Behind The Music: Writing "The Recession Blues"

Couldn't sleep tonight so I got started on a new song. Wrote this one on my ukulele after playing around with the chord progression for weeks. The music started out a bit faster-paced but I slowed it down. Once I got it to a tempo I liked, I realized that it - for whatever reason - reminded me of an old black and white film. From there, I got to thinking about The Great Depression which then reminded me of the news recently about the debt ceiling and all of the financial turmoil America seems to be in these days. So I wrote the following song (audio posted below the lyrics):

Money’s tight and times are tough

But we’ve got a roof over our heads

Working hard from nine to five

Induces some stress

But at the end of the day

We’ll come home to rest

What’s the use in complaining

Things could always be worse

There are people without the means we’ve got

Let’s make do with this here lot

So Uncle Sam’s got you down

What else is new, that’s the standard fare in this town

The news is depressin’

Especially in this here recession

But dust it off, don’t wear a frown

What’s the use in complaining

Things could always be worse

There are people without the means we’ve got

Let’s make do with this here lot

[Whistle solo goes here]

We’ve made it through wars

And other manic attacks

We’ve made it through the worst

We always make a comeback

There are people without the means we’ve got

Let’s make do with this here lot

Coming Soon: The Song Book

Pictured top to bottom: My grandfather, me, and my bubbe in 2006.

My grandfather once told me that he was surprised at how thoughtful my lyrics appeared to be after he stumbled upon the CD jacket inside my first album's debut cover art.

He hadn't realized "the kinds of effort" I had put into crafting my words on top of composing an entire song.

Here's a little something for the masses: I am very proud of my lyrics. Sure -- I love zoning out with a guitar in hand and letting my emotions flow through the rhythms I play. I also love singing, on a stage or in my apartment ... or anywhere really, because that is my emotional release and adrenaline rush. But, my lyrics are the brain child behind the thrills of the stage or performing live.

My next project shouldn't be too daunting but it will take some time. Soon enough, I will have each and every one of my songs (that I feel are worthy) listed on my music site. This project is, of course, called "The Song Book".

Stay tuned for more details.

In the mean time, here's an "oldie" song from high school. I wrote it at the age of 16:

Saturday Songwriting Session: "What Am I To You"

In case you can't read my scribblings -- which I don't expect you to be able to do since they are quite reminiscent of a doctor writing a prescription -- here's a translation:

He had been living

Rent free in my head

He hadn't paid a cent

And took me for all that I had

Unfocused and confused

I'm sick of playing by his rules

Big brown eyes that smile

Don't count as an excuse

There was a time

He'd make me weak in my knees

Rosie cheeks and a quick heart beat

He'd make it so damn hard to speak

Unfocused and confused

I'm sick of playing by his rules

Big brown eyes that smile

Don't count as an excuse

There's just one question

We've yet to review

What am I to you

You think I can't see

The way you look at me

If only I had a mirror installed

For every time that we continue to meet

Unfocused and confused

I'm sick of playing by your rules

Big brown eyes that smile

Don't count as an excuse

There's just one question

We've yet to review

What am I to you

Sunday Night Demo - "Hold My Hand"

...it's not Hootie & the Blowfish. I promise. Although, "Hold My Hand" by Hootie & the Blowfish is a quality song. Hat tip to Darius Rucker.

I’m sick of being alone
But I pay my own rent
I'm painfully independent
But I’d like to take your hand

I’m reaching out now just to see
If your hand can just reach me
I’ll hold out just as long as I can
Won’t you hold my hand

Late night conversations
Are what I miss the most
I’ve still got the same couch
It feels like I’m sitting with ghosts

I’m reaching out now just to see
If your hand can just reach me
I’ll hold out just as long as I can
Won’t you hold my hand

"Hallelujah" live & How it Felt to Sing it

"American singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley, inspired by Cale's earlier cover, recorded one of the best-known^[10] versions of "Hallelujah" for his debut album Grace in 1994.

