The Nashville-based songwriters' website "SongRamp" has featured us in the "Artist Spotlight" starting today - it's really an honor (and a blast). You can read the interview at http://www.songramp.com/messages.ez?forum_id=6&Form.ShowMessage=49278 Here's a copy (maybe): Writer Links • NSAI • ASCAP • BMI • SESAC • SOCAN • APRA • JPF • SGA • L.O.C. (Copyright) • MuseNote Ring Powered by bondware all rights reserved Artists 1. "friarmike" (Blackbirds) Jules' Artist Spotlight 04/25/06 by JulesBloeth on 04/24 23:12 Attached Link: http://www.songramp.com/homepage.ez?Who=friarmike This week's Artist Spotlight is on "friarmike" (the Blackbirds) - Mike and Claire! 1. HOW DID YOU FIND SONGRAMP AND WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THIS SITE? Mike: I was getting some help from "harptech" on the Korg forum, asking stupid questions about how to do things on my machine, and I jumped over to look at his SongRamp site. I was hooked immediately! Commercial music these days is so vanilla, nobody taking any chances - just repeating what everybody else has done - that I just eat up those sites where I can listen to somebody I haven't heard before doing something I haven't heard before. It stimulates the imagination. I love the chance to interact with other songwriters and musicians on the Ramp. I'm looking forward to a collaboration or two in the future. Claire: The thing I like most about SongRamp is the chance to listen to a variety of musical styles, and it gives people the opportunity to put themselves out there for constructive criticism on their music. 2. NAME ONE FAVORITE SONG YOU’VE WRITTEN, CURRENTLY POSTED ON YOUR HOMEPAGE. WHY IS THIS YOUR FAVORITE? Mike: "Icarus", by a long shot. This one came together so intuitively; I had a guitar riff in ¾ time, a phrase I liked -- "I can see the curve of the earth"- and a double-drop-D tuning I wanted to mess with a little further, and suddenly the song took the shape of someone floating above the earth. I first thought astronaut, but the old myth came to mind and trumped that immediately. I also knew right away that this would be Claire's song, and I've been challenged to write from that perspective. I don't get tired of listening to this one, and I'm never tempted to change it. Something like "Soldier" I've changed probably 15 times since last summer, but I can't imagine any changes for this one. Claire simply nailed this one in about the third time through it, and I still get chills sometimes listening to her do it. I'm excited about her doing it live in a benefit show we have coming up in May. Claire: "Icarus", too. The lyrics that Mike came up with are really moving, and I really enjoy singing it. I think a lot of meaning is conveyed through this short, yet beautiful piece. 3. WHAT (OR WHO) WERE SOME OF YOUR EARLY MUSICAL INFLUENCES? Mike: Certainly early Dylan, though at the time we were playing blues and a lot of Stones. When I got a little older, I gravitated more toward Dylan, and then to people like Cat Stevens. Being from Chicago, I loved Steve Goodman and got to see him often; nobody could tell a story in a song like Steve could. John Prine was also up and coming at the time, and the whole Chicago folk scene was absolutely crazy-good. Claire: I really admire singers such as Sarah McLachlen. She has an angelic and soothing voice, and she is able to capture a lot of emotion through her singing. (Mike: I think you're already on your way there.) 4. HOW AND WHEN DID YOU BEGIN YOUR MUSICAL JOURNEY? Mike: I learned to read music in a boys' choir when I was in 3rd-8th grade, and took guitar lessons when I was about 12 from a guy who played in the NBC orchestra. Wanna know how stupid a young kid looking for his first electric guitar can be? I could have bought his old Martin archtop (probably built in the 30s) for about $50, but instead spent it on some weird, off-brand fiberglass thing. Started playing seriously in high school and got a used SG that I still have (vintage early 60s). In the summers, I worked in a West Side factory and was able to tag along with a co-worker to some of the real blues clubs - 17 year-old white boy hanging out and soaking it all in. Claire: I began my musical journey in grade school when I participated in school plays, but I really started to get a passion for it in high school performing in musical and variety shows. When I saw the reactions of fellow students and adults, I gained a great deal of confidence and fell in love with singing. 5. BESIDES MUSIC, WHAT OTHER LIFE DREAMS DO YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH? Mike: Seeing my 2 kids (Becky, 23 and Matt, 21) find happiness. Nothing else really matters. They've had it rough since their little brother died at the age of 4 when they were just 8 and 10. And seeing my students commit themselves to working for peace and justice. Claire: A life dream that I hope to accomplish is to get my teaching degree and become a third grade teacher. I am in the process of achieving that goal right now! BONUS QUESTION – THIS OR THAT: BOOKSTORE OR LIBRARY? Mike: Bookstore - things are easier to find! Claire: Bookstore!