(ongwri)r*&

$on%l"
#osanne Cash,
$arty Paris,
+eru Revue,
'isa Lisa,
+illy Idol,
!olida"
$emorie&
& Mor,

Featuring:

Brigitte Zarie
http://www.scribd.com/SongwritersMonthly Dec. ’09, #120
 Editor’s Notes
Happy December! I hope whatever you celebrate in this magical
time of year, that you celebrate it with all of your heart, soul and
mind!

When Songwriter’s Monthly first started [way back in the early

90’s] we used to profess: “written by songwriters for
songwriters.” Through the years, our scope has broadened to
include the fans as well as the people behind the scenes and up
on the stage. However, as editor, I always try to remember that
original sentiment when I go to work on each and every issue. I
continually strive to make Songwriter’s Monthly a personal
experience (e.g. a fan learning something new about their
favorite artist, a songwriter being exposed to another
songwriter’s approach, etc.). I’m hoping by the end of each
issue that the reader takes away at least one little tidbit that
makes him or her feel more connected to other artists, writers,
fans or even music, in general.

Inspired by the wonderful work of publicist Martha Moore

[www.somuchmoore.com] who offers “Christmas
Remembrances” as an annual holiday treat to those who know
and work with her, this month, besides the regular features, I
have asked a number of artists to graciously take a moment of
their time to write about some of their most cherished seasonal
memories. I’m hoping this provides a chance to better
understand the people behind the music. I truly hope you enjoy
this special issue.

Thanks for reading!

Allen
a1foster@aol.com

DON’T MISS A SINGLE ISSUE! SUBSCRIBE! It’s easy and free! Just
click http://www.scribd.com/SongwritersMonthly and then click
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While you’re at it, tell your friends and fans to subscribe as well.
 Christmas
Remembrances
my parents found out about a
sleigh ride that went up the side
of a mountain. So my parents,
brother, and I piled into a large
sleigh and the German driver,
dressed in traditional Bavarian
attire, covered our legs in heavy
blankets. We started off with a
bolt and the horse worked hard
to pull us on a beautiful path up
the mountainside lined with
snow-covered evergreen trees.
And of course, there were bells
on the sleigh that jingled. It
was straight out of an old
Christmas carol. But that was
not all that our journey held in
store. At the top of the trail,
“When I was ten my dad got a there was a large waterfall that
j o b w o r k i n g i n F r a n k f u r t , had been turned to ice, forming
G e r m a n y . C h r i s t m a s e s i n a cavern. We got out of the
Germany were sleigh and
just some of w a l k e d
the most
special of my Abby Parks through a long
tunnel of ice. I
life. My most felt I was in a
memorable fairy-tale
experience was when we took a world as fantasies rushed
trip around Christmas time to through my head, walking
Garmisch, a city in the Bavarian b e t w e e n t h o s e c r y s t a l l i n e
Alps. There was snow in the walls. As the sleigh gained
mountains, and having come speed carrying us down the
f r o m A t l a n t a , i t w a s v e r y mountain, I knew that I had a
exciting to see so much snow. Christmas memory to treasure
But the real treat came when for a lifetime.”
 CD Review
Lisa Lisa
The chart-topping R&B/freestyle artist
responsible for tracks like “Lost In
Emotion” and “Head To Toe” is back with
a fresh new album that proves she’s still
at the top of her game. LIFE ‘N LOVE is a
sophisticated collection of slow grinds,
Latin jams and danceable pop. Though
everything on this album could fall under
the general category of R&B, it has so
much more to offer. Lisa dips into Soul,
Hip-Hop, Salsa and more on this outing.
Some of the highlights include the
m o v i n g , p a s s i o n a t e “ Re t e n g o M i
Emocian,” the delightfully feisty “Que
Locura,” and the fun, catchy “Booyah!”
Lisa’s voice is at once vibrant, young and
seasoned. The groundbreaking
“Infatuation” — think shades of
Oakenfold‘s “Starry Eyed Surprise”
meeting J. Lo and Prince in a twinkling
Manhattan dance club — shows the artist
is as innovative and relevant as the day
she broke. At a time when more and
more performers seem to be losing their
identity — becoming interchangeable
with each other — and are simply trying
to shock their fans with increasingly
risqué videos, lyrics, and behavior so
they can remain in the public eye for one
more album, Lisa Lisa is a refreshing
breath of class. LIFE ‘N LOVE is sincere,
heartfelt, fun and has honest personality.
For more information on Lisa Lisa, visit:
http://www.myspace.com/lisalisall77
 Christmas
Remembrances
the decoration I liked
the most was the large
star that was located on
the top of ‘South
Mountain.’ Every
Thanksgiving weekend,
the lighting of that star
symbolized the
beginning of the holiday
season. The star could
be seen from miles and
miles away. Just like the
“I have been blessed to have star over the ‘original’
nothing but fond memories of Bethlehem, it would lead
Christmas throughout my entire life. people from all over the
Having been born and raised in area to see it and
Bethlehem, remind them
Pennsylvania,
‘The Christmas Mark Wayne that some-
thing good
City’ has always was coming.
made those
memories that Glasmire For
Christmas
me,