In 2004, Buckley's version was ranked number 259 on Rolling Stone's "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".^[1] The same year Time called Buckley's version "exquisitely sung," observing "Cohen murmured the original like a dirge, but ... Buckley treated the ... song like a tiny capsule of humanity, using his voice to careen between glory and sadness, beauty and pain... It's one of the great songs."^[11]

In September 2007, a poll of fifty songwriters conducted by the magazine Q listed "Hallelujah" among the all-time "Top 10 Greatest Tracks" with John Legend calling Buckley's version "as near perfect as you can get. The lyrics to Hallelujah are just incredible and the melody's gorgeous and then there's Jeff's interpretation of it. It's one of the most beautiful pieces of recorded music I’ve ever heard."^[12] In July 2009, the Buckley track was ranked number three on the 2009 Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time, a listener poll held every decade by the Australian radio station Triple J."[13]" - via Wikipedia

I agree. Completely. With all those quotes listed above this very sentence.

With that said, I performed at Arlene's Grocery in New York City this past February. It was my NYC debut ... and I played it on the same stage Jeff Buckley once played on back in 1997. He had a tremendous influence on the music community with his career that was cut far too short.

Earlier this month I had a little spill, leaving my right (dominant) arm with a severely sprained ligament hindering my arm pretty stiff and sore. As a result, I knew the show must go on. I had a performance to play. Producer Paul Derlunas joined me for the ocassion, which allowed me to focus on my singing.

My performance this past Tuesday was the first time I ever sang solo live, on-stage in front of an audience without playing guitar at the same time.

It was exhilarating. I felt like Rachel Berry for a minute. That was fun.

Rachel Levitin Music: A Rock Star Moment

There are very few moments in my life that I've felt like a true rock star ... even if just for a little while.

Those moments include: the first time I ever played a song I wrote in front of an audience of people my own age (at age 14), when I recorded my first album of original music (at age 18), when I played a VIP reception for a D.C. film festival in which Rider Strong aka Shawn Hunter from Boy Meets World was an attendee (at age 21), when I opened for my high school friends Filligar at a D.C. rock club (at age 22), when I played on stage with Big Sam's Funky Nation live on trumpet (at age 23), when I auditioned for American Idol (at age 23), and then tonight ... at age 23.

What happened tonight? Well earlier today I was working on my review of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra's concert last Thursday at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. at a Starbucks near my apartment. When I was placing my coffee order I perused the limited C.D.'s for sale at the counter and found the new compilation record of Norah Jones' top collaborations between the years of 2001 and 2010.

Now me and Norah, we go way back. I was once a skeptic of her talents. I didn't like her much. I thought "Don't Know Why" was a boring version of "Yellow" by Coldplay but with a girl singing instead of a guy. Then I wised up and listened to the Grammy's. Jones earned five Grammy Awards in 2003 including Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Best New Artist.

Needless to say, I bought her debut album "Come Away With Me." Upon further review I deemed it worthy of all of the Grammy's love and adoration.

Later that summer I spent eight weeks at the world-renowned Interlochen Center for the Arts studying Jazz Trumpet. Interlochen also hosted multiple touring concert series' throughout the summer with big-name acts like Hootie and the Blow Fish, Josh Groban (an Interlochen summer alumni) and fellow Interlochen summer alumni Ms. Norah Jones.

The summer of 2003 was Jones' stopped at her music alma mater -- she was also a Jazz student there -- to perform during her summer tour. Since she was an alumni, Jones offered to do a question and answer session with a select group of interested students before the evening's public ticketed event (which meant outsiders, not just students and summer faculty could attend).

I, being the big fan and music nerd I was (...by the way, I still am, but that's besides the point), drafted a thoughtful and insightful question asking what it was like as a woman songwriter and performer in a male-dominated genre of the music industry. My question was selected and I got to ask it at the Q&A.

Just hours before that Q&A, I ran into Jones after my rehearsal and her sound check. Lucky for me I had my guitar strap with me. She signed it after answering a question about being a songwriter and making music theory jokes that including talk about mixolydian mode.

Rachel Levitin and Norah Jones - 2003

Long story short -- my appreciation for Norah Jones was born in 2003 and still exists today. When I bought the "...Featuring Norah Jones" compilation album today I did the first thing I always do when I buy a physical C.D. -- open the C.D. jacket and read the song details.

