Bobby Halvorson is a Sacramento-based singer, songwriter, and composer whose music blends orchestral sophistication with intimate, California-born songwriting. After more than a decade immersed in the Los Angeles art rock scene with his band Brother, Sister, Halvorson brings his deep musical roots and formal training—a doctorate in music composition, to his solo work. His expansive approach to arrangement has led him to collaborate with artists such as Sondre Lerche, Tim Heidecker, Inara George, and Morgxn, lending their songs vivid textures of strings, winds, and choral arrangements. He has also worked closely with the legendary Van Dyke Parks as both a recording artist and arranging assistant, and served as producer, musical director, and performer for several live productions of Harry Nilsson’s The Point alongside Nilsson’s son, Kiefo.
Now firmly rooted in Sacramento’s creative community, Halvorson is turning his focus inward, crafting songs that fuse his classical expertise with a distinctly human touch.
Today, Glide is premiering his latest single, “California,” which captures both nostalgia and uneasy love letters to his Northern California upbringing in the Sierra Foothills, tempered by the realities of climate change. Written during a dark, windy winter in Sweden, the song channels longing for sunlight and home, nodding wryly to the Beach Boys’ golden-era sound while weaving in humor as a way to process grief. Recorded between his home studio and American River College, “California” showcases Halvorson’s multi-instrumental talent, featuring vibraphone, flute, bassoon, cello, French horn, and clarinet, all performed by Halvorson himself—alongside contributions from Dyne Eifertsen (trombone), Tony Marvelli (flugelhorn), and Emma Peabody (violin). True to his love of detail, the song even includes field recordings of native California birds from outside his home. Mixed by John Lowell Anderson and mastered by Daniel Eaton at Little Castle Mastering in Los Angeles, “California” reflects Halvorson’s singular ability to merge the technical with the emotional—turning memory, melody, and place into something timeless.
Halvorson describes the inspiration and process behind the tune:
This song emerged from a mumbly voice memo I made a few years back. In fact, you can hear the voice memo at the end of my song “Overdose” from my last record. I was living in Sweden at the time, where it was wet, gray, windy and dark and I was longing for the sunshine of the place where I grew up, specifically Gold Country in Northern California. A lot of people can’t stand the 100 degree heat in the middle of summer up there but I always loved it. I like baking in the dry heat of the Sierra Foothills and wanted to write a song that evoked that feeling. Although I speak of my home fondly, there are also the impending disasters that climate change will bring, namely rising ocean levels, wildfires, and drought. There’s a wryness to the lyrics because I trust that an effective way to deal with grief is through humor. There’s an obvious nod to the Beach Boys in the first verse who remain one of my all time favorite bands and who pioneered a distinctly California sound.
The parts of this song were recorded at my home studio in Sacramento, California as well as at American River College, where I was given access to a host of instruments that I otherwise would not be able to afford. On this recording, you can hear vibraphone, flute, bassoon, cello, French horn and clarinet, all of which I performed myself. Additionally, I recruited a couple of fantastic brass players, Dyne Eifertsen on Trombone and Tony Marvelli on Flugelhorn. I could not get a good sound out of those instruments for the life of me so I had to bring in the real players. I also featured a voice student of mine, Emma Peabody, on violin, which again proved too hard for me to produce a passable performance. Lastly, you can hear the sound of birds chirping during the middle section. These are all birds that I recorded outside of my house, all native to my area of California. This tune was mixed by John Lowell Anderson in Los Angeles and was mastered by Daniel Eaton at Little Castle Mastering in Los Angeles.
LISTEN:
