On its surface, some might consider Melville’s “Moby Dick” a book about a madman obsessed with revenge. But like the rolling, azure oceans on which the Pequod sailed, that is just the surface. This web site is a companion to my musical  interpretation of Moby Dick. 

 

Ironically, through reading the book and the many interpretations of it, I experienced a profound catharsis on many levels which is explained throughout this web site. The lyrics I’ve written attempt to tell the story and are my best effort at my own interpretation of the deep philosophy of the book - a mind boggling and daunting task in and of itself! And I trust that the music I’ve written effectively conveys the varying degree of drama and excitement throughout the story.

 

Speaking of the music; it is a schizophrenic release. What I mean is that half of the songs convey the story while the other half explore the philosophy. Because there is so much philosophy in Moby Dick and because it was so revealing at a personal level, I felt it important to write about the philosophical component in addition to telling the story. 

 

The purpose of this web site is to provide you with more insight on the music than liner notes on a CD booklet (Mike Carr’s wonderful layout and design notwithstanding). I’ve included my interpretation of the philosophical aspect of the story in “The Heart,” all of the song lyrics and explanatory texts in “Song Lyrics” and the recording/writing process (which is executed in painful detail) in “The Ahab Blog.”

 

The artwork that graces the cover of the CD and this web site is the work of a  brilliant and talented artist; George Klauba. Mr. Klauba’s work is currently on display at the Ann Nathan Gallery in Chicago in an incredible exhibit entitled, “Celestial Voyagers.” It is an astounding collection of paintings that you must see. Special thanks goes to Judith Klauba, who was a tremendous help with the process.

 

Additionally, Mr. Klauba designed the 50th Anniversary World War II commemorative coin and two of his paintings were used for the book covers, “A Companion to Moby-Dick,” edited by Wyn Kelley, Blackwell Publishing, 2006 and, “Moby-Dick, a Longman Critical Edition,” edited by John Bryant and Haskell Springer, Pearson Longman, 2007. His paintings and information can be found on his web site, www.georgeklauba.com.

 

Suffice to say that I consider myself incredibly lucky to have Mr. Klauba’s art proudly displayed on this tiny, humble web site.

 

My son Anthony has done the final production on the CD and my son Steven worked on some of the lyrics with me. These people deserve many thanks. Also, I would be remiss not to thank my friend, Pete Stergakos, for providing me with very important input on the music (see the BLOG). Many Thanks to Mike Jabin, Kathy McHugh Pieloch and Mary Marriott as well and a plethora of thanks and love go to Joseph and Jennifer Graves for their input on lyrics and music. And lest we never forget, the mighty Cayce for laying down drums to the album.  I am so very lucky once again to have William Brown adding his guitar work and monumental pre-production efforts at First Wave Digital recording studios to this project. The project would not be the same without William’s help, advice and friendship. 

 

Speaking of monumental efforts, I owe much of my interpretation to the following people; my brother Kenny, who for twenty five years or so has been reading Moby Dick with me and trying to understand what it all means. Recently, I found a wealth of information (and profound revelations) on the podcasts from Professor Hubert Dreyfuss (Professor of Philosophy, UC Berkeley). Additionally, some of the more personal revelations came from an incredible book entitled, “Melville’s Later Novels” written by William B. Dillingham and “Moby Dick - An American Nekia” by Edward F. Edinger. These books turned my perspective inward and brought about a catharsis that was overwhelming and at times extensively revealing on a personal level. 

 

If you have purchased the CD or purchased the music from iTunes, Amazon, CD Baby etc., I thank you so very much, as the proceeds for it go towards furthering my education (the cost of tuition is astronomical these days!). 

 

Enjoy!

 

Tony Garone March, 2010