I’ve very graciously been invited to add two pieces to this show centered around the legendary @crashone, opening on Friday Nov 3rd.
This a very special show for me not just because of the extremely kind invite of curators Luis & Haleh to be a part of it, but also that John “Crash” Matos was one of a group of young artists who are a part of my very early artistic formation and indirectly influenced a 13 year old me.
I’ve released 4 ‘new’ songs this week to celebrate the anniversary of ‘Fürst In The Dirt’, which landed on glorious pink vinyl just over 7 years ago. We’re a few weeks late but I’m glad to finally be able to share them with you!
“THESE FOUR SONGS, RELUCTANTLY LEFT OFF OF ‘FÜRST IN THE DIRT’ LP, ARE A RAGGED FAMILIAL BUNCH. THEY ARE KIN, SIBLINGS, COLLABORATORS, WITH THE THREAD OF A DNA THAT BINDS THEM, EVEN WHEN ON THE VERGE OF FALLING APART. A boxer’s right-jab groove, a left turn into a field, a sudden reversal into a side alley confessional, and a scream of restless wonder.
It seems fitting that, on the 7th anniversary of the release of ‘Fürst...”, these neglected little moments finally see the light of day.
I’M GLAD THAT I FINALLY GET TO SHARE THEM WITH YOU.”
‘Willing To Break’, a re-imagining of the never-recorded Wirepony tune which my son Aaron had helped me finish was a surprise. The rocket like lift off of Adam Landry’s guitar attack and the Rob Crowell’s drum groove under my guitar gave the lyric a new context, but ultimately Aaron himself was the one to finally convince me it didn't fit on ‘Fürst…’.
I had made the hard decision to leave 'Lucifer In My Heart', off at the very last minute, a song I’d been carrying around for a year or so in various forms. I had flown my old Truckee Brothers compatriot Matt Lynott to Nashville for a few days and this is one of the tunes that he played on, his drums on this track perhaps his most beautifully restrained performance on record. I just remember leaning into the vocal mic with my wife’s little travel guitar bleeding into the mic and singing along to Adam Landry's sublime slide work and that side stick beat, until Justin Collins, the heart and soul of the production, shouted from the control that this was a take.
I felt especially guilty at not having included 'Drink' on the album. Rob Crowell, now perhaps most famous for his drumming for the band Midland, had delivered the stunning and emotionally layered string arrangement, deftly conducting the string section we had gathered at Playground studio while I sat watching from the floor. It is still one of my greatest recording memories.
Some might consider the ragged impromptu bombast of 'Still Arriving', inspired by the words of the rock writer, philosopher and friend Paul Williams, as unfinished. Because it was. It was off the cuff on the floor but has always has hung here in my head, like a specter. The album already had some great rapid fire attack tunes in ‘Falter’ and ‘Kissing The Beast’ so we didn’t take the song any further. But I always felt that the cast off lyric said more in that moment than I've perhaps managed to say in a lifetime of writing songs. So here it is finally.
And it’s all capped off with cover art again done by my old friend P Jay Fidler, this time using the “sister” piece that he painted as an alternate option for the original album cover.
And now they are yours, these four melodic travelers, to take and make your own. Four songs that were made with great friends while inhabiting our own little world. I thank you for joining us in it.
- Patrick (June 2022)
Engineered & Produced by Cosmic Thug. Adam Landry & Justin Collins @ Playground Sound, Nashville, TN with Patrick Dennis, Adam Landry, Rob Crowell, Justin Collins, Rob Crowell & Cindy Wasserman, Zach Casebolt, Larissa Maestro, Emily Kohavi & Eleonore Denig.
