Bobby Angel

IS IN SESSION!
Gunpowder My Gunpowder
Ode to my home river
To be honest I was miffed:

How could cartographers leave the Gunpowder out?
As penned on the banks of the river
My response was to right this song. Yes, the Susquehanna River is the Chesapeake Bay’s largest tributary, and the Potomac River is bigger too and also drains the Shenandoah Valley. But to look at a map of the drainages of the Chesapeake Bay and to leave the Gunpowder out downright irked me on too many levels to count. But what is a hydrologist to do? And who do I complain to? My philosophy: Never complain and never explain, and rather get down to the business at hand. And specifically, that means telling the story of a pretty special river that sadly people don’t know exists, or sorely misunderstand. The opening line to the song came to me while hiking the river trail just above Jerusalem Mills. I refined the lyrics in the following days in the loft overlooking a brook that feeds the river. But it wasn’t until returning to Florida that I finally put the final touches on the song, and in particularly the last two lines.
Where does this song rank in the Maryland song canon? Behind the Star Spangled Banner and Maryland My Maryland, I’m having trouble coming up with a third. That being the case, I’ll rank it 2nd since Maryland My Maryland is a knock off of Oh Tanenbaum.
Rising to the occassion
And why its easier said than done
When it comes to singing or writing a song …

It’s all about seizing the moment.
That doesn’t mean it ever goes down like planned. It never does. That’s what being an artist is all about. Sure, you have a concept in mind. That doesn’t mean it’s going to work … or at least come together like you thought it might. But let’s also be honest: The only regret is knowing that you decided not to do something instead of going out and doing your best. The truth is that we’re never as prepared as we like, but that’s also where the fun comes in. I have a hunch that fits in somewhere in the Tony Doctrine.

Songs – Deluxe Editions
Stay tuned in to hear the backstory after the song

The Lusitania
When a boat is more than a boat
FacebookTweetPin This song may seem simple … Trending The Green Album But it’s tightly constructed, too. Stay on afterwards to hear the interview Why the Lusitania has always loomed large…
Jaws of the Glades
Victory lap around the trees
It’s where you end up,

Not where you begin …
That defines who you are in life.
Pretty Boy and Gunpowder
A river and its reservoir
Washed out bridges and …

Ruins of old water-powered mills.
Welcome to the Gunpowder River.
Time To Retire
Knowing when to hang up the machete
When do you know …
It’s finally time to retire?
Answer: When Bobby Angel shows up at your door with a song you can’t refuse.
Smash Hit
One-hit wonder homage
There’s one hit wonders …

And then there’s a smash hit.
Stay on to hear the interview after the song
Welcome To Big Cypress
A throwback song from 1999
What took me so long …

To record this song I’ll never know.
What I can say is it’s withstood the test of time.
Very talented pilot
AKA The Eye in the Sky
People are always amazed …
How clear everything is whenever they fly.
The stories add up over time
Then there are the pilots that fly all the time.
The Lusitania
Titanic gets dethroned
More than just a major maritime disaster …

It’s my first anti-war protest song.
Song and interview
Not that it’ll ever knock the Titanic off the front page.
Tear Down
Built to be torn down
What happens when your life’s work …

Is all but set to be torn down?
Bobby Angel makes a stand in this song.
If We Knew Now …
What We Knew Then
Bobby Angel brings down the house …

With this sprawling masterpiece of the Everglades.
This song both inspires and haunts.
Midstream
Many artists spend weeks in a studio …

Trying to refine a song to the nth degree.
Bobby Angel’s philosophy, on the other hand, is to get a first draft out.
Anniversary Homage
Sometimes you have no intention …

Of penning a song.
Anniversary song is a raw and unscripted campfire ballad
Ballad of a Florida Panther
Bobby Angel tells a tale of how a panther …

And a transportation engineer teamed up to fix a road.
Preserved
End of the swamp frontier
This song chronicles bittersweet journey …

To reclaim what is left of a world gone by.
A victory for nature, it also meant a loss of freedom for the frontier way of life that was shut down.
Hobo Camp
Bobby Angel’s ballad of a hobo …

Who took a stand for the woods at the edge of town.
We Burned It Down
Bobby Angel explores seasonal change …

And our connection to natural cycles.

