On May 23rd, 2005, when I recorded "THE GREEN FIELD" with John Patitucci (Ac. Bass); Jack DeJohnette (Drums) and Manolo Badrena (Perc.), "Dreamsville" (Henry Mancini)(6:57) was probably the last song that we recorded late in the night of that date. Because "THE GREEN FIELD" already would contain some 77-minutes of total music time, sadly there was no room for "Dreamsville" to be included. It bears mentioning that we also recorded McCoy Tyner's "Blues for Ball"(7:07) that day, and there was no space for it as well. All of this took place at Avatar Studios, Studio 'A' with engineer Malcolm Pollack sitting at the console.
    Two years later, in 2007, when I recorded "BORROWED TIME," because of the same personnel, I hoped that "Dreamsville" could be included there. But because of the diverse direction of that album as a whole, there would be 75-minutes of music - and once again, no space for "Dreamsville." However, there was space for "Blues for Ball" and I was very grateful for that. Even so, during the mastering session @ Sterling Sound with engineer Greg Calbi, we mastered "Dreamsville" just in case. And so, for roughly 20 years, this beautiful ballad has sat around in my archives without an official place to be, a format in which to be heard.

    Because of the recent passing of the great Jack DeJohnette, I thought of this performance and Jack's superb brushwork throughout. I wanted people to be able to hear it and so, an idea came to me, hoping that it might be possible. I reached out to my dear old friend saxophonist/arranger Bob Mintzer with an idea - that was born of some very serious "out of the box" thinking. I proposed to Bob: :"What if, you were to have the magnificent WDR Big Band perform a new arrangement featuring your beautiful orchestral touches w/ reeds/woodwinds, bones and trumpets (mutes on hand) to color the track here and there as you saw fit?" This, of course, was a rather crazy idea, because I just do not have the personal finances to cover such an expensive endeavor. The only way, conceptually speaking, would be if somehow WDR would foot the bill. However, what might they demand in return?
    As Bob was in the middle of a long European Tour with the Yellowjackets, I had some time to reflect on this proposal and the more that I thought about it, the more it seemed like an impossible dream - not well thought out by yours truly. And so, with an adjusted mindset, I was prepared to offer the track in a different but familiar direction, just as is and I would feel good about it. In truth, this was really the best possible option, if Joseph Patrick Moore's Blue Canoe Records would be willing to take it on. Joseph and Blue Canoe were wonderful to work with in 2022 when they chose to release the "Island Letter"(Shuggie Otis) project which I did alongside the remarkable Mark Kibble (Take 6). With the help of Blue Canoe, that turned out to be a very nice artistic venture for us all.
    As things turned out, Joseph listened to the mp3 of "Dreamsville" that I had sent him along with my proposal and, fortunately for me, he called back rather quickly and said that he very much wanted to do it. I was so thrilled, and very relieved. I had no idea that Joseph was going to propose, of all things, a December 19th release date. In the music business, standard thinking about the release of new LPs or CDs was always that, you never release anything from November until about January 15th, unless of course, you are a Superstar!!! However, in the new world of music, in the Digital Age/Era, where everything has been turned upside down and inside out, I suppose one has to let go of that kind of thinking. And so, here we are and "Dreamsville" has been released. Needless to say, I am exceptionally grateful to Joseph for his adventurous spirit and high level of integrity. It also has to be said that originally I was guided to Joseph and Blue Canoe by my dear friend for many, many years, bassist Jimmy Haslip.

    It is often forgotten or overlooked but Henry Mancini's "Dreamsville" was composed for Season 2 of the TV detective series "PETER GUNN" which starred Craig Stevens, and it would appear on the 1959 soundtrack album "THE MUSIC FROM PETER GUNN." Prior to my own interpretation and recording, my favorite versions were by my hero Wes Montgomery with my absolute favorite vocal version being by Sarah Vaughan and caressed by Bill Holman's gorgeous arrangement. And who better to interpret this beautiful ballad than Henry Mancini's daughter, Monica Mancini, here in a duet with Kenny Rankin.More recently, I have loved interpretations by: Ben Monder, as usual, the most imaginative of all the versions! Peter Erskine with some spectacularly romantic harmonies courtesy of John Beasley. Lastly, the always wonderful David Grusin with a vocal by Diana Krall As a listener, you can't go wrong with any of these versions.

    At the original session, because any slow ballad could easily take 10-plus minutes to perform, I had to come-up with a format that would give us time to express what was needed, but would somehow be compact too. Where the solos were concerned, I decided to have John Patitucci play his solo over [A] and [A2] and then, I would enter at [B] and then follow that by playing [A3] and then, [A][A2]. The melody would return at Letter [B] through [A3] with a Coda for the [Tag]. At the original session, The only Strat 'orchestrations' that I performed were in the [Tag] to the ending, and the last chord. But after the passage of so many years, and the possibility of getting this performance heard, I felt the need to 'complete' what I had started on that night some 20 years earlier. And so, on the afternoon of Thursday, October 30th, 2025, I sat down quietly with my Strat and orchestrated "Dreamsville" with my own ghostlike colors. Then I took another day to blend them in with the fully mastered version. What was of prime importance to me was to not lose the intimacy, the space, the openness and nobility of the quartet's performance. I am hoping that I have done that.
    In preparation for all possibilities, I began to prepare video frames of images and text for a video presentation that would work nicely with YouTube and would give a listener a little more to look at rather than one static image - usually of a CD cover. In the end, I was so very fortunate that Laura Stincer was kind enough to accept editing the video presentation together and as you will see, she did an absolutely fantastic job. No matter what, the offering of "Dreamsville" would now serve as a dedication to the artistry of Jack DeJohnette, and hopefully friends and fans alike would receive it that way.

