Blue Without You

Written and recorded between 1970 and 2001, BLUE WITHOUT YOU represents the best work of a songwriter who preferred the shadows to the limelight but whose songs hold hit-potential for other artists and new audiences. 

From raw, Nebraska-esque living room demos to fully produced studio tracks, Blue Without You offers a window into the mind, heart, and inspirations of a lifelong songwriter who wrote for the love of the song. 

An eclectic mix of genres, these songs harken back to the 70s folk scene of artists such as Ricky Nelson, Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot, and guitarist Leo Kottke. This collection offers timeless songs that deserve to be heard by future generations. 

“BLUE WITHOUT YOU contains the best 12 songs I ever wrote in more than 50 years as a musician—they’re really my life’s work as a musician. I’m proud of these songs. I worked on each of them for years, and I always had fun playing them whether by myself or making music with others. With this release, I hope they'll find a new audience and their way into other artists' repertoires.” - Pete Scales

Blue Without You

Pete Scales

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Blue Without You is a compelling and eclectic mix of songs that blends country, pop, folk, blues and jazz lyrical and musical influences. The collection contains ballads and uptempo songs great for artists and audiences Read more

Blue Without You is a compelling and eclectic mix of songs that blends country, pop, folk, blues and jazz lyrical and musical influences. The collection contains ballads and uptempo songs great for artists and audiences who love a singer-songwriter, story-telling approach centered on love and relationships.

*For iPhone users: we recommend downloading using Safari. Your tracks will save to the Files app, where you can unzip and play them directly.

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  1. 1
    Blue Without You 4:06
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  2. 2
    Mary Lou 4:11
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  3. 3
    For Awhile 5:34
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    Arouse Me When You Rouse Me 3:18
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    One Half Short Of Being Whole 3:57
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  6. 6
    We're Past Our Dancin' Days 4:06
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    Melissa 3:59
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  8. 8
    She Can Do Me 2:59
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  9. 9
    For You It Was Love 2:37
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  10. 10
    Tears Just Don't Dry 3:00
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  11. 11
    Grandma Needs Your Prayers 3:12
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  12. 12
    It's A Very Nice Ferry 2:49
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iPhone users: we recommend downloading using Safari. Your tracks will save to the Files app, where you can unzip and play them directly.

What They're Saying

“Blue Without You, his career retrospective spanning recordings made between 1970 and 2001, arrives not with the fanfare of a comeback but with the quiet dignity of a man finally letting people into a room he has long kept to himself. The result is, rather unexpectedly, one of the more compelling singer-songwriter documents of recent memory...Comparisons to Joni Mitchell and Gordon Lightfoot are earned rather than aspired to. Scales writes the way those artists wrote: with a poet's ear for the image and a confessor's instinct for the telling detail...His fingerpicking, at times reminiscent of the extraordinary Leo Kottke, carries the melodic load with effortless economy.”

— Indie Dock Music Blog (UK)

“These songs reflect years of writing, performing, and letting ideas sit until they felt ready. There is a relaxed patience to the music that suggests someone more interested in honest songcraft than studio polish. Folk sits at the center of the sound, but the edges occasionally drift into blues, jazz, and Appalachian picking traditions...There are some genuinely strong songs here, and the sincerity behind them makes the whole collection worth spending time with.” - Jamie Funk

— PitchPerfectSite.com

“Blue Without You is a timeless-sounding folk achievement of an album from Pete Scales.” - Mike Mineo

— Obscure Sound

Sheet Music

Sheet music for all songs from Blue Without You is available for both piano and guitar. If interested, please contact Peter for PDFs of your favorite songs.