Tag Archives: Music

A Childs Nightmare

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I released this song about a month ago now.

I hope you guys have been enjoying it!

If you haven’t heard it yet, take a listen here:

It is a song that kind of came out of no-where. I was not planning on writing a song at all. In fact I was playing my guitar earlier that night and was just frustrated with it so I put it away.

My son was in bed one rainy night and woke up crying and screaming uncontrollably. I thought at first that it was a night terror and that perhaps he would go back to sleep. Well, after a few moments I realized that he was definitely up.
He had this severity and urgency in his voice.
I walked into his room and he stood up immediately, reached for me and began to exclaim “Daddy come here!”. I picked him up and he just wailed on my shoulder. He threw his arms around my neck and buried his head in my chest as if his life depended on it.
I asked him if he was ok and he replied a very shaky, tear filled “yes”.
He couldn’t really remember what he was dreaming about, or maybe he was too scared to express it, but either way, it was real, it was intense and it was scary.
I was just glad that I was able to be there with him.

We eventually sat on the floor and he sat in my lap with his back up against my chest. His breathing was beginning to slow back down to a normal pace with the exception of a occasional sigh.

To watch my son experience this just broke my heart, but the moments during and after this are things that I hope to never forget.

Children really are a blessing and they remind me of that in the strangest times!

I can still quite vividly remember some of my nightmares as a child. And to this day, they feel quite real, quite intense and pretty scary. While I don’t know much about nightmares, I feel like they have their purpose, their place and their meanings. In some ways, they remind me of something so much bigger than our mundane day to day activities.
As a result of this night and all of these thoughts, I picked up my guitar fairly late that night, and this song came out of it.
I really like this song and am quite excited about it.
I hope that you all enjoy it to.

Please let me know what you think! I would love to hear from you guys!

Until next time.

Be well!

Jonathan.

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Album update and Random info

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Hey everybody!!!

 I hope that you can forgive my absence of communication as of late, but I have been busy with some good things too!
For those of you who read my last post about finishing things, you can read that here, I would like to update all of you on the progress that has been made.
First off, I gave myself a public deadline of finishing one song per month. That was in January that I posted it. Well, the really great news is that I am ahead of schedule. In fact I have 6 songs recorded and am working on 4 more. I should have those done within the next two months.
Artwork: well, my friend Michael who owns MichaelEllis Art (click the link to check his stuff out, it rocks!) and I have struck a deal and have been corresponding back and forth. As it were, he has delivered the first sketches about two weeks ago. I was blown away by them. They were better than I could have imagined. It just goes to show you that some things are best farmed out. His artistic expression is way better than anything I could have come up with. Plus, producing all of this myself, I feel like its better to have a professional artist intrepret my creativity.
I can’t hide behind a wall of excuses anymore and my hope is with all of this is that you guys will help keep me accountable. So far so good! Some of you have checked up on me and have asked me hard questions. I really appreciate that!
I can’t share to many details about art or song previews, but I am really excited about this. I may give snibbits here and there, but for now, its Top Secret!
In the mean time, I did release a song with a friend of mine Matt from the band SatelliteReBoot. Click the link on his name to check out his other stuff as well. You can listen to the song we collaborated on here!
I really enjoyed working with him and he was such a catalyst for me to get my rear end moving on my goals of releasing music.
That is all for now. Stay tuned for more updates in the coming weeks!
Be well!
Jonathan

Can I finish anything?… Yes I can

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I absolutely love creating music.
I love it when inspiration comes and ideas just start flowing. It is very organic and natural.
The recording process is another story. It’s almost like once the click track starts, I get so nervous and the emotion of the music is stripped from me. It becomes too technical and less about the joy of playing.
I have all of these songs that are written but I struggle so much with finishing them.
All the guitars are recorded, all that is left is bass, percussion and fills. A bit of mixing, then having someone master it.
But I can’t seem to finish them. I feel so overwhelmed. I question if each song is good enough.
I understand how things get done.
One piece at a time, but I think I have become paralyzed by the amount of work that must be done, and all the steps that will get me there.
I think that because there are no outside pressures or deadlines, it is easy for me to drag this thing out and beat these songs to death. There is always more that could be added, but are all those minute changes really necessary?
I need deadlines, I need goals, I need limitations and I need accountability!!
That is what this is really about.
Limitations, Deadlines, Goals and Accountability.
So as I think about this, I have decided to finish just ONE song a month. Start to finish. It is an attainable goal and one that will produce results.
During each month I will post updates along the way as to how the process is going.
I need your help!
Check in on me, ask me how things are going!
As always, thank you so much for taking the time to read this – I appreciate you, your support and encouragement!!
Jonathan.

