“Coffee and a Good Book” was born out of the desire to record a great mandolin, in a simple, delicate, and intimate way. The Northfield Model M proved to be the perfect instrument for this project as it was extremely responsive, even to the most delicate touch, and recorded such a complex tone no matter what was asked of it. As far as the tunes were concerned, I wanted to provide a good sampling of my journey as a player. No track made it to this EP unless I genuinely enjoyed playing it, and as one can see from the eclectic track list, I drew inspiration from a variety of genres and sounds. The album features a straight bluegrass classic in “Jerusalem Ridge,” a chord-melody arraignment of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” and three original pieces that vary from funeral march to Celtic dance tune. It’s my sincere desire that you enjoy this project, that you connect with it, and that it makes you love the mandolin more than ever before. -AB