The Red Light of Evening
Waltzes by KGB

"Beautifully played, eminently danceable, and exquisitely recorded and mixed." - Bill Matthiesen

"Absolutely beautiful — a heart experience for the dancer and listener alike." - Lilli Ann Carey

"The instruments seem to sing the music, leaving the listener to fill in the words." - Mary Sherhart

"Lovely, inspiring music; great variety in tempo and flavor, fun to dance to; full of feeling!" - Gaye Fifer

Almost as soon as KGB was formed 15 years ago, fans have asked when we were going to record a waltz CD. To put enough variety in a recording consisting of one kind of dance is challenging, and we waited until we had plenty of material to choose from. Here you will find waltzes of many moods and genres, all written by members of the band. Put on your dancing shoes, glide around the floor for an hour, then cool down to the final air.

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1. Sunny Day (Dave Bartley) Written on a walk in the woods north of Juneau on a warm July day during Camp DAMP (an acronym for Dance And Music Party, they tell me; I’ve played there twice and it didn’t rain either time).
2. Flathead Lake (Julie King) Bear Hug Festival is on the shores of Flathead Lake in Montana, where KGB played its first dance camp in 1994.
3. Speak of the Deverills (Dave Bartley) A good shortcut from Warminster, England to the West Country requires a turn at a sign to The Deverills—the villages of Monkton Deverill, Brixton Deverill, Kingston Deverill, and Longbridge Deverill.
4. A Field of Shooting Stars (Dave Bartley) Shooting stars, Dodecatheon meadia, dot the meadows of Horseshoe Basin in the Pasayten Wilderness. Wildflowers have returned since the land was retired from sheep grazing.
5. February (Dave Bartley) / Just in Time Waltz (Claude Ginsburg) A wintry Viennese waltz segues into a sweeping one. The second was written the night before Claude’s wedding.
6. Alpenglow (Dave Bartley) Mary and I watched the spectacular pink glow on Denali on a rare clear August evening. Our camera was broken, so I wrote this piece to capture my feeling of wonder.
7. Broken Chair (Julie King) / Red Light of Evening (Julie King) The first commemorates a furniture incident at a rehearsal; the second celebrates the few minutes after sunset when the garden is bathed in red tones.
8. Brown Eyes (Dave Bartley) For my wife Mary, a sentimental waltz sporting a few false cadences.
9. Wilderness Waltz (Dave Bartley) A country waltz with a brief visit to a minor key.
10. Birdsong Spring (Dave Bartley) Named for an old homestead site in the semi-arid Yakima Rim country of central Washington. The late Harvey Manning described it as “the sweetest camp this side of heaven.”
11. Rain on the Window (Dave Bartley) / Flowing to the Sea (Dave Bartley) The first waltz is a pensive French film score number that doesn’t quite stand on its own, so it is paired with another waltz of similar mood but eastern European tonality. Mary DeFelice-Bartley, accordian
12. Judy Rose (Dave Bartley) A cross-step waltz written for Judy Rose Dornbush, who has done countless little great things for us.
13. Gracia (Dave Bartley) / Claude’s Waltz (Dave Bartley) Two Latin waltzes, the first dedicated to California caller Lynn Ackerson, the second to our own Señor Ginsburg.
14. Waiting for Green (Dave Bartley) This waltz sounds as if it is awaiting the leafing out of spring, but sadly, I had the color of the lowest level of American terrorism alert in mind.
15. To the Edge (Julie King) Not a waltz, we end with an air.

Thanks to Gerard Hranek for attentive and superb expertise, Paul Bestock for the easiest photo shoot yet, Mary DeFelice-Bartley for support and accordian, Anita Anderson for lending her discerning ears, and Joanne Kelly for layout advice.