2/26/08_________________________________________
The Ghost of Van Gogh CD was released just in time to promote it during Dirk's Winter Italian Tour. It was recorded live in the studio by the same lineup that toured to promote it — The Dirk Hamilton Band, with Dirk on vocals, acoustic guitar and harmonica, Don Evans on lead guitar, Eric Westphal on bass, and Tim Seifert on drums.

This CD came about during what has proved to be a prolific time for Hamilton. New songs were coming to him even as this project was being recorded, and he began recording those as well. He'd also just released two double live CDs in close succession: The Relative Health of Your Horse Outside with The Dirk Hamilton Band, and Sometimes Ya' Leave the Blues Out on the Road with the Bluesmen.

Sensing that this newest wave of songs was progressing quickly, at one point he even debated which album to release first. Then, on one of his days off during his tour in Italy last summer, he played the recordings of The Ghost of Van Gogh project with the intention of listening to it fresh for the first time in many months. That apparently cinched his decision, and Ghost was earmarked for immediate mastering, packaging and release. Hamilton returned from Italy in August with that project rolling forward for a release right before The Dirk Hamilton Band toured Italy in December.

Ghost is an amazing CD, taking its place in a long line of Dirk Hamilton's best, possessing a flow from one song to the next that builds a sense that you've been through something memorable with him as a person and as an artist. From the rousing title track to the evocative 'Thailand', on to the uplifting but indicting 'Meadow', rocking through Hamilton's pained recall "I was desperate to dream..." in 'Too Tired to Sleep', and all the way to basking in the oasis that is 'Caterpillars in My Ears' — a very enjoyable musical voyage and a great CD to introduce to people who may not be familiar with the Dirk Hamilton catalogue.

The CD showcases the creative expertise of The Dirk Hamilton Band lineup, and the production value is flawless. All 12 songs are musically infectious and are peppered with the wit, honesty and humanity that Dirk's followers have come to recognize as hallmarks of his music.