Independence Day: The Fourth of July

As little kids, we never really knew what we were celebrating on the Fourth of July. We went to the parade hoping for the good candy to be thrown our direction. We waved sparklers the minute it turned dark, and if we were lucky enough, we watched fireworks that lasted fifteen minutes. But, if you think about it, the picnics with your family, the watermelon seed-spitting contests, and the three-legged races with your cousins was really like a mid-summer day off of your usual summer doldrums. I was probably nine before I recall having a vague understanding of why we wore red, white, and blue and waved American flags on the Fourth of July.

America actually declared independence from Great Britain on July 2, 1776. But, it wasn’t until July 4, 1776 that the document justifying this action was ready for publication. It appears that the document supersedes the act in terms of which we celebrate. However, declaring independence and actually having it were two different things. It took six more years of fighting, 25,000 Revolutionary soldier’s deaths, and 25,000 wounds before Great Britain finally agreed to let America be independent. And, it wasn’t until 1788 that the actual US Constitution was adopted and the new independent government was formed.

Coincidentally, two of the founding fathers died on July 4, 1826 – 40 years after the Declaration of Independence was completed. Thomas Jefferson, our third president and the one given credit for authoring the Declaration, died within a few hours of our second president, John Adams. James Monroe, another signer of the Declaration and our fifth president also died on July 4, 1831.

As flags wave on the Independence Day this year, I will think about what our forefathers risked by declaring independence from Great Britain and, be thankful that I was Born in America.

A World of Possibilities

The month of May brings graduations – from college, from high school, from kindergarten. After all the awards are handed out, where will these grads end up? It all makes you stop and wonder what kind of future these young people will have, doesn't it? How will they define their lives? Do they take the high road, or the easy way out? Will they find meaning and purpose in their lives? They set out to make a difference, but will they, really? 

What is the meaning, the value, and purpose of each individual in the world? This is the time for dreamers. They can set goals and achieve them, or, they may find that their lives can take different paths that are just as fulfilling. And, with a lens turned ten degrees to the left, the view ahead can look even brighter. Today’s science and math winners at the eighth grade graduation might be tomorrow’s neuroscientists that will cure incurable diseases. 

Today’s musical master will be topping Billboard’s list in ten years. The possibilities are endless. Passion, confidence, and commitment is all it takes.

This month, as graduates move onto their next life chapter, the future is wide open to them. All the world’s a stage and the script has not yet been written. 

Congratulations graduates! Make us proud.

What's in a Name? A Guitar Name, That Is...

There are plenty of famous guitars out there that have names… Well, actually - the people are famous and they have named their guitars.

Neil Giraldo (Spyder), married to Pat Benetar, has “Pain” - his current favorite guitar. Willie Nelson’s guitar, “Trigger” is a road-worn acoustic Martin guitar that has holes in in from Willie’s picking. How cool is that? Eric Clapton has a black Stratocaster, named (quite appropriately), “Blackie”.  Blackie was made from three other guitars, part of a lot of six that he purchased from a store in Nashville.  The story goes that he gave the three others to his friends – Steve Winwood, George Harrison, and Pete Townsend.

The Dreamer’s Brigade is no different. We have a history, a story. The first guitar ever purchased became Anabelle. She’s a custom neck, 12 string acoustic beauty and sings like an angel. The story behind the name has been lost with the years, but Anabelle started a string of names for subsequent guitars. 

Next there was Analee. She is a six string Yamaha. Her sound is clean and used daily for practice and recording. Anabelle and Analee are the go-to acoustics for the Dreamer’s Brigade. The electric guitar, a black Stratocaster, is used regularly for solos and any kind of electric guitar work. Her name is Anarex because of her thinness. Other assorted guitars are part of the collection as well, but for some reason, they do not have names. Maybe someday, they will graduate to naming status. Only time will tell.

If you want to read more about famous guitars, their owners and the stories behind the names, click here.

The Anatomy of a Song

People ask all the time how to write a song.  To a songwriter, it’s hard to describe because it’s somewhat like breathing. Every musician does it differently. Some artists, like Elton John, who don’t write lyrics, receive the words from people Bernie Taupin, and then Elton composes melody to what Bernie hands him.

For me, the spark of a new song seems to come from nowhere. Then, with some work, you develop it further until it’s a full-blown melody. From there, you find the hook, or the thing that grabs your ear and keeps your attention.  Of course, you need to create a “middle eight” - the eight bars of the song than makes it different enough to keep the song from being monotonous. 

At that point, the music suggests the title. And by then, the melody dictates a style – country, a ballad, rock, etc. What’s nice about being a producer in addition to being the writer is that you can figure out the style in the writing process. Sometimes this can be a contentious battle between producers and writers.  The artist thinks the song should be one style and the producer hears something else.

