Each and every time America goes through an election cycle there’s a bunch of what I call strange change. And it’s rarely, if ever, for the good. But the presidential election of 2020-2021 goes down as one of the strangest. I suggest you hold on for the ride. And don’t just look for a place to hide till it’s all over. Yeah, hold on … The rest of the story…
Tag Archives: words and music
In 1986 I had a couple of Roland keyboards, a stand for my home studio, a stand for stage performance, and all the rest of my gear set up in my little apartment in Lakewood, Colorado. And every night I wasn’t playing live somewhere I was on my keys writing lyrics and producing songs. I was a man possessed. Because I was gonna make … The rest of the story…
Yeah, I’m gonna have a good day. And I don’t care who tries to stop me. Because it beats the tar, dust, and heck out of the alternative. And I’m gonna have a good day tomorrow, too. Because I want the streak to continue. After going through thousands and thousands of good days, why stop now? Right? And, you might be thinking, “Nobody has … The rest of the story…
In 1989, I had been back in Colorado for about a year. And I was in my little apartment, B17 (yeah, like the old Olivia Newton-John song), listening to the cool variety of music on FM station, KBCO. Because they had this segment they called “Home Grown.” And I had sent a song of mine in to them. But they didn’t send out advance … The rest of the story…
In 1981 I joined a popular trio, in Atlanta, Georgia. They added me as their drummer, and all four of us sang. So, we had some nice 4 part harmonies. And I remember how their fans enjoyed our rendition of a song called “Leader of the Band.” Because the bass player, lead guitarist, and I played recorders, and sang backup, while the rhythm guitarist … The rest of the story…
In the middle of the 1970’s I went to college. And like countless other freshmen, I went to orientation, found my dorm, and explored the campus. It was academically exciting to me. For a little while at least. But the idyllic luster faded pretty fast. And I needed an outlet for my frustration with “higher learning.” Fortunately, that outlet took the form of study … The rest of the story…
It was July of 1975. And I was a fairly new piano player. Because I had started teaching myself the way around the keys about a year and a half before. So, as the scales and chord combinations started to make sense I naturally wanted to put some of my large catalogue of lyrics to music. And one of those songs was Performance for … The rest of the story…
Taps and lights out I remember (at least a little) when Taps was played during the funeral proceedings for President Kennedy. But I didn’t remember the bugler’s clinkers during the minute long song. Not until I looked at old video footage. And, of course, people feel the need to make fun of the guy for “missing” notes. But it was a cold day, which … The rest of the story…
A conversation in a song stayed in the back of my mind The technical definition of a fugue, in music, is: “a contrapuntal composition in which a short melody or phrase (the subject) is introduced by one part and successively taken up by others and developed by interweaving the parts.” I like to think of it, simply, as a conversation in a song. Either … The rest of the story…
I’ve got no right My life has not always been a bed of roses. Unlike everyone else in the world, I’ve had some challenges to overcome. I know this is completely foreign to you. But bear with me. And I’ll show you how I came to realize I still have no right to sing the blues. ” What? No right to sing the blues? … The rest of the story…