Always With You -  Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer. Morningstar Studios website
Guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
This tune came to me years ago and I would play it as an instrumental behind meditations and things like that. One day while listening to Kathy Milano at Circle of Miracles the words to this song came streaming through. I wrote it about an experience I had had years ago.

Just Say Yes - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©1993
Recorded at Stepwise Studios, Stephen Wise engineer.
Mastered at Morningstar Studios. Glenn Barratt engineer.
Guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood
Drums and other accompanyment by Stephen Wise
Chello by Michael Ronstadt
This song was written as my 13 year career of driving gasoling trucks in Los Angeles was coming to an abrupt end and I didn't know where to turn. I was attending the Agape Center in Santa Monica on Sundays and often Dr. Rev. Michael Beckwith would say something like, "Give it up. Whose life is it anyway? It's God's life!" One day he said, "Everyone is called, but few answer the call. Will you answer the call? Will you just say yes to Spirit?" I felt he was talking right to me. 

Another Yourself - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
Drums by Grant MacAvoy
Bass by Glenn Barratt
Slide guitar by David Strong
I have always felt that we are all connected. One often hears of oneness in spiritual circles. Rev. Hannelore Goodwin at Circle of Miracles will sometimes hold up a clear starburst and talk about how we are all part of the same starburst, connected at the center, seeing it from a different perspective. I found this intriguing. Then a speaker came to Circle and said that a Native American nation's word for "You are welcome" translates to "I am another yourself." I loved that, and as the talk continued this song was written.

I'll See It (When I Believe It) - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©1993
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood
Lead guitar by David Strong
This is a straightforward rendition of Wayne Dyer's saying. I absolutely loved the idea and refer back to this song whenever I feel I don't have the circumstances I want in my life. Lest I think it is someone else's fault, refer to the first line in this song...

It Ain't Personal - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded at Stepwise Studios, Stephen Wise engineer.
Mastered at Morningstar Studios Glenn Barratt engineer
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
Drums, bass and saxaphone by Stephen Wise
Lead guitar by David Strong
This is a sad, true story put in a comical light. I had gone through the mentioned relationships when I got an email from a friend and it said, "To think that life will be fair to you because you are a good person is to think that the bull will not charge you because you are a vegetarian!" Well, it got me to thinking. So I wrote this song and still take heart when I hear it.

Hang On - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
Drums by Grant MacAvoy
Bass by Glenn Barratt
This was an event which I witnessed at Circle of Miracles. Angel reader, Christi Maybo came to talk and the whole thing went down as written in the song.  I was recently out of the hospital from very painful pancreas disorders when she looked at me and said what she said. At that point I was not fully convinced because anyone can say that kind of stuff. But when she stopped talking to yell at our angelic host I knew that this lady was the real deal. You can't make that stuff up. The talking at the end of the song represents my worried inner mind. No one actually said any of those things.

I'm Coming Home - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded at Stepwise Studios, Stephen Wise engineer.
Mastered at Morningstar Studios Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar, lead and back-up vocals by Annabella Wood.
Drums, bass, digery-doo, saxaphone, back-up vocals and any other instruments and sounds by Stephen Wise
This song came through straight from spirit. Though I was on a second date at the time of my receiving of this song, I knew it wasn't about that person. I never saw her again once she heard this!  : - )  So I have come to believe that this song is about me rejoining myself. I have found that when I sing it in concert, if I am picturing myself as the destination and the destined the whole band reaches incredible highs by the end of the song.

God is in Us All - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©1987
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
Chello by Michael Ronstadt
Drums by Grant MacAvoy
Bass by Glenn Barratt
About midway through my 20's I was feeling depressed and unhappy. A friend took me to their church, the Riverside church of Religious Science. I was hooked. This song was written about that first day at church in Riverside, CA. My entire first album titled "Unconditional Love" is filled with songs written directly from this minister's sermons.
The featured instrument in this song is the chello. It sounds like twin fiddles, but alas, that is a chello.

Back to Me - Words written by Annabella Wood and Stephen Redding. Music written by Annabella Wood
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
Lead guitar by David Strong
Drums by Grant MacAvoy and Jerry Dreissen
Bass by Glenn Barratt
This is a song about connection of everything in the universe... on steroids. Not only am I connected to everything in the universe, but I AM it, and it is me. 
My co-writer and inspiration for this song, Stephen Redding is a very interesting man in his own right. Stephen's website

I am the Christ - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©1993
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
This song was written when I lived in the Mojave Desert and was studying A Course in Miracles extensively. The "therapist" referred to in this song is Byron Katie, who lived in a nearby town and facilitated one of the ACIM meetings I frequented. She was the one who actually told me that she was the Christ incarnated for me. I loved that thought and played with it as I drove my truck. I pictured introducing people as "Susie the Christ" or "Debbie the Christ". It was a beautiful picture and led to this song.

