"Country Strong" OFFICIAL MOVIE!!!!

Don't miss this exciting movie (and move - think like a chess-player) for the Country Music Industry! They've taken huge steps to redirect and change their basic feel and sound from "Classic" or "Old Country" like Loretta Lynn and Waylon Jennings to acts like Big N' Rich and Lady Antebellum. 

An Alternative Rock label has been injected into the "Twangy Country" of old and morphed into the artistry we all know and love today. Others I interviewed and chatted with are keen on the marketing ploys being taken. But such is the role of music in worldly matters. The deeply moving legendary tunes will forever be known to true music fanatic.

WHAT DOES "GOOD ENOUGH" MEAN TO YOU?

Good enough can be a cop-out to me. I remember a vehicle commercial that said, "If we all settled for good enough, would things EVER, REALLY, be good enough?" And I echo that question to my readers. This is your chance to respond with your beliefs and thoughts after viewing. You DESERVE to have a VOICE!

So within the realm of music - we owe it to ourselves not to "settle". It's such a counter-productive trait with songwriting, musical learning, and perfect practice are at hand. The threat of not having enough willpower to push past the temporary discomfort of laziness or "hard work" is real. It affects us every day; sometimes, we aren't even aware of it. Which is why it's so important to wake up early before the start of your official day. It gives you leverage!

On the other side of the spectrum, when controlling perfectionist tendencies, there's a song by King Crimson called, "You Have to Be Happy with What You Have to Be Happy With". I think the title alone is awesome and the lyrical melody sounds like something Pink Floyd would've written. The words are trance-like and soothing. And it also brings up a great point; the success and effective behaviors we've learned over time have gotten us to precisely the place where we're at. And that is something to pause about and celebrate. 

::WHEN WE FINALLY REALIZE AND FIND OUR BALANCE: 

We've become Musicians with a drive & momentum toward success and joy! We write the soundtracks for the world's lives!!! One song can heal a broken heart. One song can change our state of mind and alter our reality for the better. And our listeners and fans KNOW THIS. They live in the same reality as we do but the only difference is that they don't have the same spiritual gifts as we do.

SUCCESS IS OURS, EVERYDAY WE TAKE ACTION. let's jam together (wherever we all hail from) and build up our creative muscles!!!!!!




NAMASTE' EVERYONE.

COMMITTED TO MUSIC ALL YEAR LONG!!! (Join Me in 2011) :o)

Hi Everyone! I hope you all had a great Christmas Holiday and New Years Eve/Day celebration! My 17 month old and I got to play with our new Vic Firth drumsticks and "Thunder Rods", which are kind of like a step up from Brushes. It was super fun jamming with Zeke and directing him to switch from the high-hats to the Ride cymbal when the chorus came.    :o)

As we begin a new year and ponder everything that we've accomplished throughout 2010, I think about the blessings that we've been given. It's been through the love and caring we've given to others. There's something strangely unique and special about THE NATURE OF GIVING that stirs in each of our hearts. Music is similar in that way. 

We wake up to it on our alarm clocks! NATURAL RHYTHMS are in our everyday lives and "imbeded"  on our To-Do-Lists.  The very breaths that we take in air by, have a pattern and rhythm. And what it does for our mind, body and soul is a testament to the privileges we have. 

I'm finding it very tough in this point in my life, to do anything alone. I think that's a portion of how/why I decided to get married; I knew that if I had someone so wonderful alongside of me in unison with my goals and journey, I'd be amplifying the love that share with friends, family and my readers.

Here's a great link to some deals that MF is having. I'm gonna brose through these as soon as i get home from the store for a diaper run!!!!! HAHAHA


REMEMBER: their Winter Sale at www.MusiciansFriend.com  is specifically on sales up to 93% off! This promotion expires in a week, next Saturday, January 8th, so now is the time to invest in guitar picks, pop filters, keyboards and a huge selection of other accessories!

FOR THE LOVE OF RECORDING!!!!!!

In my experience in recording studios, I really feel strongly in favor of having "someone else" record me (instead of doing it myself). It allows me as an artist, to get into the perfect frame of mind for taking songs to new levels. I feel it's almost mandatory.

