RockOm

On Tuesday, March 24, 2009 Scott Valentine Presents launched a never-before-seen marketing campaign, giving away one song a week as a free download on his website, continuing every week for a full year, with 57 free songs in total. Seasons consists of 4 CDs (one disc each for Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter) and 1 DVD (Seasons: A Film Journey). 57 songs span across the four seasons, representing a young man's expanding consciousness through his journey of mortality.

Scott Valentine is a 33 year-old singer/songwriter from Vancouver Island, Canada. His debut album, Seasons, is a truly unique undertaking. Scott wrote, performed, recorded, produced, designed and printed the album entirely on his own over a two year period. It's a culmination of the pains and heartaches of his past and his hopes and dreams for the future; a document of the peaks and valleys of human drama, as seen through his own life experiences.

RockOm, together with Scott Valentine Presents and Thorny Bleeder Records, have teamed to bring you each weekly release every Wednesday for the next year. See the new panel (in the right column) on the RockOm homepage to hear each week's song and learn about Scott's inspiration behind the tracks.

In addition, please visit Scott's record label, Thorny Bleeder Records to learn about Scott and other fine artists.

Scott Valentine Presents:

"Cheerleader"

Click to Play (stream)

Click to download (right-click, "Save As...")

For Week 2 of my Free Song A Week For A Year website campaign I have released “Cheerleader” the second track from the “Spring” disk of my album Seasons. This song is a fun little tongue-in-cheek-type-ditty with a slight country twang.

Originally when I recorded it I had a melodic three part harmony scatting through the intro and a fiercely plucked lead acoustic guitar track but, after all was said and done and it came time for the final mix down, I decided that the bare bones approach would be more effective for this style of song and would be a better transition from the opening track “Watch It Grow” which I released last week.

The inspiration for this song came to me during a relationship I had in my mid-twenties with an energetic and positive young woman in Vancouver. She cared for me deeply and really did a lot to boost my confidence and self-esteem. Although it had been nearly 15 years since I last walked down the hallways of my former high school, many of the scars that developed during those years of constant teasing, bullying and struggling to keep up with and fit in with my peers had taken their toll. Try as I might, I could not manage to heal many of those wounds on my own and it wasn’t until that period of time years later that I was able to see and accept the beauty of who I was and how I was made. She became the biggest fan of both me and my flaws and assured me that whatever crazy thoughts I had about who I was and how people saw me was indeed not who I actually was and that those perceptions were, in her eyes, completely unfounded. Through her eyes I began to realize that truth for myself.

Ultimately we proved an unsuitable match as a couple but whenever I sing “Cheerleader” I think about how important it is to have someone to stand by your side and cheer you on as you navigate the choices and consequences of your actions on this path. But perhaps more importantly, it’s absolutely crucial to become your own biggest fan so that you can learn to truly accept yourself and, in the process, allow the love of another to be invited into your own little crazy world.

I hope you enjoy “Cheerleader.”

From Here To There,

Scott Valentine

We're closing out March with a roar and looking forward to the new season that is Spring with this week's RockOm Featured Track of The Week: "Watch It Grow". Scott Valentine, from Vancouver, British Columbia and of Thorny Bleeder Records, offers a taste of new beginnings with "Watch it Grow" off his epic, 4-disc concept album entitled Seasons.

On Thursday, watch for a brand new RockOm podcast featuring an interview with Scott Valentine where we explore the impetus behind Seasons and the inspirations behind his music.

by Scott Valentine

Visit Scott at...

scottvalentinepresents.com
MySpace

Scott Valentine is a 33 year-old singer-songwriter from Vancouver Island, Canada. His debut album, Seasons, is a truly unique undertaking. Seasons consist of 4 CDs (one disc each for Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter) and 1 DVD (Seasons: A Film Journey). 57 songs span across the four seasons, representing a young man's expanding consciousness through his journey of mortality.

