SPECTACLES

Radon Notes

I first met Craig Gates as a member of a local country cover band called Pearl Haggard, led by Evan Stepp of Evan Stepp & the Piners fame. I was later invited to join an established originals band called Heart Drugs that features all members of Pearl Haggard except for Evan. It’s a lot of sharing, I know. But it works somehow.

At some point in 2025 I became aware that besides being the bassist in both aforementioned bands, Craig is also a singer-songwriter. This hidden talent was a nice surprise and of course I soon recruited him to record something at Radon.

He chose this song to start with. We gathered a few like minded players to join us on the recording. Marco Corales occupied his usual seat behind the drums. Tyler Key was asked to play pedal steel and his many talents spilled over into other tasks. Katie sang some backing vocals and first-time studio vocalist Kathy Benton sang with her. It was all a fun mish-mash of musical mayhem.

My interpretation of this song, unverified by Craig, is that it gives advice to a youngster, possibly the son or daughter of the singer. And it is good advice — “Choose paths that are strange; let experience re-arrange you” is probably my favorite line. It’s a loving song that I reckon a lot of folks can relate to.

Stay tuned, there will be more Crystal Chandeliers to come!