Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams

I was a "newbie" , as the band likes to call all those experiencing them for the first time. I really had no idea what to expect and, their name just added to the intrigue of what , exactly, this band is all about. Normally I would interview the band prior to the show, however, Saturday evening was pretty tight for the group and there was no time to have a sit down before they went on stage. I did have the opportunity to speak with their lead singer, Joziah, after the show. As usual, I set to record the question and answer interview to which I would transcribe into this blog later. Unfortunately, the entire conversation did not record. But more on that later.

First, I need to relate to you exactly what I thought and felt while watching this group perform. I don't know if you've ever met or had the experience of meeting someone that seems to have a direct connection to channeling something from beyond on a higher level. As I was watching and listening to the band perform, I could really sense an amazing energy that surrounded them and filled the room. That energy just poured out of their music. I'm not talking about the type of energy that is usually associated with driving fast beats but rather a cosmic energy.

The venue was full of loyal fans that travel to watch this band play and I have never met a more dedicated group of , well, "groupies" before . His fans are so loyal that, the first time they played here in Jim Thorpe a few years ago, a fan purchased 40 tickets and told JTAMS to pass them out on the streets so that people here would have an opportunity to get to know the band. When speaking with him I made mention of how adoring his fans are of him and the music. He professed that , to him, his fans always feel more familial than anything else.

Throughout the show he peppers in comments (self- deprecating, but not in a pathetic way) that just makes you laugh. He'll tell you about some dream he had that brought about the revelation of the next song he is about to play. He'll make jokes about the music business and how he ran from being signed by a major label (he even put down a song called 'Clear Channel' on his 'The Great Unravel' CD about the industry and one of it's dominating giants). He'll talk about hope and how the world is changing and what he hopes for the future.

My favorite song of the night was "Baby Jane". It was absolutely beautiful and, since that night, I have been playing it over and over again in my car. It is a powerful song that he said he wrote for all the woman of the world. He calls it one of his "sissy songs" but says that the song seems to have had a huge impact on some of his fans. Many woman have related to it and, he has been told that it has led to them walking away from bad , broken and abusive relationships. Now that is powerful stuff.

When I did get to sit down with him the first question I asked was about the name 'Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams". I had been somewhat perplexed by the name, especially after finding out that the lead singer was not named Gandalf Murphy, but is rather named Joziah. He told me that the inspiration for such an unusual name came from a Paul McCartney story about a band that had a similarly odd name (something to do with a Medicine Man, but I can't recall it now) and how he had even thought of calling his band by that same name at one point. Then, one day while walking in the woods, the name Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams just popped into his head as if it was infused into his brain from a higher place . While, originally, the name made me scratch my head, after meeting with him , seeing his band perform and hearing their music, and speaking with him I completely get it. The name makes absolutely perfect sense and fits them well.

Our conversation was indeed a very deep one with a lot of talk of spirituality. He is one of those rare people in life that you meet that have an immense level of spiritual energy . While speaking with him you feel that you are lifted off this plane into a higher one.

We spoke a lot about the Beatles and his experience of having met John Lennon, another highly tuned in spiritual and prolific soul. He spoke about how the Beatles, when they came to America, tapped into something amazing that just swept over people in a way that is hard to describe. He also spoke about how the 60's was a time of much enlightenment but , that the drugs of that era seems to have kind of knocked that generation off of it's path. He feels that we are back on that path once again and that times are changing in a very profound way . We spoke about Obama being the first black President in America (and how very cool that is) and how he brings with him a message of hope and change and how some are just not quite as ready to accept those changes for whatever reason, whether they are just fearful or not quite as enlightened.

Yesterday, when I was listening to his 'Flapjacks in the Sky Album' and particularly the song 'Look Ma, No Hands' , I was reminded of our conversation pertaining to the 60's when I heard this line in the song;

Look Ma, No Drugs
And I'm floating high and stoned as can be
Only difference is I got no strings on me
Yeah I'm free, I'm so free
Look Ma, No Hands

The interview was one of the most interesting I have had to date. I could have sat there for hours talking with him in great depth about the world, music and the spirituality of it all . Our conversation did go to some wonderfully deep places. Perhaps that was, as he put it, only a conversation meant to be between him and I. I have to admit it was quite strange how my usually reliable recorder didn't get any of the interview. It was a 'things that make you go hmm' moment.

The band now has a new fan and I have been listening to his 'Flapjacks in the Sky' and 'The Great Unravel" over and over again in my car. Now that he is once again ready to take on the industry (as he feels it has shifted back to being more genuine, at least more so than it was at one point) it's only a matter of time before a record AR person picks up on just how great this band is.

You can visit the bands website at Slambovia.com. They even have their own brand of coffee you can buy which I hear is absolutely amazing.