Featured Track: "Watch it Grow"

"...I had to let go of a lot of painful things in my past and be open to whatever new experiences came to me and know that I could handle whatever comes. The push of the entire record is to start from someplace and just trust yourself through the whole process that no matter what life throws at you. You can handle it and come out on the other side richer for the experiences: the good ones and the bad ones. While on the island of Maui... this song came to me. It was a love song to start with but it really was a metaphor for changes I was experiencing at the time." (Scott Valentine)

Click to Play

By Eric Reed at Allaboutjazz.com

Generally, the idea of "sacred jazz" either brings to mind Duke Ellington's three sacred concerts or causes confusion in the minds of those who are not cognizant of what is "sacred" or "jazz". Is it John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, Mary Lou Williams' Black Christ of the Andes or Ahmad Jamal's After Fajr? In all these cases, yes. In the broad sense of what is "sacred," the common thread that exists among the aforementioned references pays respect to the devotion to a supernatural being, considered to be higher than us. As for jazz, of course, you gotta swing, but so many people want to make jazz so many things. (Really, must we?) My search for clarification in this field was prompted by my recent participation in a jazz series that focused on "The Sacred Side of Jazz," where I demonstrated the connection between jazz and gospel music via hymns, Negro spirituals and the blues.

When you get right down to it, the term "sacred jazz" becomes somewhat redundant because the nascence of jazz is in sacred music! Do you think Jelly Roll Morton (who probably did invent piano jazz) simply stumbled upon "Wild Man Blues" without ever hearing a gospel blues? It's doubtful he could have spent five years in Chicago and not have ever crossed paths with Rev. Thomas Dorsey or Mahalia Jackson. The stamp of "sacred jazz" is actually rather generic, mainly because it covers such a wide array of artistic concepts. As a child, "jazz" and "sacred" had always intersected in my playing: from bluesy treatments of hymns like "Amazing Grace" or "Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior" in my father's Baptist church to Charles Brown's "Merry Christmas, Baby" while entertaining family friends.

For me, there was never a conscious aesthetic separation of gospel and secular music, but I had enough good sense not to subject the congregation to "Meet Me With Your Black Drawers On" during the offering. Thomas Dorsey and Rosetta Tharpe met with much angst from church folks who insisted they perform on "one side of the fence or the other." Fortunately, my parents never vexed me in that area, so I was free to explore and develop my own farrago of diverse musical worlds, leaning towards a sound influenced by musical and personal experiences, biblical teachings, Negro spirituals, the blues, swing and a heavy groove.

My music is influenced by a spiritual foundation (specifically, God's spirit, in this case), which encourages me to remain focused on the reason I was born with the gift He gave me—to praise Him. In addition, I share that love and desire with the audience, with the hope that they can be reeled into my spiritual space, to be entertained and blessed by the experience.

For years, my notion was to learn and perform the 'standard' jazz repertoire, composing songs that sounded like standards and generally to honor the brilliant creators—from Armstrong to Waller—that laid it all out before me, while offering the occasional 'tribute' to my spiritual background. Fortunately (and hopefully for most of us) life changes force us to be wisely flexible; as brilliant artists-to-be, we learn that the music doesn't end with the lessons of our youth. On the contrary, it only begins there, laying the groundwork and leading us down the paths we trod towards the excellence of our more mature years in the arts. Merging my personal life with my music has become more than merely composing some swing ditty and pasting God's name in the title. Boldly and unabashedly, I put my love, honor and thanks to God at the forefront of my music—before the transcribed solos, Hanon exercises, repertoire—even the commitment to swinging.

Many jazz artists encountered a "spiritual awakening" on personal and musical planes later in life: Duke Ellington, Mary Lou Williams, John Coltrane as referenced earlier. For others, the awareness was apparent earlier on: Yusef Lateef, Ahmad Jamal. Even though all don't pay tribute to the same deity, the vibration in the music of an individual genuinely connected to his faith cannot be ignored—even if you don't identify with his spiritual philosophy. There is music for music's sake and then there is music that encompasses a deeper purpose.

Of a somewhat less "faith-based" intent, is what has been referred to as "funky jazz" or "soul-jazz". This would be jazz that parrots the sound of Black church music and is more contrived than reverent. Popular jazz hits like Horace Silver's "The Preacher," Billy Page's "The In Crowd" (as performed by Ramsey Lewis) or Bobby Timmons' "This Here" were mostly funneled through artists' impressions of gospel music. It's much like listening to dyed-in-the-wool jazz musicians play Latin or funk—without a full immersion in the experience. Perhaps, this is where the divide begins with regard to sacred versus secular; whereas one implies an honoring and worshiping, the other has a slightly exploitive dynamic that, over the years, has continued to nosedive into poor imitations, the end result being some minstrel-type exhibition by individuals who have no real clue of the value and essence of a spiritual experience.