Dead Rock West ‘Revolution In The Garden’ Cover Art. Collaboration by Frank Lee Drennen & Patrick Dennis
“It’s a great song and remarkable record, expansively produced by David J, Carpenter, and delivered with urgency by Frank and Cindy …bringing back the dual spirit of John Doe and Exene in X ”
Written nearly 30 years ago for The Homer Gunns, today the song ‘Revolution In The Garden’ finally premiered on AMERICAN SONGWRITER newly recorded in an incendiary version by Dead Rock West. I’m just so proud of this new version that they’ve recorded (unbeknownst to me even), and that my old friend David J Carpenter produced so beautifully. We could barely have dreamt of the song sounding like this as kids while writing and sweating over it knee to knee.
Dead Rock West’s new version of ‘Revolution In The Garden’ feels even more timely than when it was written by myself and Frank Lee Drennen over 30 years ago. Two kids in a folk duo The Homer Gunns, and found themselves in thick of rock n roll boot camp with Dave Sharp of The Alarm, who had become our mentor of the craft. I still believe every word that we scribbled all over a huge pad of art paper so long ago.
The Homer Gunns, @ Java Joe’s, Pacific Beach, Circa 1995.
When Frank and I wrote the song we were wide eyed kids heaving the world onto our shoulders, sweating in a garage over two dueling acoustic guitars. Dreaming big dreams and working hard to learn everything we could. The Louvin Brothers and college radio was our inspiration, and our mentor was a man who’d already sold millions of records, Dave Sharp of the Alarm.
Now Dave had taken a liking to us young loudmouths and would pop his head in the room every couple of days to work us like boxers swinging guitars and harmonies instead of fists at each others heads. Sparring for hours at a time as he shoved us back off the ropes and taught us how to stay in the ring with a melody, a lyric and with each other. One day as he was working us into a lather during a 6 hour rehearsal session Dave challenged us to “write something that mattered!”. Something that reached beyond ourselves.
We locked ourselves in that box for days, with a huge pad of paper and our guitars and came out with a two voice assault on the world that we were growing up in and inheriting from our parents. On the establishment. On ourselves. What we were going to do about it? And what did we hope for?
I already had a young daughter and son sleeping just a room away that added an immediacy to my convictions and a tension to our joined harmonies, but Frank and I felt like we were watching the world head in precisely the wrong direction and so we vented. Hard. But all while we were calling out for something more, that we couldn’t even articulate. A hope and a faith in ‘more love’, decades before Frank would write that song.
Well, this song, ‘Revolution In The Garden’, was finished, performed, played live on radio, in clubs, in theaters, at hot dog stand openings, grand plans were made, a recording was produced by Dave Sharp, the band broke up and the song got buried in a box for the next 30 years. How were we to know when we were writing these words 30 years ago, how much more sadly timely they would be now in 2020?
And now, Dead Rock West have given the song a whole new life. My thanks to all of them.
Patrick. xo
A video for ‘Because Of You' from Patrick Dennis' 'Fürst In The Dirt' album debuts today, December 30th. It is being released in support of the Cindy Wasserman Sweet Relief Musicians Fund which has been launched to help his wife and fellow singer, Cindy Wasserman, cover a portion of the mounting costs of her breast cancer treatment.
The video was directed by Patrick as a sort of “sister/cousin” to the ‘Kissing The Beast’ video which Cindy appeared in as "the beast" and again shooting on Super8 film with Cindy appearing in the beginning of the clip. Featured on the track are the Fürst band Adam Landry, Justin Collins & Rob Crowell with special guest old Truckee Brothers band mate Matt Lynott on drums this time.
"This one's for my dear sweet wife, Cindy, who's finally home from her heavy touring schedule in 2015 and now hard at work learning how to heal from her breast cancer. ‘Because Of You’ was the first song that I wrote in Nashville for the 'Fürst In The Dirt' record and since the song is about her it seems a fitting way to add my muscle to the public fund-raising that is happening in her name. We’ve been learning an awful lot about this disease since her diagnosis. Some days it can feel overwhelming, but Cindy is such a spark of positivity and determination through all of this, and so many people have rallied to encourage and educate us on how to heal from this that I am inspired and very confident that she will fully heal.
