Diverticulitis and Other Downers (#BOTB Results)

  Let me get down to business before I get to business.  After all, life is full of surprises and sometimes the pleasure gets stepped on by the business...

Battle of the Bands Results

         My previous Battle between The John Mayer Trio and the pairing of Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso with contrasting versions of the Jimi Hendrix song "Wait Until Tomorrow" had a surprising outcome.   This looked like a shutout with the Mayer Trio rapidly taking a lead until votes started pouring in for Veloso/Gil.  Whew!  Thanks to all who help prevent a dreaded shut out. 

         Actually the outcome was pretty amazing.  My vote went to Veloso/Gil because their version was unique and told the song's story better.  And I liked the percussive Brazilian style.  Mayer may have won in the end, but it was a squeaker. 

Final Vote Tally

John Mayer      11 votes

Veloso/Gil        10 votes


Sometimes You Have to Wait for Tomorrow

         When I prepared my previous post I knew that some negative vibes were in the air for me.  Then, the cherry was placed on top of a crap sundae.  This past Monday I ended up in the ER with severe stomach pain.  The diagnosis was diverticulitis.  I'd heard of this before and now I know a lot more about it.  For one thing it hurts--a lot. 

          All day Sunday I had been feeling poorly and in the evening I considered going to the ER.  But I figured that it was something that would go away after a good night's sleep.  As it turned out, I didn't get much sleep and at 4 AM I told my wife I was going to the ER.  Going to the hospital is nowhere on my list of favorite things.  I don't even like to visit a hospital.  However the staff was very nice and accommodating and got me out in about 8 hours with two prescriptions for antibiotics which so far have made me feel almost as bad I had felt previously.  Now I'll have ten days of taking those.  Hopefully I'll get more accustomed to the side effects.  I just have to wait until tomorrow I guess to see if I feel better.

         As I indicated on August 1st, my current post would provide an update about my Cover Version Challenge of my song "Let's Run".   I had put out a call to any singers/musicians/producers to make a cover version to be pitted in my next Battle of the Bands post.   So far no luck from the blogging community.  I still need to reach out to more of my musician friends to see if anyone wants to take me up on this. Over all though, my mind has not been focused on this so I haven't done very much about it.

       I'm still trying to stay optimistic about this Cover Version Challenge, but seeing as how I only have a week before my next BOTB post I doubt whether this Battle will take place on August 15th.  If not then that's okay--I'll extend it to the Battle of September 1.  If anyone is interested in doing this, I will send rough recordings of the melody line and partial vocals along with a lyric sheet. You just have to let me know an email address where to send it. 

        Also I'm going to add an alternative approach.  If you'd rather just come up with your own melody behind my lyrics then we can be song collaborators.  And once I'm back to a better performance level I will continue to try to come up with another cover myself. 

         That's the update for now.  We'll find out more in my next post...


Next Battle of the Bands on Wednesday August 15th!

         What will it be?  You'll have to come back to find out.


Have you ever experienced diverticulitis?   Are you good at improvising when things don't turn out like you planned or hoped?    Do you have any other suggestions where I might find someone who might be interested in participating in my Cover Version Challenge? 

            

Wait Until Tomorrow ( #BOTB & #IWSG )

Insecure Writer's Support Group

     Join us on the first Wednesday of each month in Alex J. Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group--a forum of writers who gather to talk about writing and the writer's life. For a complete list of participants visit Alex's Blog. 

The co-hosts for the August 1 posting of the IWSG are Erika Beebe, Sandra Hoover, Susan Gourley, and Lee Lowery.

August 1 question - What pitfalls would you warn other writers to avoid on their publication journey?

      Since my publication journey has not seen any significant achievement there isn't much I can say about this topic that relates to my experience or anything I've heard from someone I know. One thing I suggest to avoid is old fashioned typewriters.   Oh, I know some folks love them and that's fine, but for me the computer keyboard made my writing life so much easier.

        This month's question does however relate to something on my mind of late.  To give some background, songwriting has been a passion of mine since high school.  This past April in the midst of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge a song pervaded my mind.  Much of my inspiration had come watching some of my granddaughter's singing performances.  My song "Let's Run" was written for her.

        Since I had mentioned the song in previous posts on my blog and even shared the copy that I recorded with neighbors who further shared with their circles, the thought crossed my mind that someone might "steal" the song. I guess I'm not particularly concerned since I don't think my creative range is limited to one thing.

          Like Jimmy Durante (some might remember him) used to say, "I've got a million of 'em!"  Even if a song (or some other creation) was used by someone else for gain I think it becomes an affirmation that other stuff I do is worthy. 

            Do you think I'm taking a big risk by just putting original songs on places like YouTube?  Have you ever been wary of sharing you creative work without getting the proper documentation that says that work is yours?   Are you ready for another Challenge--a musical Challenge?

           Sure, I have a Battle of the Bands coming up below which I hope you'll vote on, but there is also another challenge addressed to any musicians, singers, or who knows anyone who might be interested in a musical challenge.   I'll explain further after this...



Battle of the Bands

Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens each month on the 15th and on some blogs there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month.  My blog is one of those with a second Battle on the 1st of the month.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.


Wait Until Tomorrow

          Jimi Hendrix fans will probably know this song well.  For me a sense of impatience I've been feeling of late rings with the reminder that I have to wait until tomorrow for some things.  Tomorrow should be a good thing so I hope they keep rolling in for all of us.

