Clio, the Muse of History, has the power to change our perception of the world in an instant.  This is the power of historical knowledge.  Most people already know about the power that the Greeks called Euterpe, the Muse of Music and Lyrical Poetry.  Put these two together, and you've got an experience on your hands.  Holding true to these muses is what I try to do -- it's a bit like having a tiger by the tail, but better to have a tiger by the tail than a wolf by the ears, as Thomas Jefferson said about the horrific institution of human chattel slavery.

I have traveled widely, studied intensely, and played with abandon in my efforts to hang onto this tiger.  My function is to share what I've learned with anyone who will listen.  Welcome to my world -- I hope we can exchange a few commonalities and differences sometime.

By the way, the photo on the above left was taken by Mike Haley of Huntsville, Arkansas during a Rowan  (our band) show at Eureka Springs.  The other photo is from the family archive and depicts my maternal grandfather's family and the house they built in Severy, Kansas.  It was probably taken in the 1890s or early 1900s, when my mother was not yet even a gleam in old Roy Tomlinson's eye.