Happy New Year!
On this eve of 2009, I am grateful for so many things…my family , my friends, my opportunities to make a good living playing and writing music!!!
I spent the last 24hrs with a wonderful musical artist. Her name is RAD. She’s a keyboard player, songwriter , singer. I’d never met her before. She asked me to participate on a couple of tracks on her new disc, which is scheduled to come out this spring. We have so many mutual friends. I’m glad I said “yes”. She is wonderful …good musician, good people.. it was great fun for me. I look forward to hearing the finished CD. You can look her up…she’s a PRINCE alum. Ahhh, my friend Prince knows how to pick ‘em . This lady is very, very talented!!!!
Today was a day of reflection. A long walk provided me the perfect space for that. What an amazing year 2008 has been. It’s clearly the dawn of a new era. I am certainly encouraged by the more serious and general “concerned” clarity of the general public concerning our (American) nation’s policies, activities in the world , the environment etc. I am optimistic that we will all act on what seems to be a renewed conciousness concerning intelligence, excellence and personal responsibility.
2009 ushers in an understanding en masse about the power of the INTERNET. Our new U. S. President made his announcement for his candidacy on the “net”. How cool is that!!!???
I also heard , that within the last 24hrs or so, a major “voice” of the jazz music community has passed away. Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. This is someone , who was a major force in the music when I started really paying attention and learning about jazz. He was also , always very nice to me. He embraced many kinds of music and experienced serious success as a fantastic trumpet player and musician as well as one of the early “commercially successful ” jazz musicians. Great sound, super technique . He could read music well, play in a section and was at the same time a tremendous soloist. Wow…how he could play. As fiery a player as he was..he also had a most “colorful” personality. Some would say that at some point, this, in part, contributed to his ultimate inability to play the horn, and later in his life, his round of health issues. There are lessons there. May he rest in peace.
To all of you, who have “discovered” my site….and continue to support my efforts, I thank you!! There’s more great stuff to come that I can’t wait to share w/ you.
Love and blessings to you. May we all experience a fantastic 2009!!! Bonne année!
patrice