D. W. DITTY: Who Is

D. W. Ditty

Who Is

© 2003 D. W. Ditty

CD IN STOCK. ORDER NOW. Will ship immediately.

With his plunky, syncopated guitar picking and a voice that sounds like he gargles onion soup mix, D.W. Ditty renders songs from blues to folk to just plain fun, all with a sly smile and a tip of his black felt hat.

notes

D.W. Ditty. His music is by no means easy listening, but it is easy to listen to. His new CD, Who Is, is the kind that stays in your player for weeks at a time. The music becomes such a part of you. After a day or two, you find yourself selecting a favorite track. A few days later, you find another. After a while you realize that your "favorite" keeps moving around the CD until you have become friends with each of the songs. There are no hangnails in his music, as he uses his solo, syncopated guitar to back a voice that is smooth and raspy at the same time, if that makes any sense.

In a live performance, D.W. bobs and weaves, shoulders swaying, and feet a-tapping creating both an audio and visual experience that his audiences simply cannot ignore. It is impossible not to have a good time listening to D.W. There is such feeling in the music that neither D.W. nor the listener is immune to the effect. He smiles a lot when he sings, causing the audience to wonder what musical jokes may be running through his head.

D.W. draws many comparisons from listeners. The funny thing is, people do not seem to agree. Does he remind you of Louis Armstrong or Randy Newman or Tom Waits? Some mention John Hiatt. Others, Joe Cocker. The fact of the matter is, D.W. Ditty is his own voice, his own style, whether performing originals or covers. He is a talent not to be missed.

reviews

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  • sparse - not too many notes - just rite
    author: philb

    The economic picking and plucking style has all the notes in the right places and in the right amount. Solo performance makes the loneliness and stark impact even greater. This man not only sings the blues, he feels them, shares them and broadcasts them. Some songs on this I had loved and then forgotten, others I never heard before and now love. Thanks DW

  • Great blues & a great recording
    author: Stu Noelte

    My first attraction to this CD was hearing the quality of the guitar on University of Hartford's radio station. I listened to large portions of it on the web before purchasing the CD from CD Baby. I was delighted with the song selections, pace of the CD, and let's not forget DW's singing. I've played DW Ditty for the most critical people in the world, my high school art students and they all like it. If you like the blues you will love this CD.

  • If you like the Blues, you'll like this CD
    author: Butch Laubenstein

    Slide this CD in and let the blues wash over you. Great guitar picking and a voice like forty miles of bad road. Buy this CD now so you can say you knew him before he was famous.

  • Thanks again DW! It's a great album!
    author: Jamie Bishop

    I had the privledge of hearing DW Ditty (aka Rich Gallagher) for the first time, live and up close, in the Gospel in Black and Blue presentation at the NOMAD Folk Festival in New Haven, CT. I enjoyed his performance so much that I came home from the festival and ordered his CD. It is one of my favorites. Every song's a gem. Put Louis Armstrong, Dave Van Ronk, and Tom Waits in a paper bag, shake it up, and, when you dump it out on the table, you get DW. His voice is gravelly, but with deep undertones that rock you right along with the music. His fingerstyle guitar plucking is as fascinating to watch as it is to listen to. How does he do that? I hope he will include his rendition of Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child" on his next CD. Thank you again, Rich. It was a pleasure.

  • heard one song on the radio, liked it and ordered the album
    author: M Sanzone

    enjoyed the variety of music and he sound of D. W.'s voice.

  • Excellent
    author: Jon Freeman

    A wonderful mix which dwditty brings to "reality". My emotions can range from laughing at "I Just Don't Look Naked Any More" to almost crying at times to "Just A Little While".

  • Rich puts heart and soul into Blues music
    author: Dave Lever

    I keep playing the CD over and over, it inspires, relaxes, and gives pleasure. Rich puts his heart and soul into the music, and it shows his love of the Blues. I love every song he does. CD #2 being planned? Put me down for a copy...

  • The ultimate grade a musician can earn is for his work to be
    author: Jim Ford

    The ultimate grade a musician can earn is for his work to be really enjoyable, to fill a vacant spot in his listeners heart without pretense or lies. This is true music which is its own style, comfortable as an old cap, and so really really honest. Jim

  • Isn't it Obvious?
    author: Karen Campbell-Taylor/Didi

    This man is going to be known world wide one day.

