Part II: The Story continues…
By Robin Daniel and Marka Ormsby
Many creative endeavors result from people and events coming together in time and space. Tunnel Rats Music represents such a nexus. See how, in Part II of “Music Tells The Story.”
In Part I, we followed Sid Orr, a Marine Corp veteran who wrote Vietnam ballads to come to terms with his war memories. After many years and much toil, he released a CD, Vietnam: The Journey, in 2013. In Part II, we see Sid collaborating with Robin Daniel and Libby Wilson to create Vietnam: The Journey Continues and Tunnel Rats Music.
By 2016, Sid had enough material for a second CD, but he needed to collaborate with musicians sharing his goal to help veterans, both through music and community. He didn’t have to look far. Sid knew Robin Daniel and Libby Wilson from regular Bluegrass jams and events. They discovered that their shared interests and diverse talents made a great team. Here is their story.
Enter Robin and Libby
After his first CD experience, Sid knew he couldn’t do another one alone. He needed to work with others who shared his desire to help veterans through music. It’s no surprise that through the welcoming and encouraging Bluegrass music community, Sid found the answer.
Several years before, Dickson Lester, leader of the The Mars Hill Porch Pickers, and fellow Vietnam veteran, met Sid at the Australian Bakery Tuesday Night Bluegrass Jam and asked Sid to play bass for his band.
Dickson, “The Pied Piper of Bluegrass” always includes others, inviting them to play any time he can. In fact, Dickson and Mars Hill encouraged Robin Daniel to perform with them which led to her starting her own band. A band that included Libby Wilson.
Libby, an aspiring songwriter in her own right, learned through workshops that songwriting didn’t have to be a solitary endeavor – creativity blossoms in collaboration. Knowing Sid was a songwriter who had released a CD, Libby wondered if he would share his experiences, and perhaps help her with her songs.
Robin, who never considered writing a song, was awed by those who did, and was fascinated by the process. She had no idea her love of music, passion for helping others, endless energy, and natural organization skills would be so important to this nascent songwriting circle.
Little did they know, this was the beginning of something special.
The Songwriting Circle
In December 2015, they began writing in earnest, with a goal of having the second CD released by Memorial Day, 2016. Given the short time frame, they’d have to keep a tight schedule. Robin, a project manager at heart, kept the project on track and organized their songwriting sessions.
Meeting weekly, Sid shared the “hooks” and “phrases” he created over the years. As the three immersed themselves in the writing, Robin and Libby realized how little they really knew about the war in Vietnam. Born in three different decades, they had very different perspectives. In 1969, while Sid was in country, Robin was just starting high school, and Libby was a young child. Sid graciously, and sometimes painfully, described the physical and emotional toll the war exacted on him and his fellow Vietnam veterans.
Inspired by the impact of Sid’s stories, Libby sat aside during one session writing a song “For The Rest of Us:”
We’ve seen it in the movies, we’ve heard it on the news
But we only can imagine life walking in their shoes
Asking them to share with us the story that we lack
A window into their world and strength to take us back
Seeking more to understand,
we journey to the wall
In the face of quiet reflection we can
hear their voices call
Oh the memories they’ve told
As cleared through the dust
Are the history they hold
For the rest of us
Although they didn’t realize it at the time, this song put the trio on the path to uncover a “living theme” of strength in sharing by the Vietnam veteran and his community.
In January 2016, Libby arranged a meeting for the group with her friend, Sanfora DiMola, at her home in Ellijay, Georgia. Sanfora had begun her nursing career in 1965 working with some of the first returning Vietnam veterans. She told them about her “warriors” and the groundbreaking work on PTSD they spearheaded.
Sid knew all too well that although the veterans returned physically, they couldn’t leave the memories behind. From “I Was There Last Night:”
A man is sitting at a diner,
cup of coffee in his hand
His hat says I’m a veteran
of that war in Vietnam
There is character in his face,
There’s wisdom in his eyes
So when the waitress stopped to ask
him, he was somewhat surprised
Sir, When were you in Vietnam?
