Don Arbor’s ‘Hope Is Hard To Kill’ Enlists Stef Burns And Mads Tolling

Don Arbor – Hope is Hard To Kill (self-release, 2025)

San Francisco Bay Area singer-songwriter Don Arbor will release Hope Is Hard To Kill on October 24, 2025. The 12-track album features Stef Burns (Huey Lewis and the News) on guitar, Curtis Ohlson on bass, Kevin Hayes (Robert Cray) on drums, and violinists Barbara Higbie and Mads Tolling.

Musically, the set features hooky blues-rock and quiet ballads, with nods to accessible country music, the Eagles, and rock band Green Day.

Arbor cites wide-ranging sources for his writing: “I never really know when a song will be born out of living every day with my eyes and ears open.”

The title track underscores perseverance. “Hope is a source of strength,” Arbor says. “It reminds that we’ve survived challenges in the past and that we have the resilience to overcome obstacles.”

“Lost and Found Saloon” takes its name from a real spot in North Beach, San Francisco, and reflects on a relationship undone by distance.

“Everyone Comes From Somewhere” appears on the album as a welcome to present-day Dreamers and past immigrants, according to Arbor. The song received Dual Gold Awards for Best Music Video and Original Song from the International Independent Film Festival.

All Songs By Don Arbor

Musicians: Don Arbor on lead vocals; acoustic guitar on tracks 6-9; harmony vocals on tracks 9 and 12;
Stef Burns on electric lead and rhythm guitars on all songs except tracks 7, 8 and 9; Tal Morris on electric lead and rhythm guitars on tracks7, 8 and 9; John R. Burr on keyboards; Curtis Ohlson on bass; Kevin Hayes on drums in all songs except track 5.

Harmony vocals: Jill Suttie on tracks 2, 4, 7 and 8; Larry Batiste and Jeanie Tracey on tracks 1 and 3; Kaitie Ty Williams on tracks 3 and 5;

Violin and viola: Mads Tolling, tracks 2, 11 and 12; Barbara Higbie, tracks 7 and 8.
Cello: Joe Hebert, tracks 2, 11 and 12

Engineered by Steve Savage. Produced by Don Arbor and Steve Savage.

1. Lost (3:45)
2. Paradise is Burning (3:54)
3. LIfeline (4:17)
4. Hope is Hard To Kill (3:34)
5. Lost and Found Saloon (3:40)
6. History of the Future (4:15)
7. Everyone Comes From Somewhere (4:00)
8. Losing You Gets Harder Every Time (4:01)
9. It Should Have Been Me (2:58)
10. Age of Information (2:02)
11. Message in a Billion Bottles (4:39)
12. Christmas on Mars (3:01)

Buy Hope Is Hard To Kill.