If a picture is worth a thousand words then a song can bring light to darkness, turn sorrow to joy and offer reassuring comfort to a growing child who must step out into a complicated world. There is no other love like that which is felt between a father and his children and Mr. Elliott Park is a musician who endeavors to capture that emotion in his new album, Songs with My Daughters. On the cover of the album is a black and white photograph of Park sitting with his three daughters, Anna, Autumn and April in front of a piano. They all have a look of relaxed yet focused intensity as if they have been doing this all their lives. In fact, they have. This is a family record from this Nashville based song writer and multi-instrumentalist who has written songs that hit #1 on the Billboard charts. The album is a collection of 12 beautifully self-produced songs that are easy to take in but have levels of deep complexity and a whimsical vulnerability that reflects both the pain and pride of fatherhood.
Park enlisted an incredible cast of in demand session players but also played multiple instruments on most of the album including piano and ukulele which helps give an overall cohesive feel. Kyle May and Rich Kulsar’s drums lock in with Park and Larry Cook’s bass for a solid groove. Paul Sikes and Matt Ellis’ guitars are orchestrated nicely and work to compliment cellists Clair Indie and Cicely Parnas on varying tracks. Michael Gutierrez and Linus Yrsch’s clarinets accent the music in a creative and fun way that adds a great sonic texture to the record. Park even enlisted other young child singers to give an authentic emotional touch to his song “Bloom” sung by Lilah Benjamin, Norah Benjamin, Matilda Crosswy, Megan Crosswy and Abbigail Dresdner. Top it all off with Elliott, Anna, Autumn and April Park on vocals and you’ve got that perfect mixture of family magic.
A father is the first man in a child’s life and the basis for which they will measure all other men. Park lives up to that sacred title of “Father” with this album that is full of sage advice, light hearted fun, honest love and playful insight for his daughters. The songs are all rolled up in imaginative writing and creative arrangements that speak from the heart. With songs like “To the Moon and Back,” “Crickets’ Ball,” and “Set Me Free,” Park works with his daughters in a way that just feels like family. There is a wonderful medley of Ella Fitzgerald’s “Blue Skies” and the always memorable “Somewhere over the Rainbow” that is weaves together instantly familiar classic songs with a new creative twist. The song “Beautiful” is a gorgeous composition that makes your heart ache because its passion and beauty cannot be described with mere words, only felt by the listener. Love and music appear to help form the bedrock of this family and it shows. Elliott Park’s musical influence on his children will be a way for his daughters to have their father’s love with them, always. Listen to the album Songs with My Daughters today at www.ElliottPark.net.
The album was mastered at Voyager Mastering by Joe Causey.