Full Length Albums
The same LP sound produced as a YouTube playlist
Big Cypress Bound
Bobby Angel's 3rd Album
FacebookTweetPin When does an album become an album? Trending Bobby Angel Effect Answer: When suddenly it clicks. Listen to full album (above) or individual songs/interviews (below) On my most recent…
The Green Album
Like the "White Album," but "Green"
FacebookTweetPin Released in 2021, Trending Burden of Bobby Angel The Green Album is a tribute to nature. Continuously play full album (above) Play selected songs and interviews (below) More about…
New Pangaea
Bobby Angel's debut album (2020)
FacebookTweetPin This debut LP explores … Trending Bobby Angel’s Muse The meaning of saying goodbye. Continuously play full album (above) Play selected songs and interviews (below) More about New Pangaea:…
Bootleg Interview Album
Bobby Angel bares his soul
FacebookTweetPin Bobby Angel discusses his origin story … Trending The Green Album And the role his muse plays in lighting his path. Continuously play full album (above) Play selected songs…

Song Lyrics
Follow along with the lyrics as you listen to the song
Journey Before Time
Lyrics to Pretend It Never Happened
FacebookTweetPin Let’s Pretend It Never Happened Trending Big Cypress Bound Lyrics and Music by Bobby Angel, his pre-drainage Everglades Song, Spring 2021 Let’s pretend it never happened x3 We’ll go there in our dreams The Lake is bursting at its seams Going south in a skiff with Hugh Willoughby Through a wall of sawgrass thick as can be Until at the edge finally we break free Into a maze of braids an unending freshwater sea On my face the good feel of a sunny breeze And in the distance tiny islands of trees Below pumping up a subterranean freshet Teeming…
Lyrics to Stuck
FacebookTweetPin Stuck Inside of Oasis Trending Marsha Marsha A farewell song to Rudi Heinrich Words and music by Bobby Angel Live at the The Brass Tap July 27, 2019 Gators are splashing wildly down the end of the boardwalk I try to see what the problem is but a tourist stops me to talk. And the visitors politely ask me questions that can’t seem to wait, like “Do you keep those alligators in a cage?” to which I answer “No ma’am it’s me that can’t escape” Oh, Joe Lord, can this really be the end to be stuck inside of…
Wetland sharks
FacebookTweetPin Jaws of the Glades Trending Bobby Angel Effect A farewell Song to Laurie Humphrey Words and music by Bobby Angel February 26, 2021 She used to work in the Everglades and always knew how to play the game whenever they asked and wanted to know she told them the Everglades were the only show but then one time she finally got fed up when she scooped the water up in cup to find it filled with all sorts of nasty stuff That’s when she ran off and escaped to the Big Cypress Swamp a place that has everything you…
Gunpowder and reservoir
FacebookTweetPin Pretty Boy and the Gunpowder Trending Bobby Angel’s Muse Words and Music by Bobby Angel January 2, 2022 Your gunpowder didn’t blow And so went on your way Past the trail where the train once ran Beside a bridge that’s washed away Weren’t you the next big thing As guaranteed as anything And now look at you today Ruins overrun Such a pretty boy you were Born in Jerusalem Spinning water at your wheel Into rifles for the coming war Outfitting old Henry’s fort Farther down the Locust Point Where cannons kept the ships at bay And sent them…
A medley to remember
FacebookTweetPin Her and There Trending Burden of Bobby Angel Words and Music by Bobby Angel Maybe you saw me maybe you didn’t the best part of life is always hidden you and me we’ll find that treasure take it to a higher level you and me we’ll never settle check it out check it out check it out we’ll be flying we’ll be rising over top of the horizon past the pain and all the dying finally we are arriving we are there we are there yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah I met her at the picnic table a…
Not getting there
FacebookTweetPin Midstream Trending Calling All Angelheads Words and music by Bobby Angel Midstream midstream that’s where I’ll always be. Midstream midstream that’s where I’ll always be. Don’t want to go to the other bank I’ve been there before so no thanks and I don’t want to return to the other shore there ain’t nothing for me there anymore. Midstream midstream there’ ain’t nothing for me there anymore. Midstream midstream it’s where I want to be. Midstream midstream midstream it’s where I want to be. Midstream midstream midstream midstream. Don’t care if I get washed away sounds better than having to…
Feline adventure
FacebookTweetPin Ballad of a Florida Panther Trending The Green Album Words and Music by Bobby Angel Step right up I got a story to tell. It takes place in Old Florida near a wishing well. The names and places may be re-arranged. But what went down is more or less the same. It was midnight in Salt Lake when she got the fateful call about a missing footprint of a Texas Panther paw. It sounded so peculiar, she packed her bags and sent her money in for a Florida Cougar license tag. Turns out Tamiami’s too fast for our liking,…
Dream revisited
FacebookTweetPin Wrong Side of a Dream Trending New Pangaea Words and music by Bobby Angel Its good to be out, but I aim to get back in. Then she walks across the floor, ain’t nothing more than I want than her, I’ll do what it takes to win. My money ain’t what it used to be but the men at the table don’t breath ’cause they know I got an ace up my sleave. “Ma’am if you don’t mind, I got something to say. You know I’m sort of thinking out loud, but in this crowd my words won’t come….
My small town
FacebookTweetPin Downtown in Tivoli Trending Art of the campfire shanty Words and music by Bobby Angel Valerie’s in the store, she’s sweeping up the kitchen. Honey stays at home, if he ain’t biting then he’s itching. Everybody’s doing whatever they’ve done before, balancing the books, evening the score. Stewart’s out back, he’s splitting wood for the winter. All he’s got is bare hands, he ain’t worried about no splinter. Somebody somewhere is reading his words, dividing by time and multiplying in thirds. Way downtown in Tivoli, you can almost see the Hudson. The zebra mussels came and cleaned the river,…
Hobo Hero
FacebookTweetPin Hobo Camp Trending Burden of Bobby Angel Words and music by Bobby Angel Hobo camp hobo camp I’m gonna build me a hobo camp. Hobo camp hobo camp I’m gonna build me a hobo camp. Found me a good spot at the edge of town. Cleared me a path and cleared me some ground. Not to close and not too far so I can still fetch me some food from the country bar. Hobo camp hobo camp I finally got me a hobo camp. Hobo camp hobo camp I finally got me a hobo camp. Life in the woods…

