Monday, July 23, 2012

Preparing for Themed Concerts

Christa is building art, I'm getting songs ready -- we're both thinking, sketching, and working with the ideas. I'm really excited about this "themed concert" concept that continues to evolve as we prepare for the early August trip. Besides an art show and a talk at 808, I'll be doing two "themed concerts" and one collaborative evening with poet/songwriter/humorist Andrew Kreider.

The themes? 
Transitions (see drawing above -- this is the idea in process) at NMC.
Adaptive Challenges at the Butlers residence.
Family will be a theme at the Andrew Kreider Free-For-All (actually it will be a very classy and funny event at what looks to be a wonderful bakery/coffeehouse venue).

Hope to see you there. More specific info on events available on FB.

Recent sketch

"Waiting wind of Gabriel, blow soon upon the hollow bones." - Mark Heard, Treasure of a Broken Land

Friday, July 20, 2012

Steady Like a Garden

Wrote this for the upcoming Goshen "themed concerts".



Shot live from the back of a pickup truck in North Carolina (camera teeters on truck bed, no film crew, in case you wondered.)


Copyright 2012 Jonathan Reuel (words, music, live performance).

Monday, July 16, 2012

The Steel Wheels live and the Backup we all need

This is a photo of my calendar for a recent evening. I had the chance to see the Steel Wheels at the Grey Eagle in Asheville, a venue I've wanted to visit for years.

JRL did a show with Trent and the band a few years back, and it was great to hear the maturation of their material and performance since then.

It left me thinking again about the challenge and joy of touring regularly -- you develop competencies that are a profound gift, but it comes at a price, even to those who do it well and wisely. I left encouraged, sobered and inspired, and hoping to find that balance in the season ahead where I become more competent and able to give a gift that is worth peoples' time and money -- without trading in my deep love of music and message and beauty and core relationships rooted in a specific time and place.

I see this as sort of a tightrope walk requiring regular miracles and interventions both divine and human. In reality, though, the road a traveling musician walks is in it's essence not much different than many other professions -- each come with unique challenges and require the sort of backup to do well that most of us don't have


"When will we see the need to call in backup?" 
- JRL, Backup, 2005 (thanks Amber)