I love knowing who wrote the song, when it was first performed if it's not an original, who's playing what instrument, how many vocalists are there, what sort of instrumentation is being played, and any other detail that's provided. So I read through the listing on this album (see picture below).

Rachel Levitin and Big Sammie Williams of Big Sam's Funky Nation - 2010

That's when I saw Big Sam's name on track six "Ruler Of My Heart." He was the trombone player for the Dirty Dozen Brass Band before starting his own band. He's performed with Norah Jones. I've performed with him. Therefore -- thanks to the transitive property -- I just had a mini-rock star moment.

...Not a bad way to end the weekend.

Solace - Rachel Levitin - Ebenezers Coffeehouse - Washington, D.C.

NEW SHOW ANNOUNCED: Rachel Levitin Live at Ebenezers Coffeehouse

Rachel Levitin Live

Ebenezers Coffeehouse, Thurs. 10/21

201 F Street NE, Washington D.C.

A couple blocks from the Union Station Red Line Metro Station

The Singer-Songwriter-Showdown

4 acts, 1 stage, 1 winner, all ages

Doors open at 7 p.m. Show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Rachel Levitin live - Saturday 7/24 - Tonic Lounge DC

Please note: This show is 18+.

The drought is over. New music, new merch, new performances:

Join Rachel for her second Jam Sessions performance live from the Tonic Lounge (in the heart of GW's campus) along side R&B vocalist Shelita Vaughns and other rockin' local DC acts on Saturday 7/24!

Need more info as to why you should come?

A new compilation album/EP entitled "The Bourbon Taster EP" will be on sale in limited quantities (for the time being). The taster features a sampling of brand-new songs produced by Paul Derlunas and four tracks from previous recording sessions, including two from my 2005 debut album "Come As You Are".

Prices of the albums range between $5-$15 and the proceeds made off the taster and "Come As You Are" will be donating in my late-father's memory to support organ donation awareness.

Also -- if you are currently a DC, Maryland, or Virginia resident and are NOT an organ donor, you will be able to sign up to become one at all of my upcoming performances.


So come out and be a part of something good with Rachel Levitin live at the Tonic Lounge Jam Session!

Again -- A portion of all album proceeds will be donated to the National Kidney Foundation and the Donate Life campaign.

Rachel gets a Canjo at Dollywood

American Idol: Making Dreams Come True For Those Who Never Thought It Was Possible

One of the last things the American Idol producers tell their prospective contestants before auditioning in a collective group of 10,000+ in a giant arena nearly filled to capacity is to not get yourselves down if you're not selected. It doesn't mean you can't sing, it just means you're not what the show is looking for -- that's it.

The hardest part is shoving all your hopes and dreams into a once-in-a-lifetime, seat-of-your-pants, whirlwind weekend of fulfilling your loftiest personal goals and then being shot down.

It took me until 26 hours after the fact to realize why being denied a spot on American Idol was quite easily the biggest compliment the show's producers could have ever issued me upon being cut from the first round of auditions. Sure, the initial blow stung my body, brain, and heart with the force of a million knives prodding every orifice of my being, but the pain subsided. The numb feeling led to a few shed tears while listening to one of many Glee tracks off the CD's my friend had created for our 11-13 hour road trip from DC to Nashville as we drove off in the sunset toward Sonic to drown our sorrows in greasy, heartburn inducing comfort food.

For whatever reason, I left Bridgestone Arena after being in or around it from 5 a.m. until 7 p.m. heartbroken and pained. I shouldn't have, but at least I knew I cared.

I could choose to go on tirade and trash everything American Idol stands for, but that wouldn't be doing the show justice. At first, I almost went as far as to say that the show's place in popular culture could be a detrimental to the hopes and dreams of the individuals the show seeks as contestants. That isn't the case.

I now believe I know the truth -- American Idol is the best makeover show that isn't marketed as such -- or at least, not in an obvious fashion.

Think about the faces you've seen over the past nine season of American Idol. Often times, if not every time, the final two contestants are people no one would have ever imagined being on the cover of a magazine or staring in their own music video, let alone end up with a major record deal. That's the point of the show.

