Music affects us all in different ways. We are drawn to music for different reasons, at different times, and in different moods. We enjoy different styles, genres, and singers, and still music is a prevalent and profound aspect of every one of our lives. Music can affect how we feel about ourselves and about others, it influences our perspectives in every day life inasmuch as when we are watching movies and television; music animates our spirituality. Music is a reflection of ourselves that we might otherwise never relate to or share if it didn't feel like our favorite musicians weren’t sometimes singing directly to us, influencing our lives. Because, music is the closest that we’ll come to knowing that we might all think and feel in a similar way.
         Throughout my life my own musical interests have varied greatly, and in order to establish some credibility in the way of taking on the pressure of writing a music blog, I believe that it is important for my readers to know the following:
- My childhood was spent listening to the Rolling Stones, Van Halen, the Doobie Brothers, the Guess Who, the Beatles, Eric Clapton, Simon and Garfunkel, Pink Floyd, Kenny Loggins, Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Jimmy Buffett, (and others).
- The 90's for me was a compilation of the Smashing Pumpkins, Tim McGraw, Blink 182, John Michael Montgomery, Jeff Buckley, Third Eye Blind, Merle Haggard, Nirvana, Alison Krauss, the Eagles, R.E.M., Bush, Dinosaur Jr., Weezer, Willie Nelson, the Beach Boys, Trisha Yearwood, Matchbox 20, Metallica, Reba McEntire, Elliot Smith, Garth Brooks, (and others).
- The millennium was an exploration of Hardcore Punk (of the late 80's and early 90's, there's just too many to name), Indie Rock, and Indie Folk.
- The last decade I have settled pretty firmly and comfortably as a folk music devotee.
         I have had the great pleasure and unbelievable luck to have stood at stage right while Ray Lamontagne and Brandi Carlisle performed together on a field outside of Missoula, Montana; it was nothing short of miracle making Lamontagne's performance because it required flying from the Santa Fe airport to LAX and then to Seattle-Tacoma International where I boarded a twinjet plane, that made an emergency landing in Spokane, before finally landing in Missoula at only God knows what time of morning. I happened upon Andrew Bird playing at the Guggenheim while aimlessly wandering on one of my days off of work while living in New York City. I experienced a crowd rushing the stage at a Black Flag concert in San Antonio, at the last Warped Tour I attended.
I have sipped on a Happy Camper IPA at the Santa Fe Brewing Co. while Xavier Rudd and Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins shared their souls, completely with an intimate crowed. I danced while Neko Case, the Roots, Josh Ritter, Crooked Fingers, and Broken Social Scene performed at the Twilight Concert Series in downtown Salt Lake City. I was moved nearly to tears while Beirut performed on a small stage in a giant warehouse. I listened, in unbelievable awe, while Cat Stevens and Ozzy Osbourne performed a dueling Peace and Crazy Trains intermittently on the lawn of the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. I knew every word to every song that Garth Brooks sang when he came back to San Antonio after an 18-year hiatus. Stood near frozen when watching Sufjan Stevens at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas, dressed as a Majestic Snowbird. I watched Hawk and a Hacksaw perform on the deck of Meow Wolf's "Due Return." And I discovered, what would become a lifelong obsession, for Brown Bird while in concert at a recording studio in northern New Mexico.
     Music has been one of the most influential factors of my life, I cannot imagine a life without the harmony that music has created for me, and the clarity that it has afforded. I had a musical upbringing, my mom can pick up any instrument and within a few hours can play it proficiently and by ear, while my father is a classically trained pianist; I play the guitar, the banjo, the piano, the saxophone, and the drums and although I don't play much for anyone anymore, making music will remain a form of expression when nothing else will do.
I wrote a music column for a newspaper in the Texas Hill Country and although this music blog will not be the primary focus of my writing, the impact that music has on me is profound enough to want to have a separate place to share when I write about the musicians and songs that influence me, as well as the shows that I attend, and new music that I discover. I’m always open to what people think and how they feel on the topic (and every topic), and the new musicians and music that I may be unaware of.