THE MUSTER POINT PROJECT

“Stuck in Transit” 

Guideless and guileless tourists learn by experience. Eventually you learn to fit in by not standing out. The cavalier ignorance I’ve sometimes displayed in foreign places makes me cringe. As Ann has observed about our travels and life itself: “You don’t know until you know.” Her Zen aphorism reminds me of wisdom found in Genesis: “You’ve got to get in to get out.”

Calgary indie rock outfit The Muster Point Project has just released a new single called “Stuck in Transit”. The track’s rhythm guitar is evocative of Keith Richards bashing away at his blonde Fender. That unmistakable sound, chunky shards: you hear it weaving throughout Black Crowes music, in Tom Cochrane’s “No Regrets” and even in the delightfully sardonic “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way” by Waylon Jennings (I would kill to hear the Stones butcher that one).

I wrote the lyrics to “Stuck in Transit”. I’ve co-written a few songs with TMPP’s Kevin Franco. Not many. Our working relationship is strictly part-time. It’s also symbiotic. These past three years I’ve been immersed in Sunset Oasis Confidential, my latest novel which is now mere weeks away from publication after drowning in two false starts and six drafts. I surfaced to clear my head from time to time, write a blog post or a set of lyrics for Kevin. TMPP doesn’t need any input from me. Kevin writes, composes and arranges his stuff. He did tell me though that my erratic contributions tick a box allowing him to concentrate on other aspects of songcraft. Sympatico. Our collaboration is so casual that we didn’t even pinkie swear because I live in Edmonton and he lives either in Calgary or south of the equator in Santiago, Chile. I never know where that boy is, but he’s not my kid.

I never did learn how to operate a motor vehicle. My rites of passage were confined to puberty, acne and metal braces on my buck teeth. I’m public transit savvy. Always had to be. Last June Ann and I touched down in Netherlands. A night flight to Schiphol. We took a train from the airport to Amsterdam Centraal. From there we were to ride a tram to our holiday digs inside the canal belt(s). We knew the tram’s number. We knew the name of the stop, Leidseplein. We knew how many stops to count before ours (I lost track once I spotted Velvet Records through the window). We bought tickets at the station. What we didn’t realize is that Amsterdam trams have dedicated entry and exit doors. They’re clearly marked by idiot-proof pictograms, but Ann and I were running on fumes and severely depleted nicotine levels. Nor did we realize you have to “tap” your ticket to get on or get off. I’d rate our experience as an embarrassment rather than a humiliating fiasco. Within twenty-four hours we were sniggering at other tourists. Everything was fine until Ann and I were trapped inside a grocery store, turnstiles with infrared receipt scanners this time. “What did you do with the bill?” “I don’t know.” “Is it in the bag?” “Maybe?” You’ve got to get in to get out.

Efficient public transit was top of mind with me upon our return to Edmonton. The City’s ongoing and worthwhile expansion of its light rail system remained a challenge for civic planners, contractors and commuters alike.

The songs Kevin and I have written together are strictly separate room entities. I don’t tell him how I hear the words in my head. “Stuck in Transit” was different. I had a common phrase and excuse for a title, usually Kevin decides a song’s title. I had an opening couplet straight out of My Fair Lady less the Spanish bit. I had a double entendre refrain that was Ann Zen as well. All the ingredients for a fantastical Chuck Berry story song. I wrote to Kevin saying I thought I’d written something very “Stonesy” (very different from Dylanesque) for him. The day before he’d finished laying down an instrumental track in their vein. He’d yet to write lyrics. Kevin told me my words just dropped, slotted into the proper places in the music. Serendipity.

The official TMPP video of “Stuck in Transit” is on YouTube. It’s compelling footage, you can watch Kevin at work. And it’s also available for download or playlist addition or whatever on all those streaming services I know nothing about.

Dispatches from the Crooked 9 has been your most unreliable, unbalanced and inaccurate alternative source of everything since 2013. Sunset Oasis Confidential is with its publisher. Have a look at the jacket design at my companion site www.megeoff.com. Of Course You Did is still available.