On the 5th December 2003 I was contacted by Paul Williams with the following exciting news:

Hi David,

Wanted to send you a little update on the DVD project. Great news, actually.

Yesterday Willie Nelson came in and we recorded a duet of "Rainbow Connection", and Dave Goelz brought my favorite Muppet Gonzo in to sing "I'm going to go back there someday" with me. I have to tell you David, it was one of the best days creatively in my life.

I can't wait for you to hear these two duets. Singing with Willie was an all time high. The DVD will be available in 5.1 surround sound ... Over two hours of concert footage, interviews and a lot of behind the scenes footage... all produced for AIX Records by Mark Waldrep and John McEuen (of `Nitty Gritty Dirt Band' fame) who tells me we're cutting edge with this stuff.

John played banjo on the date and Laurence Juber, formerly the Wings guitarist, joined Kaz, John Lee Sanders, Cliff Hugo on Bass, John Lewis on Drums and the great Micky Raphael on Harmonica. Great session!

Did I really say that .. Well, this time it's true ..

Happy Holidays ..

Paul

And here is what John McEuen, one of the AIX producers, had to say:

On location 4th December 2003
Hollywood, CA

Paul Williams DVD – Going to Go Back There Someday

As we set up the second day of recording with Paul for his DVD we knew we had a high mark to shoot for, as the first day was truly wonderful. We had captured 8 songs in one day, only moving ahead when we had it right, and knew doing only two songs today was an easier day in some regards. But the cast was a bit unusual on this December 4th.

The previous week, 4 songs with string quartet, piano and bass, one with the full band and the quartet, plus 3 with ‘just’ the band, had all gone down as a piece of American music history. America’s great writer of love ballads, country hits, pop and film music had delivered his up close and personal version of his icon songs that are known worldwide. For the first time on ‘tape’, along with 5 cameras rolling, the personal side of this great writer and the heartfelt delivery of his magical words will be brought right to the audience. That was a great day… but now, a different assignment lay ahead.

Paul Williams during recording

First, Gonzo is so much a fan of Paul and his music that it was evident from the first time out of his box. His cloth fairly bristled with excitement as they got ready for his interview with Paul. They realized, after going over the script, they needed only a couple of ideas in their interview section. These two old pals agreed to ‘wing it’, and we tuned in on a couple of old friends with the same astrological signs revisiting the good things they have shared in life.
 

Gonzo

Then came the recording of the song "Going to Go Back There Someday". The key and arrangement were changing on the spot, and the guys decided to switch verses as they sang it. Now these lyrics made more sense than ever, as it became a description of these two artists' lives and their wistful view of life as a musical conversation. Chris Caswell’s direction of the music was, as always, impeccable, and Gonzo even sighed at the end in a way that some say he shed a first time tear.

Paul Williams and David Goelz (alias Gonzo)
taking a well earned break

Since Kermit couldn’t make the session that day, Gonzo hung around to say hey to Willie and secretly see how he did Kermit’s song, Rainbow Connection. Again, Paul’s lyric that had previously eluded me made a new connection - with Mr. Nelson’s comforting voice. And again, a long overdue conversation between two long time neighbors who live far apart took place, and everything fell in to place as if we had planned it.