There needs to be a calmness and peace before doing each "take". And being the red button presser AND the artist detracts from the creative energy that flows as i get into the proper space in my mind. This is where my vision is the most potent and pure. 

I LOVE, the Music Studios and their "Sound Engineers". Being involved and present during the process of creating something beautiful is remarkable. The next time you get a chance to watch someone creating, give yourself the gift of losing yourself in curiousity and wonder. Be in the space of someone who's expressive nature leads to filling silence, with love. That tip alone can help you to create yourself. Even if you don't have a creative bone in your body. Trust the unknown. Give in to the gift of creating! 

SO WHY DO ARTISTS, "DO WHAT THEY DO?"

When individuals choose to leave an almost immortalizing legacy by what they write - that is an extraordinary act. It's above humans just, "being." It allows them to think about themselves the way God does. It helps us to understand the power that we have in this world. You might not have heard it explained this way before so, open your mind to the possibilities and see what thoughts come up as new ideas. You might be surprised. :)

THE PROCESS OF BIRTHING A SONG:

Once a song is created, it's born in the light of fragility and delicate in nature. It's vulnerable man! - protect it!!! Get them to a safe place in a studio as quickly as possible, where you can be yourself with them. THINK OF A STUDIO AS YOUR MUSICAL TEMPLE.

This is where I've asked some of the most heart-felt, deep questions about myself and the song topic at hand. This approach seems to take you to a "secret location" in your mind in the song-writing process.

It's the key to finalizing each song. To truely give words the coloring chords and melodies that they deserve! They're actually very simliar to a newborn infant. As we annotate them within the world of recording, we raise them up to be able to become valliant examples of purity - an honest novel of that emotion and place in our lives.

Even anger is a healthy emotion; hate, in my opinion should never be allowed in a song. That's just mimicry going against the brilliance of true creation. If it takes away from the good in the world - it degrades the livelihood of beauty in music. And when it conveys love in the message, it counteracts the fear-based songwriting that others write from. Love is the driving emotion and goal of every human, being. Lenny Kravitz discovered this secret when recording his 1st CD. Let's let love rule!!!!

Related articles

• A Music Studio in the Cloud (spectrum.ieee.org)
• Evanescence New Album Delayed (perezhilton.com)
• In the studio with "For the Love of Music" (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• ARCH ENEMY Recording New Studio Album, First Online Studio Report Available; Band Announce Next Live Shows For 2011 (bravewords.com)
• Set up an Inexpensive Beginner Home Recording Studio [Weekend Project] (lifehacker.com)

$100 Off Coupon @ GUITAR CENTER!!!!

Image by Marilyn M via Flickr

I buy my guitars in-store. I've NEVER bought any guitar over the internet. There needs to be a definite connection with the player and their instrument. Online purchase of a keyboard is okay because the workmanship is a little bit more streamlined but any expert guitar luthier will testify that you must physically play a guitar before buying it.



So head over there by clicking this link Guitar Center for a screaming, crazy coupon!


ALSO: Email me at TROYINLASVEGAS@GMAIL.COM to schedule one of my Guitar-Buying Seminars. They're extremely informational and leave you with a feeling of ease. You'll know your options and learn a heck of a lot more about guitars and how they compare to each other. Quality will be the main factor to look for once we're in the store. You definitely get what you pay for. 


Here are the "conditions" below just because I love you all. ;o)

*$100 OFF COUPON:$100 off applies to total purchases of $499 or more made at our displayed Guaranteed Lowest Price. Not to be used in conjunction with other coupons, promotions or offers. No cash value. Excludes clearance items, price matches, scratch and dent, vintage equipment, Gift Cards and musician services (Pro Coverage, GC Garage). Some manufacturers have chosen not to participate in this promotion; they may be found at http://www.guitarcenter.com/couponexclusions. Coupon is redeemable in-store, online, or at (866) 543-0741 only with valid coupon code. Offer valid through 12/31/2010.

*15% OFF COUPON:
Coupon is good for 15% off single item purchases only when combined with Trade Credit from a qualifying instrument during the same transaction (up to $500 discount). Purchases must be made at the store's tagged Guaranteed Lowest Price. Not to be used in conjunction with other coupons, promotions or offers. No cash value. Excludes clearance items, price matches, used, scratch and dent, vintage equipment, Gift Cards and musician services (Pro Coverage, GC Garage). Some manufacturers have chosen not to participate in this promotion; they may be found athttp://www.guitarcenter.com/couponexclusions. Coupon is redeemable in-store only with valid coupon code. Offer valid through 1/2/2011.

