FYC: Listed in the Country and American Roots category for Best Americana Album in the 69th Annual Grammy Awards (First Ballot)
The New CD “Play Nice Together” is available on Bandcamp, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, iHeartRadio, and more coming soon.
Westaire Records 2026. Distributed by DistroKid.
“Play Nice Together” is a collection of songs, some original, and others by a few of my favorite songwriters. I called on some of my closest musical compadres to add their talents to this project.
This is a record built on friendship, shared musical history and the simple pleasure of making music together.
At its heart are my longtime relationships with close friends and co-producers Kevin Hayes and Mark Hallman.
It all began as a casual jam at Kevin’s Novato, California studio eleven years ago with another member of our inner circle, guitarist Erik Schramm. Kevin and I shelved the demos from that session and life went on. The album finally started to take shape in 2022, with sessions that included reworking those early demos, as more than twenty friends added tracks either in person or via the Internet over the next few years.
Kevin Hayes is an acclaimed Bay Area drummer, known for his years touring and recording with the Robert Cray Band, Roy Rogers, Chris Cain, and countless albums and tours with other artists. He is also an engineer and studio owner.
Mark Hallman is an accomplished producer, multi-instrumentalist, studio owner, and mixing and mastering engineer who has been bandleader and producer for Carole King, a touring band member with Dan Fogelberg, engineer and studio musician for Ani DiFranco, and producer/engineer/musician for Eliza Gilkyson, whose song “Runaway Train” is on our album. Mark and I met in college in Kalamazoo, Michigan, playing together in our band Touchstone from 1969 to 1971. Those early years formed a bond that continues to this day.
As the project grew, close friends and family brought decades of roots, rock, Blues and Americana experience to the music. Bonnie Hayes, who wrote “Love Letter” and “Have a Heart” for Bonnie Raitt’s Grammy-winning album Nick of Time, played keyboards on five tracks. Guitarists joining Erik and Mark include Jeff Tamelier, who spent 12 years with Tower of Power; Chris Hayes, original guitarist for Huey Lewis and the News; Blues/Rock guitarist Volker Strifler (Robben Ford, the Ford Blues Band); Detroit native Kevin Russell, a veteran of top touring bands 707, Clarence Clemons, Taxxi, and Whitesnake; Tal Morris (Sons of Champlin, John Fogerty); Don Fox (Muddy Waders); and Sean Allen (Carlene Carter, Commander Cody). Eamonn Flynn, whose keyboards stand out on The Commitments film soundtrack along with his work with Michael Franti and Zigaboo Modeliste, and his own albums, brings his years of experience as a touring and recording artist. Erin Bakke and Natalie Haggerty added harmony vocals, and sax legend Al Garth (Eagles, Loggins and Messina) joined the mix on one song.
The songs – some of my own, some by a few of my favorite songwriters, carry their own stories. I wrote four and co-wrote “Howlin’ at the Moon” with guitarist Böb Hopkins, which we recorded with Jeff Campitelli, long-time drummer for Joe Satriani, and multi-instrumentalist/engineer Adam Rossi at AR Audio in San Francisco. Cole Panther turned Don’s onstage quips from his Monday night acoustic gigs into lyrics for another song. One of the most personal moments is “Lover of the Bayou”: My son Justin Bassey plays drums on the Byrds song that Mark and I first played together when we were 19.
The community effort extended beyond the performances, with assistant engineering by Skip Sitkin, graphic design by Marie Neri, and the “Friends” quilt by Karen Brillhart Duling. Böb Hopkins supplied the back-cover photo; Erin Bakke and Don handled art direction.
Across 14 tracks, Play Nice Together brings a lifetime of musical friendships into the same room.
The Full Circle
Performers: Don Bassey, Kevin Hayes, Mark Hallman, Bonnie Hayes, Erik Schramm, Volker Strifler, Justin Bassey, Erin Bakke, Natalie Haggerty, Jeff Campitelli, Eamonn Flynn, Böb Hopkins, Don Fox, Jeff Tamelier, Kevin Russell, Chris Hayes, Tal Morris, Sean Allen, Adam Rossi, with Al Garth on saxophone.
Production and art: Don Bassey, Kevin Hayes, Mark Hallman, Böb Hopkins, Adam Rossi, Skip Sitkin, Marie Neri, Karen Brillhart Duling and Erin Bakke.
Front Cover Quilt “Friends” by Karen Brillhart Duling
Rear Cover Photo: Bob Hopkins
Photo Credits – CD insert photo collage:
Bob Hakins, Gary Cullen, Jamie Valladao, Erin Bakke, Liz Bassey, Monica Marquis, Dave Lang, Andy Wallace, KevJo