American Idol takes the underdog, the unlikely candidate, and allows them the opportunity to seek a future greater than their wildest dreams could have ever imagined. They let thousands of people audition in order to have them feel like they have a place in all of the pomp and circumstance of it all, but it's really just a show allotting a dream to someone who wouldn't have been offered a chance by modern social and entertainment standards.

Try to remember all the faces the on the American Idol stage since 2000 -- Kelly Clarkson, Justin Guarini, Ruben Studdard, Clay Aiken, Diana DeGarmo, Fantasia Barrino, Bo Bice, Carrie Underwood, Katharine McPhee, Taylor Hicks, Blake Lewis, Jordin Sparks, David Archuleta, David Cook, Adam Lambert, Kris Allen, Crystal Bowersox, and Lee DeWyze. These aren't your everyday pop stars. Each individual grew immensely during the process and were by no means the "text book" definition of a pop star when they started out, no matter how much talent (or lack thereof) they portrayed.

That's why singers who took the time out of their busy and routine driven lives can't get too down on themselves for having auditioned and not making it past the preliminary round of American Idol auditions. Those young performers with years of practice, natural talent, or anywhere in between have to know it's not that they can't sing. It's just the opposite. You have what it takes to pursue the music industry on your own, unassisted by FOX or American Idol. That's why the producer's cut you. You can make your dream come true on your own, it's just about the timing and execution.

If you want your dream bad enough, you can achieve it. American Idol isn't for people who know they have exactly what it takes to make it big. American Idol is for the people who never thought being a musical superstar could ever happen. American Idol is an outlet to keep what's good about America alive, it keeps that hard-work ethic and the whole "happy endings DO come true" ideal alive in our imaginations.

So if you've ever been cut from the show like I have and feel like you weren't given your fair shot at fulfilling your dreams, know that it's the opposite. American Idol just handed you your dreams and said, "Take your talent, stage presence, and passion and use it the way you know how. Carve your own path. You know how to do it. Why are you here? You don't need us to write your story, you can do it on your own."

For those of you who have made it through to the additional rounds of auditions and will be on the tenth season of American Idol, I hope all your wildest dreams come true. You deserve it. But I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a tad bit jealous.

I hope to cross paths with you one day. If we both keep it up, I'm sure we will.

So thanks American Idol, for proving to me that I have what it takes to make my dreams come true and thanks for giving those who never thought they had a chance an opportunity to succeed. That's pretty gosh darn nice if you ask me.

***

A personal aside: I really have to take a moment to say how grateful I am for the amazing and incredibly touching amount of support you all shared with me since announcing my decision to audition for American Idol. It's something I honestly never thought I would do and if it weren't for this experience I wouldn't have found this additional source of inspiration to continue doing what I love to do (all of you really showed me that my love for music does more than inspire myself but it inspires all of you as well, so thank you) plus a new found confidence in performing. If I can belt out the best performance of my life in a 60 second period in front of the American Idol producers then nothing can stop me. You all know who you are so I don't need to name names, just know you've all touched me more than you could have thought possible. So for that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Much Love,

Rachel Levitin

***

There are also two photo albums of my journey /// one /// two

The Road to Nashville

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This time last year I was sitting on my couch, staring at Craig's List on the daily, unemployed, bored out of my mind, and border-line broke.

What a difference 12 months makes.

Tonight my friend Shea and I will depart from the Nation's capital for a close to 11 hour drive toward Nashville to audition for the tenth season of American Idol. The show's changed a lot in a decade but so have I. My dad's heart transplant was still something my family was getting used to back in 2000. Grammy award winner Kelly Clarkson would go on to become American Idol's first winner. I hadn't even entered high school yet.

My younger self had a bedroom plastered with Justin Timberlake and Drew Lachey posters (most of which still lay in pile on a bookshelf). I had more CD's then I knew what to do with. A strong obsession with pop music and a desire to fit in encouraged this shy young'n to start pursuing what really made her tick -- music.

I still remember the day I was home alone with my dog watching a Backstreet Boys special on what was then called ABC Family Channel. That's what inspired me to take my love for music, teeny bopper tuneage, and pop culture and apply it to my life. My goal in life quickly transformed into being a pop star.

