So I’m thinking I may buy a digital camera and start taking pictures of my weekend excursions and posting them here. Perhaps it would give people who have never been to Nashville a glimpse of what the city is like and when I travel I can share those photos too. I think it may be a good way to turn my focus outward instead of inward. Plus, it will encourage me to try new things so I can share them. It should be therapeutic. I find that lately I tend to focus more on the negative than the positive and it isn’t helping much. I want to change that way of thinking. Evening melancholy should just be a station name not a perpetual state of mind.
I figure I’d start with a photo from last weekend. I went to play paintball with a few of my coworkers. Never played before but it was fun. If you’ve never played, let me give you a little advice. Never shoot someone point blank in the crotch. Apparently, that’s frowned upon. Who knew? Anyway, hopefully this will be a fun hobby.
 Below is a picture of me (left), a guy named Brett and a guy named Mangal. When someone first mentioned paintball I heard it as Paint Ball. Two words. A colorful gala with champagne and dancing and (duh) paint. Thus, the jacket and tie. Silly me. Actually, I got the jacket from Goodwill for 99 cents and I snatched the tie from some six year old on his way to his first communion. Poor tyke. Brett, with his intimidating glare, reeked of intensity and danger. Mangal, with his boyish grin, reeked of cheap bourbon.
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Do you know what’s so great about an epiphany? It can change your whole perspective on things. One minute you’re looking at the world one way then, in an instant, everything changes. Whether it be a note or a word from a friend or just time itself. However the epiphany comes, it is most welcomed, even if it causes pain in its enlightenment.
I went more for the modern day artists this time around. Don’t worry, this will not become a trend. I will always play about 75-80% of the classic musicians and crooners. We’re trying to keep them from being forgotten.
Dianne Reeves - A Little Moonlight - I never really listened to Dianne Reeves until the movie Good Night, and Good Luck. That was my first real exposure. It left me wanting more. So I picked up this cd. Granted, it is a little polished, but not so much that I found it a distraction. A nice cd.
Wynton Marsalis - The Midnight Blues - Besides his Christmas album, I have never owned a Wynton Marsalis album. Can you believe that? Anyway, I really enjoyed this one. Very good. Not great. The thing with playing with strings is you are always in danger of being limited by the orchestration. Charlie Parker rose above it. Clifford Brown, not so much, although his version of Stardust is a masterpiece, in my opinion. Marsalis does well here but more on the level of Brownie rather than Bird.
Dianne Schuur - The Best of Diane Schuur - I once worked for a guy who gave me a Diane Schuur cd when he found out I enjoyed jazz. I don’t think I ever listened to it, more because of who gave it to me rather than who was on the cd. Anyway, this is a nice cd. Again, not great, but I got it based on her versions of Round Midnight and Sunday Kind of Love. Now, you must remember I am an old school listener, so I am not as taken with the newer musicians as others may be. Although, I love Harry Connick Jr. and I am finding that some of you do not care for him at all! I hope you can suffer through him as I will not be removing him from the station. Sorry. He had me at When Harry Met Sally… Anyway, I got off track. The Schuur album is decent. Round Midnight is my favorite track here.
Diana Krall - All for You - Although, some of you do not like Connick, I find that most seem to enjoy Ms. Krall’s (or should I say Mrs. Costello’s) music. This is a very, very nice cd. Krall is a wonderful pianist, and despite the fact that I don’t think that technically she has the greatest voice, she does get plenty of cool points on having a unique voice. When you hear Diana Krall sing, you know it is Diana Krall. I saw her live for the first time last summer here in Nashville. I was very impressed. I am an immense Nat Cole fan, so any dedication album will get my ear. Krall does a commendable job here.
Andy Bey - American Song - The great thing about jazz is that you can listen to it for 20 years and still not know of every vocalist or musician. I am ashamed to admit that I did not know of Andy Bey until just a few months ago and now I can not get enough of him. His voice is like warm milk. And not the kind of warm milk that has been left out over night, tepid and sour. No, Bey’s voice is like the warm milk that you’ve simmered in a pot with hopes that it will bring you to soft, sweet slumber. That voice, that wonderful voice. Bey is the man. American Song is my gem of the week.
I am also adding a few downloads from the following (classic) musicians:
Dinah Shore
Arnett Cobb
Jimmy Witherspoon
Leo Parker
Willis Jackson
Coleman Hawkins
Dexter Gordon
Keep Listening!
that feeling like you’ve done the right thing is not equivalent to feeling right.