Posts Tagged ‘Fatherhood’
Benjamin Wagner’s “Forever Young” Teaser Trailer Premieres
It’s arguable that I have no business covering Bob Dylan not once but twice on my new album (which borrows a title from Mr. Zimmerman as well), “Forever Young.” As Abbi and I counted down to Maggie’s birth, though, all I could wish for her was, well, everything. And no song that I’m aware of…
Read MoreBenjamin Wagner’s “Forever Young” Album Art Revealed
It may seem obvious that a new album by a new father feature his new daughter on the cover, but it took some time to arrive at this apparently obvious conclusion. “Forever Young” is a collection of ten cover songs somehow connected to my childhood or childhood in general that — over the course of…
Read MoreAm I Off The Rails?
With “Forever Young,” I may be off the rails. A few weeks ago, rock journos Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis aired a special episode of their weekly “Sound Opinions” program called “Off The Rails.” In the show, the two tallied artists who’d detoured unforgivably from the promise of their early career: Lauryn Hill, Metallica, Liz…
Read MoreRock ‘N Roll Coochie Coo
Thank goodness, my week of rock ‘n roll bachelorhood finally came to an end. Abbi, Maggie and I were in Wilmington, DE, last weekend for The Keller’s 40th anniversary. I had to get back to NYC for MTV’s TJ Search Finale on Sunday. So it seemed like a perfect, logical solution. Abbi could relax with…
Read MoreAll The Small Things
“It’s time,” Abbie said. I tiptoed into the bedroom, and squinted through the darkness until my eyes adjusted. Maggie came into focus just a few feet before me, motionless in her bassinet. She was swaddled like a papoose, her lips curled into a heart-shape. I slid my right hand beneath her back, my left beneath…
Read MoreThe Velvet Hammer
Finally, I get to be the hero for once. For two weeks running, Maggie and I had it made. I’d wake her softly at the crack of dawn, bottle feed her, then take a long, slow stroll around the neighborhood until she slipped off to sleep. Everybody won: Abbi slept, Maggie ate, and I gained…
Read MoreSundays With Maggie
I set out like a total rookie: no sun hat, no burp towel, no bottle, not even an extra diaper. I scarcely pulled a baseball cap over my eyes and flip flops on my feet. It was just Maggie, me and a stripped-down stroller. Funny how quickly we forget. It doesn’t seem like much now,…
Read MoreWake Up, Maggie (I Think I Have Something To Say To You)
Loving music led to playing music led to writing music led to performing music led to recording music. Still, I wouldn’t have bet on this. Tony, Chris, Ryan and I started recording “Forever Young” in February. The record is due in October, and benefits The Fred Rogers Center. The conceit is simple: record a bunch…
Read MoreMaggie At Ten (Days)
Maggie slept through her one week birthday (the nerve!), so I decided to celebrate ten days; seemed like a good round number. Anyway, these first few days of Maggie’s life have disabused me of measurements; seconds, minutes, hours all seem to stretch and bend in this haze of feed, burp, change, repeat. And so tonight,…
Read MoreMeeting Maggie
The East River isn’t really a river at all, but a tidal strait between Manhattan and Long Island that, because of tides, appears to flow like one. New York Presbyterian Hospital soars like a great, white sail over the East River. This great, granite sheet spans several blocks of Midtown East, swallowing the FDR highway…
Read More