Fragile Lucidity is the debut trio record for guitarist Matthew Yeakley, bassist Richard Giddens, and drummer Mark Ferber. It was conceived, written, and recorded all in the span of one month in December of 2018. In November of 2018, they had no idea that they would be writing for a new project then recording it less than a month later, but all the pieces seemed to fall in place one after the next to give this trio a chance to create this record.
The three had always talked about a trio project, but with Mark in New York, Richard in Fresno, Matthew in Los Angeles, and all of them with busy schedules of gigs, teaching, recording and touring, the possibilities of bringing this dream to fruition seemed scarce. Then, one day in early December 2018, Matthew heard from Mark that he would be in Los Angeles over the holidays and it got his gears turning. Matthew reached out to a local recording studio (Fire Flower Studios) that he had done work with before to see if there was any kind of availability in that window, and sure enough, there was. His next call was to Richard to see if he could be in Los Angeles for the studio days, and sure enough, he could. Now all the trio needed was material to play and record.
The band reinterpreted the jazz classic “Moonglow” as a fast modern 7/4 feel, and the Stephen Foster original “Hard Times Come Again No More” as a re-harmonized walking ballad with an added solo section. The group wrote original compositions ranging from the moody ballad, “Fragile Lucidity,” to the free improvisation built around a 12-tone row, “Monumental Insignificance.” The recording day came, and the magic was apparent from the first note. The band worked all through the day and what emerged was an album of which all three were excited and proud.
The magic that had surrounded the conception, writing, and recording of Fragile Lucidity was immediately brought into balance with the journey it would take to finish the record. The files were put onto a hard drive that went missing for almost two years. Eventually, the hard drive resurfaced during a move, and the race was on to release the record that the band was so excited to share.
Fragile Lucidity is an album whose whole conceit is based in seizing the moment at hand and capturing a moment between these three musicians. It harkens to the jazz tradition of lyricism and interactive musicianship. This record is a photograph of three musicians who blend effortlessly. It is a jumping off point for a trio who are only just beginning their recording history as a group. It is the album that came together by incredible good fortune, was lost, and then rediscovered.