much more and the star

special. I believe my fondest are all about
memories are of the times that my anticipation, reflection,
family spent together crammed into forgiveness, renewal,
the old Plymouth station wagon hope and dreams of
heading out to see all of the what is yet to come. I
beautiful decorations throughout the wish everyone peace,
city. One of the many traditions comfort and joy
there is the placement of solitary throughout the
white candles in each and every remainder of this year
window of almost every home. But and into the future."
 A
New
Standard

Brigitte Zarie
Brigitte Zarie is something special. She has a stunning presence, a sharp
and quick wit, and she is blessed with a voice that could melt the polar ice
caps with its heat. Her new CD sounds like it could have been a lost
recording straight out of the most glorious days of the Big Band Era. M AKE
R OOM F OR M E has sexy finger-snapping swing, sultry ballads, and even a
scorching Latin-flavored strut across the dance floor that you’d swear were
covers of tunes you’d somehow missed having in your collection. But they
are not covers. And that is what makes this artist so exceptional. Brigitte
Zarie is a writer. She creates new jazz standards, crafting classic melodies
and lyrics that are relevant to today’s audience.
 THE SONGWRITER:
“Everybody’s calling me a singer,”
Brigitte noted. “I love that you’re
appreciating the songwriting element
because, hello, it takes forever to get a
song.”
“I was supposed to
else says, ‘Wow, I just went through the
same thing!’ that’s wonderful, but it’s
not premeditated, it’s just I’m feeling
something and I have to write it.”
One of the more upbeat, catchy tracks
on the album, “Money, Money, Money,
Money” was written during a rough
financial period.

be singing jazz my “I’m a huge Benny Goodman fan. Huge.

Massive! I love his arrangements. With
whole life.”
Zarie wrote all the songs, “every
line,” on MAKE ROOM FOR ME. Each
and every one of them came from a
real moment in her life, an actual
experience, something she was
going through.

“These feelings are all very

moment-to-moment feelings with
me. Because I’m a songwriter,
whatever I feel, tends to come out
in a song,” she observed.

Fo r i n s t a n c e , t h e e m o t i o n a l l y
charged opening track, “See You
Again,” was written after Brigitte
had spent a couple of months with
her mother.

“She had just left and I was waiting

to hear from her from the airport —
just to make sure she was okay —
and that song came to me,” Brigitte
explained. “They come to me
spontaneously depending on what
I’m going through in my life, the
song will present itself to me.”

“I express a feeling. It’s personal to

me, it’s therapeutic for me to write
and sing,” Zarie continued. “If I’m
feeling something and somebody
that song, financially, I was going
through a really crappy time and I just
realized that money really would just
make me happy,” Brigitte admitted,
laughing sweetly.

Then Zarie fell quiet. “It just occurred to

me, my biggest fear of being a
songwriter who writes out of
experience . . . I really fear what my
next experience is going to be! It’s
crazy every time I go through
something I’m like, ‘Great, I needed to
have more material, but did I really
have to go through this?’”

