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Michael Faubion (MY-kull FAH-bee-un) wrote, performed, produced and directed "Greetings From Paris on the Kuskokwim," a one-act CD featuring some pretty silly songs about Bethel, Alaska. And one serious one.
He lived in Bethel for nine fun-filled years, then moved to Anchorage where he resides with several thousand other people who used to live in Bethel.
Faubion rotated through a number of occupational incarnations in Bethel--social worker, volunteer DJ, newspaper reporter, photographer, graphic designer--but all the while he kept writing and performing songs. He'd been a musician longer than he'd been anything else, but wasn't always able to make a living at it (especially in Bethel). His songwriting gradually matured from sad weepy love songs to humor, wit and satire.
Gradual also was his accumulation of enough equipment to make professional-sounding recordings at home. Consequently, this superb album was recorded entirely in Bethel, Alaska by Michael Faubion with the additional musical talents of some of Bethel's most notorious and influential musicians, namely: Martha Scott, Archie Barnes, Robert Gregory, Mark Jenkins, Brian Sanders, Tod Nedrow and The Tundra Sisters. Actually, a lot of these people have also left Bethel. It probably doesn't have anything to do with the CD, but you never know.
Other biographical trivia: Michael was born in Kansas in 1952; raised in Boise, Idaho; went to college in Eugene, Oregon; played music and hung sheetrock in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nevada; got married to Rhonda McBride in Las Vegas in 1984 and moved to Reno; photographed people; sold doors; and moved to Bethel in 1988. The rest is history.
He has been writing songs for more than 25 years and has accumulated quite a few he feels just fine about performing on stage. Some songs contain geographical references to the Western United States. Some are amusing, some are droll, some are serious and some are not worth remembering.
email: Michael@9hats.com