A fool's pilgrimage part one: Endings and Beginnings......
Yikes almighty...
I feel like I have a lot to talk about, so I'm going to.
Let's start with Julie's graduation:
April 20th(ish)2007:
My little coo-coo fairy, Jujubee finally graduated from AMDA. She was cast in her showcase in a duet with her buddy Kim singing a medley of 'Just Around the Riverbend' and 'Colors of the Wind' from Pocahontas. She was also a featured soloist in the Finale. (which was 'Someday' from 'Hunchback'.) The show definitely had it's ups and downs, but she was definitely the highlight. (Not saying I'm biased or anything...hehehe...) Her graduation speaker was Mr. Ken Page. (the voice of Oogie Boogie in 'Nightmare Before Christmas, the original Old Deuteronomy in 'Cats', Max Washington in the film of 'Dreamgirls' etc etc...) He of course did an amazing job as always. He conveyed to the new graduates that 'Artists are necessary. YOU are necessary.' I couldn't help but smile to myself and think how lucky I was to have him as a TEACHER while I attended AMDA. We were spoiled in those days (2005...such a long time ago it was). Anyway, Julie's whole family came and it was fun to see them all. They packed up her stuff and left on Monday, leaving Patty and Julie behind for me and Sean to enjoy for a couple days.
That Monday night we (meaning Patty, Deborah and Myself) headed to the Roxy where the line-up was as follows: Bleu, Graham Colton, Phantom Planet, Rooney (I think I forgot someone in there...sorry!)The only bands that were missing were Maroon 5 and Hanson! (ha.) Of course we went to see Bleu, and it really ended up being quite the fiasco. He always takes a little extra time to set up. Usually this is a good thing because when Bleu plays live with his band, the sound is always full, and the set it always great because he has guest players and SO much music to play that it's pretty much impossible for the set-list to suck....Or so I thought. I am of FIRM belief that anyone who plays at the Roxy should regret it. The venue , while in a good location, pretty much sucks. The sound system sucks, the way the stage is set up sucks, the two drink minimum sucks (unless I have money...then it's ok.) Our Bleu Boy had SO much gear set up for SO many people to play that it maxed out the Roxy's system. The first two songs he played we couldn't hear his vocals, and then he spent so much time trying to make a keyboard work (instead of playing another song...that's what I would've done) that he only played I think...Patty will remember this...4 or 5 songs? SO not worth my ten bucks. Come back, BLEU! (I'm SUCH a fangirl...lol)
Luckily the night could pretty much only get better because I myself had a gig two blocks away at the Cat Club. After Bleu's set we left the Roxy and got something to eat. I didn't play till 11ish so when we got into the Cat Club, I greeted Ian, and D, P, and I went upstairs to chill out for a bit while we waited for everyone to arrive. Slowly Sean and Emilee showed up, as well as all my friends who come out every 3rd Monday just to see me play some tunes. (They rock!) This show was really fun for me by the time we finally got on stage (The girl playing before us totally cut into Lyndzie's set with her full live band...on acoustic night...it was annoying.) because it was the first time that Lyndzie and I played together! We just did one song "One More Girl" by Patty Griffin in the style of 'The Wreckers'. I made a joke saying that we were 'The Fixers'...it wasn't very funny. Lyndzie's set was great as usual. I always enjoy watching her play. She's so consistent and seamless with her songs. I still get a little nervous and have some choppy moments. Not like I used to though, thank goodness. My set went great! Played a couple new tunes and afterwards 10 or 12 people I didn't even know came up and said hi, shook my hand, said they enjoyed it, asked for my myspace link, etc. It was AWESOME! (yes...I relish in capturing the attention of 12 people, it's a big achievement for me, ok? ;) ) After that we headed home and went to bed.
We spent the next couple days pretty much fooling around. Went to the beach and whatnot. We had a plan to leave for UT on Wednesday but decided mid-Tuesday to switch it to Thursday so that we could make sure to get everything done. Thank God because I was really overwhelmed. We had recently re-arranged our office and are still in the middle of making it more functional and organized. I had a recording session on Tuesday night, and after we'd decided not to go till Thursday, an idea dawned on me..."I should write something, have these guys learn it, and record it tonight for Tulsa..."
