Working with Team Gleason.

Just after Steve was diagnosed with ALS he wrote words to a song about the ongoing struggle. Here are the words that he put down. We are working on putting music to this in hopes to have a powerful song that represents Steve's story. 

I want to be a savior. I'm not used to being saved.
I want to be your life boat when you struggle with the waves.
I want to be the sage as you seek the middle path.
I don't want to need but, this is where my armor cracks.

I want to run, run, run. I wanna run.

I want to be the hero like I was in the start.
I want to stand alone but this is tearing me apart
I want to feel breathless as I'm running down the street.
I don't want to hear the weeping, wailing, and the gnashing of our teeth.

I want to fly, fly, fly. I wanna fly.

I didn't know. I didn't know. How could I know. I did not know. I was not invincible.

I don't want to be happy but, there's no time to waste.
I don't want to hurry but, it's killing me to wait. 
I don't want to lose but, this battle is more than me. 
When we stand together, we shall be free. 

I want to run, run, run. I wanna run. 

I don't want to wear these scars agonizing me   
I want to stand together,  please take these scars from me.
        
It's just a matter of time before I..       
It's just a matter of time before I..       
It's just a matter of time before I..
        
fly      fly    fly.....   I’m gonna fly
I want to run, run, run. I wanna run. ​



 

In the studio with Dave Pomeroy and Mike Farris in Nashville working on tracks for the new song Run written by Steve Gleason!

Great time catching up with Steve before we played at Gleasonfest. We were all so happy to get to play this show for him and his cause! We are so inspired by him. And lucky to be a part of what he does to inspire others!

Download "No White Flags"
From Delbert  iTunes 

Check it out! We wrote and recorded "No White Flags" inspired by events and actions of Steve Gleason. We are donating to The Gleason Initiative Foundation with each  download. We hope to help Team Gleason provide the best technology, equipment, and services as well as raise awareness about ALS. 
Link to iTunes: No White Flags
Link to Delbert the Band's store!  

Thanks for your support. "No White Flags!"

I would have loved you in the 80's 
Music T. Solinsky | Words T.Solinsky, D. Bartoletta

Oh, oh, oh, I would have loved you in the'80s....
In parachute pants, girl for you, you know I would break dance.
Oh, oh, oh, I would have loved you in the'80s....
Listen to a power ballad love song, sung by the Scorpions
Oh, oh, oh, I would have loved you in the'80s....
Mr. T and his Mohawk hairdo "I pitty the fool that don't love you.

Bring your boom box break with me, your cardboard, and dancing feet.
Moonwalk to that door, do a head-spin on your cardboard dance floor. 

People are people so why should it be you and I should get along so awfully.
Like a virgin touched for the very first... 
Shout, shout let it all out these are the things I can do without.
So 'comon I'm talking to you so come on.
Billy Gene is not my lover she's just a girl who says that I am her one.
We are the world, we are the children, we are the ones who make a brighter day so come on lets start giving. 

Bring your boom box break with me, your cardboard, and dancing feet. 
Moonwalk to that door, do a head-spin on your cardboard dance floor. 

Oh, oh, oh, I would have loved you in the'80s....
Our love could weather all sorts as long as you got moon-boots and bermuda shorts
Oh, oh, oh, I would have loved you in the'80s....
I'd have my mom take us to the fair I'd buy a feather clip for your feathered back hair
Oh, oh, oh, I would have loved you in the'80s....
Hey baby have you heard the news, you look awesome in Seattle Blues

Tickets Available now for Gleason Fest 2016! Delbert the Band is looking forward to being a part of this year's big event. This music festival is inspired by Spokane native Steve Gleason who was diagnosed with ALS in 2011. Funds raised from ticket sales will benefit the Gleason Initiative Foundation. Steve’s intention for the festival is to raise money and awareness about ALS while celebrating life, enjoying family and friends, and presenting Spokane with great live music in an awesome setting. This year Gleason Fest moves to the Lilac Bowl Amphitheater in Riverfront Park. Delbert the Band is excited to play alongside acts including "Portugal the Man", "Pickwick", and "Hey! is for Horses".  

Gleason Fest means a lot to Delbert the Band.  Our history with Steve goes way back. Three of us went to the same high-school (even as far back as the same grade school) as Steve.  We played shows at his fraternity durning his time at WSU. We are excited to be a part of something like this. What a great opportunity for us to get back together to support this celebration.  Our goal as a band has always been to encourage people to have a little fun through some light-hearted positive music, let go for a while, and simply smile. It's awesome to be a part of a festival that intends to have such a big impact and deliver a positive message to so many people. We gotta thank Steve for bringing all of us together, not just our band, I mean all of us.    
 
For more information about Gleason Fest including donation and sponsorship opportunities please visit gleasonfest.org.  

So, way back when, in the early 90's, we were writing songs for our first record  All Dressed In Brown.  We got together and created a song about the rare person you encounter who does great things in life. One who inspires, not merely through words, but actions. Simply by being who they are seems to inspire others.  They make great feats seem so plain and simple as if they were born for the task.  Looking back, the song Show Me was  really about our heroes. It was about those people in our lives whom we looked up to for possessing one virtue or another. Those who made us wonder how they could constantly do what they did, how they did it, and what type of effort it took to be them. Or if it even took them any effort at all.  On one hand the song's hero served as an inspiration, while at the same time they caused you to look inward and question whether you had it in yourself to be great.   

At the time, the hero in the song was simply an idea of greatness. There was no single individual the song was about.  Today, we can apply the words of our song Show Me to one truly super human being. He is an amazing person who inspires us all to give more of ourselves, be stronger, be bolder, explore beyond, and to live life to the fullest! He has shown us that the strongest heroes are not simply those of great physical strength but those who possess the power of an incredible mind. 

Here's to a true hero. Thanks to Steve Gleason for your continued inspiration to make us all want to become better people! We're looking forward to playing Show Me ​at Gleason Fest August 6th.

SHOW ME 
- DELBERT THE BAND - 
Written 1996
Words D. Bartoletta + Music T. Soinsky

Tell me have you ever seen the Gray Ghost? Ever made a serious toast?
Ever sang out while in the rain? Ever made things painfully plain?  

Show me over here. Show me.  Show me over there.
Take me with a smile and explain for a while how to be like you. 

You do things an oh how they seem, so monumental compared to me.
You do things and I only dream, oh I only dream. 

Can you do things oh with out a plan? Can you do things and know that you can?
Can you walk with your head up high? Climb mountains with just a minimal sigh? 

If you could, would you teach me how to play and how to be more like you?
Yeah more like you. Yeah more like you.

You do things an oh how they seem, so monumental compared to me.
You do things and I only dream, oh I only dream. 

 I am just so impressed by you. I am just so depressed by you.
 I am just so depressed by you. I am just so impressed by you.

How longs it been since you had to pale? How longs it been since you've had to fail.
How longs it been since you felt no good? How longs it been since you claimed that you could? 

Show me please how you walk so tall.  Why don't you take me on a tour of your hallowed halls.