The Anticipation of Arrival.

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Back up two and a half years, and you have my wife and I anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first son Noah.

   So it’s the weekend before my first son’s arrival into this world. My wife is full term and then some at this point. We had just come from the hospital since her midwife said to go to the hospital immediately to get a few tests because she was past her due date at this point.. We were planning on having a “natural childbirth”, which meant no drugs, no epidural and no labor induction.
    While at the hospital, the nurse said, before even receiving the results of the tests, “well, lets get you ready, we will induce you and get this thing going.”
Aaaahhhh, excuse me, NO!
     So the doctor came in and he could tell that we would have no part of this and allowed us to go home for a few more days, but with strict orders to be on bed rest. Which meant, no getting up unless you need to go to the bathroom.            Humph…. well, at least we were giving this boy the time he needed to “get ready” to come into this world. So home we went. My wife did as she was instructed and rested, I did the husbandly duties of fetching what ever she needed. But in the off times, i.e. her naps. I went into the studio and began to work out a song.
    I was so freaking nervous but at the same time extremely excited to meet this little guy. So I prayed, A LOT and played my guitar, equally as much. As I was working out this progression of notes all I could think about was getting to hold this little guy and I was imagining the tears of joy that I would surely have. I also had a massive wave of fear of becoming a father and the responsibility that goes with that for the rest of my life.  I was on edge, and these notes and chords really calmed me down.
    A few more days hours passed and we were off to the hospital to s-l-o-w-l-y welcome this little dude into the world.
    This is the first song that I have written for him, and I hope that it will not be the last either. It is also the first song he ever listened to. He would be fussy and just upset, and I would bring him into the studio and he would nestle in my arms and just take a deep breath in and a deep slow breath out, and listen. Even to this day, every time I play this song for him, he calms right down and listens intently.  It is such a blessing and a huge joy to share this with him.
  This is my Anticipation of Arrival.

The Patter of Little Toes

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I was playing a series of notes in a drop D tuning about a year and a half ago. I really liked the natural progression of the notes and just couldn’t get the melody out of my head.
    I remember playing with my son one day while my wife was out and about. Noah and I were in the living room and he was not quite mobile yet. He was able to roll over but not able to crawl.
     As we were in the living room, he was laying on his back looking up at me with this drooly smile and giggling quite a bit. I was playing this particular song but I didn’t have a title for it yet. I had all the rhythm parts down and an idea of where I wanted the song to go with all the different parts but it was still “under construction”.
    Noah loved to spend time on his back with his feet and hands stretched up in the air. Something he still enjoys doing I might add.  I would take his feet and make them clap like a pair of hands and he would just laugh and seemed to really enjoy the strangeness, craziness, and goofiness of his dad.
    So as I was playing this particular song for him, he had his feet out-stretched upward towards the sky, his toes were wiggling like crazy and he was smiling and shrieking like a  pterodactyl.  So it seemed to fit the moment and it stuck.
    The real inspiration for the song came one day as I just became overwhelmed with emotion as I looked at this little guy sleeping in his crib and thinking about what interactions would be like once he became mobile. I couldn’t help but be reminded of my childhood, and if any of you know me, you know that I have always had two speeds, ON and OFF.  Which Noah has now received from his dad. Hahaha.
    I was really laughing at some of the things that I did in my childhood, like chase my parents around the house with a hose just before we had to go to a wedding. My parents were less that thrilled! I can’t remember if I actually soaked them or not, but imagine my folks enthusiasm while their child tried to ruin their really nice clothes on a hot Minnesota day just before a big wedding. Not the best decision I ever made! My mom reminded me of that story many times growing up and we could laugh about it. So I expect to have many, MANY experiences that we can laugh at down the road.
    But now that he is mobile and running around our house like a wild man, I will enjoy hearing The Patter of Little Toes, but also the screaming helps announce his presence too!
    Thanks for taking the time to read this!

The News of Another Son

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This song title came from the fears, excitement, joys and hopes that come from expecting a second child. In some ways, I am not as freaked out about what is coming, but in other ways, I have no idea what to expect. This particular song was written as I thought about the joy of what is coming.

