Music
Press
“During the early stages of Kevin's writing I had the honor of sharing the emotional energy from which this album, With Love and Appreciation, was formed. Kevin's conscious journey with his mother during her dying is unlike any experience I've ever known. Both Kevin and his mother were "on board” through the entire process, and with the depth of their love for one another were able to continue a conscious physical closure of a deep and everlasting relationship. Karen’s tribute to her "other mother" in her song, I Want to Thank You, is only one of the gems found in this beautifully written and arranged album. And because of the personal journeys of both Kevin and Karen, it is my belief that this musical tribute will continue to bring clarity and honor to the process of dying for those who have the privilege of hearing them.”
- Marlene Milner, MA transpersonal counseling, LADAC
This beautiful tribute to a dying mother continues to touch my heart each time I listen to the songs written and performed by Kevin and Karen McLaughlin. The life journey we all go through with family and relationships, friendships and love affairs, joys and sorrows, are universally shared by all. This [album] reflects the lasting bonds created by love that survives the death of a parent. The truth of eternal love and connection among us all is the deeper gift we receive in listening to the music and lyrics of the McLaughlins.
It was with trepidation that I initially placed the disc in my player because I lost both parents in the past two years. However, I found the songs echoed all the various stages I went through in dealing with my parents' deaths. Although every time I hear Mother McLaughlin's serene and honest farewell it brings tears to my eyes, it also brings a comfort and remembrance of my own mother. I love the grace and acceptance expressed by someone facing her own mortality, and it brings peace and validation to my own feelings of life and love and death and the natural progression of all of our journeys.
The songs and emotions are honest, and McLaughlin's voice and tone are perfectly married to the music. As I listen to my favorite tracks, Au Revoir and Part of Me, although I never met Mother McLaughlin, I imagine her pleasure and delight in this beautiful gift from her son and daughter-in-law. Their willingness and courage in sharing their feelings makes this unique CD an unforgettable musical tribute.
Death is so often feared or ignored as an unsuitable topic and as such, most of us have learned to suppress our emotions. When we lose a loved one, our grief and sorrow is intensified by this inability to share our feelings. I applaud the McLaughlins for their fearless expressions of love and acceptance of death by creating this lasting eternal gift that can be shared by us all. This CD makes the perfect gift for anyone dealing with the loss of a parent or loved one. In other words, the musical tribute is perfect for everyone. - Dawn Honnaka
Discography
Au Revoir is on the Oasis Sampler that has been sent to select radio stations.
Photos
Bio
Kevin McLaughlin began writing songs at 13 years of age. He learned to play guitar and drums at that time and was playing professionally by 15. The year was 1968. The Beatles and then John Lennon, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan and Brian Wilson were the songwriters who inspired Kevin to write. He has been in a number of bands through the years and recorded an album in 1978 which sold 250,000 copies in the New York City area. He moved to Portland, Oregon in 1981 and his musical career slowed as he took the time to raise a son, Andrew McLaughlin. Eighteen years ago in Portland he met Karen Roberts and the two formed a band called Buddha Beatnik which was offered a record deal with Beyond Records in 2001. Instead they took to caring for Kevin's mother and did so until she needed full time care. The story of how this album came to be: "There is no greater bond than the love between an infant and the mother and father who care for the child. I was fortunate to carry that deep love throughout my life by becoming a close friend with my mother as an adult. During a phone call in the 89th year of her life, she told me she had only a few months left in her body, and I traveled to where she was living to spend time with her. At the end of my visit, I said goodbye, thought better of it and said, "au revoir" - and as I turned away to go, a grief bigger than any I had ever known swept through me. I began to feel the depth of my love for her and how much I would miss our friendship. I wrote poetry all the way home to express my feelings. When I arrived home, I discovered that I had written two complete lyrics which I wrote music for, recorded and sent to my mother. She then wrote lyrics with me in the last months of her life. The track titled ‘Goodbye’ is my recording of her reading the farewell letter she sent to family and friends. I feel my mother's love and presence every day; this album is a touchstone and tribute to the love she and I share." - Kevin McLaughlin
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