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Thought you all might enjoy a clip from our recent visit from Kenny White to Casa Del Medio. Courtesy of Julia Patterson of WriteDesigns in Cave Creek, AZ who just happened to be in town.
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If you haven’t heard, John’s book The 20-20 Creativity Solution: focus your natural creativity for success, happiness, and peace of mind is at the printer! We are expecting them in the office in about two weeks. I am calling his book a “useful memoir” because, through his life experience and his journey into creative process and everything he’s learned from our guests on Art of the Song, John has put together an essential guide to the creative process. The book includes a simple process known as The 20-20 practice that in 20 minutes each morning and 20 minutes in the evening unlocks your voice. Set your internal GPS to guide you straight to your authentic self, which is a creative genius. Click here to connect to The 20-20 Creativity Solution for more information and to learn how to get involved in the 20-20 JumpStart groups that are forming each month.
We had the great pleasure of interviewing Keith Grimwood and Ezra Idlet, collectively known as Trout Fishing in America in April of 2009 at the Filling Station in Albuquerque. It was filmed for Encantada TV, local cable in the Duke City. Here’s a really sweet little clip about co-writing…
October in New Mexico is one of the great wonders of the world. Yesterday I heard the beautiful conversation between Sandhill Cranes high over head, a sound that for anyone along the Rio Grande, marks the transition to the winter months. The cottonwoods are the richest gold you could imagine. We are heading north to [Casa Del Medio], our retreat house in the mountains, this weekend to get her ready for all the visitors heading there to work on creative projects in the coming months. I know we will find snow on the peaks up there and aspens dropping their golden leaves. For me, this is always a time of contemplation and writing. Some new tunes coming on, a book of exercises for stimulating creativity that we developed for the Cathedral of St John’s last winter; John has got huge project’s in the works too…
As ever, this time of year signals two really important ventures for us. First, the autumn public radio fund drives. Please remember that you are the reason public radio exists and stays on the air by donating generously to your favorite station… whether they air us or not! And secondly, it means that the [Moab Folk Festival] is right around the corner. Can I get an alleluia? We get several weeks of programming recorded there every year. This year will be an exciting one, bringing IndigieFemme to the stage and as a result, straight to you early in the year.
Let us know who you are interested in hearing by posting a comment here or emailing…
I hope that you are all well and happy in these beautiful October days. Art of the Song welcomes new stations to the roster: WEVL in Memphis, TN; KECG in Oakland, CA; and WNMH in Mt. Harmon, MA… thanks for supporting of creative programming. Our archives are brimming over with new talent and dear favorites. Please check the LISTEN tab for some wonderful music. If you are interested in supporting Art of the Song, making your music purchases through our [A-Store] will give us a little boost every time you support indie musicians listed there!
We are heading to Moab in a couple of weeks… our annual pilgrimage to slick rock and folk …
As many of you are aware we are building a great group of pals on FaceBook. I recently met James Lee Stanley there and wanted to share with you his amazing resource for artists and songwriters. Each week he posts another really useful tip on his blog about creating and maintaining a career in the music business as an indie artist. His site Datamusicata is loaded with free, insightful material based on his lifetime of experience and expertise in the arts.
We’ve ramped up the offerings on our Resources page and are utilizing the Amazon miracle of the AStore. By shopping there you not only get great deals on the books and music featured here on Art of the Song Creativity Radio you help support the program with every purchase. Not a bad deal in this day and age. And we appreciate it!
John and I recently presented a workshop at the Albuquerque Diversity Leadership Council’s annual forum. It was a peak experience I must say. Our group were mostly from Sandia Labs and a few other big corporations from around the City of Albuquerque. Administrators and scientists with a love of music…
It’s finally here! Volume I of Art of the Song Creative Wisdom. Some of the greatest song writers performing today, giving their best insights about that elusive thing we call creative process. It’s a real gem and we’d love to have your help. Our goal is to have one thousand (1000) people download one thousand copies of this collection of inspiring excerpts from Art of the Song over the past five years. Share the news with anyone you know who’s a lover of creative expression… and check it out yourself at Creative Wisdom ...
After years of assimilating the lessons we’ve learned from the incredible talents we’ve interviewed, we’ve finally started to write about our own creative processes in blogs… To keep up with John subscribe to his by clicking here and choosing an RSS feed John’s Blog ... I have to say its amazing and features some of his beautiful photography… mine is more pedestrian and follows my reconnection to my path as an actor at the tender age of 50 which is interesting for anyone choosing to rekindle an art form or heart path later after a hiatus…Viv’s Blog. We look forward to hearing from you!