PRICING:
Product prices are subject to change and all deals are subject to stock availability. We are not responsible for printing, typographical or photographic representation errors. Online and Call Center prices may vary from those in Guitar Center retail stores. See full pricing information.

Related articles

• Learn How to Never Pay Retail Again for Any Guitars or Amps during the Holidays (prweb.com)
• Guitar Center 'Picks' Creative Civilization (eon.businesswire.com)
• Zoom Recorders, Effects, and Multitrackers Now Available at Musician's Friend (prweb.com)
• A guitar man's swingin' feat (thestar.com)
• Kohl's Coupon for an Extra 15% to 20% Off (walletpop.com)

Elton John has BABY BOY on X-MAS!!!!

Yes, it's true. I'm very happy for them and if they can persevere through all the same trials,worry and fretting the same as us straight couples, and do it with meekness and love, all the more to them. There are worse evils in the world beside two people of the same sex in a committed relationship wanting to help another human being grow up knowing the immense love this world has to offer, not to mention the amazing exposure to music and the arts he'll have.

Related articles

• "John Mellencamp & Wife Split" and related posts (popcrunch.com)

FREE Gear for Life zZounds.com GIVEAWAY!

All you have to do is sign up for their email subscription. I love stuff like this!

http://www.zzounds.com/form--giveaway

101 Useful Websites

SHARED FROM LINK BELOW:
http://www.labnol.org/internet/101-useful-websites/18078/


ENJOY!!!




