Lots of gigs coming up...

I am so humbled to be a part of Linworth Baptist's music program. And Father's Day is going to be a special type of service. Bill Mowry and the men's ministry are assembling it and they asked if I would help with music. So we are going to do some familiar praise and worship music with a small band, but I am really getting stoked to work up Mercy Me's "Finally Home". It will tought to sing this with my Dad only being home with the Lord for only two years, but I really love the song and think it will touch a lot of people. Pray for me there!

Next, Farrel and I are doing the Powell Festival on June 25...this is a fun, outdoor amphitheater show in old town Powell, Ohio (Tim's residency). So we are expecting a lot of families on blankets, setting sun, and some acoustic guitars and harmony from Farrel & Stevenson.

Should be fun!

Granville rocks!

Wow did we have a blast Saturday playing the Harvest 2009 party in Granville. Farrel & Stevenson is having a ton of fun knocking the rust off of the vocal chords and guitar parts...it was kind of surprising how fast it all came back actually. But Hugh Price's bands are fantastic. His acoustic group Common Thread has some great musicians in it and they have some really fresh tunes and harmony parts. Andy Carlson is a really mean fiddle player! That group is going to make a great companion group to Farrel & Stevenson and we are working on a date at EYMC. The Embers were a good old fashion power classic rock band and they sounded fantastic, too. My small Taylor really cut through the mix nicely so I think I am going to use it heavily on our October 9 show at EYMC...see you there!

Espresso Yourself coming up!

So it has been way too long since Tim Farrel and I jammed and the time is here! We got together about two weeks ago and I have to say that it was kind of amazing that we picked up where we left off...the old songs came pouring out and we quickly realized that we needed to gig. You see we never practiced...I mean never...gigging was our practice. If we were going to learn a new song, one of us would learn it and the other would add their part. So now we have three gigs in three weeks. First, the coolest realtor in the country, Hugh Price, invited us to come out and jam at a fall festival in Granville, Ohio, and for a good cause. So we can't say no to that and we are going to collaborate on a song or two. Then Espresso Yourself in Powell, Ohio, on October 9 and then a Tappas bar in Powell, Ohio, on October 16. Fun cubed. Hope to see of you there.

Billy Joel at Nationwide Arena

Could one artist really have that many hits? What an amazing show last evening, April 20, 2008, in Columbus, Ohio, at the Nationwide Arena, home to the NHL Columbus Blue Jackets. I've followed his career almost all of my life since he represents in my mind what an artist really is...singer, songwriter, plays an instrument. I've already made some mention of Dan Fogelberg before, but this is a long list of artists that have stood the test of time and I believe it is for the above mentioned reasons! Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, Billy Joel, Gordon Lightfoot, bands like The Eagles...probably could not get a record deal today with this Miss America approach to searching out talent...but before I go off on that tirate, back to Billy at The Wide!

I'll put as complete of a set list as I can remember at the bottom of this but what a treat to hear "Prelude/Angry Young Man" to open the show! You stepped into a time machine and it was the 1970's! He just kept banging out the hits and the obscure album tracks for over two hours with no intermissions, and a few surprises like have "Chainsaw" the guitar tech come on stage and scream out AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" and inserting "Hang on Sloopy" in the middle of "River of Souls."

The band was pretty straight forward as well. Of course Billy on piano, or as he introduced himself, Billy's Dad due to the gray and lack of hair, lead guitar, keyboards/synth, percussionionist who did vocals and some woodwinds, a dedicated woodwinds/brass player, bass and set drums. Really simple set up but tight, tight, tight.

For me the highlights were "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant", his closer "Piano Man", "My Life" and "You May Be Right". His voice stayed strong all night, and I forgot just how much of a rebel this guy was and still is! He thumbed his nose at a lot of establishments in his day, but did it in such an intelligent and entertaining way that I am not sure everyone noticed!

Well here are some of the songs I can remember, and no they are not in order!

Prelude/Angry Young Man
The Entertainer
Innocent Man
You May Be Right
Movin' Out/Anthony's Song
Allentown
Just the Way You Are
Only the Good Die Young
Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
River of Dreams
New York State of Mind
It's Still Rock and Roll to Me
She's Always a Woman
Matter of Trust
Summer, Highland Falls
We Didn't Start the Fire
Zanzibar
Don't Ask Me Why

I miss Dan Fogelberg

It has been a few weeks and I am still not used to the fact that Dan Fogelberg has passed away. I never met the man, but the void is real and significant in a lot of ways. He taught me how to play guitar. Showed me how to write a song. Made me think about music in different ways.



Maybe it sounds a bit dramatic, but Dan Fogelberg respected music on so many levels that were only rarely recognized by mainstream pop music. Sure, he sold a few million "hits" with Leader of the Band, Longer, Power of Gold, Language of Love, Run for the Roses and on and on the list goes. But he penned songs that were better than these that never saw airplay. And quietly took stages in front of adoring fans worldwide who understood what they were witnessing was a man that had a channel to another world that few of would have ever gotten to hear if it were not for him.



