Sahara - Sundogs

Sahara
by Stan Snow

Sometimes getting a new guitar will inspire me to write something specific for that instrument. In late 2017, I purchased a 1972 Guild 12 string acoustic from NY. When it arrived, I opened the case and it smelled like it had been sitting in someone’s attic for the last 40 years. It was in perfect condition. I tuned it to open G and started to play the intro to Sahara. As I added the melody and the lyric, Sahara became a metaphor for the deserts in our lives. Like the bog of despond, from the book Pilgrims Progress. The reverb we used on the intro and outro was sampled from the King’s Chamber inside the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Dry as a bone
On the desert you ride
Sun beating down on your soul

Ocean of sand
Burning hot like fire
A stranger appears
to take your toll
……he says

You can see, to the cliffs of Jordan
You can ride, through the Valley of Kings
Float down the Nile, on a miracle mile
But you can’t survive….. Sahara

Wind rushes down
On the dunes late at night
Minds travel far for a drink

No one knows
How we landed here
Searching for the grail…. in the keep

You can see, to the cliffs of Jordan
You can ride, through the Valley of Kings
Float down the Nile, on a miracle mile
But you can’t survive….. Sahara

Interlude

Piano solo

Time marches on
Like a soldier in line
Pharaohs of old lay asleep

If we weather the storm
We’ll be free someday
And we’ll find our way out of this heat

You can see, to the cliffs of Jordan
You can ride, through the Valley of Kings
Float down the Nile, on a miracle mile
But you can’t survive….. Sahara

Stan Snow: Vocals, guitar, interlude synth, mandolin, clawhammer banjo, jembe
Jed Moffitt: Keyboards
Mia Boyle: Backing vocals
Chris Symer: Fretless bass
Larry Mahlis: Egyptian percussion
Felicia Dale: Hurdy gurdy (Intro track)