Mind Shifting to the New Year

Well, my mind is shifting a little as we approach the new year.  I had pangs of loss for the Christmas season that surprised me a couple days after Christmas, but those were soon replaced by the wonderful feeling of rebirth and the excitement of new things to come in a fresh year.  It's amazing how the mind can shift gears so quickly!  I get so worked up for Christmas, and so immersed in the seasonal music, that I don't quite know what to do with myself when it's over.  I tell folks every year that they should enjoy the holiday with gusto so they don't miss out on the joy it can bring.  And it did bring me a lot of joy this year.  Between the family visits and new faces and parties and singalongs, I thoroughly enjoyed the season and let it wash over me.  Unfortunately I also got a cold for Christmas Day, but the sniffles are just about over, so no worries.  I'm not sure what the new year will bring, but it's always a tabula rasa (a blank slate) full of possibilities.  I hope you see it that way too!

So I had a surprise on Saturday night.  (I sent out a quick note to you yesterday with the news that I'll be DJ'ing at the La Veta Inn for New Year's Eve.)  When I off-handedly asked the Inn what they were doing for New Year's Eve I didn't expect to end up DJ'ing for them, but that's how it went down.  One thing led to another, and before I knew it I was dreaming of how much fun we could have.  I don't DJ very often, but there was a day when I did do it much more - DJ'ing on weekdays and playing with a band on weekends.  I loved to play interesting alternate versions of popular songs, and I enjoyed diving deep into my album collection to pick out gems that would surprise and delight my audience.  I didn't always have a dancing audience, but I did have an interested audience that thought of me like a radio DJ - programming music to set a mood and tell a story.  I really enjoyed it and missed it when it ended 25 years ago.  So I'll be doing it for New Year's Eve again, and I think it's going to be a blast!  I'll have a kickin' sound system, some flashing lights, a crystal ball, and a collection of 28,000 songs for your listening pleasure.  And yes, I'll bring my guitar and be ready to play some songs as well if folks would like.  They'll have free champagne at midnight and their usual menu of tasty steak and fish, and I'll start the tunes at 7:00.  If you don't have plans, please come out and celebrate with me.

Then Friday I'll be starting the new year at Magpies 6-9.  I'm still toying with the idea of doing theme sets at Magpies for the fun of it.  If this interests you, then give me some suggestions of what you'd like to hear.  My ideas so far are: Dan Fogelberg, John Denver, jazz standards, Beatles, old country western, cowboy, historic, folk songs, etc.  We could really dig into this and do some fun sets!  I look forward to seeing friends and having a fun night!

I'd better sign off.  There's lots to do to get ready for tomorrow night.  Happy New Year!

Tom

Details:

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  DJ'ing, and maybe playing & singing too
Where:  La Veta Inn, 103 W. Ryus Ave, La Veta.  719-742-3700
When:  Tuesday, December 31, 7 pm to midnight

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing
Where:  Magpies, 229 S. Union, Pueblo.  719-542-5522
When:  Friday, January 3, 7-10 pm

Merry Christmas!

Christmas is just about here, and I think I paced myself just about right.  I may have peaked a little early in my Christmas spirit, but the feeling has lasted, so I think I have just enough to get me through the week.  I hope you are enjoying it too.  This year the thing that has hit me the most is just how meaningful it can be to share and sing the Christmas songs together.  I've done several singalongs this season, and I'm so gratified at how much people have come to me and said that it made their Christmas season.  Christmas is about many things, but the community aspect and the shared experience seems to be very close to our hearts.  I don't know if it's the memories from those songs and the places we've been when we've heard them or just the fact that we all know them and share a common history and culture.  It's pretty special.  And it doesn't seem to matter what your religious background is - I even had a Buddhist friend say how much it meant to him to sing the old songs together.  Maybe we should try this with non-Christmas songs during the year as well.  Maybe Mitch Miller had it right all those years ago, and the Golden Bee and all the piano bars over the years have tapped into this too.  But I do think the specialness of the Christmas songs has something to do with the meaning of the experience I've felt this season in these singalongs.

So I hope you have a wonderful Christmas.  Just go with it!

