When asked where they get their ideas from, songwriters and musicians will often say something like, they "pluck it out of the air." It's something out there waiting to be found. Good writers have a knack for tapping into this creative current. E.J. Gold exemplifies this to an incredible degree.

I once witnessed him make up the lyrics to seven songs one after the other in the amount of time it takes to play the song. He sang them and composed them on the spot, took a short break then rattled off another six songs to complete the evening. These lyrics were poetic, thought provoking, and told a story. The album is called Ride That Carousel.

Gold's ability to improvise musical content of aesthetic quality instantly, extends as far as learning a new instrument. A few years ago he was given a beautiful brand new Gemeinhardt flute. Although a self-taught saxophone player, and proficient on the recorder, he had never played a flute before. He came in to the recording studio, and said "Let's record and see what happens." Not only able to produce a solid consistent tone out of the instrument, E.J. ended up improvising an hour's worth of exceptionally good solo flute music that was released as the album Inside/Outside.

I once gave Tom Waits and his wife Kathleen a copy of his gaming cd called In Your Face. They asked if his teachings were contained in the songs. I thought for a second, no one had asked me that before, and replied, yes they are. Not only is his music engaging and fun to listen to but it also contains valuable insights and information regarding the work he's here to accomplish. A spoonful of sugar, ie entertaining music, does help the medicine go down in a most delightful way. Often it's not the lyrical content communicating deep metaphysical wisdom but rather the mood the music creates that shifts the listener's perspective into new territory.

Every week on Monday afternoon E.J. Gold leads his band Faxl through a two hour journey of improvisation and experimentation. Whenever I'm there to help engineer these sessions I gain new insights into my life's work and into the common work of the whole group. It sometimes seems like a radio transmission of higher intelligence presented in the ordinary guise of a group of dedicated musicians casually singing and playing in the homespun comfort of their living room.

Oz Fritz, Grammy award winning engineer for Tom Waits, Primus, and over 60 projects with Bill Laswell.