Andy Baker

For ten years now I've been taking an annual hike up to Lamb's Retreat in Harbor Springs MI, just north of Petosky. Thursday through sunday, it's 4 days of music bliss with a purpose. Purpose? Yes, there is jamming until early morning, concerts, open mics, laughing, beer...but also an assignment...to write a song in 48 hours! And the tricky part is, no one has a clue as to what the assignment will be until friday morning, when we all gather in the lodge as a group and John D. Lamb, director of the retreat, reads us our assignment aloud to the rest of the group. From there the race is on, so to speak. Did I remember the part about PERFORMING the song for the group sunday morning?? Yup.

This year there was a theme about places we are from, and my song in a nutshell became about this little town of Gobles where I live, population 867 or so. I decided to come at the song with the view of a father walking his daughter down the sidewalk in a stroller, and he's reflecting on what he thinks she will experience growing up there, which then becomes a reflection of his experiences in that same town.

I am still polishing up some of the lyrics and will post them soon. But I'm always amazed that everyone...really...writes a song and plays it sunday morning for everyone to hear. And the creativity of some of these songwriters...I've been moved to tears and fallen out of my chair laughing. It's affirming to see something seemingly so impossible come true every year. I come home an exhasted emotional wreck, and can't wait for next year.

"Origami Heart" from Andy's latest studio album "Down" received a third place in the Great Lakes Songwriting Competition held this summer. The competition receives entries from the five states that touch the great lakes, and this year over 600 entries were received. The songs "Icarus Knows", "September Mind", and "Don't Know Why" also received honorable mention!