THE VOCALIST:
“Did I know I wanted to sing jazz?”
Brigitte pondered the question briefly. “I
was supposed to be singing jazz my
whole life.”
Unfortunately, Zarie ran into a common
problem of people with exceptional
talent: someone else is always trying to
tell them what they should be doing.
“I got turned around, I got sidetracked
by management,” she recalled. “Of
course I didn’t have a brain of my own,
I was very malleable, so I was singing
other songs in other genres. I had a
record deal doing a dance album, but I
always wanted to do jazz and nobody
that I was surrounding myself with
really dug jazz.”
“I came here [New York] from Canada
and I wanted to sing and I just got
tossed around a lot . . .” Brigitte
trailed off as if remembering some
particularly unpleasant experiences.
“It was really, really bad. I didn’t have
a mind of my own, I was just happy to
“I came here from
Canada and I wanted
to sing and I just got
tossed around a
lot . . .”
know that there were people who were
interested in my voice and my
songwriting. You know, you get really
vulnerable and desperate when you’re
an artist, you think that the person
who shows an interest is THE person,
you get really insecure and you think
that your talent is really not that great
and you start questioning your ability
and you just give it up to that one
person who is going to believe in
you . . . You hang onto that, that little
wish, that little belief that you think
someone has in you. Artists are very
insecure people.”
Luckily, Brigitte eventually came into
her own and made a decision to regain
control of her own career.
“I said &*#@ it, I’m going to do what I
want to do! I don’t care where it takes
me or how successful I am, this is what
“You start questioning
your ability and you
just give it up to that
one person who is
going to believe in
you.”
I want. So I came back to jazz — which
was always my first love. Always. And
I’m really happy I did, my soul is happy,
my heart is happy and I feel like I’m
really where I should have been a long
time ago.”
“I eventually found my way, but what I
had to go through to get there . . . If I
could ever use myself as an example to
help someone so they never have to go
through what I went through, to help
them stand their ground and believe in
themselves, then I want to be the voice
for that person.”
THE JAZZ:
“These are some serious, serious,
serious cats I worked with.”
Indeed, the list of musicians on Brigitte’s
album reads like a Who’s Who of top
session players: Randy Brecker, Jeff
Golub, Tom Malone and Al Chez and Bruce
Kapler from the David Letterman Show to
name a few. It takes a powerful vocalist
to go toe-to-toe with such a list and Zarie
was more than up to the task. When
asked if it was hard to hold her own with
a room full of brass, Brigitte related, “It’s
funny, I was watching a movie last night
about James Mercer. It was an homage to
his songwriting and there was a girl
singer, but the band leader didn’t want a
girl singer, so they got the orchestra to
completely overshadow her vocals and
she walked off the stage. It’s hard to sing
with a big band.”
But not every track on MAKE ROOM FOR
ME is a full-blown Big Band production.
“The arrangements evolved according to
each song,” Brigitte explained. “Some of
them were just a trio because that’s how
I felt that they should be. Because
‘Happiest Day Of My Life” was such a
happy, fun song, I felt that it required a
big band sound, it really called for that.
‘See You Again’ was a very personal
song for me and Randy Brecker being
who he is, I felt that just me and him
“If I could ever use
myself as an example
to help someone so
they never have to go
through what I went
through . . .”
was enough with maybe a trio behind
us. So it depends on each song, as I
write them I really don’t know if they
are going to be Big Band or not, it really
depends.”
Oddly enough, one of the concerns that
Brigitte has (because Jazz tends to be a
g e n r e t h a t e m b ra c e s c ove r s a n d
interpretations of standards) is that her

music might not receive the attention it
deserves simply because it is original
music. At one point she was even told
she was receiving poor career advice
because she wasn’t doing covers.
“They are either completely blown away
that my songs are not standards and
excited to play them . . . or they resent
me.” Brigitte expressed. “I thought that
being an artist was just that: you are
an artist so you write. A couple of guys
wrote some great, great, great jazz
songs, but who says that has to be the
only music for the next 100 years?”
NEW-HELP CO
Luckily, Brigitte Zarie is no longer afraid
to write and perform the original music
inside her, the music she always knew
she should be doing.
IN CONCLUSION:
“I’m in a very wonderful place right
now. I’m really blessed to be finally
singing and writing the music that I
love.”
http://www.myspace.com/
brigittezarie http://
http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?
id=hyTjEIK1pMo&offerid=146261&type=3&subid=0
&tmpid=1826&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F
%252Fitunes.apple.com%252Fus%252Falbum
www.myspace.com/ %252Fdance-with-you%252Fid315115185%253Fi
brigittezarie % 2 5 3 D 3 1 5 1 1 5 2 2 1 % 2 5 2 6 u o
%253D6%2526partnerId%253D30
Hank Cochran and Martha Moore
Christmas
Remembrances
Martha Moore
Photo: Peyton Hoge
“Some days, growing up with two
younger sisters could be a real treat
and other days it was a burden. We
were all fairly close in age, so when
it came to presents, we often got
the same thing. But one year it was
suddenly very cool for us all to
receive the same gift. Bigger is
always better - at least when you
are a kid. On my ninth Christmas,
both my younger sisters - Lisa
(6) and Carla (5) - and I received
the same gift . . . and it was
awesome! Early that Christmas
morning, the three of us
hurried downstairs to ravage all the
beautifully-wrapped presents placed
perfectly under the nine-foot tall
and exquisitely decorated tree. The
silver tinsel glistened and the
ornaments dazzled, but set out to
the side of the tree were three very
large boxes; one for each of us. Of
course we rushed to the presents
set away from the tree and it didn't
take us but just a few seconds to
open those three gifts, and Lisa,
Carla and I squealed in unison with
absolute delight. We each had our
own life-sized doll with moving
arms and legs. I got the brunette,
Lisa got the black haired one and
Carla, of course, got the blonde
(whose hair she later dyed purple
and then green about a month
later). I put ‘Jingle Bell Rock’
on the stereo and we danced and
danced with our dolls. Of course, all
the commotion woke up our parents
and two brothers Greg (11) and
Eddy (2). As they all descended the
staircase, Mom fondly remembers
declaring, ‘It looks like I've got 6
girls now.’ Dad laughed and went
for the camera; Greg and Eddy just
rolled their eyes.”
www.somuchmoore.com
 Beru
Revue