Finally Got it Right - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
It took me years to write this song. Not that I was working on it for that long, that's just how long I worked on things like yoga, meditation and other such things, trying to do them "right". For years I tried to get it right. One of the funny things about all of these exercises.. the only way to do them "right" is to not think about getting it right. Once you have the thought you are doing it "right" you have left the space that was your goal in the first place. So, there is no way to maintain the goal while knowing that you are there. Or something like that...

Reading or Writing - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©1993
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
"To not decide is to make the choice to leave your life to chance." This is a sermon that got me thinking, writing, and singing.

In the Stillness - Words by Annabella Wood, Bobbie Bush and Leslie Sherlock. Music by Annabella Wood ©1994
Recorded at Stepwise Studios, Stephen Wise engineer.
Mastered at Morningstar Studios Glenn Barratt engineer.
Rythm guitar, lead and back-up vocals by Annabella Wood.
Flute and special sounds by Stephen Wise
One day I received a poem written by Leslie Sherlock which was destined to become the framework for this beautiful song. This particular rendition of this song is one of my favorites as the song continues to grow and change with me. 

Sitting in Prayer - Words and music by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barrett engineer.
Rythm guitar and vocals by Annabella Wood.
In a quiet moment sitting at a picnic table under the shade of my own personal pair Joshua trees in my front yard in a house that was new to me after moving out of what I considered my real residence, I sat down to ponder how I had ended up in this place. My rig was parked on the dirt road out front, and everything was fine, but it all felt wrong. I was able to write my way to peace with the way things had changed through this song. I still sometimes use this song to help me find peace when stuff just feels wrong. It is a nice reminder of whose life this is anyway.

Big Dog - Words and performance by Annabella Wood ©2013
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Performed by Annabella Wood
This poem was written while listening to a speaker at Circle of Miracles. The whole thing just popped out. I tried matching it up to a melody, but it defied becoming a song. So I have decided to include it on this CD as a poem.

Amazing Grace - Arranged and performed by Annabella Wood ©2010
Recorded and mastered at Morningstar Studios, Glenn Barratt engineer.
Vocals by Annabella Wood.
Guitar work by David Strong
Drums by Bobby Valeno, Jr.
Bass by Rick Prince
Keys by Bobby Valeno
Choral work by Cory Shipley Choir
In about 1990 a 50's band (The Dyketones) came through our town and the drummer of that band noted to me in passing that Amazing Grace fit the tune of House of the Rising Sun. This works with many different pairs of songs, but I found this particular pair to be especially interesting. For one thing, The House of the Rising Sun is about living a wretched life, and Amazing Grace is about being released from such wretchedness. Wouldn't it be great to put these two songs together into one very special song of release. I tried many different arrangements between the two and actually released a version in 1996 with Sweet Spirit. Though it was nice, it didn't go far enough to marry the two ideas. It wasn't until I had gone through my own dark night of the soul that I could reach far enough within to pull out what I was looking for with this song. When we went into studio for this version I had the band play a few extra verses so that I could work with it, and if we didn't need them we could always pull them out of the final mix. When I went in to record the vocals, the last piece of the song, I wasn't sure what the lyrics would be. I didn't know exactly what I was going to sing. I stood in front of the mic and let the music run through me at that point in time, moment by moment. Time moved very slowly, like I was in a time warp or something. I was told by voices in my head what to sing where and what notes to sing as we went along. When we got to the second part of the song, that was just me telling a story. As we approached the very end of the last verse I heard the voices in my head discussing whether or not I should go for the high note at the end. They were debating whether I could reach it or not!! Right before it was time to sing it they reached agreement that I was to hit the high note and that I could do it. Next thing I knew, I was singing the highest note I have ever recorded. It was right on pitch and with perfect duration and timing. The "Oh Lord" that comes after that is actually my Earthling self exclaiming my surprise and elation at hitting that note. The entire song was sung on the first take with no vocal fixes whatsoever. The recording of that song was a high point for me and I will always look back on it with great joy.