01. screenr.com – record movies of your desktop and send them straight to YouTube.
02. bounceapp.com – for capturing full length screenshots of web pages.
03. goo.gl – shorten long URLs and convert URLs into QR codes.
04. untiny.me – find the original URLs that’s hiding behind a short URLs.
05. localti.me – know more than just the local time of a city
06. copypastecharacter.com – copy special characters that aren’t on your keyboard.
07. topsy.com – a better search engine for twitter.
08. fb.me/AppStore – search iOS app without launching iTunes.
09. iconfinder.com – the best place to find icons of all sizes.
10. office.com – download templates, clipart and images for your Office documents.
11. woorank.com – everything you wanted to know about a website.
12. virustotal.com – scan any suspicious file or email attachment for viruses.
13. wolframalpha.com – gets answers directly without searching  – see more wolfram tips.
14. printwhatyoulike.com – print web pages without the clutter.
15. joliprint.com – reformats news articles and blog content as a newspaper.
16. isnsfw.com – when you wish to share a NSFW page but with a warning.
17. e.ggtimer.com – a simple online timer for your daily needs.
18. coralcdn.org – if a site is down due to heavy traffic, try accessing it through coral CDN.
19. random.org – pick random numbers, flip coins, and more.
20. mywot.com – check the trust level of any website – example.
21. viewer.zoho.com – Preview PDFs and Presentations directly in the browser.
22. tubemogul.com – simultaneously upload videos to YouTube and other video sites.
23. truveo.com – the best place for searching web videos.
24. scr.im – share you email address online without worrying about spam.
25. spypig.com – now get read receipts for your email.
26. sizeasy.com – visualize and compare the size of any product.
27. whatfontis.com – quickly determine the font name from an image.
28. fontsquirrel.com – a good collection of fonts – free for personal and commercial use.
29. regex.info – find data hidden in your photographs – see more EXIF tools.
30. tineye.com – this is like an online version of Google Googles.
31. iwantmyname.com – helps you search domains across all TLDs.
32. tabbloid.com – your favorite blogs delivered as PDFs.
33. join.me – share you screen with anyone over the web.
34. onlineocr.net – recognize text from scanned PDFs and images – see other OCR tools.
35. flightstats.com – Track flight status at airports worldwide.
36. wetransfer.com – for sharing really big files online.
37. pastebin.com – a temporary online clipboard for your text and code snippets.
38. polishmywriting.com – check your writing for spelling or grammatical errors.
39. awesomehighlighter.com – easily highlight the important parts of a web page.
40. typewith.me – work on the same document with multiple people.
41. whichdateworks.com – planning an event? find a date that works for all.
42. everytimezone.com – a less confusing view of the world time zones.
43. warrick.cs.odu.edu – you’ll need this when your bookmarked web pages are deleted.
44. gtmetrix.com – the perfect tool for measuring your site performance online.
45. imo.im – chat with your buddies on Skype, Facebook, Google Talk, etc. from one place.
46. translate.google.com – translate web pages, PDFs and Office documents.
47. youtube.com/leanback – enjoy a never ending stream of YouTube videos in full-screen.
48. similarsites.com – discover new sites that are similar to what you like already.
49. wordle.net – quick summarize long pieces of text with tag clouds.
50. bubbl.us – create mind-maps, brainstorm ideas in the browser.
51. kuler.adobe.com – get color ideas, also extract colors from photographs.
52. followupthen.com – setup quick reminders via email itself.
53. lmgtfy.com – when your friends are too lazy to use Google on their own.
54. tempalias.com – generate temporary email aliases, better than disposable email.
55. pdfescape.com – lets you can quickly edit PDFs in the browser itself.
56. faxzero.com – send an online fax for free – see more fax services.
57. feedmyinbox.com – get RSS feeds as an email newsletter.
58. isendr.com – transfer files without uploading to a server.
59. tinychat.com – setup a private chat room in micro-seconds.
60. privnote.com – create text notes that will self-destruct after being read.
61. flightaware.com – live flight tracking service for airports worldwide.
62. boxoh.com – track the status of any shipment on Google Maps – alternative.
63. chipin.com – when you need to raise funds online for an event or a cause.
64. downforeveryoneorjustme.com – find if your favorite website is offline or not?
65. example.com – this website can be used as an example in documentation.
66. whoishostingthis.com – find the web host of any website.
67. google.com/history – found something on Google but can’t remember it now?
68. errorlevelanalysis.com – find whether a photo is real or a photoshopped one.
69. google.com/dictionary – get word meanings, pronunciations and usage examples.
70. urbandictionary.com – find definitions of slangs and informal words.
71. seatguru.com – consult this site before choosing a seat for your next flight.
72. sxc.hu – download stock images absolutely free.
73. zoom.it – view very high-resolution images in your browser without scrolling.
74. wobzip.org – unzip your compressed files online.
75. vocaroo.com – record your voice with a click.
76. scribblemaps.com – create custom Google Maps easily.
77. buzzfeed.com – never miss another Internet meme or viral video.
78. alertful.com – quickly setup email reminders for important events.
79. encrypted.google.com – prevent your ISP and boss from reading your search queries.
80. formspring.me – you can ask or answer personal questions here.
81. snopes.com – find if that email offer you received is real or just another scam.
82. typingweb.com – master touch-typing with these practice sessions.
83. mailvu.com – send video emails to anyone using your web cam.
84. ge.tt – quickly send a file to someone, they can even preview it before downloading.
85. timerime.com – create timelines with audio, video and images.
86. stupeflix.com – make a movie out of your images, audio and video clips.
87. aviary.com/myna – an online audio editor that lets record, and remix audio clips online.
88. noteflight.com – print music sheets, write your own music online (review).
89. disposablewebpage.com – create a temporary web page that self-destruct.
90. namemytune.com – when you need to find the name of a song.
91. homestyler.com – design from scratch or re-model your home in 3d.
92. snapask.com – use email on your phone to find sports scores, read Wikipedia, etc.
93. teuxdeux.com – a beautiful to-do app that looks like your paper dairy.
94. livestream.com – broadcast events live over the web, including your desktop screen.
95. bing.com/images – automatically find perfectly-sized wallpapers for mobiles.
96. historio.us – preserve complete web pages with all the formatting.
97. dabbleboard.com – your virtual whiteboard.
98. whisperbot.com – send an email without using your own account.
99. sumopaint.com – an excellent layer-based online image editor.
100. lovelycharts.com – create flowcharts, network diagrams, sitemaps, etc.
101. nutshellmail.com – Get your Facebook and Twitter streams in your inbox.