          The Hendrix song lyrics are less optimistic.   The song is about a couple who are going to elope.  The father puts an end to it all with a shotgun.  I'd much rather wait for good things to come.  No need to wait for the Battle because here it is...

John Mayer Trio  "Wait Until Tomorrow"  (2008)






Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso  "Wait Until Tomorrow"  (1994)








Time to Vote!

       Don't wait until tomorrow to vote lest you forget to come back!  What's your favorite between these two choices? Which song version do you like best? You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.

         Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours.


Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:

 StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

Angel's Bark  

Debbie Doglady's Den

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 




Winner of this Battle Announced Wednesday August 8th

       In addition to announcing the winner of the above Battle of the Bands, I will provide an update on my Cover Version Challenge of the original song "Let's Run"--hopefully I can debut in some form or fashion for my next Battle of the Bands on August 15th.

Did you catch what I just said?

         This is a call to singers and/or musicians who have access to recording equipment (heck, your phone might work just fine).   If you are involved in music or know someone else who is and would like to share their talents, please spread the word.  I'd love to get some YouTube covers using my song "Let's Run" so I could use them in some upcoming Battle of the Bands segments.

          Currently my plan is to use the version I've recorded with some friends put up against another version we were planning to record with a different vocalist.  However, due to life stuff we may not be able to pull this off.  I'm hopeful, but not certain.  It didn't take too long to whip the first version together, but the next one might not come together so quickly for us.   That's where some of you might be able to come to our rescue with a cover of "Let's Run". 

           If you're interested in doing something then please let me know.  I'll send a very bad rudimentary recording of the melody line and a couple of choruses sung acapella--enough to give a rough idea of what you are working with without my influencing your style.

           The song can be performed in any style you wish in any form that you want to work with including instrumental versions.  To illustrate, I had my mind's version of how the song might sound and when I passed the melody and vocal to my collaborator his vision of the song was completely different and totally cool.  His rock vision of the song that went on to become the sole recording version we have so far became the theme song of my recent road trip--it's now my favorite driving song.

            What kind of sound could some of you come up with for this song?  I'd like to hear some other covers to see what else can be done with the song.  This is a Creative Challenge that will only work if some of you get into it right away.  I'm counting on at least a few of you to come through on this.  It seems like it could be a lot of fun and possibly useful to the participants.

           There's no official prize involved other than the satisfaction of achievement and who knows what could come of it all.  If you're interested then send me an email at arleebird@gmail.com and I will send you your working recording, lyrics, and some additional information.  

           Wouldn't it be cool to put together something epic with this?   Or even a contender for our neighborhood band.  I want to debut the song I wrote, but I just want to do something a little bigger than just providing my video.

             I hope some of you can help with this.  Please spread the word!





         

Message in a Bottle (#atozchallenge & Battle of the Bands)

        A marketing campaign is unlikely to be successful if the outreach is limited.  If you stuff your promo message in a bottle and throw it into the ocean waiting for someone to find it, you might be waiting a long time and there's a good chance that it will never be seen.   The message you want to send out to the marketplace needs to be one that will be seen by the largest possible audience.  Also the message has to have impact to be effective.

         You can buy advertising if you've got the budget, but in many cases that budget will be small.  To get the most mileage for your marketing dollar be sure to have a decent press kit or at least send out press releases to the sources you think might be most apt to use them.

         Make contact with people you know to see if they can help.  If your sister has a friend who has a cousin who has an in-law in the radio business see if you can snag a radio interview.  In other words enlist the aid of those who could possibly be of any help to you.

          Be willing to try innovative experiments to deliver your message, but be sensible as well.   Most people will never hear of you or your product if you don't take action to get the word out to them.

Battle of the Bands:  Message In A Bottle

          A message in a bottle might not be a good marketing tactic, but it makes for a nice romantic story.  It is also is the basis of the classic song written by Sting.   This Battle of the Bands pits two different versions of "Message in a Bottle" in contest to decide on the readers' favorite.

          This is another edition of the twice monthly feature The Battle of the Bands.   First conceived by Faraway Eyes at Far Away Series and joined by Stephen T. McCarthy at Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends, I've been also joining in the Battles on the 1st and 15th of each month to add my own twists on the musical mix.   Others join in now and then--you will find some of those blogs at the end of this post--and you are welcome to stage your own Battle as well--just let us know in the comments so we'll come visit your contest.

          Here's how it works:  You listen to the song versions we offer on our sites and for each battle you vote for your favorite version in the comments and let us know why you picked that version.  Winners of each Battle will be announced on each site sometime next week.  I'll announce mine on Tuesday April 22nd. Fun, easy, and even a bit educational.   So let's get started:  


The Police  "Message in a Bottle"  (1979)

        This song first appeared on Reggatta de Blanc, the second album by the Police.  Sting has been quoted as saying that this is his favorite Police song.






John Mayer "Message in a Bottle" (2003)

        Next a more mellow take by singer/guitarist John Mayer.






Now Vote!

        Which version do you prefer?   Tell us in the comments and let us know why you prefer this version.  Then visit the other Battle of the Band participants.

  Here are some other bloggers who may or may not be participating in the Battle of the Bands:

         Faraway Series
         Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends
         Your Daily Dose
         DiscConnected
            Donna Hole
            SteveIsHungry 

   
        What are some of the ways that you've delivered marketing messages?   Have you ever helped someone else spread the word about their product or cause?     Do you still read newspapers?


         

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