The last step of writing the music is deciding on the structure: is it going to be a two verses and a chorus, or a verse, a chorus, a verse, a solo? Songs require structure or they are just an endless string of melodic notes.  Finally this is the time when the lyrics start to come to fit the title, structure and phrasing of the song.

Sometimes a song has to be re-written during the recording process. In a recent recording session, we went to record a song and discovered that it was missing an “entry”.  Every song needs a beginning, middle, and an end, or it becomes repetitious. Although we thought the song was complete for years, it became apparent while recording that it needed additional work.

That’s the way the Dreamer’s Brigade music usually gets written!

It’s a Game Show

Did you watch “The Voice” last night?  Who is going to win “American Idol” this year?  

This is the talk around the water cooler every week – and sometimes multiple times in a week. Social media is all abuzz with the pros and cons of contestants. Fans show support for their favorite singer, voting for them and getting their friends to vote for them too. And, this is how we pick our next superstars. 

One of the worst parts? They’re not even singing original songs.

Just think if American Idol was around in the 60’s; Bob Dylan would not have made it through auditions. (Sorry, Mr. Dylan) And, “Blowin’ in the Wind”, would have not been the theme song for a generation. Would John Lennon and Paul McCartney have been able to be ground-breaking with the Sgt. Pepper’s album? Imagine if they had to win The Voice before they could work with George Martin. Neil Young, who influenced a generation that focused attention on a war that could not be won, would not likely be the American Idol. We could still be in Vietnam.

It kind of makes you thankful that we got the hair bands of the 80’s before the T.V. singer contests existed, doesn't it? Not sure they could have won either. Think about your favorite music pre-American Idol... who would have made it?

It also makes you thankful that there are other avenues for original music and true artists to get their music heard. Although talented singers compete, true art is not found on a game show.

Another War?

Our President just recently proposed that the U.S. Congress should declare war on ISIL (the Islamic State) in the Middle East. Why is the United States of America even considering this? Religious wars can never be won. Strong ideologies cannot be defeated. And, people fighting for their own land will not be thwarted. 

If you look back through time, there are wars that can be won and wars that cannot be won. Historically, religious wars have never been won. Egypt could not prevail over the Israelites. Islam has fought against Buddhism in Tibet without success. The Protestants are still waging war against the Catholics in Ireland with no end in sight to this day. Religious wars are a losing proposition.

The Islamic State wants to take the control of their destiny with a strong idealism. Their extreme ideology holds just as much passion as we have in past internal conflicts in our country. Contrast their current revolution to our past revolutions. The Civil war of the North against the South over slavery almost tore our country apart, yet there were distinct sides for supporters to rally. The same holds true when the 13 colonies held patriotism as the ideal to fight for in the Revolutionary War against Britain. Unfortunately, the U.S. is not sure which ally to support in the current revolutions in the Middle East because the opposition to the ISIS is fractured and unorganized. Whose interests are we really supporting by declaring war on ISIS, ours, or the rag-tag sects of opposition?

If you put the shoe on the other foot and look at it from the Islamic State’s perspective, they do not want other people determining their fate and using their lands. It would be like having Britain, once again, come to fight on our soil and take over our properties. We would definitely be opposed.

Figuring out who to support and supporting them is one thing; but, declaring war and inserting ourselves into their battle is a losing proposition.

Thoughts? Concerns? Questions? Opinions?
We welcome friendly and respectful conversation.

The Song That Wrote Itself: Sweet Angel Blue Eyes

Sometimes, songs come ridiculously easy and out of nowhere.  When I was inspired to write Sweet Angel Blue Eyes, I had been on a date with my brown-eyed girlfriend. When I got home, I picked up my guitar, and that was that. Words and music just flowed out of me and within 15 minutes, Sweet Angel Blue Eyes was born. 

I didn’t even have the intention of creating music that night. It just happened. It was like getting a gift - a gift that will keep on giving forever. Playing that song that first time was like I had played it 1,000 times before. Not a word or note has been changed since. It still amazes me.

What I like most about Sweet Angel Blue Eyes is that it has a traditional love song feel to it – like something the Platters would sing. This song truly combines the feel of a 50’s ballad with the production of an 80’s power ballad – moving from the acoustic guitar and soft melody into heavier electric guitar mid-way through the song.

As I'm sure you can all relate, there are very few times in life that something so right happens so easily. Each time I hear Sweet Angel Blue Eyes, I am transported back to the night when the song wrote itself. This song affirmed that I was on the right track for the dream to become reality.