Deceived

Musician, singer/songwriter, and artist Alan Arena had two top 10 New England albums when he moved away from Boston to become a caregiver for his best friend, a veteran who had been stricken with Huntington’s Disease. He thought performing original music might no longer be in his future, but when a venue and studio called The Music Room opened on Cape Cod, he decided to see if it might be a good place to record new material. It turned out to be the break he never found in Boston.

GRAMMY-winning guitarist and producer Paul Nelson, who played for Johnny Winter for 14 years, was a partner in the venue, and they struck up a conversation. Paul asked Alan to play a couple of his original songs and, impressed, offered to produce Alan’s next recording. They collaborated on some of the music for the resulting album, including the title track “Deceived.” Paul arranged to bring in an ace rhythm section, including bassist Brad Hallen (Susan Tedeschi, Roomful of Blues), drummer Marty Richards (J Geils Band), and keyboardist Brooks Milgate (Chris O’Leary). They also recruited Jerry Portnoy (Muddy Waters) on harp on one song and Disney legend Milton Smith on strings to play on Deceived.

Paul also made Alan a stage manager of The Music Room, where he opened for Denny Lane, Albert Lee, Kim Wilson, Mike Zito, Albert Castiglia, Shemekia Copeland, Bernard Allison, and many more national artists. Paul and Alan were talking about collaborating on a Paul Nelson album when Paul passed away from a heart attack at 63 years old while on tour. Now Alan plans to honor Paul’s legacy by giving him writing credits for everything he touched and inspired, as with Deceived.

Track List

1. Raised on Radio 3:04
2. Believe in Yourself 4:34
3. Deceived - Alan Arena & Paul Nelson 3:18
4. Big Black Cat 3:24
5. Devil in the Bottle 3:12
6. Mother Earth - Memphis Slim 2:55
7. Speed of Life 2:40
8. Hypnotized 3:06
9. Believe in Yourself (Radio Edit) 3:32
10. Deceived (Instrumental) 3:17