Interviews About The Songs
Every song has a backstory
Website Tour
Join singer/songwriter Bobby Angel …

On a self-guided tour of his website.
Bobby Angel tours his website
The major take-home point is this: The website is super easy to navigate. My albums, songs, interview, campfire concerts, demos and more are easy to find. Better yet, you can even buy a Bobby Angel T-Shirt. The thing about Bobby Angel, I’m about as good a webmaster as I am a singer songwriter. Or in other words, I’m learning. What I love about the website? It made me think long and hard about how to structure it and the message I wanted to get across. Most of all I wanted it a tool where Angelheads could both find what they needed (songs, albums, interviews) — better known as “discoverability” — but also get lost. Early on and often, the website helped inform my art. Case in point is that whenever I write a song I follow up within the week with an interview on the song. The other great thing about the website: It gives me a reason to be a finisher. Without a place to put a song, to memorialize it for all time, it’s easy to use that for an excuse of never getting it done. Not for Bobby Angel! Yes, many first drafts never see the light of day. But if I make it to the second draft, the third, seventh, thirteenth, whatever it takes, are close behind, it soon thereafter finding a spot on my website.
I‘ve always said: If nobody else uses my website other than me, it’s a success. But Big Confession, too: Thank God for all you Angelheads out there!

P.S. Don’t forget to visit my store (T-Shirts next day delivery).
Titanic dethroned!
Bobby Angel talks "The Lusitania"
Behind every great song …

Is the after-song interview.
Bobby angel explains why in this in-depth interview.
No song delves deeper into my heart than the Lusitania. Why? Maybe because my grandfather could have easily served in the war. He didn’t. But he was almost of the age that he could have if he were only born a year or two before. To me, the song also challenges the myth of the Titanic. It also begs the question, will Celine Dion and I ever collaborate. All I can say is that it would be a great, maybe the greatest, highlight of my career. Celine – if you’re listening – I already have the campfire venue picked out. Or alternatively, we could meet up in Las Vegas too at one of your shows. I’m good either way.
Interview at Oasis
If I had to pick one person …

To tell the story of Oasis VC:
Listen to the song
It would be Ranger Rudi. Listen to the interview to find out why.
Ruins and reservoir
Bobby Angel talks Gunpowder River
How long does it take …

To understand a river?
Answer: Probably a hundred hikes.
Art of the Tony Doctrine
And why it's the new Art of War
There’s some people …

You just want them to write everything down.
The problem? Tony was more a man of action than long-winded with his words.
Smash Interview
What makes a one-hit wonder?
It’s amazing how one song …

Can generate so much discussion.
Typical of Bobby Angel, his interviews are longer than the songs.
Vintage Throwback
Why some songs age well
I’m not saying this is my best song …

But it has withstood the test of time.
The reason?
Hope to despair
The ballad's backstory
When does one’s biggest regret …
Transform into their only hope?
Bobby Angel explores that and more in his new song.
About Her and There
The art of the medley
Life’s biggest challenge

is working outside your genre.
It’s also the biggest reward.
That’s where this medley comes in.
Demolished
Interview about Tear Down
So the saying goes:

You can’t take it with you.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to leave a little behind.
About Pretend
Fun to see the lake overflow into the Glades
For as long as this song is …
I wrote it in a day.
As for what it chronicles, it took about two centuries to unfold
Stopping midstream
Usually when you’re in the middle of a roaring river …

The imperative is to get across.
Or is the crossing the best part?
Anniversary explained
Bobby Angel explains "Anniversary Song"
The obvious question is …

Anniversary of what?
Maybe it’s a relationship, or maybe it’s something else.
About Preserved
What was gained and what was lost
Bobby Angel gives the inside scoop …

on the anchor (i.e. final) song to The Green Album.
He didn’t know he had an album until he wrote this song, and then everything clicked.

