Dime-A-Dozen #17 - Dragonfly Flipz Books. - Part 2

This is the second part of my Dime-A-Dozen #17 - Dragonfly Flipz Books. My dive into one of my most ambitious creative projects. Spoiler: it didn't turn out well, but the journey was worth it. And I still have a desire to give it another try. More on that later.

I might add more art later.

Sunday Muse Day - More Holiday Tunes - Elle Jazz Winter Blue, The Best Christmas Ever . Love Waits - Warped Sky - Stray Clouds

 "Now it's the day after Christmas and my clock is in the red"(lyric from the song, Love Waits by Richard Miceli - Warped Sky Band -'80)

This Sunday Music Muse found us two days after Christmas, but in our household we keep the Xmas tree up until New Year's Day and play holiday music until then, too. Here two annual picks, ELLE Jazz Winter Blue, a collection of various classic jazz performers doing Holiday and winter themed tunes.

The second collection is The Best Christmas Ever, a Virgin Records release. Remarkably, there are only two tunes the show up on both CD. "Merry Christmas Baby" performed by Charlie Brown and "What are you doing for New Year's Eve" performed by Lena Horne. Both are classics so no harm, no foul. One nitpick, the cover design for the CD back cover is bad. the song title info is totally unreadable. Some designer was hitting the spiked Holiday egg nog too much before sending it to the printer. Still it has served us well over the years.

Here is another tune in my Warped Sky: Stray Clouds project, a combination of songs from old tapes and new renditions of original tunes written and played by me, and my ad hoc band Warped Sky Band in the 1980s, with the buddies, Richard Miceli and Rodney Means. Again, in this case, "Band" means three guys screwing around playing in our apartments. "Love Waits" is a tongue-in-cheek "Jazz Noise" or "Art Jazz" as Richard labels are music. The lyrics has a lot of Tom Waits in it, as he was a favorite of Richard's and I aways hear strains of that in his poems/lyrics. I'm amazed at the off-beat and dark insights on personal relationships Richard's lyrics reveals.

The line "...my clock is in the red", alway stuck with me. It seems to say how can't you move forward when your dragging all that old stuff behind you. So, I'm going to start getting rid of stuff, material, and emotional. Mostly these posts are a personal celebration of long friendships that I treasure for life. Enjoy.

A Winter Solstice III - Windham Hill Artists

Here's music to celebrate the Winter Solstice occurring today.  A Winter Solstice III by Windham Hill Artists.  Windham Hill Records is known as New Age record company the presents mostly acoustic music spanning a eclectic range across Classical, Folk, Jazz and blend of all of them. This is obviously, the third in a series of  six Winter Solstice releases,  part of 24 Windham Winter Holiday releases. It's a nice addition to our family holiday music playlist.

It's a nice addition to our family holiday music playlist.

Sunday Music Muse Day - Holiday Music

This Sunday Music Muse Day finds me officially starting our family Holiday celebrations. First, we decorated the Christmas Tree last night as Charle Brown's Christmas soundtrack played in the background, our family tradition.  Having tall sons makes placing the star on top the tree a breeze.

I followed A Charlie Brown Christmas with a growing seasonal favorite The Merry Gentlemen - Christmas on the Rocks, featuring Bob Sneider (guitar) and brother John Sneider (trumpet & Whistle).  These local boys know how to rock the Holiday music.

We several more compilation CDs of  traditional and popular Holiday tunes, but here are two off-beat selections I like a lot.  The Blue Hawaiians - Christmas on the Big Island. and Al Di Meola Winter Nights.   Neither Hawaii nor Al Di Meola, a fusion guitar legend, would make you think of Christmas music.  Both are worth owning if you come across them.

Here's wishing everyone a safe, joyous, Holiday Season.  Peace.

Dragonfly Holiday Flipz Books

For Flip Book Friday, here are three of my Dragonfly Flipz books that were planned for the Holiday Season. The Alien Parade Flipz book Part 1 was produced and I still sell them on my eBay page. I still think of finishing the Part 2 to completed the set, someday.

 Enjoy.

"A Charlie Brown Christmas" Vince Guaraldi, Santa Baby.

This Sunday Music Muse Day when us enter the 12 days of Christmas.  It's still too early for our household for Holiday Music as we have put up a tree yet.  But as "A Charlie Brown's Christmas" is having a special show on PBS tonight (as the only free option to see it this year), I'd thought I pull out the CD.  This sound track featuring the music of jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi is of course a classic, and national treasure.  

Another TV soundtrack I'm pulling out early is Rankin/Bass Christmas special Santa Baby. Unfortunately, the animated special ever seem to catch on like the other R/B Christmas specials, although it had an impressive cast of talent actors, Gregory Hines, Patti LaBelle, Vanessa Williams and Eartha Kitt.  Santa Baby was of course build around the famous, "Santa, Baby" song.  I can't say if the mostly black cast, and urban setting effected the it's appeal.  It was my last job with R/B and the highlight for me was meeting Vanessa Williams when she came in to record her songs. Maybe Santa Baby might have just been ahead of it's time. With the rise of BLM movement this special might  get more attention. 

Of course, there will holiday music to come.  Enjoy.  

Sunday Music Muse Day - Ralph Towner, Mark Isham

 This Sunday Music Muse Day find us getting a our first real touch of winter. Friday saw a light blanket of snow covering the lawn, although it didn't last long, Saturday was cold cloudy and gloomy.  Sunday start overcast and grey, gave way to scattered clouds and patches of blue sk, but still chilly.  I tried pick some music to reflect the weather, introspective and sober,  First up is Ralph Towner Batik. This a favorite Towner album of mine, released in 1978.  In considering selling my record collection I bought a new CD of it.  I admit I like the original album cover, front and back, more than the updated CD package.  At least the music is as great as I remembered.  It a trio set with Towner on 12-string and classical guitars, and piano (which was actually his first instrument),  Eddie Gomez on bass, and the amazing Jack DeJohnette on drums. I know this was one of the records that hooked me on ECM records. If you don't own I highly recommend it.

Here's the vinyl album cover front and back.  The hand lettering give it more character.

My second selection is Mark Isham Blue Sun, a trumpeter with a extensive and varied discography ranging from rock, pop, and jazz, and to children's Rabbit Ears Storytime Classics.  I first came to know him as New Age artist with his first album Vapor Drawings on Windham Hill records label.  Lisa, my wife, even got permission from him to use one of his tune for a animation short she did in the '80s.  Blue Sun is pleasant CD with some nice laid back tunes and upbeat selections to round it out as soundtrack for a gloomy winter day.

Here's his Vapor Drawings album on the Windham Hill record label, know for acoustic New Age music.

Hope everyone finds tunes to help through these chaotic time as we move toward the winter holidays.  Stay safe, stay healthy, wear a mask.