You can download my new EP After all is said and done right now for FREE! No strings attached, no pyramid scheme, no Nigerian Princes asking for money and no purchases need be made later. However, if you would like to pay something, anything at all,  then I am not too proud to say no to you... so there is an option to donate any amount you want as well.

Jeremy Casella and I recorded it over a weekend at his studio in Nashville in between coffee, trips out for BBQ and playtime with the kids (he also worked on it and added some coolness after I left). We dig it and we hope you do too. So feel free to download it, give it a listen and drop me a line to let me know what you think. If you like it, tell your friends about it or give them a copy, anything to spread the word. Thanks a bunch and I'll talk to you soon!

Grace and peace,
Joe

I've got a new EP coming out soon, After All Is Said And Done (produced by Jeremy Casella), which you'll be able to download for FREE at joebassett.com. I'm still getting the artwork together as well as getting the logistics worked out but until then you can hear 3 new songs at the following sites...

Facebook
Myspace
Virb

Check them out and let me know what you think. I'll let you all know when the full EP is available for download. Thanks again!

Joe

Sorry it's been a while since my last post, we've been a bit busy here on the home front and I guess I just lost track of time. If it's any consolation, most everything around here the last few weeks would make for an awfully boring post... except for my legendary battle with a bumble bee. That was pretty awesome.

The new EP is still being worked on, I just got a couple of roughs the other day and it's sounding great. I've been trying to spend some time with the tracks, figure out what works and what needs to be changed. It's the part of the recording process that seems to take the longest but is probably the most rewarding. Everything starts coming together, like puzzle pieces finally clicking into place for the first time. There's also a few exciting things on the horizon for this record so I'll be sure to let you know as we get things locked down a little more. Until then, here's a few things that I've been listening to lately...

Neil Diamond: Home Before Dark- I loved the last record (12 Songs) and just like that one, Rick Rubin is back in the producer's chair. Really great stuff here and Rubin's production just hits all the right marks. Plus, Neil Diamond is awesome!

The Weepies: Hideaway- I'm just now getting into this band and I'm really digging this record. A great one to kick back, relax and take in.

Once: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack- The movie was easily my favorite of last year and this record has been in steady rotation since we saw it. I also picked up this dvd which is pretty great... check it out.

Daniel Lanois: Here Is What Is- I finally got this one a few days ago and I like what I've heard so far. I'm a Lanois nerd so I'm just happy to have some new music. Can't wait for that new U2 record he's working on!

Counting Crows: Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings- I'm honestly really disappointed in this one. I've been a huge CC apologist but I'm just not feeling this album. While there's a few great songs, it just starts to meander for me after a while. I'll still defend the Crows any day though (I'm looking at you Aaron Melton!)

Radiohead: In Rainbows- Good grief this is a great record. I got it the day it was released online and I think it just might be their best yet... at the very least, it stands shoulder to shoulder with Ok Computer and Kid A. I keep finding more to love with every listen, brilliant stuff.

Ok, my Orioles just won an epic game against the Yankees in the 11th inning and I'm pretty pumped! Now it's time for a little reading to wind down and then I'm off to bed... talk to you later.

Grace and peace,
Joe

(Thanks to my nephew Brady for reminding me that I have a couple of websites to update!)

After our Nashville trip two weeks ago and then a DC trip this past weekend, I’m feeling a bit disconnected. I love traveling and there’s nothing better than sharing that time with my wife and daughter, enjoying yet another memory for me to hold on to. After a while though, that tether to home starts to tighten up and our house seems like precious air to my gasping lungs. This post-trip time is when we tend to circle the wagons and try to keep the world at bay, even for just a little while. After that, there’s a need for the normal routine… reconnecting with our local friends, getting back to our church, even just cooking dinner instead of eating out every night. I’m very much a creature of habit and being away from that for too long starts to wear me down. As much as this simple man loves to roam, I’m always drawn back home… eventually. It’s good to be home.

Grace and peace,
Joe

Well, I was going to post from the studio Saturday but we ended up putting in a nearly 12 hour day. By the time I got to the hotel I was beat and then we drove pretty much all day yesterday. So I’ll post a few pictures now that I’m slowly returning to the land of the living.

