June Bug
Music by Peter King
2:51 | :30 soundbite
This is an instrumental that I wrote many years ago and tweaked now
and then as I got better on guitar and learned more about
voice-leading and composition. I called it “June Bug” because,
for me, something circular in the melody and rhythm evoked hot nights in July
and those wondrous creatures with their tiny, blinking orbs of light.
“June Bug” is a popular title with guitarists —
both Ralph Towner and Leo Kottke have written pieces with the same
name. Truth to tell, I haven’t heard them.
I recorded “June Bug” once before as a solo piece on a
self-financed five-song CD called “Dig This Demo.” Then
I started doing it as a duo in concert with Mark Perna, and he
found some rhythmic, soulful pockets on the upright bass that gave
those bugs more drama. For this recording, we added the great Jim
DiSpirito on percussion, and things really got funky and
mysterious.
Listen to “June Bug” as the soundtrack to photojournalist Bob Pavuchak’s slideshow.