What a great day! We interviewed Holly Near right here in Albuquerque. She played a show last night with Emma’s Revolution at the Outpost. Such a compelling voice, and such magnificent articulation of her creative process. Looking forward to sharing it with you.
If you are so inclined join us on FaceBook! We have a group there with some fun conversations building about rhyming and other songwriting skills. And catch up with Viv’s blog John is working on getting his going so we look forward to hearing from you!
Last week Art of the Song Live was in Boston visiting Berklee College of Music to interview the legendary vocalist with Earth Wind & Fire Philip Bailey. It was a true honor to talk with him in such a vibrant atmosphere, surrounded by Berklee students who’s questions added a really fine dynamic to the show. We look forward to sharing it with you in month or so.
Thanks for answering our survey! It will be open for another couple of days, so if you haven’t had time do let us know your thoughts on how we can serve you better.
In an effort to provide a more stream line system to help listeners find the music and books we have featured on the program we’ve opened our library up so you can see what is feeding the show and its hosts! Check out the button there on the right just above Noteworthy... We’ve also put some ideas for getting started if you haven’t already found your creative expression!
And we hope you will join us for the next Telesummit coming up on March 21. This time the focus is on Your Creative Career providing all the news you could possibly use about managing your career as a creative artist and entrepreneur.
Looking forward!
Last week was nothing short of amazing. Interviews with Jude Johnstone, Rokia Traore, as well as Karen Savoca with Pete Heitzman. It never ceases to thrill me how many different ways there are to approach creative expression. We look forward to sharing them with you.
In an effort to continue to grow with the program, we’re doing a listener survey. The link is up there on the right hand side… our gift to you for letting us know your thoughts is a wonderful tune from John Dillon’s Callin’ Me Home CD called Fast Movin’ Train featuring guest vocals by Peter Rowan. We hope you enjoy it!
We’re making some simplifications on this website…please bear with us if the Listening pages are slow. We are fixing them so you can listen and comment quickly and easily. Thanks for your patience!
In a recent post on Facebook I asked for newsletter topic … One wonderfully gifted friend presented this koan-like messge: “People write songs, some are good, some are not. The end.” Too true, like all things some things work, some things do not. Some things are exciting, some fall flat.
My thought on this reflection of creative expression is: does it matter if it is good or not? Read on to see what CamiThompson sent in response and check out the recent posting on the subject…
Happy New Year! We welcome a new station to our affiliate roster KBPK FM 90.1 in Fullerton, CA. This great college station is part of a broadcasting school – we’re honored to be included in their programming schedule. Also in the month of January we are proud to be airing on two stations as specials: KUNM right here in Albuquerque, NM Saturday evenings at 7pm. Online streaming is available on their website, kunm.org; and South Florida Public Radio http://wgcu.org/ on Tuesday evenings at 8pm. We hope you enjoy listening. And remember to tune in right here on our listen pages for any show you need to hear again, or ones you missed!
Our sponsor Blue Fish Clothing is offering Art of the Song listeners an amazing deal. When you call your order in (575) 758-7474 mention the show and receive a generous 15% discount on their clothing. You may have seen me (Viv) wearing it at Moab, or everywhere else for that matter. It is so comfortable and fun. Check it out here
Its a mixed kind of day today. We are deep in the season of joy and the anticipation of returning light on so many levels. We feel it in nature, in the holidays celebrated at this time and in the new political climate that is coming. At the same time we are holding space for the return to the light of our beloved teacher and friend, Julie Portman…
If you are a reader of O Magazine as I am, you have no doubt picked up the December issue by now and read Oprah’s interview with Daniel Pink. My brother Ted ( California College of Art) gave us Pink’s book for Christmas two years ago…
I’ve been listening to Jorma Kaukonen’s remastered and re-released Quah. It was a record I had when I was about 16 years old in Toledo, Ohio. The guys at our local record store (Boogie Records) turned me on to it, because I was obsessed with Leo Kottke and they wanted to broaden my horizons…
When we were children we were virtual “creativity machines.” Everything we did or said was creative… the way we played, the way we colored, the way we interacted with others.
I am fascinated by the way some of us have been able to carry that creativity forward into adulthood and some of us have not. What happened in our upbringing, in our education, in our interaction with our peers that caused the creativity to grow or to fade? Was it a teacher… was it a parent… was it a friend?