My recent challenge to connect gospel music with jazz music effectively has ignited a brushfire that sweeps through my bones. Early on, I heeded the jazz curriculum to the letter. As I continue to move through life, my purpose becomes much clearer and now I am moved to invoke the sentiments of Duke Ellington, expressed before he performed his first sacred concert: "Now, I can say openly and loudly what I have been saying to myself on knees."

Eric Reed at All About Jazz

Visit Eric Reed on the web

Wayman Tisdale doesn't let cancer stop the music
By Dayna Harpster, news-press.com

As an NBA forward/center, Wayman Tisdale accumulated 5,117 rebounds between 1985 and 1997. But despite the importance of each rebound to the Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers and Phoenix Suns, none was as critical as the most recent, personal one. "Rebound" is the title of jazz bassist Tisdale's eighth recording - and it parallels the redirection of his life after cancer claimed a leg, but not his spirit.

No doubt audiences at Sunday's Sounds of Jazz concert in Cape Coral will hear tracks from that recording. "People are going to feel different after listening to this record. They're going to be happy. There's going to be a good feeling," Tisdale has said.

The 45-year-old describes music as his "first love." He first played in the Baptist church in Oklahoma where his father preached. That's also met his wife, Regina, while both were in high school.

By then, Tisdale had been playing music for years, although he never has had a formal lesson.

"I can pretty much hear it (a song) and recreate it," Tisdale said in a phone interview last week. To write a song, he also "hears" it first.

"I follow a formula kind of like a writer would, with an intro, a body, a conclusion, and there might be a special section that sets up the conclusion.

"Then when other musicians actually write it out, I say, 'That's what I'm playing?' It just trips me out."

About his unusual talent, Tisdale is philosophical. "My father told me a while ago, 'You're not going to make sense of it, you just do it.'"

That advice came into play again two years ago, when bone cancer entered his life.

Tisdale was walking down a flight of stairs at home in Tulsa, Okla., when his right leg gave out and he fell. He was surprised to find that the leg was broken. He underwent knee replacement surgery, and then endured chemotherapy at levels his doctors could only guess at; he was a bit out of shape from his 6-foot-9, 240-pound days, making him an unusually large patient.

Although doctors honed the dosages over a couple of rounds of chemotherapy, it didn't work. So in 2008, Tisdale's right leg was amputated above the knee.

Last week, he finished his 10th round of chemotherapy, he said. But skip the sympathy. "Don't feel sorry for me," he said with no trace of irritation. "I'm not sorry for me."

Tisdale has had plenty of opportunities to be tough and see toughness in action, both on and off the court.

He credits coach Bobby Knight as a major influence.

Tisdale was a member of Knight's gold-medal-winning Olympic basketball team in 1984, along with Michael Jordan.

"He said 'Wayman, this is about life. What I'm going to give you is more than basketball. I'm going to give you life, and life situations.'"

Tisdale was introduced to Knight's infamous ire.

"He wasn't going to hand it to me. He'd say, 'You S.O.-somethin'-somethin'. And I called my mama. And I said 'Mama, I don't think he likes me.' But had I not been tested like that, I wouldn't know what kind of warrior I would be."

His music has made him doubly famous -Tisdale's CDs regularly chart at or near the top of Billboard's Contemporary Jazz listing -and it also has helped him pull through his health crisis.

"I'm an emotional player," Tisdale said. "I was in basketball, too."

"Cancer just made me go deeper. And the deeper I go, the more I learn about me ... because I'm a perfectionist. Music is an outlet for that. (A song) has to be seamless, in the notes, in the transitions. My wife (to whom he's been married for 28 years) just likes to leave the room. She'll say 'he's on one of those tangents.'"

In his mind, there's no doubt that striving for musical perfection pays off personally as well.

"I was in the studio for five hours this week," Tisdale said. "And I could feel myself healing. And sure enough, the doctor said I wasn't going to need any blood transfusions or blood work this week. I kind of knew it. They say music is medicine..."

Reprinted with permission

Through changing times, powwow drum still the heartbeat of the people
Written by JoKAY DOWELL for Nativetimes.com

Positive or not, change has come to the powwow arena and probably will continue to do so. But, some standards must be kept in order not to lose the culture entirely.

