And, if that isn't exciting enough, my son, Alex will be singing "Sailor And Sculptor" with me!  For those who don't know, I wrote "Sailor And Sculptor" when I was about Alex's age (in my mid-20s).  It is a song about a father and a son.  The father is the sailor and the son is the sculptor.  The father wants his son to follow in his steps but, of course, the son has his own path to follow in life.

When I first wrote "Sailor And Sculptor" I envisioned singing the son part and asking my Dad to sing the father part.  That never happened.  I think I chickened out because back then I never thought my father liked my songwriting.  

Just for the record, my Dad later asked me to write a song for him to sing to my Mom for their anniversary.  That song is "We Really Did Alright" and remains a favorite of mine.  By asking me to write that song I realized that he must have appreciated my songwriting more than I thought.

I attempted to do both parts of "Sailor And Sculptor" myself but I never liked that version at all. 

A few years ago I asked Alex to sing the son part of the song in a new recording I was doing.  I recorded my part at home and he later recorded his part while I was at work.  When I heard the finished recording I...   well, I was going to tell you that I cried, but I won't because it might destroy my "manly" image!  (Just kidding.  Yes, I actually did "tear up" - that sounds better than "cry")

Anyway, I've always thought it would be awesome to somehow get a video of us doing the song live somewhere.  We had considered the Orange Blossom Opry which has an awesome stage and is so very professionally managed.  But there were two problems: 1. The Opry doesn't allow video-recording and 2. If they did waive that rule I'd have to pay a small fortune for a video crew to get the job done properly.

That is why this opportunity to perform at Full Sail University is such a blessing.

Thank-you, Robin, for so many of the great ideas that have lead to the progress we've seen these past three years.  This latest idea to include Alex in the live show is so great I can't thank you enough!

I have less than a month to prepare!  

In addition to rehearsing at home I would like to have some "live audience" rehearsals.  So, if you're in the area and you would like a free concert, let me know.  Or, better yet, contact Robin because I'll never be able to keep a calendar!  (Robin's email is robnonair@aol.com and her business line is 352-873-0007 (Quill And Keyboard Productions) or 352-732-8000 (during the day at WOCA AM and FM).

At Christmas time the recorded music is usually welcomed and usually pretty predictable.  Our reactions to those old familiar Christmas tunes varies, just as it varies with all music.

Playing Christmas music live has its own interesting set of reactions.

Recently Robin and I have been visiting local retirement homes and singing Christmas songs for the residents.  No sound system.  Just the acoustic guitar, our voices, and the occasional jingle bells and tambourine.  Plus, for ambience, we don Santa hats and Robin decorates our music stand.  (This year we're even rolling in a Radio Flyer wagon decked out with a complete Christmas scene of a tree, snow, gifts, and decorations that Robin designed)

We visit the homes each year.  It is as rewarding for us as we hope it is enjoyable for the residents.

Anyway, what I mostly wanted to comment on was the reactions. 

When we walk into the building there is always Christmas music playing somewhere.  Usually it is over the sound system of the facility.  So at first the thought is, "Oh, these people are probably sick of hearing these songs by now."  But they're not!

These old Christmas songs, being performed live, are like receiving a visit from an old friend!  That is the best way I can think of to describe the reaction.  You can usually see that some folks prefer the soft religious Christmas songs (You should've heard them sing along with "Silent Night" last night.  It was like Robin and I had angels providing backing vocals.)  Others prefer the standards like "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer" and "Jingle Bell Rock."  ("Feliz Navidad," by the way, suddenly makes EVERYONE bi-lingual!)

What I'm trying to say is that live music holds a special place for all of us and especially during the holidays.  We take music for granted sometimes because it is so readily available and portable.

As musicians I think we have a responsibility to play live as often as we can.  I'm not a doctor so I'll never save a life that way.  I'm not a great political thinker so I'll never offer doctrine that will save the world.  I'm not a lawyer who can right a wrong.  I'm not even a cook who can create a meal (although I'm pretty good at toast and eggs).

But I am a musician.  If you are also a musician then know that your gift is a blessing to those around you.  Don't "hide your flame under a bushel" (I think that's from the Bible, right?)  Play!  Play live!  Play often!  Play originals and covers!  Play solo and as duos and as groups! 

Just play!

Don't ever let the abundance of recorded music ever cause you to feel that your talent is not necessary any more.  NOBODY SOUNDS LIKE YOU BUT YOU!  

Merry Christmas!

Larry 

Here's my theory:

When I-Tunes finally cleared up their legal obstacles that prevented them from having the Beatles music on their site they heralded that victory with hype.  Lots of hype.  That hype led to lots of on-line chatter in the form of articles, blog posts, Facebook and MySpace chatter, and who knows what else is out there!

Most music sites ask the artist to list their influences and so, among others of mine, I always list "The Beatles."  Simply by typing in their name I instantly "tagged" my site and, consequently, whenever anyone was searching for Beatles there was the potential for my sites to be included in the search. 

My theory is not without concrete evidence, by the way.  Two of my sites offer detailed analyses of the traffic to those sites that include where the traffic is coming from.  Both sites had numerous entries indicating that visitors came to my site after searching for "Beatles" on Google or Yahoo or some of the other search engines.

The good news is that the numbers of visits is WAY UP!  The BETTER news is that I've even sold a few CDs (all of them virtual, by the way, as downloads).

So, thank you I-Tunes and thank you Beatles.

And that leads to this thought: I am one of MILLIONS of fans who made the Beatles rich.  You probably contributed to them also.  So it's nice to see that there is a bit of reciprocity happening now.  I probably won't get rich from it but maybe I'll have a few extra dollars for Christmas gifts.