We’re very interested in your thoughts and your personal experiences that might shed some light on this topic. Were you encouraged to be creative? Were you discouraged from being creative? Where did YOUR creativity go? Please comment below! THANKS.
We’re heading home in a few days from a really restful break. It has been needed and difficult at the same time. We love our work so much that a vacation sometimes feels like work, but we’ve gotten the hang of it…
Thank you for your emails with suggestions! Keep them coming as we really value your input. We are looking to add a forum where people can converse a little more easily about creativity and other top of mind topics in a safe environment that supports creative expression. We look forward to your thoughts. Do post here on the Disqus pages so others can join in!
I went for a run this morning, as I mentioned in a post with Kathleen today. To stay focused on the breathing and ease of the run instead of the heat and humidity, I turned my thoughts to…
This has been on exciting autumn. At the moment we are visiting the east coast for Thanksgiving. While on the road we took time for a couple of interviews with icons of our time. Jorma Kaukonen ( Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna) and Bill Staines who’s beautiful country folk ballads have been recorded by Nanci Griffith and Jerry Jeff Walker among others. It was a tremendously fruitful and inspiring.
We’re entering 2009 with a great line up for you. At Moab Folk Festival we interviewed John McEuen for a live audience! Photos soon!
Here’s a question for you… Who would you like to hear as a guest on Art of the Song Creativity Radio? We’d love to know…
We are pleased to announce that we have moved our offices to Albuquerque, NM. In addition to producing the radio program from Duke City we are doing an Artist in Residency program with the Cathedral Church of St John exploring the nature of Creativity and its relationship to spirituality and faith. It is an exciting proposition to say the least!
Please tune in to the great programming offered this month in our archives. Kathy Mattea’s honest look at her roots and her profound response through song is inspiring. Si Kahn, community organizer and singer songwriter reminds of some very very important points.
Community organizers are those talented souls who are gifted with the ability to sit in a room of people with differing opinions and bring them to a place of unity. A community organizer does not lead by telling the group what is best for them. A community organizer facilitates, drawing out the best possible result for the community, decided by the community for the good of the community. A community organizer raises awareness, brings out the difficult issues and places them in to the hands of those who should take the final responsibility. A community organizer holds the space for them to make the tough decisions together, regardless of what side of the issue they are on. In doing so they put others first … and I must say, a community organizer is exactly what we need right now to bring unity to our great country.
The Summer is speeding by. Most kids in New Mexico have been back in school for two weeks already. We’re preparing for the Writers TeleSummit featuring 24 industry professionals over four days bringing you valuable information and inspiration on finally sitting down to create the book you have always wanted to write. We invite you to Join us Aug 27 for a FREE Preview Call with Eric Maisel (9 pm EST/6 pm Pacific)
Eric will talk about the Writers TeleSummit and he will leave us with some valuable tips to use right away on living the creative life.
First let me apologize for the tardy update of our website! Between turning 50 (!!), a failed hard drive computer, the holidays and a family reunion I’ve been more than remiss. I hope that you all enjoy these additions. I have to say that the response to Chad & Jeremy has been really uplifting. There is a moment in the interview, when the subject turned to the message of the peace movement in the 60’s. Chad remembers “We almost made it…” Perhaps now at this powerful time in history we will be able to refocus our efforts toward that same goal. Thanks to Tony for getting the word out to all the Chad & Jeremy fans so beautifully.
We are more than proud to have been able to produce the Song of America special that is available for streaming now. Talking with Attorney General Janet Reno and…
I knew very little about the creative process in August of 1969 when I threw a change of clothes and a few things in a backpack, and jumped into Stan Reed’s 1962 Fairlane. The two of us headed north from Pennsylvania toward some remote farm in upstate New York. I had no idea that what was to transpire over the next few days would change my life… forever.
I was a lonely kid, somewhat of a social outcast, but nonetheless, a budding guitar player whose major fun and social activity was playing in a band with my buddies. We’d even dare an occasional public appearance for the high school dance or church teen social. I thought playing guitar was cool, and that maybe people (especially girls) would like me, if they would just notice my soul-bearing, string-bending talents…
In our small town of Questa, NM there is an annual event on Memorial Day. Hundreds of American Flags are placed in a field for four days. It is such a glorious sight to see acres of them waving. So very beautiful.