I read once that Longer visited him and decided that he would make a good home for it...amazing songwriter on so many levels...I guess I was a nerd...when I was 12 years old, my contemporaries were listening to the hits of 1980 like REO Speedwagon and Journey...fine bands but I just didn't feel any depth there. I could pick up my guitar and play along with it instantly...even keep up with most of the electric solos. Fun but not nourishing. Then I wandered into my older brother Jeff's room and he was listening to Dan Fogelberg's Phoenix album...



What's this I thought? I don't understand what I am hearing...mysterious but recognizable instruments. Thoughtful lyrics that I had to read along with to vist the author's mood. From the opening instrumental to the pounding open tunings of Phoenix I was hooked...I couldn't learn it fast enough and even when I thought I did, I discovered a capo, open tuning, finger style that stumped me all over again.



The dive that I took into his music in 1980 at 12/13 lasts to today...I am still feel a sense of accomplishment when I get a little glimpse into how one of his songs is constructed. He has inspired almost every song that I have written...and I guess that is a little piece of why I miss someone that I have never even met. Because in a strange way, we did meet. Time and time again. I think we'll meet again and again in his recordings, in my writing and hopefully we know the same maker so I can finally ask him about some of those awesome and tasty chords that I never have figured out. Farewell Dan. I miss you.

Over 1,000 views! Thank you!

Hey everyone, thanks for getting one of the YouTube clips to over 1,000 views! I was a little surprised that it was the instrumental piece, but no complaining. And for everyone who keeps asking, yes, we are planning a live show soon. With the arrival of Nelson into our lives this past summer, the time available shrank to zero. Plus work has been a little more consuming than I would like, but rest assured, we will dust off the old guitars and get some music out soon.

"How is it Between Us?"

This past Sunday I was asked to sing for a Commission Service at our church for a missionary couple that is headed to South Africa. Steve and Vickie are such great people and uniquely qualified for this awesome task! But the service went really great otherwise. I was not sure that the song I prepped was going to fit in, but it did.

Sara Groves wrote the song "How is it Between Us?" and it is a featured track on her album Conversations. She is such an amazing song writer that it is actually easy to learn her lyrics. The chords were a slight challenge but fun to learn. It would have been a lot more fun with a band, but they had just played with me last week so I did not want to wear them out, and lead guitarist, Brandon Montgomery was already on vacation.

See this deal was a bit of a late thing. Our music coordinator had been left high and dry and she approached me one week out. But it worked out great. This was just another example of when God is in it, we can relax and take refuge in His work...we have to do our part...but He does everything else.

Music videos live on!

I guess I am old enough to remember when MTV and VH1 actually played music videos! It was so cool when Live Aid was broadcasted and it seemed like the whole world stopped and jammed for a little while. U2 tore the house down as did Bruce Springsteen and The Police.

But I couldn't help but realize that the more things change, the more they stay the same. These bands still are some of the best live shows going, and old clips that we only got a fleeting glance of in the 70's on Don Kirscher's Rock Hour, Saturday Night Live or later on the video channels, now live again on YouTube. It is so cool to go back and get to see those clips again.

TV was so different then because with limited networks, no DVD's, no Internet, no MP3 or 4's, you just had to soak in the moment live - because you thought you would never see it again! We went to see movies four, five, six times in the theater because when it left, your only bet was a late night TV showing 10 years later!

So here are some favorites: Kansas' "Carry On Wayward Son" and it appears in about a dozen interations. ELO is a fantastic band and their popularity in Great Britain had them appearing on a lot of shows, so there are far more clips than we ever got to see. Supertramp's "Overture" from live in Paris is a classic.

Great way to relive those musical moments that were almost lost in time!

Guitar String tests

For the guitarists in the group, recently I got to test out some experimental strings from Elixir. Since I started playing guitar I have always had a body chemistry that ate strings up at an alarming rate - caustic sweat or something nasty! It's all of that Yoo Hoo I drink I guess. But I digress...

A few years ago I stumbled on Elixir strings and am absolutely sold on them. But it gets better! Two years ago they asked me to do some string tests and I actually recorded "Faith. Family. Friends" with the experimental stings on my Taylor 310. They really held tune, remained bright throughout the entire, lengthy recording period, and actually didn't need changing after months of use. Yes, I said months.

Now I really could have changed them sooner, but I was on one of those kicks, like seeing how far the car can go towards empty and still run, and the strings probably overstayed their welcome. But that's not the point.

Point is that they really do deliver long life, exceptional tone, great feel and very stable tuning. Anyway, I have a link to them if you are interested!

Great night for coffee...

What a great night everyone! I really appreciate everyone who came out and to Eric Ahlteen who let us play. To answer the burning question, yes, we are playing there again, but we have not gotten a date that works for everyone yet.

For those of you that don't know, Espresso Yourself is a new coffee shop in an old church, and is located in Powell, Ohio. The place is great with hardwood floors, an open plan, lots or original building character, and a "house sound system". Eric opened the place with live music in mind and it shows.

We had a blast and will post soon on the new date. I think Farrel and I will do our "singer/songwriter" gig there next...stay tuned...