Ggreg's album Vittles For Thought, was released in October 2014. It is available on iTunes, Amazon and cdBaby. Here is a listing of the songs on the album.
1. Veroni-kee, Veroni-kai
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Bob Metzger (lead guitar); Will Ray (lead guitar); Danny Timms (keyboards); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); John Palmer (percussion). Back in the days of the website, GarageBand, I posted this song and someone accused me of stealing from "I Want Candy." In order to be clear, Bow Wow Wow and I were both stealing from "Not Fade Away" by Buddy Holly, and Buddy was stealing from Bo Diddley (who had figured out how to make the conga beat rock.)
2. Boise Girl
Ggreg Snyder & Ed Haynes (vocal duet & rhythm guitar); Will Ray (lead guitar); Robert Heft (pedal steel guitar); Mike Barry (bass); Steven Duncan (drums); John Palmer (percussion). Ed Haynes made one of his rare trips to Los Angeles to record this duet (and I don't believe he's been back since.) The version on the album differs slightly from the single version. We added pedal steel and spiced up the beat tracks.
3. Nocturnal Remission
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); John "Juke" Logan (harmonica); Will Ray (lead guitar and backing vocals); Mike Barry (bass); Steve Duncan (drums). This was written after a summer of performing Shakespeare. As such, it is that rare blues song written in imabic pentameter.
4. Epitaphany
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal & rhythm guitar); Robert Heft (lead guitar). While not based directly on the words of my father, Ralph Snyder, this song invokes his philosophy and spirit. It was recorded in session.
5. Querida
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Aubrey Richmond (fiddle); Will Ray (lead guitar); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Nick Echols (backing vocals). Those who've listened to the album say it's their favorite song. I almost took it off, as I consider it too mushy and not necessarily consistent with the kind of music I'm looking to make right now. Also, my voice on this song gets so freakishly deep that I'm afraid the villagers will hear it and chase me away with pitchforks and torches. Nick's high tenor backing vocals saved it for me, gave it kind of a desperate sound.
6. My Neighbors
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Will Ray (lead guitar, mandolin); Dick Fegy (banjo); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Matthew McCray, David M. Beach, Michelle Nichols (backing vocals). I started writing this song while living in a small apartment complex on 17th and Wilshire in Santa Monica. One of my neighbors, daytime drama star Austin Peck, was working on his lines while sitting on the top of the stairs. I played a shorter version to a YMA group at St Monica's parish, and a nice couple (the Nelsons, I believe) encouraged me to write more verses, which I did.
7. Earnest
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Will Ray (lead guitar); Dick Fegy (banjo); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Matthew McCray, David M. Beach, Michelle Nichols (backing vocals). I think the lyrics tell all the story that needs to be told. I'm really happy with the arrangement, and that Steve Duncan was able to bring about my reggae/country beat in a seamless fashion.
8. Dear Corinne
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Lee Thornburg (cornet); Will Ray (lead guitar); Mike Barry (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Matthew McCray, David M. Beach, Jodi Fleisher (backing vocals). If any song in this collection represents emotional honesty, this is it. I was so lucky that the great horn player Lee Thornburg (Tonight Show band, Tower Of Power horns) was able to come in and play for me on this song.
9. Run Away
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Dave Gleason (lead guitar); Will Ray (rhythm guitar); Robert Heft (pedal steel guitar); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Jodi Fleisher (backing vocals). Here's my favorite cut on the album. My vocal and Dave's gritty guitar playing perfectly capture the sound I was trying to acheive.
10. Happy Valentine's Day
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Bob Metzger (lead guitar); Will Ray (rhythm guitar); Robert Heft (pedal steel guitar); Danny Timms (keyboards); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Nick Echols & Molly Laurel (backing vocals). Sometimes I will refer to my style as a mixture of outlaw country and showtunes. It took a lot of tinkering to get this song to the point that I wanted to be at, and I believe that it best represents my "broadway outlaw" sound.
11. The King Of Love
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Travis Parker (fiddle); Will Ray (lead guitar); Robert Heft (rhythm guitar); Mike Barry (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Jodi Fleisher (backing vocals). There's not much to say about this song; this version differs from the single version, in that I added a bridge and a more gritty rhythm guitar part. It features what is most likely the final released cut of the late, great fiddle player, Travis Parker.
12. Gay Men (An Ally's Lament)
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Will Ray (lead guitar, dobro); Ed Haynes (rhythm guitar, backing vocals); Robert Heft (bass). This song has been called "politically incorrect" by a few people, and I disagree with that comment. I believe it is both politically correct and humanist, while at the same time being profane and offensive. I'm very proud that I was able to acheive such a balance, and if you are offended by this song, then you should be warned that we are just getting started. The song came about after a conversation with a lady named Cinder Zurfluh. I was telling her about how gay men never hit on me, and she said that it sounded like a was practicing a comedy bit on her. She was more or less correct, and the next day I turned the bit into a song.
13. Physics & Magic
Ggreg Snyder (lead vocal); Aubrey Richmond (fiddle); Will Ray (lead guitar); Robert Heft (pedal steel guitar, baritone solo); Bob Glaub (bass); Steve Duncan (drums); Molly Laurel (backing vocals). Since the term "vittle for thought" comes from this song, it's more or less the theme song of the album. That's poquito ironic, since the main lyric is something that I don't necessarily subscribe to. For the record, I believe that it's physics when the world turns around, and also physics when it makes a sound. However, an intergral part of the "broadway outlaw" sound is that I am not afraid to sing in character.