If you were in the Philadelphia

region at any point during the mid-
eighties, there’s a good chance you
are already familiar with the
phenomenon known as Beru Revue.
The band repeatedly played five
nights a week to capacity
crowds . . . and they played original
music. Quite an astounding feat.

Now, over twenty years later, Beru

Revue is back and they have recently
released, not one, but two CDs!

The band’s live performance was so

inventive and entertaining that the
onstage theatrics often
Beru Revue is playing on December
overshadowed the incredibly
26th at The Note in West Chester,
original and well-crafted songs.
PA [www.thenotewc.com]. The
With MIRACLE OF SPRING and TUX
concert is a benefit for the homeless
DO 5, it is now possible to listen
with proceeds going to Safe Harbor
and appreciate the music on it’s
of Greater West Chester.
own terms.
MIRACLE OF SPRING and TUX DO 5
both run the gamut covering roots,
rock, pop, pirate music and more,
sometimes shaking it up by
changing gears/songs right in the
middle of a track.

On MIRACLE OF SPRING, the title

track is a brilliantly fun romp
welcoming the flower season with a
positively upbeat attitude.

“Summer Sun,” on the other hand,

is a smooth, easy listening gem that
heralds the coming of summer.
There is a definite magic to the
tasty groove that effortlessly carries
the listener away to a beautiful
summer day.

MIRACLE OF SPRING’S closer is a

kickin’ track called “Going Up” and it
features possibly one of the best
dual guitar licks you’ll ever hear. It’s
also — like most of Beru’s songs —
a great track to
singalong
to.
TUX DO 5’S rockabilly opener, “Oliver Twist,”
backed by the scorching title track will have you
up on your feet and swinging with one finger
twirling high in the air before the vocals even
come in.
“Monopoly” is a classic Beru song complete
with driving guitar, propulsive bass, a
soaring lead line, precision breaks and
exquisitely quirky lyrics. The track is
smart, tight and a pure delight.

The “hit” on this companion album

is the poignant “Home.” It offers
touching lyrics, a beautiful melody
and a moving lead guitar set over
a tender rhythm.

You’ve never heard a band quite

like Beru Revue and these two
releases provide an excellent
opportunity to introduce yourself to
the phenomenon. Take advantage of
the opportunity.

For more information on Beru Revue, visit:

