Music - June 2010
Variety/Adult Contemporary
The Heart of Santa Fe
Various Musicians
www.theheartofsantafemusic.com
Play "Anything to See Them Again"
from The Heart of Santa Fe
Story by Emily Drabanski
Last summer, Santa Fe’s heart was broken when four teens died in a car accident with a suspected drunken driver. Two of the state’s finest songwriters, Chris McCarty and David Manzanares, responded by writing “Anything to See Them Again.” They then recruited some two dozen other musicians to contribute songs for a memorial tribute. The result, this stellar double CD of 28 songs, befits the themes of memory, loss, and celebration of life—no matter how brief. It’s a thoughtful blend of ballads, instrumentals, and several songs sung in Spanish. Proceeds go to benefit the music and arts programs at Warehouse 21, a nonprofit that serves Santa Fe youth. Primarily recorded at Stepbridge Studios in Santa Fe, The Heart of Santa Fe showcases an incredible cross-section of talent with ties to this creative community.
David Manzanares is locally known for the band that bears his last name, but you might also recognize him as “Nick,” one of the musician buddies of Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges) in Crazy Heart (2009), which filmed in Santa Fe. He and McCarty, best known as a songwriter for the Steve Miller Band, and 11 other area musicians recording under the name Some Santa Feans, perform “Anything to See You Again,” which laments: “I met a boy who lived in the moment / I met some girls who spoke with the wind / You know they stole my heart completely / And I’d give anything to see them again.” Busy McCarroll soulfully sings lead in quiet, angelic tones.
“It was such a privilege to be part of the healing, so needed after such a tragedy,” McCarroll says. “Chris McCarty was great in pulling incredible musicians together for this project.” McCarroll sings another haunting song here, “Peace by Piece,” about a young Santa Fean killed in a shark attack while working in the Peace Corp.
Other strong contributions speak of living life to the fullest—such as Matthew Andrae’s stirring “Here for a Moment,” the band Manzanares’s Spanish song “Vivir,” and Lydia Clark’s “Love One Another.” Jesus Bas’s “Te Recordaré,” Lumbre del Sol’s “Los Que Entienden y Que No,” Nacha Mendez’s “Al Pensar en Ti,” and Ronald Roybal’s “Catching a Dream” all add much to the rich cultural tapestry woven into this recording. And several musicians—George Adelo, in “If I Could Just Call Heaven,” and Joe West, in “Heaven”—sing of the afterlife.
