The ultimate prize fight. You against your own negativity. I found my self saying the other day, “If I do that one more time, I’m going to kick my ass”. btw …. lost 10 pounds last week. So I’m weighing in at 190………….. just in case you were wondering.
I know you all think it’s June 4th. But in my world, since my group is 35 Days in May. Well…….. you can understand.I’ll be going into more detail later. But a lot of you are asking about the art work on the “Bobo Bazinsky in the Bronx” CD. Briefly, it was done by acclaimed artist Eric Waugh.
I really appreciate the many comments I’m hearing about my music comparing it to, “ reading a Harry Potter book”.My suggestion for listening has always been, relax, get in a comfortable chair, (don’t multi-task) close your eyes, and enjoy the sights and sounds you’ll experience from listening to 35 Days in May.What each of you “sees” when hearing the music is obviously different, but the fact that it takes you away, even briefly from the stress of the day, and you come away happier and hopefully with more energy to create something you love in your life, is really the highest compliment you could give me.I also realized that the “audience” that likes my music spans an age range from 10 years old to 74 years old.
So, there are two versions of how the name “35 Days in May” came about.Version 1 - I remember that I was trying to think of a name for the group. I always liked numbers within a name (9 Inch Nails - 3 Doors Down etc). So I just came up with 35 Days in May.Version 2 - my wife remembers that I was trying to finish my first Cd by May 31st. It took four extra days. So instead of saying it was complete on June 4th she came up with, ” At least you made your goal of May, it’s just May 35th”.Take your pick !!!!
I have openings for three students. I teach improvisation, composition and “creativity”. My group “35 Days in May” is an example of my work (jazz/fusion/urban R&B and “as some have referred to it as tri-hop or acid jazz”)…. which is my resume.www.newindieartists.com/35daysinmay/
I am only accepting advanced students that are serious about learning.
If you are interested please call 703.988.9705 or e mail me at jeff@newindieartists.com
Bass Line is done. Sal DeRaffele came thru as he always does with a great bass line. I started out by having Sal just play thru the entire tune. After a few attempts we realized that this piece was like a suite. So we approached it in sections……… as usual this composition is eclectic in nature …. I should have it posted soon so you can listen.
April 6th was the 8th time AEIC was a main sponsor for the Annual Fairfax County Bookmark Contest. There will always be concern from parents about their kids and drugs. I run a non profit called Arts & Education In Concert (AEIC), that specifically addresses the issues with drugs and teenagers, head on. One of our high school programs, called Project X, was about creating a CD where the AEIC staff had a question and answer session about drugs and violence, then incorporated this session with music from the kids. Here’s an example: Question:What has been a positive influence in your life to discourage you from taking drugs?Song:You Can’t Handle the Truthby Jerryl ‘ACY’ Chandler and Jerome “Jay Cap” Young. Since I’ve been working with teens since 1995 , the response to “why they do drugs” has always been the same .. Anyone wanna guess the reason ??
So when I shave in the morning I use Gillette Foam ….. it always reminds me of when I went downtown (Washington DC), on 14th street, to Ewell’s Barber Shop. This was in the ’60s … so I wasn’t shaving yet. But watching my dad and grandfather get a shave with that straight edge and the way the barber would keep it sharp with the leather strap, was Oh so cool….
Ewell’s was where all the sports personalities would come and get a haircut when they were in town …. the professional wrestlers anyway. I met Bobo Brazil, Dr. Jerry Graham and Gorilla Monsoon. I remember 14th street was …… hmmmmm ….. a little risque ……… but again so very cool…….. having venues like, the Casino Royale, The Blue Mirror, the Red Slipper and others.
I also remember my barber’s name …. Link….. and the barber across from him, I think his name was Remy. There were about 20 chairs altogether and the women that gave you manicures were always great.
Still working on the bass line to “beam dream” on “the Einstein Concert” CD. ”Beam Dream” is about when Einstein imagined what it would be like to ride a beam of light. this is where is all began …… imagination !!!!!!!!!
So I saw this TV Show the other night on the Science channel. Way over my head …… but talked about (carbon molecules) and how that proves (along with Einstein’s theory about time) that we can accomplish time travel.Once they build that machine …… sign me up !!!