So what I am up to for gigs this week?  I have family here, so I only have one public gig to tell you about.  Saturday night I'll be at the La Veta Inn 6-9.  Last Saturday I had a really nice group of folks at the Inn, and it was snowing lightly outside and felt so warm and delightful by the fire (as the song says.)  I'm betting this week will feel just as great in the magical week between Christmas and New Year's.  Come on out if you can!

Merry Christmas!

Tom

Details:

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing
Where:  La Veta Inn, 103 W. Ryus Ave, La Veta.  719-742-3700
When:  Saturday, December 28, 6-9 pm

Favorite Christmas Music

I've been grabbing some moments of silence around the house and in the car to listen to some of my favorite Christmas music, and I thought I'd share some of my favorite albums and songs here.  Please write back and share your favorites with me too!  Among my favorites are Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" album, Vince Guaraldi's "A Charlie Brown Christmas" album, Bruce Cockburn's "Christmas" album, the song "Colorado Christmas" recorded by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and written by Steve Goodman, "David Grisman's Acoustic Christmas" album, "Dr. Demento Presents the Greatest Christmas Novelty CD of All Time" album (a little twisted, I admit,) Peter Kater's "For Christmas" album (great piano,) Handel's "Messiah," Tuck Andress' "Hymns, Carols, and Songs About Snow" album, anything by Bing Crosby, and Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite."  There are way too many others to mention, but there are a few I listen to every year.  It's such a joyous time filled with so much music, goodies, stories, and traditions!

So now what am I up to this week?

I'm playing every day and every night at different Christmas parties and gatherings, but the two public performances I have will be Friday and Saturday night.

Friday I'm doing a Christmas Singalong at Magpies 7-10.  I've always wanted to do a community singalong during Christmas, and this is a good way to do this - except this will be just friends and family which is extra-special!  I'll have song sheets with big printed lyrics (for us old folks who need our glasses!)  This will be a blast!  Come get in the spirit!

Saturday night I'll be at the La Veta Inn 6-9.  I haven't played at Christmastime at the Inn for several years, so I'm really looking forward to seeing my good friends in La Veta and sharing the Christmas cheer.  If the weather's nice and you're up for an evening drive, then come on down and enjoy the wonderful ambience and good friends at the Inn for the evening!

I hope to see you this season, and if I don't get to, then have a wonderful holiday!

Tom

Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing
Where:  Magpies, 229 S. Union, Pueblo.  719-542-5522
When:  Friday, December 20

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing
Where:  La Veta Inn, 103 W. Ryus Ave, La Veta.  719-742-3700
When:  Saturday, December 21, 6-9 pm

Taking Care

I heard a good interview with Jony Ive from Apple this past week and posted a quote on Facebook that has me thinking quite a bit about an aspect of life I find interesting - taking care.  The amount of care a person takes reflects a lot about that person's character.  Jony Ive was talking in reference to the amount of care a person takes in designing a product for use by others, but I think it extends in to the care we take in everything we do.  Taking care is not just done for the pride of the person giving, but it also shows respect for the receiver of the care.  I see this in many things I do every day, from my cat who wants down as soon as she senses that I'm not giving her 100% of my attention, to my audience who starts to lose interest when my heart is not 100% in the delivery of the song I'm performing.  Taking care requires focus and being present in the moment.  Jony said that getting it right is something we do for each other.  This kind of taking care ultimately shows love for everything from our fellow humans to our surroundings.  I think this is a very worthwhile endeavor.  What else is life about other than caring?

So what am I up to this week?

I have a couple of private Christmas parties I'm looking forward to.  I used to do quite a few more of these, but I'm not the best marketer in the world, so I haven't done as many in the past few years.  I really enjoy them though!  My one public gig this week is something everyone can attend - an online concert.

