“This Mother’s A Miracle,” the new video from Bad Daddy (AKA Paul Waring), is an impassioned reminder of just how fragile and precious the environment and our ecosystems are. Splitting his time between Chicago and coastal Maine, the road to the song combines his love of the blues with his job as a marine architect. “At one point I wanted to be a marine biologist, I’ve had a long interest in ocean populations from whales down to microorganisms, so that all feeds into my perspective,” he explains.
I’m deeply engaged with environmental concerns, and coming from living on the ocean and design boats, makes wildlife and sealife in the ocean a very personal interest for me.
Waring’s new album, It’s A Mad Mad Bad Dad World, is built on blues traditions that are steeped in soul, inspired by jazz, and rocking to the core. Waring fuses big city grit with ethically profound, pragmatic New-England sensibility. All the while he tips the hat to a variety of influences from Michigan Ave. to Muscle Shoals. Yet this album carves its own niche. Each song has gems embedded within, some more prominent than others—hallmarks of someone dedicated to the craft of songwriting.
“I’m still trying to find my own sound. When I challenge myself as a player and songwriter, the songs keep moving me forward to that goal. Creating keeps me engaged. I enjoy the blues so much, but I don’t enjoy trying to emulate my heroes constantly.
“So, the process has to be deeply exploratory and experimental in that quest to find my sound—and I’m always learning. The songs on this album came from a different place than previous records, and ‘This Mother… ‘ is a perfect example of that; I ride that feeling that I’m reaching somewhere unique.”