Of course now I'm wondering if maybe this experience has revealed a way to increase traffic on a regular basis.  If "tagging" my websites with words and phrases will attract visitors maybe I need to change those tags more often and see if I can actually ride more waves like the one I'm riding currently because of the Beatles.

That "Ah-ha" revelation is something I wanted to share with you because I'd love to know if I'm the last kid on the block to realize this!  Also, just in case it is an eye-opener for you too, maybe you can benefit from it somehow.  I suppose it would mean knowing what topics are being searched but I'm guessing it would only be a beneficial strategy if those topics were music related.  Still it's something to think about and something to try.

When I was younger and I first stumbled onto the college market it was another "ah-ha" moment that totally changed things for me.  I went from playing bars for $40 a night to colleges for $400 a night.  It was always a lot of work getting gigs whether they were in bars or colleges but at least it was worthwhile effort once the "take-home" pay was greater than my expenses!

I remember stumbling through my first year playing colleges trying to figure out how to streamline the process.  Maybe this new revelation about today's virtual music business that I just learned from The Beatles and I-Tunes will change things the way they changed all those years ago shifting me from a lounge performer to a college performer!  (You can learn more about my college gig strategy, by the way, in a little 48 page booklet I wrote some time ago.  Here's the link to that booklet: http://quillandkeyboardebooks.moonfruit.com/#/touring-musician/4546039936)

So the lesson for me (and for you, if you think my theory is correct): TAG TAG TAG!  And tag smart and with a strategic goal.  Let me know your thoughts on this.

Okay, that's all!

Larry

The big difference this year, from last year, is that we did not host a stage this year.  Hosting a stage last year was rewarding in its own way but it prevented us from roaming around and checking out the rest of the festival and hearing acts in the different venues.

This year was much more free for us because we weren't hosting.  Roaming around and listening to the other musicians and songwriters was great.  The festival truly does offer a wonderful opportunity for songwriters to showcase original material in a setting where that is expected.  Usually songwriters find themselves playing at gigs where the audience expects to hear music they've heard from "hit" artists.  The idea of an original music festival is what makes this event so spectacular.

The songwriters were of all ages.  I was glad to see that I wasn't the oldest (but I don't think I was far from it!)  Of course, that is not important at all.  Good songwriting is what is important.  Good songwriting comes from prolific songwriters who study their craft and do it often.  We were in the presence of such writers at this festival.

The two venues I played were the outdoor stage by the old Volusia County Courthouse and an indoor stage at a quaint giftshop and winehouse called "The Nest."  The outdoor stage was really a great experience although it presented a challenge dealing with the wind and the distraction of having another band setting up on the larger part of the stage (soloists and duos were booked to fill the gap between sets of the larger bands at this stage to give time for the bands to clear the stage and set up for the next one).

"The Nest" was very nice.  Great venue for a soloist, from a performing point-of-view and a great venue from the audience's perspective (Robin and I heard Ben Wilson play "The Nest" earlier in the day) (Ben was great, by the way!)

Robin had submitted my name to be Songwriter Of The Year and, so, I was listed in the program that way.  Kinda cool.  It is nice to be nominated that way.  I do think, though, that it is more an indicator of how great of a friend Robin is to me rather than how great of a songwriter I am.  Nevertheless, it was nice to see.

It was a wonderful day, really.  For anyone who writes and performs you know that some gigs are diamonds and some are not.  This one definitely was.

My first slot is on the stage in front of the Old Courthouse on West Indiana Avenue at 3:40 pm.  The schedule says I'll be on the stage in front of the main stage so I am guessing that they placed us smaller acts (soloists) there to take up the empty time necessary to have the larger acts (bands) take down and set up their equipment.  Looks like I'll play for about 20 minutes at that spot. 

Then I'll be at a place called "The Nest" (not sure what it is) at 8:30pm.  I'll be playing there for an hour. 

I'm looking forward to both opportunities but I'm ALSO looking forward to the Strolling Christmas gigs that Robin and I have been rehearsing for some time now! 

Here are two links.  One is for the Music Festival and the other is for our Strolling Christmas:

Deland Music Festival: http://www.ssa.cc/deland.htm

Strolling Christmas: http://www.strollingchristmas.com

• It's FREE!


• You'll get FREE music IMMEDIATELY!


• You'll be entered into future drawings to win other cool stuff like:


• Movie Tickets


• Restaurant Gift Certificates


• Concert tickets


• Gift Cards

Just click on the little widget below and you'll be in "the loop"! 

Let's see, so far she's come up with an artificial campfire, a transportable forest, a star-filled sky, and an entire "Felix's Magic Bag" of props and effects that oughta do a pretty good job of wowwing the kids.  (Okay, "spellcheck" is TRYING to convince me that "wowwing" is spelled wrong but I am so tired of critics that I will just ignore it!)

Anyway, we're psyched about the new show and so I just wanted to brag about it for a moment.

The other show I'm excited about is the live show I'll be doing on my own.  It is VERY stripped down (no drum machines, no fog machines, no pre-recorded tracks, etc.).  Just me and my guitar.  It is not the first time I've done a show like this but it is the first time since the early 1980s.  (I was reluctant to mention the years because it would have made me look old, but then I realized I am old - but not at heart!)

Well, thank you for reading this far.  I'll end it now with this thought: Keep on doing what you love to do.  Nobody can give the world what you have to offer but YOU so don't let ANYONE ever make you feel you need to just shrink into obscurity as that would be a crying shame.

I have watched a lot of concerts on DVD and one of the cool parts in some of them is getting to see the performers just before they go on stage.  They are all somewhat nervous, or at least giddy.  Some pray.  Some have a little ritual.  Some offer words of encouragement to their bandmates.  My all time favorite is Paul McCartney who told his band, "We're gonna love them, they're gonna love us, and we're all going to have a good time."

Gotta love Paul.

Have a great weekend!

Larry