www.berurevue.us
 Christmas
Remembrances

Heidi
McKee
“I grew up in
New Orleans,
Louisiana and
often the weather was not really ushering in
the Christmas spirit. My favorite Christmases
were when we were able to travel to Ontario,
Canada to our family's farm. It was always the
perfect place for Christmas. Snow was
glistening on the ground and I could see my
breath. There were lots of wonderful cookie
and pie smells coming from my Aunt Mary's
kitchen. I was always surrounded by lots of
cousins and we would ride sleds and
snowmobiles. There were plenty of Christmas
lights, and my cousin would play Christmas
carols on their piano and everyone would
sing. Those were truly the most wonderful
Christmases imaginable.”
 Christmas
Remembrances
Hank
Cochran
bed that night praying for
‘Christmas’ with all my might.
That year, my Uncle and my
grandparents scrimped and
saved to buy me a present.
Photo: Marty Stuart
When I awoke on that magical
Christmas morning, there was
“As a child, I lived with my a stocking hung from the
grandparents and we were very mantel, and inside, a toy gun
poor. Every year I would hear the and holster set. I was amazed!
other kids talking about Christmas From that day forward, I have
trees and presents - and I really understood the power of
didn't understand why we didn’t believing - and that is a present
have those things. We talked about I will forever cherish.”
Jesus, but His birthday wasn't a gift-
giving occasion at our small home in Hank would like to take this
Mississippi. One year, when I was six opportunity to thank his family,
or seven, I finally got up the nerve to his many friends and the fans
ask my grandmother why we didn't who have continued to pray for
celebrate Christmas like everyone him as he battles pancreatic
else. Her answer was, ‘You just have cancer. “I'm doing great right
to believe.’ Well, that was pretty now,” says the legendary
heady thinking for a kid, but I songwriter. “The medicines are
wanted presents like all of the other w o r k i n g a n d m y f a m i l y
kids - so I began to concentrate - continues to encourage me.
and believe. That Christmas Eve, Those gifts are more than
Grandmother reminded me of my enough to fill my Christmas
promise to believe, and I went to stocking this year!”
Marty Paris
Being Human
Paris Keeling is the culmination of five music
industry veterans seasoned in the rock genre:
Marty Paris, Kelly Keeling, Rick Van Benschoten,
Matt Goeke, and Gintas Janusonis. The band’s
current release is entitled E ND O F R IDE
REVISITED and it is available on Surgeland
Records.

Songwriter’s Monthly caught up with

Paris Keeling co-founder Marty
Paris while he was taking a short
break from a recording session at
Studio 55 [Marty’s own studio
located in North Carolina]. Paris
was gracious enough to provide
a detailed look into the concept
and execution of the entire
END OF RIDE REVISITED
project.

Songwriter’s Monthly: How

did END OF RIDE REVISITED
come about?

Marty Paris: If you want to

really get organic on how it
really happened, I wrote
a song called “Tears of
Heaven” on 9/11. I

was living in New York and I knew a lot
of people at the World trade Center
and . . . and it was a really tough day
for me to understand why people would
kill people in the name of religion. I
was very puzzled by that, so I wrote a
song about it. I’ve been a songwriter
for a long time and a lot of times it’s a
good way for me to kinda get my
feelings out of the way.
The song sat there until the London
bombings several years later on 7/7. I
revisited the song, recorded it, and had
a myspace page. I had some other
things done online and there was a UK
label that got a hold of the song and
they wanted to release it as a single.
I’m a musician and I also run a
recording studio, so I played most of
the original track myself. I decided that
before releasing it as a single, I wanted
to go out and re-record some things.
[In his search for other musicians,
Marty discovered Kelly Keeling through
an album he had picked up called
GEORGE LYNCH FURIOUS GEORGE.]
Kelly was the vocalist on that project
and I was quite taken back by the
power of his vocals, so I contacted
his manager around the holidays in
2005 and he got back with me
promptly. I sent him the track and
he connected with the track. Kelly
was in New York about three weeks
later doing the actual vocals.
SM: Dokken has a writing credit on
that song, as well.
MP: We were kinda struggling on
the chorus and Don Dokken helped
us out. He actually wrote the chorus
that you hear on the album today —
you can channel the band Dokken in
that chorus because it’s very Don-like.
I wrote another song called “She Was”
which was for a movie soundtrack and
I had Kelly back about a month later
and I said why don’t you sing this one,
“We decided that we
sang well together,
that we got along, and
there’s a friendship
between us.”
too. From that came a relationship and
we started to write material together
and we decided to do the album and
Paris Keeling was born.
[Kelly brought in some songs that he
had from his past and the pair finished
several of Keeling’s songs together and
began recording.]
We started writing tracks together and
it turned into a really cool project. We
decided that we sang well together,
that we got along, and there’s a
friendship between us. A lot of times
musicians don’t like each other and I
don’t understand that, but we didn’t
have that so we wrote the album and
at the end of the day we were very
proud of what we had done.
[Paris Keeling received major label
interest for their recordings, but they
had to make some
changes before
signing . . . and that “I just started
didn’t sit well with
either Marty or Kelly.] thinking about my
The label wanted us life as a
to focus more on one
area, they liked the musician . . .”
song “Life,” they liked
some other things, but all of a sudden,
there’s a heavy metal song, there’s a
ballad . . . Kelly and I decided that we
wanted that album to be that album
and we released it ourselves. It was
called END OF RIDE.
[Paris Keeling cultivated a large
following rather quickly and eventually
attracted the attention of Surgeland
Records.]
Surgeland Records wanted to do a
release. END OF RIDE REVISITED is
basically our original solo independent
release that we did, but now it’s on a
label with PR and distribution. Sandy
Serge — who runs the label — did a
great job with us, she changed the
song order a bit to make more sense.
We didn’t remaster the album, but
there were a few guitar parts that
bothered me which I changed, but for
the most part the base tracks from the
original album are the album in their
true form.
SM: And then there are the bonus
tracks. Some of those tracks, in
particular, “Alive,” are just incredible.
MP: I was at a music festival in North
Carolina and I saw these guys up
there and they were older guys — I’m
an old guy too, but
they’re older than me
— and they were
jammin’ and playin’
and I just started
thinking about my life
as a musician and my
musician friends.
“Alive” was inspired
right there in the
moment. As a songwriter, I love when
that happens because I actually kinda
had the melody in my head and I
started to pencil the lyrics on the back
of a hotdog wrapper!
SM: There’s also a cover of “Telephone
Line” in the bonus tracks, how did that
come about?
MP: We were in the studio one night
and we had a little bit of Grand Marnier
in snifter just kind of relaxing. It was
late and the studio was pretty dark, we
had some candles lit because I like soft
light and Kelly’s kind of a vampire. So
we’re sitting there and I said, “You
know what, we should do a cover.” He
said, “Yeah, I’ve always thought about
doing a cover, we should do a cover
that we both grew up with that we
liked.” Almost simultaneously we said,
“Telephone Line!”