    I am so stoked that we are having another boy. Truth be told, I was really hoping for a velociraptor, but a boy works too! Hahaha! My wife on the other hand was hoping for a girl, but we knew that we would not be disappointed either way. As we were watching this little guy on the monitor at the Dr’s office, I was just amazed that we could really see this little guy moving around and all of his different parts. Which I have to tell you, one of the first things we saw was his “boyish” features. We both new right away before the technician told us that we were having a boy. Just the fact that we can see this human moving around inside the womb of mommy is pretty incredible. I mean think about it, this lil dude is swimming around right now and we have the ability to watch him do what he does in there. We could see his lungs moving, his blood flow, his heart beat, his hands move and toes wiggle. Just incredible!
    To be a father is kinda scary, but it is the biggest blessing and I can’t imagine life without out my son. Don’t get me wrong, parenting has its challenges, but to watch them grow and figure things out is just amazing. Every day they learn new things, say new things, and do new things. I anticipate that there will be much laughter in our house with the interaction of our first son and his little brother.
    This song is really written from my anticipation of watching this little guy grow up. To see what he will do to test things, how he will learn things, and those really amazing sounds that newborns make, like the shrieks of pterodactyls flying in the sky, or the joyous smiles that have not been tainted from the outside world. I have absolutely no idea what this little guy will be like, but I know that no matter what, I will love him more than I could ever explain. So as I process the reality that we are about to have another child, I can’t help but be overwhelmed with a unexplainable joy for the arrival of this little guy. This is a glimpse into the inspiration of this song.

Microphone syndrome

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Microphone Syndrome

I had a gig this weekend for a benefit run for The Forgotten Foundation, which is a great group of people doing some really great things!
   A friend asked me to play some music for the event and I gladly accepted! I practiced my songs and threw in some hymns that would be familiar to many people, but I did not think about what I would say during the breaks between all these songs.
   I have this thing about me, if you put an instrument in my hand, I cannot stop playing it. But, if you put a microphone in front of me, I clam up and struggle to say anything.
    I wonder sometimes if other musicians have trouble with what to say, or how to preface a song before they sing it. With instrumental music, a song may have a particular meaning to me, but to someone else it may be quite a bit different. This makes it difficult to know what to share before I play it.
   I think that deep down, even though I want to share my music with people, I have a bit of stage fright. It’s not bad or wrong; it’s just something I have to work on. I have always really enjoyed smaller venues, because I like the intimacy of those types of shows, but being so close to a person who is right in front of you and is watching your hands move and your feet touch different pedals makes me focus too much on the perfection of what I am doing, that I ultimately mess up. It is something that I need to work on; I really enjoy playing, but the pressure that I put on myself is hard for me set aside sometimes.
   I really enjoy playing the guitar and writing music, but interacting with people live is one thing that I will have to work on in the coming days. My goal is to connect with people and make them feel like they are a part of the event. I don’t know if it will get easier, but I want to be better at it, and the only way I know how to do that, is to do it. So that means booking more gigs and trying things out as they happen to come.
 Have you struggled with this?  How have you overcome it, or worked through it? I would love to hear!

Some of my favorite instruments.

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This is the first in a series of posts about some of my favorite instruments:

 
 
A Martin HD-28E Retro 
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 I really enjoy the warmth, tone and feel of a good acoustic guitar. They just have this organic, natural sound that really speaks to me. I love the way that a player can really articulate a feeling with how hard or how soft they play on it, or if they play with a pick or the tips of their fingers.  
    My goal through this is to hopefully help you see and understand some of the tools that I use, and for my musician friends to give you a detailed look at the gear that I use. So I will start with my Martin HD-28E Retro.
    It is based off of a 1941 Martin guitar. Now, I have never played an actual 1941 guitar before so I have no idea how close it is to the original, but it looks nice and sounds amazing. I would probably be truly freaked out and super nervous if I had the chance to play one though. 

 The head stock is that signature Martin Guitar Company which I really like because it is very simple and clean.

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    I use this guitar a lot for most of my hard strumming and driving rhythms since it stays really clear and crisp at higher decibels. I will tell you, IT IS LOUD!
     Being a full bodied guitar, it projects the sound very well. You can wail on this thing as hard as you want and it doesn’t muddy the sound. It has a great feel and is not too big or too small. 
     The neck of this guitar is based off of Martin’s performing artist series. My hands don’t hurt after an hour or two of playing like it has on various other guitars.  It’s super comfortable to play, and hard to put down.
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   It took me a while to decide on this particular guitar. I had a check list of things that I wanted in a new acoustic. One being a dreadnought, which means that it has sort of “D” shaped body, the right combination of tone woods, a slim neck, and a comfortable feel in my hands. Not too big or too bulky.  Looks were not that important to me because I don’t really want a guitar that is super flashy. Shiny is okay, but I don’t like busyness on a guitar. I guess the word I would use to describe it is subtle or possibly vintage. 
    The guitar’s top is a Solid Sitka Spruce, which is kind of a standard for most acoustics. It is pretty strong but also has very good elastics which allow the guitar to sound good whether played lightly or hard.
 