Well of course once I get an idea like that in my head, it's REALLY hard to turn back. I spent the next hour banging around on the keyboard trying to literally rush together a song that could sum up 10 years of our favorite music. I found a hook, borrowed some lyrics (only SOME...hahaha), all I needed were some harmonies. So I called Sean, Julie, and Patty and made them come over and learn it. It was a quick process because we all learned how to sing harmony together because of Hanson way back in '97. We'd always say 'Ok on this song, you're Isaac, you're Taylor...' and we'd fight over who was Zac depending on the song cause no one wanted to sing the high part. ANYWAY, we headed to Marc's, did the piano track in one take, the lead vocal in one take, the background vocals in 3 takes (just to get doubles/levels), and then Marc threw some bass on it, mixed it, and in 3 hours of work, we had a song to give Hanson for their 10th Anniversary. Pretty cool eh? You can hear it, here if you want...just remember folks...3 hours from writing it to the mix...don't judge! Sing It Again
Thursday we piled into the Elantra and headed for Salt Lake! I managed to capture this VERY cute picture of my little cherubs sleeping in the back seat.
Awww...=0)
The drive went a lot faster than usual thank goodness. Only 9 hours! Woot! We dropped Pat, Ju and their stuff off then went home.
I spent the next week with family and friends and follow-up appointments. (JOY!) My cousin Kim, My Aunt Deb, Sean, Jordan and I had an actual sleepover camper-style. I have to say that I was quite anti-social during it as I assembled the cds in their home-made packaging for our boys. Wanna see?
Daisies and Roses...yup I went there.
The Pensives Soldier
The Bleeding Fool
The Weekday Warrior
I pretty much didn't sleep that Thursday, at 5:20 a.m. Jordan and I left the Kenner's and headed to pick up Stephanie...the fun was about to begin!
I feel like I have a lot to talk about, so I'm going to.
Let's start with Julie's graduation:
April 20th(ish)2007:
My little coo-coo fairy, Jujubee finally graduated from AMDA. She was cast in her showcase in a duet with her buddy Kim singing a medley of 'Just Around the Riverbend' and 'Colors of the Wind' from Pocahontas. She was also a featured soloist in the Finale. (which was 'Someday' from 'Hunchback'.) The show definitely had it's ups and downs, but she was definitely the highlight. (Not saying I'm biased or anything...hehehe...) Her graduation speaker was Mr. Ken Page. (the voice of Oogie Boogie in 'Nightmare Before Christmas, the original Old Deuteronomy in 'Cats', Max Washington in the film of 'Dreamgirls' etc etc...) He of course did an amazing job as always. He conveyed to the new graduates that 'Artists are necessary. YOU are necessary.' I couldn't help but smile to myself and think how lucky I was to have him as a TEACHER while I attended AMDA. We were spoiled in those days (2005...such a long time ago it was). Anyway, Julie's whole family came and it was fun to see them all. They packed up her stuff and left on Monday, leaving Patty and Julie behind for me and Sean to enjoy for a couple days.
