Celtic, Cajun and blues-inspired original guitar compositions in a musical tribute to the wild creeks and waterways of the mid-Atlantic and Chesapeake Bay areas. Al Petteway performs on solo acoustic guitar and with pennywhistle, octave mandolin, piano, cello and bodhran. Includes the lyrical swing of Accokeek Shore, a soulful Shadyside Blues, the haunting Shadows on the Marsh, Seven Swans, Chesapeake, Broken Mist and The Cattail Waltz. (47:23 minutes)

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"A shimmering six-string ode...His frequent use of altered tunings and the alluring melodies they give rise to is apt to create an altered state of mind in any listener... Enchanting!"

~ The Washington Post

Tune List

  1. Seven Swans (2:40)
  2. Falls (1:59)
  3. Broken Mist (2:44)
  4. Accokeek Shore (2:21)
  5. Chesapeake (2:59)
  6. River (2:21)
  7. Shadows on The Marsh (2:11)
  8. Wetland Spring (2:23)
  9. The Great Dismal Swamp (2:34)
  10. Cattail Waltz (1:58)
  11. Shadyside Blues (3:40)
  12. Flood Plain (4:48)
  13. Lake Isle (2:45)
  14. Dogue Creek (2:49)
  15. Silver Branch (5:13)
  16. The Pond at Woodburn Hill (2:24)

Liner Notes

1. Seven Swans 
(Guitar tuning: DADGBD, capo 2) Solo guitar. Inspired by the swans at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

2. Falls
(DADGBD, capo 3) Solo guitar. This title has a triple meaning because of an autumn day at Great Falls, Virginia when a child nearly went tumbling over the cliffs.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

3. Broken Mist 
(CGCGCD) Solo guitar. The mists at dawn are beautiful and mysterious. This tune has both Celtic and Native American influences and was inspired by misty May mornings at Black Duck Pond on Assateague Island.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

4. Accokeek Shore 
(EADGBE, capo 2)Al, with Pat Petteway, piano. I was walking with friends along the Potomac River at Accokeek, Maryland when we came across some large water snakes enjoying the first warmth of spring.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Pat Petteway - Piano
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

5. Chesapeake
(DADGAD) Al with Diana McFadden, cello; Lisa Moscatiello, pennywhistle; Debi Smith, bodhran. After performing at a Celtic festival in southern Maryland, I was treated to a wonderful evening on a beach below Scientist Cliffs.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Diana McFadden - Cello
Lisa Moscatiello - Pennywhistle
Debi Smith - Bodhran
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

6. River
(DGDGBD) Solo guitar. Many an hour of my life has been spent on the banks of the Potomac River simply watching the river flow.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

7. Shadows on the Marsh 
(DADGAD) Solo guitar. Nighttime on the marsh can be eerie, particularly during a full moon.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

8. Wetland Spring
(DADGAD, capo 2) Al, with Pat Petteway, bells; Debi Smith, bodhran; Diana McFadden, cello. Spring is a wonderful season on the wetlands. The insects are still not out in force and the abundance of new life is overwhelming.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Pat Petteway - bells
Diana McFadden - Cello
Lisa Moscatiello - Pennywhistle
Debi Smith - Bodhran
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

9. The Great Dismal Swamp 
(DADGAD, cap 3) Al, with Sarah Petteway, clarinet; Debi Smith, bodhran. The Great Dismal Swamp is an enchanting place in southern Virginia, near the North Carolina border. The still, dark waters mirror the trees, sky and anything else nearby.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Sarah Petteway - clarinet
Debi Smith - Bodhran
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

10. Cattail Waltz
(EADGBE, capo 2) Al, with Larry Sifel, accordian. A memory of cattails blowing in the wind at sunset.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Larry Sifel - accordian
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

11. Shadyside Blues 
(EADGBE) Solo guitar. On a foggy morning along the West River in Shadyside, Maryland, I sat on a pier taking photographs and throwing sticks to a large black Labrador retriever.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

12. Flood Plain 
(EADGBE, capo 2) Solo guitar. Every time a hard rain falls, I watch the waters rise in my back yard which intersects with a flood plain.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

13. Lake Isle 
(EADGBE, capo 5) Al, with Pat Petteway, piano. A magical place that can exist anywhere and anytime.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Pat Petteway - Piano
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

14. Dogue Creek
(CGCGCD) Solo guitar. Dogue Creek is an almost unspoiled creek that runs through the woodlands near my house, past George Washington's Grist Mill and on down to the Potomac River.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

15. Silver Branch
(DADGAD, capo 5) Al, guitar and bodhran with Zan McLeod, octave mandolin; Diana McFadden, cello; Lisa Moscatiello, pennywhistle; Pat Petteway, tambourine and triangle; Larry Sifel, shakers. In Celtic mythology, the silver branch was a passport to the land of faery.
Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Pat Petteway - tamborine, triangle
Diana McFadden - Cello
Lisa Moscatiello - Pennywhistle
Larry Sifel - shaker
Zan McLeod - octave mandolin
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

16. The Pond at Woodburn Hill
(DADGAD, capo 3) Solo guitar. The pond at Wood Burn Hill Farm is the calmest place I know. I remember a night when a flotilla of candles was set adrift across its still surface.Artists: Al Petteway - Guitar
Producers: Al Petteway, Larry Sifel and Jim Ebert

The Waters and the Wild
  1. Seven Swans Al Petteway 1:12
  2. Falls Al Petteway 1:03