    The back and sides of the guitar are made from East Indian Rosewood, which has a really broad range of sounds. It delivers good bass, mid range and treble for almost all styles of music, plus it has a gorgeous pattern and a beautiful and rich color.
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  One of the many reasons I love this guitar is its sound, not only unplugged,  but plugged in as well. Truthfully, thats where this thing really sings. While going through an amplifier or P.A. system, it just sounds amazing to me. It still has that warm, unplugged feel. Some acoustics sound terrible plugged in, but the Fishman Aura Plus system is incredible! Now, it has taken quite some time for me to dial in the tone that I really like, which is important to do because you don’t want your sound too trebly or too bassy. If it has too much bass, the sound gets really muddy and the guitar is not clear, and if it has too much treble, it can pierce the ears and be offensive. It’s a delicate balance, and one thing to keep in mind, tone is subjective. 
   So in short, I really enjoy the ease of playability, comfort of holding it and the sounds that come from this guitar. All in all, it is a very versatile guitar that I hope to be able to play and bless others with for years to come. 
   This is one of the tools that I use to create, write, record and play music on. The guitar has always been a great way for me to communicate without messing it all up with words. 
 
Thanks for taking the time to read this!
 
What is something that helps you to get your ideas out? I would love to hear from you!

Mistakes

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Mistakes….

So, I haven’t been around a long time, but I have played with some really amazing musicians and bands. Or at least I think they are. Song writers, to folk bands, and even gospel choirs. What we all have in common is our capacity to make mistakes.  No one is immune!
Let me start this off by painting a picture for you. I was leading worship at church a little over a year ago. It was just me and my guitar and a back-up vocalist. I started the worship service, thinking that it would be really cool to start the song out acapella and then come in strumming hard. Yeah, well, that didn’t go so well, I started the song in the wrong key and it got all messed up. We quickly got back on track, but I was less than thrilled to start the sercive out like that. Then halfway through the second song, I got a bit lost and started hitting the wrong chords all together. I got so lost that I had to stop the song all together. I spoke into the microphone, and laughing, said, “well, this is just a perfect reminder of how imperfect we are”. Oh, it was a mess! We just started the song over. But after that, I was completely loosened up and the rest of the service went pretty smoothly.
This might sound weird, but I think Mistakes are good! Im going to say that again,  MISTAKES ARE GOOD! Here’s why:
 I am not saying that we shouldn’t take the time required to prepare, rehearse, practice and polish our chops. But what I am saying is, don’t let a mistake stop you from doing what you enjoy and love to do. It’s easy to get really down on yourself and be tempted to quit altogether when you make a mistake, but that in itself would be a BIG mistake! Here’s what I mean:
  If mistakes don’t happen, then you can’t get better.  We learn from how we mess up.
Who reading this is perfect?………. Oh thats right, none of us are…
Here’s a challenge for us both:  What if, one person in the audience saw your performance, watched you mess up one song so bad that you had to stop and start it over again? What if they needed to see that to be reminded that we all mess up? What if one person is encouraged by that one indication of your humanity?
Again, I have to emphasize that we SHOULD practice, prepare, rehearse, etc. However, even when we practice till we are blue in the face, some days are really good and everything clicks, but some days are really brutal. In music, as in life, accept it, reflect on it, but then move on!
 I say this as much to myself as to you:  Mistakes are not defeats!
    They are fantastic tools to push you to better things.
I can say, that I have seen some pretty bad performances, and have listened to some really bad recordings and songs. But, I will say this, I respect the person who gets up after a defeat(mistake), collects his or her thoughts, rethinks his or her approach, spends some more time working things out and tries again.  It reveals character and perseverance.
Yes, our egos might be bruised after big mistakes, but we really need to learn to drop our pride and let people see our imperfect and real selves. In my experience, you can actually have a deeper connection with a musician (or vice versa, with a  fan) when your imperfection has not been covered up and hidden away.
I hope that this helps you, and maybe gets the creative juices flowing again.
As always, Thank you for taking the time to read this and be a part of this!
How have you used mistakes to help you or to grow your art in some way?  I would love to hear your stories!