The desert rose is a beautiful flowering plant that flourishes despite dry conditions. It serves as a metaphor for the resilience and strength exhibited by the perseverance of characters in several of the songs on this album. Borders, cultures, time, and places are transcended in songs that encompass universal themes of love and joy, as well as heartbreak and betrayal.
Bandida Hitch a Ride Where Did You Go Granite Gap Dust Bowl Dance Medicine Bottle Rangeland Lament Seminole Wind Love is an Angel Kachemak Bay Long Long Time Cowboy ChristmasNotes for Each Song on Desert Rose:
1. Bandida (Williams/Hearne) This song offers a plot for a great Western film—a woman is forced to kill her dangerous lover and then flees from her pursuers through harsh conditions across two countries. The resolute Desert Rose became the album title.
2. Hitch a Ride (Markstrom/VornDick) The iconic sound of coyotes howling at a full moon rising over mountains lodged in my mind and this song about escaping the pressures of life emerged. The warm, sunny beach at Puerto Peñasco, Mexico provided a destination where I sought to “hitch a ride” to peace and serenity.
3. Where Did You Go? (Markstrom/VornDick) I’ve always been drawn to the Ian Tyson song Navajo Rug. It occurred me that the Katie character in that song had a story to tell. She lived a life very different from my own, but I developed empathy for her plight. I visualize Katie in the many women working at diners, roadhouses, and truck stops across the West who mourn for lost loves.
4. Granite Gap (Markstrom/VornDick) While on horseback in the Granite Mountains of New Mexico, the idea came to mind for a song about a woman abandoned in this remote location. A spark was ignited when I read the legend of outlaw’s gold hidden and subsequently lost in those mountains. The character in this song had a quest and she persevered learning the ultimate lesson: Treasure comes in many forms.
5. Dust Bowl Dance (Mumford/Marshall/Dwane/Lovett) Listening to this song from my favorite alternative rock band, Mumford & Sons, I realized that this band from the U.K. wrote a gripping Western tale. Bil VornDick had a brilliant vision for our production, and the instrumentals by the musicians perfectly captured the mood we sought for our rendition. I have goosebumps every time I listen to this song.
6. Medicine Bottle (Markstrom/VornDick) I’ve been haunted most of my adult life by a famous photo of a Dakota Sioux leader, Medicine Bottle (Wa-kan-o-zhan-zhan), taken just prior to his hanging on November 11, 1865. Along with fellow leader, Little Six (Shakopee), the two men experienced the ultimate consequence for their roles in the U.S.-Dakota War. Prior to that day, thirty-eight Dakota warriors experienced this same outcome in the largest mass hanging in U.S. history. Medicine Bottle’s descendent, Sheldon Wolfchild, continues to remind us of this story through film and commemoration.
7. Too Bad this Town Ain’t in Texas (VornDick/Lawrence) This up-tempo song will surely resonate with Texans (by birth or at heart). There are wonderful people everywhere, and we all have special feelings about the places we call home.
8. Rangeland Lament (Nesbitt/Fuhrman) Fellow members and friends from the Western Writers of America, John D. Nesbitt and Micki Fuhrman, wrote this Western song of love, dreams, greed, and murder. I envision this dark tale occurring in the vastness of a long-ago Wyoming.
9. Seminole Wind (Anderson) My fans urged me to include Seminole Wind on this album. This succinct story—in two verses and a chorus—is profound. Sadly, parallel stories have occurred among other Native American groups.
10. Love is an Angel (Williams) A Mentor Williams creation, this tender love song speaks to the ebbs and flow of love over time and the intangible mystery of romance.
11. Kachemak Bay (Markstrom/VornDick) Inspired by my past three years performing at Down East Saloon in Homer, Alaska, this song, from the perspective of the performer, tells about her observations of the audience as they watch her and interact with one another.
12. Long, Long Time (White) Another fan favorite, this beautiful love song always brings me to the brink of tears while singing it. The story of unrequited love is timeless and poignant.
Bonus Track: Cowboy Christmas with Rex Allen, Jr. (Markstrom/VornDick) The stark Continental Divide region of southern New Mexico serves as the setting, in my mind, for this song. Bil brought a depth of description to the lyrics that tell of a lone cowboy’s magical Christmas when he comes to realize what is most important in life. Thanks to Rex Allen, Jr. who helped turn this into a duet.
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