It was late in the morning as I walked through my empty house, trying to accept the fact that Cheryl had passed away, when the phone rang. I didn’t recognize the number and almost didn’t pick up. “Hello?” I said cautiously, expecting a grief counselor or maybe Cheryl’s daughter Shawn. “Hi David, it’s Michael Hurwitz.” I knew Michael as the drummer for a few bands of my lifelong friends, Jack King and Brian Hough. Michael had heard about Cheryl and had called to support me, to let me know that she was still with me and that I wasn’t alone. We ended up talking for a while about love, God and the hereafter. For about a month after that, Michael would check in on me weekly. During one of these calls he mentioned he’d written a song and asked if I would be interested contributing lyrics or vocals. I loved the song, but it ended up on the back burner while I finished setting up the wiring in my studio. Months later when he asked me about it again, I decided to make this the first song from “Rodeo Studio.” His song title, “As I Remember” inspired me to tell my story of love and loss. Michael was moved by the emotion I added to the song. This marked the beginning of a year and a half labor of love, working closely together online via Protools and Zoom, both playing our instruments until “TAKE A DEEP BREATH” began to take shape. The next 9 songs were added to the project with the help of Tom Miller, David K. Matthews and Mike Rinta. Each step along the way I would send the songs to my daughter, Nicole, who had inspired me from day one to keep going with this album – assuring me that this was more than a demo – that I had something important to share. I hope this music is as healing for you as it is for me. -DD