The Sweet Relief organization has been incredibly supportive in setting up the Cindy Wasserman Sweet Relief Musicians Fund to help her cover some of the medical expenses already pouring in due to the process of dealing with the cancer treatments. Heck, even the cancer diagnosis is expensive and so little, we are finding, is covered by our insurance. My buddies from Cosmic Thug, Adam Landry and Justin Collins as well as Rob Crowell (Deer Tick) and my old Truckee Brothers bandmate Matt Lynott (The White Buffalo) are all on the track too and helping to spread the word about Cindy’s Fund, so I hope that you'll be able to share both the video and Cindy’s Sweet Relief link with your people, whether you have an email list or social media followers on the interwebs. Every little bit helps her! Thank you for all your support through this!
She will heal from this with love and commitment from all of us and Because of You! I need her sticking around for the next 40 years or so to keep me on track. A very very Happy 2016 to everyone and thank you for all the amazing support so far. We can't thank you enough!"
- Patrick xo
Please take a minute to learn more about Cindy’s cancer diagnosis and the Cindy Wasserman Sweet Relief Musicians Fund:
I went on air last night, along with new band member Bill Driskill, in San Diego at both 91X and 94/9 FM to talk about our first show coming up this weekend debuting the new songs from 'Fürst In The Dirt' live for the first time and supporting the legendary John Doe at San Diego's equally legendary Casbah.
We met some great new San Diego bands, saw dear old friends, ate killer sandwiches, drank tequila and laughed hard and loud along with Mr Tim Pyles over at 91X and TJ over at 94/9. They spun 6 songs in total from the new album and surprised me with their choices. Pleasantly.
It's great to be back in San Diego.
- PD
Thanks to Diffuser.com. The new album, Fürst In The Dirt, is streaming ahead of its physical release now on their website for everyone to hear.
“You can hear it in the record. Joy at being able to make this noise again...no agenda or expectation to have anyone even hear these songs. Now, that’s freedom...excitement at just still being here, alive and loving life, surrounded by talented friends making noise again.”
Photo: Will Von Bolton
An interview I did with with writer and broadcaster Jim Villanueva all about the new record. Yes, it's more "blah blah blah" from me, but I have to thank Jim for such an enjoyable chat (it was supposed to be 10 minutes but we both just kept gabbing away for over an hour) and for pointing a few things out to me about my record that I hadn't even considered!
And a little background on Jim. He was the Program Director at Southern California's KLOS radio station in it's heyday, a station that I grew up listening to. Apart from great tunes, they'd manage to broadcast these fantastic live shows live from the LA venues that I could only imagine about at 14. Really great to talk to him and say thanks.
I enjoyed the chat. I hope that you do too.
It was announced today by Mike Peters of The Alarm and his Love Hope Strength Foundation, that the song, 'Scriptures' that a host of talented people and supporters contributed to last September has achieved Guinness BOWR status! Myself and Cindy Wasserman were honored to have written and sang chapter 12 of 72 chapters with Mike and Co at Abbey Road Studios in London. So after taking a second to 'Pat' ourselves on the back I now ask YOU to get involved, learn about WHY we recorded the track and download it, buy the CD, spread it all around.
All proceeds from the sales of the recording are in support of the Unrelated Marrow Donor Registry of Hadassah ℅ Ein Karem Medical Centre, Jeruslaem, Israel which is dedicated to saving lives throughout the Middle East through the use of a revolutionary blood cancer treatment. The only agenda is to ignore ethnic and political boundaries and treat ALL who need it in the Middle East, bringing potential healing in a whole lot of spectacular ways.
For info on the session you can read my entry here and to get involved with this inspiring project please follow these links:
Another song from the new album has premiered today, this time 'Hit Of You' premiering online at Death+Taxes!
“...sounds like every moment needed to be captured in its most raw, truthful state.”
