Where the water runs through

Where the Water Runs Through originated before the 2020 pandemic restrictions kicked in. I had three key premises for these recordings: classical guitar would be the central instrument (a bit like early Leonard Cohen albums); the songs would have vocal harmonies wherever possible; and the compositions would be simple and moving.

The songs took shape as the band played them in, and then we started recording rhythm tracks with lyrics that were, in many cases, streams of consciousness sung merely to get the phrasing and structures right. The recordings took place at Michael and Darlene Te Young’s home studio. Vernon Rive recorded the keyboard parts at his home, and Glenn Campbell’s Weissenborn guitar was also recorded at his place. Michael and Vernon did a number of trial mixes, which were useful as a guide to inform the final mixes.

So, did it all go according to plan? Well, not in every case. Having classical guitar on every song gave the album an undesirable uniformity, so a range of keyboard and guitar sounds brought more colour and texture to the recordings. Vocal harmonies remained central, so Darlene’s vocals were essential to the character of the album. My aversion to complex song structures and overly detailed production has kept the music relatively direct and unaffected. The exceptional input from all of the musicians gave every song its own unique voice, so I’m incredibly grateful to everyone who contributed to this project and Steve Garden for enthusiastically wanting to release it on Rattle.

Guy Wishart

Guy Wishart (vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, keyboards)
Darlene Te Young (vocals)
Vernon Rive (keyboards, acoustic bass)
Peter Diprose (electric guitar)
Andrew Horst (electric bass)
Michael Te Young (drums, percussion, vocals)
Glenn Ross Campbell (Weissenborn guitar)
Chris Bruce (trumpet, flugelhorn)
Bob Shepherd (e-bow guitar)

Produced by Vernon Rive, Michael Te Young and Guy Wishart
Recorded by Michael Te Young and Vernon Rive
Mixed by Steve Garden with direction from Dave Holmes, Michael Te Young, and Vernon Rive
Cover photography by Guy Wishart
Band photo and photo of Guy by Vernon Rive
Design by UnkleFranc
Printing by Studio Q

All compositions by Guy Wishart © 2022

This music was made in Aotearoa/New Zealand