Hello All,
This post is for anyone out there that has an idea but they might be thinking what’s the point of trying.
When I was 14 I saw the musical “ Beatle Mania” for whatever reason it never occurred to me that anyone could play the Beatles music…the fever took place that day and I started to teach myself guitar. I don’t sing and have zero stage presence so the best I could do was annoy folks at my house as I played little riffs to songs.
I saw a story on the news where a group of school kids tied paper cups to balloons and waited to see if they would hear back from someone maybe a few blocks away.
This was the seed planted in my wee thick skull, what if I was too send a message out in a bottle and toss it in the sea,how far would it go and would anyone reply? So with the help of a small multi tracker I recorded some of my favorite songs,Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Celtic and a few I just came up with. I called my album “Deja vu Blues”.
I have no clue about copy writes and all so I made about 30 or so copies and then handed them out to family, friends and co-workers and waited…
I asked that instead of paying for the CD folks would listen too it and review it and then send it on to someone else. I also thought it would be fun if they took a picture of themselves holding the CD showing where they are in the world… so I waited some more..
Instead of being overwhelmed or ignored I now receive little bits of joy here and there from some unexpected places. My little project from my basement in St. Louis made its way over the years to the UK, the Middle East and all over the USA. I once got a call from one of our offices in Albuquerque that they were burning copies of it to share.
So last year I decided to try it again but this time I wanted to create all of the music myself. I call the band “ The basement gypsies” I felt this takes away from any pressure on my self and leaves room for any other musicians to join in. I play guitar and a little bit of mandolin. A friend gave me a mountain dulcimer so I tossed all these in the mix. The tracks I wrote from the first CD made their way on to the new CD and I released it on ITunes and Amazon and the called the CD “ Cellar Door” by the basement gypsies!
Some of the things I learned along the way that really surprised me.
1. I got a small taste of fame and I found out that a small dose is more than enough.
2. I found out other peoples opinions' can be great or bad but that is all its just another voice.
3. I use to be amazed when I would read that one of the Beatles were not sure which album a certain track was on, How could they not know??!! ,trust me after spending all that time on tracks the best thing is too hear something and like it and then discover its yours. Very easy to forget which track is in which order.
4. I now feel a kindred spirit with all my hero’s of music who have sat in a studio with headphones on trying to get the right sound.
5. Most of all I know I want to continue doing this even if no one else listens I’m having fun!
The important difference between the two CDs (and only the second one is now available unless some asks me nicely for a copy of the first) is that the first CD was made to impress other people ,for me to try and show off… I learned through my efforts that it was more important to do a project for myself and if anyone cared about it then that would also be nice.
So the results this time around because of the internet is I’m seeing downloads around the world of people checking out my tunes, I’m thrilled every time someone checks out one of my songs or sends me a comment, more fun than I could ever have imagined. You just never know until you try and see how far you can go.
So the point of today’s rambling is two fold: HEY GO TO ITUNES OR AMAZON AND BUY MY CD!!!! ( on Amazon you have the choice to order a hard copy or download) and the other point is if you have a dream then go for it, but do it for yourself and then no matter the outcome you will be happy with the results.
Peace and Love
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