Friday night I'll be doing a UStream concert from our living room 7-8 MST (mountain time) that will feature seasonal favorites.  This time of year has always meant a lot to me, especially since music is so much a part of the season - from Christmas songs to winter songs and favorites I learned when I got my first guitar for Christmas 37 years ago.  These UStream concerts are a lot of fun since you all can enter the chatroom and give me requests as well as chat with each other.  I should do them more often!  The address from your computer is http://www.ustream.tv/channel/tom-munch-live, and you can even watch from a smartphone or tablet with the free UStream app you can download from your app store.  If you can't make it at 7:00 mountain time, I will record the show at the same address so you can watch it at your convenience (except without the live chat of course.)  I hope to see you there!

That's it for this week.  I hope you are enjoying the holiday season.

Tom

Details for this week:

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing and singing
Where:  online on UStream http://www.ustream.tv/channel/tom-munch-live
When:  Friday, December 13, 7-8 pm MST

Getting Psyched for Christmas

I played my first show of Christmas songs last Friday, and I'm always interested in how my psyche adjusts to being in the Christmas spirit again.  I have a strict rule of not doing Christmas songs before Thanksgiving.  It's hard to explain, but it really messes me up to hear songs that are out of season, whether they're Christmas songs or summer songs or whatever.  I find as I get older that my brain isn't as flexible as it once was, and encountering things I don't expect can throw me into a funk that I have a hard time bouncing out of.  And so the change into Christmas songs and the Christmas spirit is something I encounter with curiosity each year.  I tell folks I play for that the Christmas season goes by so fast that if you don't get in the spirit when the season is here then you'll miss it completely.  I tell myself that too.  And the truth is that I love the Christmas music so much, and it is so much a part of my life, that it is very easy to fall into the songs each year.  And then the challenging part is to let myself get swept up into the joy and emotion of each song. I have to remember that my joy of the song is important to how much my audience gets out of the song - and I owe it to the song to perform it well.  So I venture out into the season with my heart full of song and my head full of the love of the season!

I also have to mention that Jen and I have been delving into old Muppet movies and TV shows since we both finished the biography of Jim Henson by Brian Jones.  He was quite a guy, and was taken from us too soon at the age of 53.  His giving spirit and gentle philosophy of life is an inspiration to me.  There are a bunch of Muppet Christmas shows that are a treat this time of the year, so we can watch the Muppets and get into the Christmas spirit at the same time.  A bonus!

So what am I up to this week?

Friday I'm back at Magpies 7-10 for an evening of friends and fun!  I find that some folks don't want to hear Christmas music just yet, so I will temper my seasonal enthusiasm with other favorites.  Since I've been reading about Jim Henson and the Muppets I have been listening to Paul Williams who wrote several songs for the Muppets, so you can expect to hear a few of his songs.  I also love a bunch of '70's songs that the season reminds me of, so I'll be singing those as well - Simon and Garfunkel, Jim Croce, James Taylor, and many more!  Come on out!

Sunday I'm playing for the Pueblo Zoo Christmas event called Zoolala 5-9.  This promises to be a blast!  It's at Park East restaurant (just east of City Park) with the evening going from cocktails to dinner to ElectriCritters at the zoo with a shuttle.  I plan to lead a sing-a-long of Christmas songs probably from 7-8 depending on how the night flows, and I'll be performing favorites before and after that piped into several of the rooms.  This is a fundraiser for the Zoo.  The cost is $75 apiece for zoo members and $85 apiece for non-members and includes dinner, one signature cocktail, goody bag, ticket and shuttle to ElectriCritters at the zoo.  You need to call 719-561-1452 ext. 206 to RSVP or visit the website - http://www.pueblozoo.org/zoolalabegins.html - for more info and to RSVP.  I can't wait!

I'm also playing a lot of Christmas shows for different nursing and rehab facilities, so if you have someone in one of these facilities you may see me as well.

Almost forgot! I'm planning to do an online UStream concert very soon.  I'll send out more ASAP!

That's it for this week!  May you be filled with the joy and love this season brings.

Tom

Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing
Where:  Magpies, 229 S. Union, Pueblo.  719-542-5522
When:  Friday, December 6, 7-10 pm

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing and singing for Zoolala, the fundraiser bash for the Pueblo Zoo!
Where:  Park East restaurant, 720 Goodnight Ave, Pueblo.  719-561-1452 ext. 206 to RSVP
When:  Sunday, December 8, 5-9 pm