  • DW Ditty: A Rare and Exceptional Talent
    author: E. Norman

    Every once in a while you find yourself witness to a very rare musical experience. Maybe it’s an up-and-coming Nora Jones at the record shop down the street, or perhaps it’s Springsteen in the early days, playing your favorite club in Asbury Park. There are less than 100 people in the audience and just by chance, you’re in the front row. Whatever the situation, you know it when it happens. You’re riveted by the intimate setting … barely feet away from the sheer power of an extraordinary talent. A private concert delivered by an exceptional artist clearly head and shoulders above others. . Listening to “Who Is DW Ditty” is very much like one of those experiences. The CD plays from beginning to end as though it were a live concert, carefully planned for you by the musician – delivered to you and your friends at a house party held in your living room on a Saturday night. Just guitar and voice… you get the feeling DW is sitting only a few feet away, guitar in hand, drink on the table, playing incredibly complex – yet stripped-to-the-bone blues, laughing and joking with your friends and telling stories between each tune. I don’t like using the same adjectives repeatedly in a single review, but in this case I’ll make an exception... “Who Is” is an experience. The music is bare, the talent remarkable, the setting is private and intimate… and lucky for you, if you own the CD you get to enjoy it any time you want. . So, now that I’ve given you an overview - lets talk specifics. The highlights and lowlights. I’ll take the lowlights first… Forget it - there aren’t any. On to the highlights then. DW delivers a number of absolutely perfectly executed elements in this collection. Voice, guitar playing, music selection. For an example of DW’s outstanding finger-picking, my particular favorites are "Come Back Baby", "I’m Satisfied" and "Just A Little While". Best vocals? With DW’s amazing voice it’s a tough call: Tom Waits’ "Invitation To The Blues", "What A Wonderful World" (and yes, DW does coax the Lois Armstrong right out of this tune); Randy Newman’s "Lonely At The Top" and Rich’s own "Shadows Of The Night Time" – I’ll come back to this one in a moment. Finally the music… as I mentioned earlier, the CD plays like a live performance. That’s largely attributable to the selection of tunes sequenced on the CD. From the first solo notes to the raindrops tapping the window in the last tune, DW creates a tangible, palpable mood. You can’t escape it. You’re there in your T-shirt and shorts, it’s six in the morning - and it’s raining, half gone beer in your hand, feet up on the kitchen table, you’re staring blankly out the window, your wife left at two AM… for good. You have just the hint of a smile on your face. Why? You’ve got it better than most of the guys DW’s singing about on your stereo. . I have this CD in rotation in my car. Who am I kidding, I have a single-play CD player in my car, and this one’s in it. What is unusual, though, is I can’t take it out. I start listening… one tune leads to another and before I know it, it’s time to stop and get out of the car. But I hesitate, I’m listening. I also find myself selecting particular tunes to repeat… today it’s one, tomorrow another. It’s an interesting profile… I select different tunes to repeat based on how I feel that day. None-the-less, there are two outstanding gems I have to comment on before I close. These two are the points in the CD where everything seems to come together and gels all at once. It’s the perfect combination of voice, music, guitar playing and delivery. I return to two of the tunes I picked for you earlier. "Invitation To The Blues" holds the best blend of elements for me. I’m wondering - is it possible to do a Tom Waits tune better that Tom Waits does it himself? DW seems to accomplish that. Finally, "Shadows" emerges as the brightest spot – just a little more “equal” than the rest. Here, Rich’s clean, crisp finger-picking and outstanding vocal are merged with a songwriter’s touch that captures both the meaning and the spirit of the moment. There are some exceptional lines in Shadows… “I see you much more clearly than any one before. I don’t question it, not really, I just know that I want more”. False rhymes like that don’t come along every day. And this one’s a killer. In the last line of the tune, when DW sings “here I am - a pure white dove” the music, voice and lyric converge to create that kind of irony that make you say to yourself… yeah, right! If this is a first effort for Mr. DW Ditty, I am truly anticipating the next. There is no question in my mind, DW will capture the hearts of many. Frankly, this is one of the better CD’s I’ve heard in a long, long time. A consistently attractive event from beginning to end. No kidding, as far as I’m concerned, DW Ditty is absolutely the real thing. And if not, won’t somebody please tell me… “Who Is”?

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