Category Archives: Music and Musings

I think it’s easier for us to notice or guess at other people’s mixed motives than to look squarely and honestly at our own. Most of us like to have a decent opinion of ourselves. And what a constructive challenge, to retain that decent opinion, even when we catch ourselves in attitudes and behaviors thatContinue reading “The Inner Troll and Repair Work”

Answer: as many musicians as want to provide light. The lightbulb changes all the time. Music can light up the world. Just think of Pete Seeger. He died not too long ago, was famous and politically active for most of his life, and used music as a great shining beacon to point towards change inContinue reading “How Many Musicians Does It Take to Change a Lightbulb?”

I started to write a blog last night, but anything I thought of was either too goody goody or simply had no authentic energy. What I began to write was just garbage. Well, maybe not quite garbage, but it was more like offering a half eaten piece of fruit to someone you don’t know. AndContinue reading “Sometime Things Just Suck, Even If You Pretend Otherwise”

Cracked and Broken by Diana Jones Until relatively recently, I had a lifetime of trying too hard at singing. It squishes your vocal chords, makes you lose your breath, and the message in the song sounds strained and fake. Plus, I used to have a death grip on my guitar. Finally I stopped taking myselfContinue reading “Cracked and Broken”

What makes a song live? What makes the listener care about the characters or about you, for that matter, if it’s written in the first person? Melody matters. Rhythm matters. But for me, lyrics are also crucial. Lots of contemporary songs are “mixed” in recording studios in such a way that the vocals are buriedContinue reading “Stones and Kisses”

Here is a baby harbor seal, sleeping happily at water’s edge. He or she is at home: plump on mother’s milk, which I believe is composed of 60% fat, rolling gently in the surf, basking in the California sun. This seal will never have issues about body image. It will grow up as is isContinue reading “Body Musings: the Unselfconscious Seal”

Occasionally, songs almost write themselves, and I am the secretary who types them out. Oops. That was politically incorrect, I think. Are there secretaries any more? In the 1970’s, all secretaries turned into administrative assistants. Maybe the “s” word is okay again. This was around the same time that “garbage men” turned into sanitation specialists.Continue reading “Sometimes a Cabbage Turns into a Meatloaf”

This evening, Stan and I went to hear a passle of gifted musicians play at the Old Towne Pickin’ Parlor in Arvada. Jon Chandler hosts a monthly show called America’s Soul Live! that features regular players, and then he seasons the mix with visiting musicians. Tonight was the tenth anniversary of this ongoing event. DakotaContinue reading “Harmony Isn’t Just About Notes”

In the fall of 2012, I went on a one week retreat, alone, to the Nada Catholic Hermitage. There was no program to follow, no company for me, and no plan. Is this a suicidal plan for an active extrovert? No, I simply wanted to find out 1) could I stand my own company, undistracted,Continue reading “Solo Retreat, Fall 2012”

.”   Blog, schmog, twitter, shmitter, whatever. This blog is my first real attempt to deal with technology, other than my halting use of Facebook and my limited comprehension of my iPhone.  Why am I doing this? Because I love to write music and share it. Because I have a racing mind, lots to say,Continue reading “Blog, Schmog, Twitter, Schmitter”