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – To those lacking knowledge of Indian ways, the powwow drum in the center of the dance circle is an inanimate object made from stretched rawhide and wood used by singers who beat it to the rhythm of an unintelligible ‘chant.’ But to those who were reared in that circle, the drum is the heartbeat and spirit of the people, a living thing to be respected, for it holds healing power and carries ancient songs further into the future.

“In the Ottawa language, the words drum and heart are very close,” said respected Ottawa drummer and singer, Dr. Kevin Dawes. “When I first started (backyard) singing, long before I ever went out at a dance, I was told ‘Don’t just sit there and tap on it, being silly; that when I hit the drum I was talking to God.”

Like Dawes, Sac and Fox, Euchee and Pawnee men’s straight dancer Rusty Tiger remembers his first encounters with the instrument central to the powwow culture and the responsibility for its care.

“It involved ceremony,” he explained, “There were drum keepers in charge of this drum to cedar it off and pray…to take it out and let the sun shine on it, just like other living things that take their energy from the sun. When there was no sun they used the warmth of a fire to achieve a certain tone which enhanced the overall effect of the song and the drumbeat, giving life to the intent of the song by the composer. Have you ever heard a flat drum?”

Though powwows are social gatherings not held to the strict decorum of traditional ceremonies, there is a presumption of protocol, based on the beliefs and practices of the community in which the event is held. In one’s approach to the drum, there is an expectation of behavior that sometimes seems to be lost on some of the younger generation.

“We were told to watch the man leading the song, never raise our sticks higher than his; this is so foreign to the kids nowadays,” Dawes said. Tiger also noted that some of the youth who dance seem to be more interested in just their own particular contest than in the overall dance.

“This is also going to the way side due to the non-interest of the young dancers today, too busy visiting and conserving energy for their particular contest, most are just walking around. I was always taught to dance each song as if you were contesting, you are there to dance, sit down and be quiet, until it was time to get up again. If you wanted to visit or half-dance don’t even get dressed,” he was taught.

Dennis Zotigh, Kiowa, San Juan Pueblo and Santee Dakota singer and dancer, now the community events coordinator at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian is in a position to continue to teach the ways of his family and emphasizes the potential for teaching respect around the drum.

“If I am going to the drum to sing, I should have good thoughts and feelings in general and toward the other singers. I need to be respectful when approaching the drum and know the protocols of the tribes I am singing with,” he said.

Along with teaching respect for culture and the differences in communities, the drum has healing powers.

Dee Dee Goodeagle is known all over the United States as a championship women’s buckskin dancer. Her dress is made from deer hides softened to a velvety texture then stitched with colorful patterns of floral and geometric designs. Now in her 70s, she recently relented to knee surgery, having worn out the joints from years of refined, deliberate steps that exemplify the southern or Oklahoma style of women’s dance.

“I blew them out,” Goodeagle said of her knees. “The doctors wanted me to have surgery for some time, but the drum makes me feel so good I didn’t want to have to stop dancing even to get my knees fixed.” Within weeks after surgery, Goodeagle said she went to a dance and could not resist the call of the drum. She is back in the arena going strong.

Zotigh explains that the drum is more than an instrument to provide cadence for the dancers. There is a spirit that each powwow drum, with its singers, diffuses into the dance arena. The interaction between the drum, the singers and the dancers is powerful with spiritual and physical energy.

“This spirit, if used in the right way, can heal those who cannot dance, those who are troubled and those who are weary,” Zotigh said.

Besides interacting with the drum to set the mood for the event, singers have a unique perspective on the powwow culture that comes from their central location within the dance arena.

“The spirit enhances you with a particular song and that is translated outwardly to the dancers first, then there is feedback from the dancers back to the drum, by the blowing of the whistle and the war hoop, or even the ‘loo-loo’ of the women when that connection is made. The energy is astounding when this happens,” Tiger said.

Dawes agreed and said even with a presumption of decorum, there are exceptions when the crowd is obviously enjoying the singing coming from the drum.

“When you sing you miss out on almost all of the dancing, period. You have to be aware of how the dancers are tuned in to the music. An older singer told us that the only reason we’re out there is to make the dancers dance. After 37 years of singing, I still can’t stand failing in that. On the flip side, it’s a huge blast to see someone in street clothes out there dancing because he’s enjoying the music. I’ve noticed that as I sing less and ‘lawn chair it’ more, it feels good to be at home and just get out there in my droopy jeans and dance to be close to the drum,” Dawes said. But powwows have changed and some say it has not been all positive.

