"Love is the Answer": Original Songs Recovered from 1970-72

Between 1970 and 1972, Rick Lewis, Elissa Fazio and I engaged in a spate of song-writing.  Rick was my roommate for three years at Harvard and Elissa, one of my dearest friends from West Hempstead High School.  We produced about a dozen songs together, and – in late 1971 or early 1972 – another roommate, Andy Chester, recorded Rick and Elissa performing our songs (including one I had written the summer before college with another friend, Bill Hellert).  Andy owned what seemed to us to be a pretty advanced four-track reel-to-reel tape recorder.  I recently found my copy of that tape, had it digitized, and shared it with Rick and Elissa.  Our collective view is that eight of the songs are surprisingly not too shabby after 40 years.  If you make due allowance for youthful self-absorption, I’m not even too embarrassed by the lyrics.  Elissa now runs a small business in Tucson, Arizona (and is engaged in myriad other activities).  Rick is a cardiologist in Virginia.  But, if there’s going to be a 2015 folk revival, I think they’re ready for touring.  And, if Elton John decides to ditch Bernie Taupin, well . . .

1.  January Ways

Music by Rick Lewis
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocal: Elissa Fazio
 Piano and guitar: Rick Lewis
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Richard A. Lewis.  All rights reserved.

2. New York City Summer Days

 Music by Elissa Fazio
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocal and guitar: Elissa Fazio
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Elissa Fazio.  All rights reserved.

3. Parting Friends

 Music by Elissa Fazio
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocal and guitar: Elissa Fazio
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Elissa Fazio.  All rights reserved.

4. Ingiving

 Music by Elissa Fazio
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocal and guitar: Elissa Fazio
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Elissa Fazio.  All rights reserved.

5. Feeling Fine

 Music by Rick Lewis
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocals: Elissa Fazio and Rick Lewis
 Guitar:  Rick Lewis
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Richard A. Lewis.  All rights reserved.

6. Always at the Beach

 Music by Rick Lewis
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocal: Elissa Fazio
 Piano and guitar: Rick Lewis
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Richard A. Lewis.  All rights reserved.

7. Love is the Answer

 Music by Rick Lewis
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Vocal and guitar: Elissa Fazio
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Richard A. Lewis.  All rights reserved.

8. Goin’ On

 Music by Bill Hellert
 Lyrics by Peter Shane
 Lead vocal:  Elissa Fazio
 Background vocal: Elissa Fazio
 Guitar: Elissa Fazio
 © 2011.  Peter M. Shane and Bill Hellert.  All rights reserved.