Pen and Paper
Pen in hand and a blank page is how all songs start
Pre Typewriter
Ode to a simpler time
I remembered when I first learned …

To use a typewriter.
Performed to Dylan’s It’s Alright Ma
I was in twelfth grade. Cumbersome at first, and plodding. I didn’t much see the point. And then it clicked — and I was off to the races typing lightspeeds faster than I could write. The irony was in 10th grade, just two years before, my brother typed my American History paper (Topic: Should Eisenhower have crossed the Elbe River Faster?) for me. That makes me laugh because to this day my brother types with two fingers. It’s painful to watch, whereas I mastered using all eight fingers and both thumbs.
Fast forward three decades later I have to remind myself to even pick up a pen. And how quaint even now a typewriter seems in retrospect. Increasingly, I’m too lazy to even thumb out an email, let alone a text with ample impossible to interpret autocorrects — and even resorting to just audio transcribing into my phone to respond to texts and emails. What is the world coming to! Oh, and how the mighty have fallen. If my 18 year old self could see me now, I really wonder what he would say. Instead of reading books and handwriting long letters to distant friends, here I am lost in my thoughts of how things used to be. I’m not saying the typewriter was a slippery slope, but what I am saying is that this song stayed handwritten. It never got typed out or saved into a computer as a Word file.
The topic? My then boss was turning fifty, 2 years younger than I am now. At the time, he seemed so much older, but maybe that’s because everything is relative. What’s that saying: “Better late than never?” Final note: I couldn’t make the big event, but not wanting to be left out or contribute in someway, I wrote this song — and here’s the funny part: I recorded it on a cassette tape. No joke. I wonder if Ron still has that tape now, and if so, and probably the more impossible feat — If he has a tape recorder to play it on?

Last song of 1st album
Draft song sheet for New Pangaea
I remember writing this song.
It came to me in a rush.

I wrote it, I sang it and I quickly moved on. It was the final song of my first album, twenty years in the making. It also re-inspired my song-writing chops. Every other song on the first album were from the deep archive of farewell songs I’d written over the years. It paved the way for most of my second album – The Green Album – being newly written songs. At the time of this post, I am going through a little bit of a song-writing lull. But after completing three albums of original songs and interviews, maybe I needed a break. Time off is always well spent

Demo versions
Practice makes perfect
Marsha Marsha Marsha
This song has a special place …

In my heart.
I finally worked out the chords in this session
The reason? For one, I think it’s upbeat. And it also tells a good story. Most of all is that is the first farewell song that I performed live at a party. In the run-up to singing the song, it’s also how I got my stage name Bobby Angel. Other details: At the end of the song I discuss a little history behind the song and how after twenty years I managed to remember and reconstruct the way I sang it on that fateful night. I’m not proud. But I did need the practice. But the end of the session I was wide awake and alert. In total I rehearsed about five songs. It’s all about getting your reps in.
Panther Practice
One of my favorite songs …

And quickest ones to right.
The secret: I had under a week to prepare.
The Rambler
Bobby Angel spellbinds his audience with a vivid cowboy ballad of a wanderer caught in time between what was and what will never be. Set in the Old West, the backstory of this Bobby Angel original counterbalances hope and despair, love and loss.

Neither bank
Forget about getting to the other side …

It’s being midstream that counts.
It’s called learning to go with the flow!
Built to be torn down
This song laments the plight of a man …

Who discovers his house is a “tear down.”
Does that mean all that sweat equity was for naught?
Backroom Boiler
Not that I was negotiating deals …

but I was trying to work through a few technical glitches.
Down by the river
Never mind the untuned guitar
Bobby Angel performs perhaps his most poignant and revealing rendition of Downtown in Tivoli yet, an ode to small town life, change, the nearby flowing river and love lost yet ultimately retrained by way of memories that can never be erased.
How dreams live on
Bobby Angel sings "Wrong Side of a Dream"
Bobby Angel records his new original song “Wrong Side of a Dream.” It’s a complex tale of dreams imagined and dreams lost, but somehow – despite all – the dream living on.

Singing for the trees
Bobby Angel performs "Ugliest Forest"
Listen to Bobby Angel’s rousing rendition …

Of Ugliest Forest.
Or watch the official video here.