Hell, when I was 12 I wrote a short story for English class about how Will Smith would present the Grammy for Best New Artist to me by the age of 16. A girl can dream, right?

Well here I am on the cusp of a life changing event. Will the producers at American Idol find me marketable and talented enough to receive the illusive yellow sheet of paper sending me to Hollywood or will I be shot down for "not having what it takes?"

If I get shot down, that's their loss. I've been at this for far too long and I happen to know the show would be lucky to have me, if not for my "talent" and hard work put in to maintain that talent then for the wonderful story behind my inspiration.

You see, the doctors told my parents I would be lucky to survive being born back in the day. I was premature by five weeks, 3 pounds 5.5 ounces at birth, and in dire need of immediate surgery upon being born a blue baby.

This has really been a long time coming and let me tell you, the timing is everything. I can almost guarantee the producers will ask me why I haven't auditioned before if I have all this musical background. The answer is simple: the timing wasn't right yet. Sure, dreams are great and all but if I hadn't gotten a college degree those dreams wouldn't have meant much to me.

My love for music started early and undoubtedly stem from my dad and my Uncle Tim. My Uncle Tim was a music teacher and bought me my first coronet (a smaller version of a trumpet). My grandma (my mom's mom) on the other hand bought me my first "guitar" before the age of five. It was a red ukulele that I legitimately thought WAS a guitar. My dad and I proceed to start writing songs shortly after, the only title I remember is "Pink Flamingo" but it was a good time for what I remember of the experience.

Dad was a singer throughout high school and college, often landing lead roles in musicals like Guys and Dolls (he played Nathan Detroit) and Fiddler on the Roof (he played Perchick). He was a singer/songwriter/guitar player himself ... guess the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree.

What got me through my dad's heart transplant? Music. What kept my hopes up during middle school and high school for feeling out of place in a social scene that revolved around who was invited to so-and-so's party on the weekend? Music. What makes me smile when I'm having a bad day? Music.

Music got me through three funerals in one summer (last summer that is) -- my dad's, my grandma's, and my bubbe's. I played "You've Got a Friend" in honor of dad because he absolutely LOVED James Taylor. I played "New York, New York" for bubbe because nobody loved old Blue Eyes more (plus she was from Brooklyn). I played taps on my coronet at my grandma's funeral at Fort Snelling in Minnesota. Music is the light in the darkness shed from life's curve balls.

Lord knows my family has had horrendous and occasionally uplifting curve balls thrown at us throughout the years. That's why this trip to Nashville is more than something to make me happy about my own life. This trip is about my family and all that we stand for. What do we stand for? I'm not entirely sure I have an answer to that. What I do know is nothing would make them happier than to see me doing what I love, sharing it with others, and telling our family's uplifting story that it is possible to overcome even the harshest of blows.

So thank you to all who have supported me in this adventure. I hope to make you proud.

Rachel Levitin Live at Mid City Caffe

Rachel Levitin Live at Civic Plaza

Wristbands are in, more to come!

The wristbands from Gift of Hope (Illinois) arrived in time for today's first show in the effort to raise money in honor of my father for the National Kidney Foundation and Donate Life campaign in addition to raising organ donation awareness in the DMV area.

These are the first in many donate life promotional items that will be handed out for purchasing a record or making a donation. Pretty soon, you will also be able to sign up to be an organ donor at any of my shows. So stay tuned for that!

Happy holiday weekend all! Hope to see you at the upcoming shows!

Picking Up Where Dad Left Off: Raising Organ Donation Awareness One Day At A Time

The past few days have been very productive. I've made contact with Donate Life Illinois' Gift of Hope (a group my dad worked very closely with shortly after his transplant until 2009) and the Washington Regional Transplant community to get them in on this organ donation awareness musical project I'm embarking on.

"The Bourbon Taster EP" will debut tomorrow at the Columbia Heights Market Place when I hit the stage at 1 p.m. I don't have "donate life" paraphanila to hand out with the albums yet, but should have something for the rest of my gigs from here on out.

Residents of the DMV regional area will also be able to sign up to be an organ donor at my gigs as soon as I receive these materials, which I think is the most important thing besides the proceeds from album sales going to the National Kidney Foundation and Donate Life campaign.

