Behind the Music

For a while now, I've been meaning to bug Ottmar to tell some stories about his songs. See, the majority of his tracks have no vocals, so you're left wondering how and why he named them; here are a few geographically-named tracks about which, as a traveler, I've always been curious:

• Milan in September (from Euphoria)
  
• Turkish Night (from Opium)
  
• Sao Paulo (from The Santa Fe Sessions)
  
• Havana Club (also from Euphoria)
  
• Montana Walking (also from Opium)
  

I know he's done a bunch of traveling, as a teenage vagabond as well as an internationally-acclaimed musician, so I just know there are some fascinating stories behind his music. It's likely that I've missed some in his archive, but it looks like he's started telling us about them:

"Bombay was written in memory of a now defunct ferry from Bombay to Goa, sadly no longer operating according to Steve Hillage with whom I talked about the Goa scene a few years back. Actually, I wrote two songs about that ferry-ride in 1978 after waking up from a dream about the experience in 1993. Morning Arrival in Goa is, of course, the second of the pair, which both appeared for the first time on The Hours between Night + Day

It was a spectacular trip that started around 10 or 11 at night in Bombay harbor and ended in Goa after the sun rose. What a sun rise!!! The sun coming up over the ocean competet with a lighthouse on the coast as the ship reached the harbor in Goa. I had bought a third or fourth class ticket, which entitled me to sleeping on deck. I figured, while being the cheapest option, it was also a sure way to catch the sun rise."

I hope he turns this into a series... (wink wink!)