It was a great, whirlwind of a trip and it was so nice to hang with the Casella’s again and even more so now that we’re all parents. I finished up my guitar parts and vocals before I left and now Casella will be working on stuff over the next month or so... adding piano, guitars, vocals, etc and then mixing/mastering. I’m really looking forward to hearing it all when it’s fleshed out instead of just hearing it in my head. I’ll post a bit more as I get back in the daily grind, for now here are some pictures from the trip...











I’ll post a few more later!

Joe

PS, happy baseball opening day!

We got to Nashville yesterday and since it was my one day off, hit some of our favorite places. We stopped by the Opry Hotel (very touristy thing to do but I don’t care, we love it) and mall and then went to eat dinner at Baja Burrito (a must every time we’re in town). Callie also got a bear from Build-A-Bear that says Nashville… it has guitars on it’s shirt.

This morning, we hit the studio and managed to track 3 songs (vocal and guitar) plus a few extra things. The Casellas took us to this awesome BBQ place for lunch and I had possibly the best beef barbecue EVER. We’ll be working again all day tomorrow and then heading home Sunday… I’ll try to post some pictures from the studio tomorrow as well. Can’t wait for y’all to hear these songs, we’re loving how it’s sounding so far!

Time to get some much needed sleep, talk to you tomorrow…

Joe

We’re getting everything packed up for a road trip to Nashville tomorrow. I’m heading out to work with Jeremy Casella again on a set of new songs. I love working with Jeremy and it’ll be good to get back into the studio and get these songs out for y’all. Plus, we just really love Nashville and any chance to be there is one we’ll take. This will be Callie’s first road trip, it’s a pretty long drive so we’ll see how it goes. We have Thursday open so we’re going to take her to all of our favorite haunts. Should be a fun and productive week!

I’m thinking of releasing this EP a little differently, possibly releasing it as a free download on this site… I’ll let you know more as I get it all figured out. I’ll also be posting pictures from the studio and keep you updated on our progress. So stay tuned for that.

Time to go finish packing, check the guitars and see if it all fits in my car… talk to you in a day or so!

Grace and peace,
Joe

I woke up at quarter after seven this morning.

To most of you, that is not a big deal at all and a lot of you probably get up earlier than that. But I'm a musician who stays up until 3am and wakes up some time between 10am and noon. Early mornings and I do not get along. However, that was all before I became a dad. Now I'm up early and trying to entertain a four month old by making faces, shaking rattles and watching my little girl grow up far too quick... all before my first cup of coffee!

Rhonda went back to work earlier this year so I've been doing the whole stay at home dad thing since then. If you told me that I'd be staying at home during the day with my kid when I was a teenager or in my twenties, I would have told you that you were crazy. Turns out that it's pretty awesome and I wouldn't trade it for the world. For the first time in my life, I don't mind getting up early at all.

Also, I really got into cooking last year and I'm pretty sure it was a byproduct of my Food Network HD addiction. Last Christmas my gifts changed from the previous year's video games and movies to dutch ovens and spices. Go figure. Today I'm slow cooking some chili (Thanks to my brother Brian for the recipe!) for our weekly Lost get together tonight with our friends Aaron and Candice. Thanks to the writers strike ending, we can look forward to a few more get togethers this tv season!

I mentioned a month or so ago that I was having writers block... thankfully, I seemed to have made it through and finished up a couple of songs. Now I need to figure out if they'll make it on the next EP or wait until another record. It feels good to finally finish something... there's nothing worse for me than having some random ideas that never flesh out. Now I'm looking forward to hammering out a few more and getting back in a groove again.

Lastly, I just watched the new Indiana Jones trailer on Good Morning America and it's stinking awesome! I can't believe we're getting another movie (Raiders is in my Top 3 of all time) and as soon as that classic theme started I was sold.

Ok, the little munchin is stirring out of her nap so I'm off to play peek-a-boo...

Take care,
J

If you're in one of the 24 states holding primary elections today, make sure you go out and vote!

Joe

Hey all, it's the holidays and we all survived Black Friday so I'm in the mood to give. From now until the end of 2007 I'll be selling Nothing Hurts Like The Truth for $5.00 each (instead of the usual $13). Also, as an added bonus... I'll be throwing in my first EP Promised Land for FREE! So you get two CD's for the price of a Starbucks Gingerbread Latte!

I doubt that we'll do this sale again so get in while you can. More than anything, I just want folks to hear the record so get someone you know a reasonable stocking stuffer.

Thanks and talk to you soon!