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to be. When I perform live, I perform the songs from those albums much more in the way that I wrote
them - with their Blues and Country influences proudly on display. I was incredibly lucky to find a
fabulous producing partner in Jonathan Wyman who understood what I was going for. We were only
going to put out a few singles, but after recording the first two songs: ‘All I Needed Was You’ and Leroy
Carr’s, ‘How Long’. I realized I had other songs I’d written that would group nicely with those two, so
we changed course and decided to record a whole album.
Recording “Yes, I Do!” was the most joyful time I’ve ever spent in a recording studio. Sessions were fun
and laidback. They went so well that we ended up having two full extra days of studio time left! Having
never recorded a holiday song, I decided to record a “New Orleans stride piano joined by Memphis Soul
style horns” version of ‘Winter Wonderland’ that I’d arranged decades ago but had never recorded.
That holiday single was released this past December.
After we’d recorded ‘Winter Wonderland’ and still had
more time, Jonathan said, “Still have another day, what
do you want to do?” I said I had this song that I’d written,
but I hadn’t written lyrics to it yet. I played him the song
on the piano while humming the bass line that I wanted.
He got very excited and insisted we record the song right
then and there with me singing nonsense syllables. That
song was ‘Yes, I Do’. We recorded it in two takes the day
before Christmas Eve. I went home knowing I would have
to be back in the studio the day after Christmas to record
the final vocals, so dove in to writing the lyrics.
There was a huge storm here in Maine that night and we
lost power. The house grew colder and colder. Dana came
down with COVID for the first time and had to isolate
from me. I sat alone in my music room, huddled in my
winter parka humming my nonsense syllables. As a side
note, this is the way I often write lyrics. I always write
the music first, then sing nonsense syllables until the
words begin to form. Who knows where they come from!?
Anyway, I was singing those nonsense syllables thinking
about poor sick Dana and the words “I love you, I love
you, yes, I do” came out. I knew I had it. The rest of the
song came from there and I recorded the vocals a few
days later. As far as vocals go, I have always felt like I
don’t quite belong in the strictly blues world because I
sing like a jazz singer, but I play piano like a blues player. So, I prefer to call myself a Roots musician.

LL: Would you tell us about the musicians and others who contributed to “Yes, I Do”, and how
you connected to them please?

JP: Sure! I love to talk about those talented people! I mentioned Jonathan Wyman in my last answer.
He is such a fantastic producer. He was also the recording engineer for the project and the mixer. We
met when he recorded my vocals and mixed my previous album, “Sun Come And Shine.” Adam Ayan
mastered the album for me. Adam has won every award a mastering engineer can possibly win and
mastered all but one of my nine albums. Dana Packard, besides being a super cool husband, is a
wonderful drummer. He’s very self-effacing but lays down a groove beautifully. He’s one of those
drummers that you might never notice, because the music just feels right. George Naha, who played
guitar on “Yes, I Do!” and on “Sun Come And Shine,” is one of the musicians I met through Bernard. He
is a great player and a very funny person. He has played with so many legends: Sam And Dave, Wilson
Pickett, and Aretha Franklin to name just a few. Damon Banks who plays bass, was introduced to me
by the legendary bassist, Ira Coleman. Ira played bass for “These Years,” and when it came time to tour,
he was touring with Sting and so was obviously unavailable. Ira recommended Damon, and I’m glad he
did. His playing is so groovy! Steve Jankowsky, who played trumpet and did the horn arrangements, is
another amazing musician I met through Bernard. He, too, has played with so many people including