I'm very excited to embark upon this project and can't believe that it starts in under 24 hours.

I'm picking up where dad left off. This is only the beginning.

Note: Those "Bourbon Taster EP"'s won't be limited edition for long, still gotta get the album work done at Kinkos. It should be ready by mid-month. So look forward to that!

Mission "Make Music to Raise Money for Organ Donation Awareness" Moving Right Along

Some of my family members and friends were surprised that this musical project to donate money to the National Kidney Foundation and Donate Life campaign came out of nowhere, but the response has been positive and supportive.

As I type this, I'm listening to my entire music catalog dating back to 2002. Over that time I can't even count how many songs I've written. Heck, I started this whole songwriting for fun hobby back when I was 12 so that was 11 years ago.

While I've had dreams since that time of being a world-renowned top 40 Grammy award-winning rock star, I've got to do what I can while I can still do it. That's why all of my gigs in the foreseeable future will feature new recorded material for purchase. The proceeds from those sales will be donated in honor of my father (a heart transplant recipient) to the National Kidney Foundation and Donate Life Illinois.

I will continue to perform live from our Nation's capital as often as possible in order to generate as much proceeds for donation as possible. And -- I assure you -- over 50% of the proceeds made will directly go toward the donation. So please spread the word, tell your friends and co-workers, and get them in on this.



My upcoming shows include:

The Columbia Heights Market Place, 7/3 @ 1 pm
Mid City Caffe on U Street, 7/6 @ 7 pm
Tonic Lounge Jam Sessions on G Street near GWU, 7/24 @ 8 pm

As the list continues to grow, I will keep you updated.

Final prices of the albums going on sale are still being compiled but please keep in mind that the money's going to a good cause so hopefully that gets you out to the shows to not only enjoy quality live music from a soul who genuinely enjoys performing for a crowd but to donate to a life-changing cause.

Donate life!

Chicago to DC Shout-Outs: Donate Life IL

Just a few days ago I ran a post about my two new albums set to release soon and how a percentage of the proceeds made off those albums would be donated to the National Kidney Foundation and the Donate Life campaign in honor of my late father and heart transplant recipient Steven Levitin.

Little did I know that anyone would ever find the post, let alone read it, and the re-post it on Twitter.

It would make my dad so proud that my efforts were acknowledged no matter if I end up generating any revenue to send off as a donation.

My father Steven Levitin at the Transplant Olympic Games

So please help keep my dad's spirit alive and well by supporting organ donation and purchasing my albums at my upcoming shows (which will be posted soon).

Also, if any of you are interested in obtaining the albums (which are currently in the process of being produced), I'm willing to negotiate shipping terms/prices.

It's simple to get in touch, just send a message to rachel@welovedc.com.

I look forward to hearing from you.

New Album Announcement: "Bourbon Taster" EP and sophomore release "Between Timid and Timbuktu" Coming Soon

Motivation is consuming me. With that in mind, I've decided to embark upon an exciting and unique opportunity combined with music.

Due to some unforeseen events, my second album "Between Timid and Timbuktu" will finally be released in the coming weeks. The album was recorded in January 2008 but the original mastered copy was misplaced. My hard-drive crashed. I lost my copies of it. Lucky for me I burned a friend a copy! Now -- thanks to him not deleting it off of his iTunes -- my sophomore recording will finally see the light of day.

It is in vain of the "Between Timid and Timbuktu" (which is a nod to Kurt Vonnegut and his second novel Sirens of Titan) release that I've decided two big things:

1. I'll be releasing a "Bourbon Taster" EP featuring my self-decided "single of choice". The song is my latest and favorite track to play live on stage entitled "Bourbon". The "Bourbon Taster" EP will feature several recordings from earlier this year. Paul Derlunas of Springfield, Va. was kind enough to do the production for me. It's top notch in my opinion considering we had to rig together the microphone stand in his bedroom as we tried to capture the best possible sound from inside a Virginia community apartment. To make it even better -- the "Bourbon Taster" EP will be a limited edition issue and will look just like an old vinyl record ... thanks to the fine folks at Best Buy who sell CD-R's that look like vinyl records. Way to keep it classy, right?
2. A percentage of the profit made off of these two new albums will be going to the National Kidney Foundation and the Donate Life campaign in honor and memory of my father Steven Levitin who received a heart transplant on New Years Eve 1999. My dad passed away on January 17, 2009 while waiting for a second heart and a kidney. I attended the 2002 Transplant Olympic games with my dad at Walt Disney World, and I can say with complete confidence that organ transplantation is a gift to people all over this country and the world. And -- in my opinion -- it is not discussed nearly enough among the general populous. The conversation needs to be had. People need to know how much donating an organ can enhance the lives of families and individuals by literally donating life.

I look forward to sharing these new albums in addition to my debut album "Come As You Are" (2005) at my upcoming shows in July. For a full listing of my shows this summer, visit my MySpace Music profile.

Jazz Isn't A Genre, It's A Way Of Life

I learned a valuable lesson last night -- Jazz is more than a genre of music, it's a way of life.

Growing up, I took every Jazz history course I possibly could. I would stare as if into oblivion when our grade school music class got to watch a video about the Big Band era. Heck, I even spent four months of my life during high school devoted to studying Jazz and playing Jazz every waking moment at the Interlochen Arts Camp in Traverse City, Michigan.

College was no different. The reason I decided to attend American University is still one of the easiest choices I've ever made -- Jazz Director William E. Smith told me I could play trumpet in his Jazz band. How could I turn down the offer? I couldn't. I didn't. And as they say, the rest is history.

While I don't remember the exact stories, I do know that young players often got their start as one of the big names in the genre by the older players asking the rookies to take the stage. It was never pre-announced. The kids had their horns ready hoping for a shot to cause musical commotion with the players creating a new genre of American music, but the kids also knew that showing up with your horn or axe was no guarantee for playing time.

It's like riding the bench of a major league sport. You suit up, bring all your equipment, and then keep your fingers crossed that you get tapped on the shoulder by the manager to take the field ... or in this case the stage.

It's a right of passage for a Jazz musician to take the stage after being called up, just like when Stephen Strasburg will take the mound for the Washington Nationals next Tuesday for his Major League debut. That's how it's been since the early days of Jazz over a century ago, and lucky for me it hasn't changed.

Jazzer's take care of their own. It's a family within a community based off a sub-culture of American music. I wrote an article for We Love DC last week about Buddy Bolden's (one of the text book originators of Jazz as a genre) great-grandson who is now the leader of a Jazz-Funk-Rock fusion band called Big Sam's Funky Nation.

I interviewed Sam over the phone and instantly felt a connection for two very music related reasons:

1) He's a trombone player. Which means he's a brass player. As a trumpet player, I can dig it.
2) His family might be rooted in Jazz history, but he is definitely the future if he keeps tootin' his horn like he knows how to. I'm all for that.

At the end of our phone conversation, Sam told me to bring my horn to the band's gig in Annapolis, Maryland (which was last night). Of course, I said yes right away but I knew getting there would be a slight problem considering I live in DC without a car and there's no easy way of getting to Annapolis by foot.

The fates were in on this one -- my sorority sister and her fiance drove me to Annapolis out of the kindness of their heart as I toted my trumpet along hoping and wishing to get a big break and jam with some truly talented musicians.

I didn't see it coming, but in the middle of Big Sam's set their manager tapped me on the shoulder. "He's calling you up," he told me as I watched Big Sam gesture at us.

I was shaking (in a good way). I didn't let the nerves get to me. This was it. My big call-up. Now I know how rookies in the bullpen feel before their first big league outing in front of a sell-out crowd.

Was it my finest performance to date? Not by a long shot. I hadn't warmed up, I didn't do a sound check, it was really hard to figure out what key the song was in, but I stepped up to the plate and you better believe I knocked it out of the park.

And yes, it felt amazing.

The following is a video from last night's performance:



It's nice to see that Jazz is a community. We're all looking out for each other. You better believe I'll pay it forward the next time I have a show and a rookie is waiting in the wings. It's my responsibility to do so. After all, we're just one big Jazz-loving family.