Thanks to D+T and the writer Joel Freimark for the great review!
xo - P
Photo: Jim Herrington
Photo: Art Brewer
Stoked to share the song premier of 'The Last Drop' before the new record comes out on the 19th! As part of the 'Artist of the Day' at MySpace.com and includes a Q&A interview about stuff. More blah blah blah to go with the other blah I've been spewing about the new record. Enjoy! - P
Brand new song 'Burn & Shine' from 'Fürst In The Dirt' premiers today on ArtistDirect.com plus a full length interview about making the album in Nashville with Cosmic Thug.
Listen, read and I hope that you all enjoy. - P xo
I have to call out the cover art for the new album because it was painted by my friend and renowned artist, P Jay Fidler. I love his images and the complex stories they tell and this cover in particular. The image is hand hewn, organic and a little twisted just like the music on the record and I'm exceptionally proud that he wanted to do it. P Jay and I met a number of years ago when the Truckee Brothers approached him to do the cover for our 'Double Happiness" album, which I still think is a classic cover, and we became fast buddies as a result. It's great to have a member of the extended family involved in the visuals like this.
And I'm very excited that the result is going to end up on 12" vinyl jackets and printed by one of the best print houses in the business! I can't wait to share it with you on June 19th.
- Patrick
“It’s this idea of being in the dirt, being beaten down and things being tough, but still having a sense of hope about life in general, about people in general.”
Photo: Will Von Bolton
The brand new video for 'Kissing The Beast' from the new album, 'Fürst In The Dirt' is debuting on Diffuser.fm today. It stars my fancy friends and I, Adam Landry, Justin Collins and Rob Crowell sweating it out in the basement of my friends the Smoking Flowers' house in East Nashville. Diffuser has some awfully nice things to say about it too.
My debut solo album, 'Fürst In The Dirt' will finally be released on June 19, 2015. Produced by Cosmic Thug at Playground Sound in Nashville, TN, we had help from my friends in Deer Tick, White Buffalo, Diamond Rugs and Dead Rock West.
It will be released on vinyl, CD and digital download.
Many more details to come but the countdown has begun! - PD xo
Back in September I had the honor of taking part in a recording at Abbey Road Studios in London led by Mike Peters of The Alarm in support of his Love Hope Strength Foundation. My partner in crime, Cindy Wasserman of Dead Rock West and I contributed a verse to what would become the longest song ever recorded, laid to tape in a half a dozen cities around the world. The track was conceived by Mike Peters in an effort to raise money and awareness for a new blood transfusion anti-cancer treatment that has helped him in his own fierce and inspiring battle with Leukemia, with the money being raised going directly to a program in Israel to bring the treatment to Luekemia sufferers across the entire Middle East, making the double edged point of crossing borders and saving lives.
Abbey Road was the final day of recording where Cindy, myself and a host of Alarm friends, fans and family gathered to put voices, guitars, and words on the track and support the cause contributing some cash and music to the cause. Cindy and I wrote a verse especially for the occasion, finishing the lyric on the plane over. We then found ourselves standing in the middle of legendary Studio 2 the with just a guitar and our voices laying it down for the cause. It was turned out to be a very special day, singing at Abbey Road, meeting new friends, and being able to give something back to a man who's band had a direct impact on my first tentative steps into being a musician.
All proceeds from the sales of the recording are in support of the Unrelated Marrow Donor Registry of Hadassah ℅ Ein Karem Medical Centre, Jeruslaem, Israel which is dedicated to saving lives throughout the Middle East.
Released as a double CD, the track is now available for purchase, so please go find out more about Love Hope Strength, how Mike Peters created this inspiring project and get your copy, contributing to effecting change in challenged lives and troubled places.
A two-"man" Nick Cave / Patti Smith onslaught of intensity, my daughter's band The Black Site, release their first 12" vinyl EP in London on Sept 9th with a special celebration show in Camden.
