Rikki Don't Lose That Number

Singing Keeps Me Sane...


I went out and did a little singing last night.

I guess that People that don't sing or who are forced into doing it in spite of themselves like kids in Church Choir don't understand the therapeutic nature of such an endeavor.

You use muscles you sometimes never use and you have to think about things in order to sing--particularly in front of an audience--that you might not ordinarily consider and for me somehow it makes me feel better in the process.

I'm a better singer than I am a guitar player or piano player these days, but the Harmonica (a box full of them actually) and the trumpet and some other instruments still sooth my soul given the opportunity to hold them and make a little noise.

I don't even care if anyone else hears me holding them them except the forest and God.

Somewhere in the Bible it says "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord" and I say that goes a lot further in life than most people think it does.

Even if you are an agnostic or atheistic, I don't think that you can ever be too sure who might be listening when you think that you are alone singing.

Until you've had the experience, taken the chance and bared your soul in the process I guess that you might not understand how much better I feel when it is all said and done.

New Karaoke Tune

Live From The Banks Of The Mighty Tennessee River Saturday Night...




(That would be the group The Holleys doing their #2 ranked hit in 1972, "Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress"...I'm bumping it down a couple of steps in Key and adding a Harmonica solo...should be interesting...)

I Can Do This--Confessions From An Ego Maniac

This Ain't Me, But Close Enough...


Sometime about 20 years ago I was wandering around Orlando, Florida on a business trip, and after the conference and the formal dinner stuff had ended I found myself sitting at a place where they had "Laser Karaoke"--something purported to have at the time been imported by the Japanese as a secret weapon to finish fighting WWII.

Having a couple of Jack Daniels worth of courage in my belly, I waited my turn and then jumped up in front of the microphone and proceeded to die a slow death doing an old R&B classic song "If You don't Know Me By Now" then covered by a band called "Simply Red."

Fortunately when it was all over with I was three hundred miles away from home and as far as I know it today there were no witnesses in the room that still know my address or phone number.

In spite of that dismal intro experience, I was intrigued by the concept and ever since then I've spent a good deal of time learning to publicly perform various songs by artists like Jimmy Buffett, James Taylor, Willy Nelson which are within my vocal range and today I'm proud to report that I can pretty much hang with the best of them in any given venue.

Any way...I was staggering around the interent looking at Johnny Cash and Ray Charles songs this evening and in a fit of Googling I started looking for video of people doing songs I sing as "covers" to the original artists.

Check out this guy playing the piano and doing the one hit wonder song "Brandy" by the 1970's group "Looking Glass":



Somebody give me an "Amen"...