Now that the record is out, it’s a relief of sorts, but it also reminds me of the reality of the situation… which is that this marks the beginning of a whole new kind of WORK. I have to find as many ways as possible to get ‘Never Was’ to new ears. I have no publicist, no record label, no big corporate radio machine to help spread my tunes to potential new fans. So, I have to get grass roots and guerilla. And I need your help. If you like this music, play it for your friends! There is no stronger way to spread music than friend to friend.
Now I must clean my apartment. It’s pretty dirty and I have company coming. Thank you for listening to my music, thanks for buying it, and thanks for letting me know what you think. More to come, so soon!
xoxo,
cjd
October 28th, 2009
I am spending today entirely in front of the computer. There is so much to do when putting out music in this weird digital age. I enjoy a lot of it, but it can be exhausting and overwhelming without a razor sharp focus, which I so rarely possess.
‘Never Was’ comes out in less than a week and I feel surprisingly calm and collected. Of course, I am beyond wicked*fucking*excited, but I am not the bundle of nerves I was when releasing ‘Race the Light’ (gulp) 5 years back.
Back then, the recording process was so new and unnatural to me that I felt very out of touch with what we were making… and when it was done I had no idea what I felt about the record. I learned so, so much and had a ton of fun but, because of my own nerves and lack of experience, the vibe in the studio wasn’t the loosest.
Recording ‘Never Was’ was nothing but loose fun. Even though it’s a dark little record, we managed to laugh a lot. We didn’t rush and money didn’t get tight until the very end. We allowed ourselves to take the time with each song to really feel out what instruments would fill the soundscape without getting in the way of the story. I’m so proud of the result. It’s somehow both dark and hopeful and I think it has a powerful arc for a teeny-tiny 13 minute EP.
Never Was
produced by Barrie Maguire and Rachel Alina
1. Little Bit of Blue
2. Ghosts
3. Coming Around
4. Has Been
______________________
I love it so much.
I hope you buy it.
And I hope you tell your friends to buy it.
I poured my heart and my soul and my entire bank account into it 
No joke… It’s beans and rice time, peoples.
‘Never Was’ will be available for download on this site starting next Tuesday, October 27th. I’m releasing it early– a month before CDs are pressed, a month before it goes live on iTunes– as a thank you to my small bunch of lovely and supportive fans. 5 years is a long time between records and I have such gratitude for your patience and support. The pre-release will also include a free bonus track that will knock your socks off.
And amazingly, my next EP will go live on iTunes the same day as ‘Never Was.’ So you won’t be waiting long for more music!
Sean Akers (thanks for the amazing cover art, Pumpkin!) and I are also in the process of revamping the music section of this site so you’ll be able to stream every song I’ve ever released and check out the lyrics while you listen.
It’s an exciting time, folks, and I’m thrilled you have you along for the ride.
Until Tuesday!
Much love!
cjd
October 21st, 2009
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