“The powwow world has evolved enough to where we hear people say they were raised in the ‘traditional powwow way.’ Go figure. Nowadays, we go to a gathering expecting to get something (usually money), whereas, in the past, people usually brought something to give away. We need to acknowledge that what we see today is (the participation of) tribes who have adopted this drum (or the powwow lifestyle) as opposed to their own traditional ways and made it suit their needs,” Damon Roughface, who comes from a long lineage of traditional Ponca dancers and singers, said.

Positive or not, change has come to the powwow arena and probably will continue to do so. But, some standards must be kept in order not to lose the culture entirely. Kiowa singer and powwow emcee Kelly Anquoe noted without the drum there would be no powwow.

Dawes related the warning of his father, former Ottawa Tribal Chairman Charles Dawes, now deceased, who was also an emcee at some of the oldest powwows in Oklahoma. “Dad used to quote a man named Frank Jones who said, ‘The drum is the heartbeat of the Indian people and when the last drumbeat has sounded, the Indian way will be no more.’”

PHOTO: Ponca singer Ed Littlecook, in white hat, leads singers in a victory song during a summer dance at White Eagle, Okla. Photo by JoKAY Dowell

Elevated Existence Magazine
Hip hop mogul is profiled in the spiritual magazine's March 2009 cover story, which also features coverage of Louise Hay's "You Can Heal Your Life Conference" in New York.

ELMWOOD PARK, N.J. -- During a time when mass layoffs across all industries are the norm and many people find themselves headed in unexpected new directions, Russell Simmons, a music, fashion and jewelry entrepreneur, who was recently named editor-in-chief of GlobalGrind.com, offers an encouraging voice in an exclusive cover story interview with spiritual magazine Elevated Existence’s March 2009 issue.

Simmons, a self-made mogul who is also a yoga enthusiast and advocate of meditation, shares insights useful to individuals in any level of their career, from entry-level to executive, and like his book, "Do You! 12 Laws to Access the Power in You to Achieve Happiness and Success," weaves the thread of spirituality throughout.

"Go to work every day and be inspired by the challenges," he explained in the cover story. "Enjoy the process and the weight and the burden that is perceived as reality, because it's an illusion. It's your dedication and focus that makes you happy. You have to remind yourself of that when the world seems to be caving in and the stock is not going the way it's supposed to go."

The theme of business and spirituality is carried throughout the March 2009 issue, with a book spotlight on author Michael Carroll and his book "The Mindful Leader: Awakening Your Natural Management Skills through Mindfulness Meditation," in which he explains how people can carry the practice of meditation into their working lives. Also present in this brand new issue is Dr. Laurie Ann Levin, founder of Moonview Sanctuary in California, who explained how she used a practice she calls Soul Communion™ to create her own company.

"I think focusing on spirituality in business can offer hope to people who are either fearful of losing their jobs amidst the stream of layoffs, or those who may have been affected and may be at a turning point in their lives," said Tammy Mastroberte, founder, publisher and editorial director of Elevated Existence Magazine. "To me, Russell Simmons is proof that spirituality and business can co-exist and form the ultimate path to success. He is a great example of someone who is truly 'walking the talk.'"

It's a very Jai Uttal kind of week! Today, March 24th, marks the release of Nutone artist Jai Uttal's excellent new record, Thunder Love. Pick up your copy today!

1. Hear Jai's "Om Shanti" as our Featured Track of the Week (on the homepage until March 31st)
2. Read RockOm's exclusive article and interview, The Evolution of Jai Uttal
3. On Thursday, check out the RockOm podcast which will include the raw, unedited phone audio from the interview

by Jai Uttal

Visit Jai Uttal at...

MySpace
JaiUttal.com

American songwriter and yoga chant master Jai Uttal's newest release, Thunder Love has been released this week and features elements and styles previously unexplored on Uttal's albums. Check out a sample from the album below and then see RockOm's full, exclusive interview, The Evolution of Jai Uttal.

Featured Track:
"Om Shanti"

Click to Play

More on Jai Uttal:
- Jai Uttal introduction to kirtan (YouTube)