I wrote "A Girl Named Happiness" during a dark night of the soul season. I was having a hard time sleeping and would wake up in the middle of the night, finding no relief. “A Girl Named Happiness” is a metaphor for the inner joy I started to find in getting ideas I heard swirling in my head and desperately writing them down on paper.

Eventually, I went into a studio and recorded a stripped-down version built around my voice and a lonesome acoustic guitar.

When Los Angeles-based record producer Marvin Etzioni got to know me more, he learned about my piano training in New Orleans. My real roots were with Dr. John and Professor Longhair, so I added piano and Hammond B-3.

To fulfill the groove, Marvin suggested James Gadson on drums. I couldn't believe it. I was a huge fan of his work with Bill Withers and Marvin Gaye. We finished the final overdubs with horn arranger David Ralicke.

The video of “A Girl Named Happiness” might look like a lonely man with just an acoustic guitar. But, in actuality, it’s a homage to the sound I've been feeling in my soul for years and years that seems to be possible when one starts with a song written in darkness.