After more than a decade long retreat from recording and performing, singer/songwriter Allen Dobb has returned with a new album. Alone Together is a collection of 10 original songs drawn from characters, stories, and landscapes that are part of Dobb‘s experience working as a range management specialist in the interior of British Columbia. It’s also a reflection of traveling the globe, following his dreams, and connecting with his roots.For the album’s title track, “Alone Together,” Allen wanted to write about the romance of a fictitious couple who are really tuned in to each other and ready to leave the quiet and lonely town behind.

 I was playing outside in the evening a lot because it was early summer. Part of the lyrical inspiration for the song came from this incredible scene… just up the hill from where I live, the male nighthawks were creating their fluttering boom sounds with their wings as they were swooping to the ground. This is part of their mating ritual, and for me the nighthawks just added to the romance for this couple in the song.

What can you share with readers about your new project? Alone Together definitely took its time happen. I didn’t anticipate I would be doing a full-length album release after more than a decade long hiatus from the music business.

·  How does this release compare with your other projects you had in the past?  This project was really different from my other major releases, both in how it was produced and how it was recorded. All of my other projects (6 in total) were recorded in studios with a band “live off the floor”.  I enlisted my brother Cameron to take on the production duties, and that familiarity meant we could just take our time recording in our own studios at our own pace. Between the two of us we covered all the different instruments.

·  What about this single makes you most proud? I love the casualness of this track yet it takes big lift in the chorus, that is really satisfying.

·  Was there a specific goal you were trying to accomplish with this release? I was really trying to find my own voice on this recording, both in the writing and in the performance.  That’s not as easy to do as it sounds, but in lots of respects I think we achieved that vision.

·  What inspires you to create music? What motivates you to keep going?  To be honest, it’s just the process of living and a fascination with different aspects of life that keeps me going.

·  If you could collaborate with anyone – dead or alive, famous or unknown – who would it be and why? I would love to sing/record with Willie Nelson, that would be simply amazing. Its his vocal phrasing, and song interpretations that I love.  Wow that would be one learning experience.    If it’s an indie/DIY artist, please include a link so readers can check them out.

·  What was the last album you listened to? Favorite all-time bands/artists? That’s not easy question.  I like the Texas songwriters like Guy Clarke and Townes Van Zandt, then there are Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, all greats.  Sarah Jarosz and Brandi Carlile  I listen to jazz too, Charles Lloyd is favorite right now.  I just listened to Jason Isbell’s Reunion. I also just watched his documentary Running with Our Eyes Closed, and it helped me realize what a great artist he is, and how good his recordings sound.