    In his very personal tribute to Jack DeJohnette, Herbie Hancock wrote the following:

    "I first met Jack when he was about 20. I brought him on as a bass player, not realizing he was usually hired as a drummer, but I already had a drummer.
    I learned in time that what Jack really wanted was to be a piano player. He always played the drums with a pianist's sense of melody, color, and harmony. Jack responded to whatever I played with a depth of understanding and sensitivity that was completely his own. I'll never forget the concerts we played in Montréal with Dave Holland, some of the trio performances I've been most proud of.
    I will miss him every day, but he remains in my heart as a great friend, artist, and human being. I have deep admiration for Jack and his wife Lydia. My heart goes out to Lydia and the DeJohnette family, to whom I send my sincerest condolences." - Herbie Hancock

    When approaching any piece of music, one of my first and main considerations is the creation of a mood or atmosphere for that song - this essential for me. During the early '90s when I was doing a lot of trio playing and I was so very fortunate to have spent a lot of time making music with Jay Anderson (Ac. Bass) and drummers Ben Perowsky and Joel Rosenblatt. I remember one time when we might have been rehearsing "Dreamsville," Jay took a very particularly spatial rhythmic approach that set me up for everything that I wanted to hear, feel and then play. What he played, with very few notes, contributed to a sense of rolling triplets - even though they were not actually present anywhere. I should have written down what he did, but sadly I did not. However, when we rehearsed "Dreamsville" some 15 yrs. later with John Patitucci and Jack DeJohnette, I spoke to John about the rhythmic feeling that I was hoping to achieve and suggested an idea that would involve, only playing on the and-of-2(G) and 3(C) and 3-and(G) with the last note held for a time. As, for me, all acoustic bassists since Scott LaFaro are magnificent conversational players, John fell right into this and made it his own. That small touch in the hands of a great musician and musical person can open all of the right doors. John reveals this idea in the [I]ntro and uses it as a touchstone throughout. When you have a pedal-point like this, leaning on the 5th (G) of the overall harmony, that also opens many doors to create colors that lay the groundwork for what the entire piece can embody.
    With the atmosphere created and the mood set, the statement of the melody becomes everything. Why play any song if you don't love the melody and have a feeling for the lyrics? Needless to say, I love this song as it gives any interpreter a built-in sense of space, and this is so important to using the colors in your palette. Over the years, as my style and approach to music-making has taken on its own shape, I use certain harmonic shapes that stay away from the areas that the acoustic bass in habits. This also contributes to the greater sense of space. For me, it is this sense of air that gives Jack DeJohnette so much room to express his own brilliance with brushes. Playing ballads like this with Jack was always like floating in a dream. I have to mention my old friend and longtime bandmate Manolo Badrena who played so sensitively here that, at times, you wonder if he's even there - but he is. Some people think that Manolo is some kind of a musical wild man but not always the case, not at all. He is very, very much aware of everything - and, in the end, while always playing what he feels - having the freedom to do that, he senses where the spaces are and sometimes he fills them, sometimes not. On "Dreamsville" he was exceptionally minimalist.

    Here I am now, some 20 years later after "Dreamsville" was recorded and as I listened to it for the 1st time in a long, LONG time - I listened again while looking at my lead sheet - which took me forever to find in my music closet filled with music papers from past albums - I realized that what I wrote down for myself as a guide was born of countless times playing the song by myself at home. However, what can often happen, when you actually begin to play it with real musicians, things can change and the way that it feels to you can become quite different. Such was the case here. It becomes so fascinating for me to listen to now after the passage of so much time. Within Letter [B], Mancini's melody on top of beautiful harmonies offers so much to any interpreter. Of special note is the presence of so many altered tones: #5s, b5s and b9s - these tones become a feast for the colorist. So, it makes complete sense that, in this section, I would use my Strat Orch. colors the most since the Intro. When Letter [A3] returns, the melody is pretty much allowed to speak on its own with colors added in the opening and closing bars. With the acoustic bass solo about to begin, notice how it is Jack who sets the section's arrival with clarity with a simply bass drum hit on beat 1. No one else played the downbeat.

    Though I explained earlier just how I arrived that this particular Solo Format, John Patitucci's very lyrical solo over two [A] sections shows his sense of restraint and gift spontaneous melodies. Notice the inclusion of the blues language. You can't have enough of that! Listening to John play like this again, I regret that, at the very least, we didn't have him playing a full chorus. During John's solo, I simply allowed my live accompaniment to fundamentally stand on its own, staying away from adding Strat Orch. colors. For what it's worth now, John Patitucci always plays so great and musically like this. Always!

    As the guitar solo begins at Letter [B], this begins as the simple usage of space with the lines indicating the movement of the harmonies within the chord changes all anchored by John's beautifully interactive choice of notes. That same sense of air and space allows Jack's brushwork to speak through the transparent texture in the most beautiful way. This is all that I love about ballad playing. As [A3] arrives, something about my phrasing throws out the invitation for the trio to transition to double-time. By the time that we arrive back at the top and Letter [A], the double-time feel has now arrived. There is just the most wonderful sensation of playing as if one is floating in air, floating on air - and that is exactly what playing with John and Jack enables one to do. During the last 8-bars of the solo in [A2], the trio is in full bounce mode with the swing underneath from John's feeling and ghosted-notes all within Jack's subtle brilliance. I really did not remember much about this solo section - but with the passage of time, I know that I feel so much better about it sitting in this seat of perspective.
    With the return of the melody at [B], the chordal harmonies interspersed with the lines offer the dreamy