That Monday night we (meaning Patty, Deborah and Myself) headed to the Roxy where the line-up was as follows: Bleu, Graham Colton, Phantom Planet, Rooney (I think I forgot someone in there...sorry!)The only bands that were missing were Maroon 5 and Hanson! (ha.) Of course we went to see Bleu, and it really ended up being quite the fiasco. He always takes a little extra time to set up. Usually this is a good thing because when Bleu plays live with his band, the sound is always full, and the set it always great because he has guest players and SO much music to play that it's pretty much impossible for the set-list to suck....Or so I thought. I am of FIRM belief that anyone who plays at the Roxy should regret it. The venue , while in a good location, pretty much sucks. The sound system sucks, the way the stage is set up sucks, the two drink minimum sucks (unless I have money...then it's ok.) Our Bleu Boy had SO much gear set up for SO many people to play that it maxed out the Roxy's system. The first two songs he played we couldn't hear his vocals, and then he spent so much time trying to make a keyboard work (instead of playing another song...that's what I would've done) that he only played I think...Patty will remember this...4 or 5 songs? SO not worth my ten bucks. Come back, BLEU! (I'm SUCH a fangirl...lol)
Luckily the night could pretty much only get better because I myself had a gig two blocks away at the Cat Club. After Bleu's set we left the Roxy and got something to eat. I didn't play till 11ish so when we got into the Cat Club, I greeted Ian, and D, P, and I went upstairs to chill out for a bit while we waited for everyone to arrive. Slowly Sean and Emilee showed up, as well as all my friends who come out every 3rd Monday just to see me play some tunes. (They rock!) This show was really fun for me by the time we finally got on stage (The girl playing before us totally cut into Lyndzie's set with her full live band...on acoustic night...it was annoying.) because it was the first time that Lyndzie and I played together! We just did one song "One More Girl" by Patty Griffin in the style of 'The Wreckers'. I made a joke saying that we were 'The Fixers'...it wasn't very funny. Lyndzie's set was great as usual. I always enjoy watching her play. She's so consistent and seamless with her songs. I still get a little nervous and have some choppy moments. Not like I used to though, thank goodness. My set went great! Played a couple new tunes and afterwards 10 or 12 people I didn't even know came up and said hi, shook my hand, said they enjoyed it, asked for my myspace link, etc. It was AWESOME! (yes...I relish in capturing the attention of 12 people, it's a big achievement for me, ok? ;) ) After that we headed home and went to bed.
We spent the next couple days pretty much fooling around. Went to the beach and whatnot. We had a plan to leave for UT on Wednesday but decided mid-Tuesday to switch it to Thursday so that we could make sure to get everything done. Thank God because I was really overwhelmed. We had recently re-arranged our office and are still in the middle of making it more functional and organized. I had a recording session on Tuesday night, and after we'd decided not to go till Thursday, an idea dawned on me..."I should write something, have these guys learn it, and record it tonight for Tulsa..."
Well of course once I get an idea like that in my head, it's REALLY hard to turn back. I spent the next hour banging around on the keyboard trying to literally rush together a song that could sum up 10 years of our favorite music. I found a hook, borrowed some lyrics (only SOME...hahaha), all I needed were some harmonies. So I called Sean, Julie, and Patty and made them come over and learn it. It was a quick process because we all learned how to sing harmony together because of Hanson way back in '97. We'd always say 'Ok on this song, you're Isaac, you're Taylor...' and we'd fight over who was Zac depending on the song cause no one wanted to sing the high part. ANYWAY, we headed to Marc's, did the piano track in one take, the lead vocal in one take, the background vocals in 3 takes (just to get doubles/levels), and then Marc threw some bass on it, mixed it, and in 3 hours of work, we had a song to give Hanson for their 10th Anniversary. Pretty cool eh? You can hear it, here if you want...just remember folks...3 hours from writing it to the mix...don't judge! Sing It Again
Thursday we piled into the Elantra and headed for Salt Lake! I managed to capture this VERY cute picture of my little cherubs sleeping in the back seat.
Awww...=0)
The drive went a lot faster than usual thank goodness. Only 9 hours! Woot! We dropped Pat, Ju and their stuff off then went home.
I spent the next week with family and friends and follow-up appointments. (JOY!) My cousin Kim, My Aunt Deb, Sean, Jordan and I had an actual sleepover camper-style. I have to say that I was quite anti-social during it as I assembled the cds in their home-made packaging for our boys. Wanna see?
Daisies and Roses...yup I went there.
The Pensives Soldier
The Bleeding Fool
The Weekday Warrior
I pretty much didn't sleep that Thursday, at 5:20 a.m. Jordan and I left the Kenner's and headed to pick up Stephanie...the fun was about to begin!