I was there last night
Right back in that firefight
Lingering smell of Cordite
In the distance a flash of light means
Some hero’s dying
Some hero’s crying
Just waiting for the next
dust off flight
You ask me when I was in the Nam
I was there last night
I could tell you about a war
that just keeps coming back
Hits you with no warning
like an ambush or a VC attack
It steals your life away…
For several hours that afternoon, Sanfora shared the experiences that shaped her career helping Vietnam veterans.
As Sid, Robin, and Libby prepared to leave, Robin asked, “If you could give one message to Vietnam veterans and their families, what would it be?” Sanfora responded immediately, “There is hope, and you are not alone.”
Inspired to write a song to convey Sanfora’s message, Sid, Robin, and Libby wrote “You’re Not Alone” to encourage suffering veterans. From “You’re Not Alone:”
Do you hope for healing from the pain?
Do you hope for healing from the shame?
You have served your country well
You feel you’ve been thru Hell
Son you’re not to blame…
Your country feels the same
There’s Hope, There’s Hope ,
There’s Hope there’s always hope, you’re not alone
From Songwriting to CD
By March 2016, the songs were ready for the next phase – Production! Sid, Robin, and Libby recorded some rough cuts and sent them along with the lyrics to Johnny Johnson at Johnson Brothers Recording Studio in Covington, Georgia. After Johnny performed his magic, arranging the music for his studio musicians, they were ready to begin.
At the first recording session, Johnny worked closely with Sid, Robin, and Libby to ensure he captured the essence of the songs and created the sound they wanted.
As they worked through the songs, Johnny encouraged Sid to “tell his story” in his own voice in two songs, “I Was There Last Night” and “It’s All In Your Head.”
Sid wanted a female vocalist for “The Rest of Us,” and “You’re Not Alone,” and Johnny had the perfect lead vocalist, Carrie Bowen. Robin and Libby sang the beautiful harmonies in “The Rest of Us.”
Two songs needed a banjo player to add a Bluegrass feel. They thought of their friend, teacher, and mentor, Jim “Duck” Adkins, leader and banjo player for the Cedar Hill band. Robin told Duck about the Vietnam ballads project and asked how much he’d charge to come to the studio. He declined payment and graciously donated his time and talent.
The CD production and recording was truly a collaborative, community experience.
To The Presses
With all the songs recorded and mastered, they were sent to press. Sid’s previous CD production experience with Disc Makers, an online CD production company, was vital. Knowing what to expect made the process manageable, especially when they hit a snag.
Although Disc Makers had done an excellent job designing the graphics for the first CD, their design ideas for The Journey Continues completely missed the mark. Fortunately, Disc Makers had the option to upload a custom design. Robin used her computer resources and graphics experience to create a new design for the CD cover layout in time to meet their deadline.
Vietnam: The Journey Continues – Released May 18, 2016
During one of their early writing sessions, Sid took Robin and Libby to Semper Fi Bar and Grill for inspiration. Semper Fi, owned and operated by Marine veterans, Carrie and Ralph Roeger, is a unique place where,
“All are welcome, but Veterans and First Responders are honored, A place where Veterans can sit and tell Their Story! It’s these stories of serving our great nation that forge the common bond they have.”
– Ralph and Carrie Roeger
The walls are filled with pictures and artifacts donated by customers and patrons to remember and honor those who have served. It was the perfect place for a CD release party.
Surrounded by veterans, friends. and family, Tunnel Rats Music released their first CD – Vietnam: The Journey Continues. Fellow musicians, and Vietnam veterans Harold Hollingshed and Joe Curry, sat in with Sid, Dickson Lester, and the Mars Hill Porch Pickers to entertain the crowd.
Robin’s close friends, Deb Gerace, Philippa Anderson, and Mary Slider, of Vintage Vocals, delighted the audience with a staged and costumed WWII USO-style show.
Sanfora DiMola attended the release party as a special guest and was recognized for her important contributions to the CD.
The CD release marked the end of an exciting experience for the Tunnel Rats Music song writing team. As they began work on a new CD, they were delayed by a surprising turn of events. In Part III of the story, learn how a Tunnel Rats CD that surfaced in a Thrift Store in North Georgia launched them on a new journey in a new direction.