I love that we have a national holiday dedicated to the memory of the men and women who served and continue to serve in the Armed Forces, as much as I don’t believe that war is ever the answer. I come from an Army family. The last to serve was my Uncle Bill who now lives in Columbia, SC having survived two tours of Viet Nam. He took all his skill and has dedicated his life to service of others, acting as a disaster relief coordinator for the Red Cross for many many years. He continues to be an inspiration to me, as in the face of so many difficult situations he has kept his focus on the needs of the people…
I was listening to a CD the other day and the subject came around to perfectionism. Hmmm I thought, this is interesting as it is one of my most compelling and fatal flaws… I listened patiently, to all the things I have ever heard before, how “magazine perfection” is not real, that no one is perfect, that it is self destructive to pursue perfection, and guaranteed to be a creativity killer… you doubtless know the rap…
The world beyond trying is doing. We learned that from Yoda. The world beyond doing is freedom and the field of all potential. In Creative Process, we allow ourselves to try new things and find out so very much. Yet I recently realized that, like brainstorming, trying can become a bit of a sand trap…
I used to live in NYC, pursuing an acting career with a modicum of success. When I moved to New Mexico I pretty much gave it up. As luck and good fortune would have it the film and television moved out here to Albuquerque. To sharpen my tools, I have been taking an class with Greg Serano…In class one of our bits of homework was to play with the characters that are polar opposites from ourselves. I have been having a blast playing with the different personalities, and expressed one in a scene that I was given to work on for class. It was a raving boss taking down a worker. Not that I have never expressed anger, displeasure or pure unadulterated rage before, but this was different and in terms of my creative expression, I was traveling in very different territory…
I spent the morning visiting with our neighbor Hattie Stone today. Hattie turned 94 this past St. Patrick’s Day. She is a long time meditator, avid gardener, knower of wildflowers and a monster Scrabble player. I treasure my visits with her on Mondays. Today we went out to the garden to see who might be coming up in the early days of our mountain springtime. I came home from the visit, windblown, a little sunburned and filled up with joy from having had the time today to putter around with my friend in her garden. She was wearing her favorite baseball cap… an Art of the Song hat that she claimed as her own right off my head one day last spring. She complimented me on it, and inquired what color it was… “why, Stone,” I told her. And that was that. Hattie Stone now wears the prototype of the stone colored Art of the Song hats. It is only fitting! They both are one of a kind…
Sometimes it strikes me that Creativity (with a capital C) is so firmly implanted in our minds as an intangible, untraceable concept that we are chasing our tails in the exploration of it. And then we have a chance meeting with a friend on a walk yesterday and we begin discussing the tremendous value that was found in the work of Alfred North Whitehead, a mathematician and philosopher…
What a rewarding weekend. We had a very interesting time at the Higher Truth of Health Conference here in Taos. The talks ranged in topics from nuts and bolts nutritional information on the benefits of gluten free living to the link between reclaiming the divine feminine and health. In our hour on Sunday morning we explored Creativity and Spiritual Health. Members of the audience responded in profound ways …
Greetings from springtime in the Rockies. Our bulbs are pushing through even though its still very cold. My science project of a yard and garden brings a lot of anticipation. I am happy to say that this urban girl is adapting to mountain life and learning about gardening the old fashion way. By asking for advise, doing it my way, and watching the results. Our Himalayan poppies & Irises survived the transplanting last fall, though I am not so sure about the roses.
What does this have to do with creativity you may ask…
Once again, National Folk Alliance in Memphis proved to be an exciting, surprising and inspiring time. John and I conducted six interviews in front of a live audience. It was a great experience to feel the energy of listeners right there in the room. We look forward to sharing these interviews with you…
We are excited to report that our new website is launching! We will be beta testing new features including an archive of past Art of the Song programs that will have a commenting function for you to post your impressions and dialog with other listeners. Many of the artists we have interviewed have said that they will check in to answer questions about their work …
Hi friends, Writing to you from upstate NY at my mother’s farm. She’s recovering from shoulder surgery. What a champ she is! The hardest part of tending her is getting her to rest without guilt. I am really enjoying taking care of her menagerie… two horses, three dogs and I’m told six cats but I’ve only met five… Honestly I am itching to be back at work.
We have a summer of travel planned with a couple of gigs in mid July in NH…. til then its helping my mother, then helping John’s folks in PA.
The Art of the Song Darfur Special has been well-received and has aired on 118 broadcast outlets in addition to our 114 affiliates. To purchase the “We Are All Connected CD” click here.