My Corner Retreat

My Corner Retreat is a sanctuary for creativity. We compose original music arising from human experience and connection. Music impacts our physiology and emotion. When a song resonates, we feel heard and understood. Some life experiences transcend words. Music becomes that language.

About mcr

A Sanctuary for Creativity

We begin with the narrative of your life and create the rhythms, chords, melodies, modes and cadences to tell your story. Create the lyrics. Tell a story. Match the mode to the mood. We gather diverse permutations of talent.

We rely on a strong go-to team from America's heartland blending a drummer from Minneapolis, a bass player and guitarist from Nashville and a trio of artists from Chicago including a lyricist, a songwriter and a guitarist. This ‘asynchronous'’ band'' contributes words, chord charts and audio tracks remotely where they are engineered and mixed at Empty Page Studios, Matkovic Music, and Double Life Studios - and then shared with the world.

Practice sessions for live shows and pre-mix track recording sessions unfold in Chicago's west suburbs at MCR Studios. Our 40-year-old ‘synchronous’ band goes by ‘Logjam’ - originally named to describe our propensity to change any flow of music into an extended improvisational jam that comes crashing to an end when the riverbanks narrow.

This old-guy band, Logjam, is playing out on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. The venue only seats 100, so you may want to arrive early. We're prepping a set list that blends bluesy-rock covers with catchy originals:

Set One

Stormy Monday • Barefoot Dancing • Ain't No Sunshine • It's Gonna Be Okay • Friend Of The Devil • If I Were You • Many Rivers To Cross • Ain't My Cross To Bear

Set Two

Peace, Love & Understanding • The City • Sky In Flames • From The Beginning • Leaving Space • Whippin' Post • Cleanse • Comfortably Numb

Meet 5 old guys with an attitude. Steve Ritter (guitar) and Kevin Hauser (keyboards) founded the band in 1986. Bob Burns (bass) joined soon thereafter and has anchored the rhythm section with Mark Kelly (drums) ever since. Ralph Gross (vocals) became the Logjam frontman with his soulful vibe behind the microphone.

Visit LogJam's Facebook page:

Join Our Creative Sanctuary

MCR is a creativity platform for musicians who love collaboration. Contact us!