Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #232 was taped on a warm early September afternoon at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington Mass and features songs and improvisations played and sung by Gaea Star Band members Mariam Massaro on vocals, acoustic 6- and 12-string guitar, native flute, percussion and baritone ukulele, Bob Sherwood on piano and special guest Amanda Potluck on vocals an d 12-string acoustic guitar. We begin today’s session with the peaceful, playful “Across The River Of Life”, a folky prayer to nature featuring Mariam’s 12-string. We then move into the mystical “Building Bridges Across The Water”, featuring a beautiful melody and lyric from Mariam regarding the Standing Rock resistance. The piece grows with lovely and powerful contributions from Amanda to a powerful refrain featuring interlocking vocals from Mariam, Amanda and Bob. A lovely, assertive highlight. “Oh The World Is Changing Rapidly” follows on this day of expressing unity with the struggles of people worldwide against corporate greed and oppressive regimes. This pretty ballad features a fine and deeply-expressed vocal from Mariam set to Bob’s piano and Amanda’s atmospheric percussion. “Hold Me Lightly” is another pretty, hypnotic ballad that introduces Mariam’s always-welcome native flute and “Never Give Up” flows with unexpected twists and imaginative piano work. Next up is the classically-inflected “Water Is Life” which introduces an evocative lyric and more beautiful native flute work from Mariam over a sonata-like series of piano figures. “Into The Shadows Of The Light” is a lush, trance-like piece with more fine countermelodies from Amanda and a sheen of electronic treatments which transitions into the powerful, passionate “Love And Only Love”. Amanda contributes critically to this song with her bluesy, immediate energy and again the ensemble responds to the climax of the piece with a series of aching three-part harmonies. “The Sound Of Water”, a song by Sw Anand Milarepa from the Osho Songbook, closes today’s show and is led by Amanda on lead vocal and acoustic 12- string to which Mariam and Bob contribute lush harmonies, kalimba, percussion and piano.