"OH. MY. GOD. Just listen to this guitarist . . . Best vocal+guitar 2piece Ive heard since @LowDuo & thats saying something!" - Tom Robinson, BBC6Music.
I've never seen this footage until last month when Stacie Huckeba, came to photograph the sessions in Nashville for the new solo album and brought this with her. In 2006 my dear friend Matty Lynott (of Truckee Brothers & White Buffalo) and I loaded up an amp and some drums and headed down to our local, The Whistlestop in San Diego, to try out some of the tunes that were about to be released as Wirepony's 'Home On The Strange'. I'd recorded that record with members of John Doe's band at the time, but the thought was that maybe Matt and I would tour the record together instead. Well that idea didn't end up happening so I went out on my own for some road dates instead and came back to start building the Wirepony band with Otis B. Amazingly though this one-off spontaneous two-man action was actually filmed and promptly forgotten, until now.
It's great seeing Matty & I playing this together back then. I remember it as a fun night just throwing tunes into the air unrehearsed and off the cuff, with a few close friends and bar regulars in the room. This approach is sort of how I've always liked making music with him which i'm glad to say we did all again on this new record out in Nashville, working off the cuff and keeping first takes with the Cosmic Thug boys. In fact, there's a first day, first take, unrehearsed track going on the new album. I can't wait to share that with you too.
This week has been charmed to say the least. I came back to Nashville to finish what I'd started in 2012 with the lads known as Cosmic Thug, Adam Landry and Justin Collins. The work that began before I relocated from Nashville back to LA, broke my hand and was slammed with a strange writer's block in 2013. We not only finished what we started but exceeded my every expectation, writing and recording another album's worth of new songs. I'm listening to the final mixes of what will be my first ever solo record right now and realizing that somehow, together, we made the record that I've dreamed of making since I was a teenager staring out the window in math class, drawing pictures on and scribbling lyric on my jeans distractedly. In the process I've become a believer in the Neil Young method of recording I'll tell you. Record only around a full moon. And as they tell me this one is a "Blood Moon". Whatever that means. But something truly happened this week in a small studio in Nashville, Tennessee. I'm grateful that I was able to be there to be a part of it.
Like I said, this will be the first album that will come out under my own name, probably sometime later this year. I guess that makes it a solo album in name, but I could not have done it without Adam Landry, Justin Collins, Rob Crowell, Cindy Wasserman & Matt Lynott and the contributions of the Nashville string quartet, Zach Casebolt, Larissa Maestro, Emily Kohavi, Eleonore Denig. This was a true collaboration, switching instruments, tossing out ideas, laughing, writing on the fly, the whole nine yards. Possibly the most enjoyable collaboration I've ever had the pleasure of being a part of, and if you know me, you know that I live to collaborate. The joy of writing and recording a new song, having Robbie go off to write an string arrangement for it the night before the quartet was due and then to sit between the Viola and the Cello the next day hearing his work for the first time as it is laid down to tape will be an unforgettable memory as long as I live. I was giddy like a schoolboy meeting Pele for the first time (wait a minute I did that.). That lad Rob is sick talented! For a Canadian he's got soul coming outta his every pore. Deer Tick and Diamond Rugs are very blessed to have his talent on board.
It's been a long 5 year journey of life upheavals and changes that have shaken me to the core and forced a "review and rebuild" of self and action but well worth the personal growth to become ready to be part of unearthing this gem of a record. This crew that I find myself in have challenged and drawn something more out of me as a songwriter and I'm already thinking about the next record. There will be another with these guys. Adam and Justin make records that will stand the test of time and I am proud to now be a part of their already illustrious canon. Who knows what will happen in the years to come, but this is one record that as an old man I will pour myself two fingers of tequila, drop needle on and kick back with great memories and pride in the collaboration that made this one happen. For that I am grateful to whatever powers that be and to the friends and my sweet patient love, Cindy, who have all helped me realize this dream.
I look forward to sharing it with you.
(Photos by Stacie Huckeba)