I remember I was dating a little gal —

whatever that means in 5th grade —
and we broke up and that was the
first moment that a song really
touched my feelings. I connected with
it. They say that your strongest sense
of memory is smell and we all relate
to that— we go into mom’s house or
grandmom’s house and smell
something that she cooked . . . But
the second strongest sense, believe it
or not, is sound. When I hear songs I
connect to where I was and what I
was doing during that time.

SM: There’s a song called “Life” that

has a very nice contrast going on
between the rhythmic bass and
smooth vocals, could you talk a little
bit about that track?

MP: There is something about that

bass track, it makes the song different.
It’s not a complicated song at all,
structurally speaking, it’s not. That chord
progression has been used a thousand
times . . . “Every Rose Has It’s Thorn”
from Poison, “This Time of Year” by
Better Than Ezra, Sister Hazel’s “All For
Yo u ,” i t ’s t h e s a m e t y p e c h o r d
“That was the first
progression, it’s been used a million
times. But there is something about the
way Rick Van Benschoten’s fretless bass
came together with Kelly’s vocal delivery
on that song that made it special.
SM: We’ve already talked about “Tears
Of Heaven, but could you go into a
little more detail about the recording of
that track?

moment that a MP: I don’t listen to my own music —

and I don’t know many musicians who
song really do. When you’re in the creating
touched my process, you might go through a song
100 times during the mixing phase and
feelings.” by the time you’re done with it, you
just don’t want to hear it any more. But
I can tell you, I still go back to “Tears of unless you’ve had bad times, you
Heaven” because 9/11 was a real wouldn’ t know the difference. If
emotional day for me. My girlfriend was everything was always good, you really
actually at the World Trade Center and wouldn’t know it because you’d have
it’s a scary story . . . When I hear Kelly’s nothing to contrast it against.
vocal on that song, to this day, the hair
on my arms stands up because you can SM: Is there anything you’d like to
hear the passion. He was the same way touch upon before wrapping up?
that I was about it, he just didn’t
understand, who is going to murder MP: I’ve done many projects, but this
people in the name of their god?! It just one will always have a very fond place in
doesn’t make sense. You can hear the my heart. It was a really cool time and a
anger in his voice when he sings those good friendship
lyrics and it’s very powerful. and it was
fun. A lot
SM: Actually, you can tell from a lot of of times
performances on a lot of the tracks, music isn’t
just how personal these songs are. fun, but
when it’s
MP: That’s what being human is, it’s fun and
feeling an emotion. You i t ’ s
can’t have good good . . .
times you can’t
ask for
more than
that.

For more on Paris

Keeling, visit:

http://
www.myspace.com/
pariskeeling
 Christmas
Remembrances
Jody Booth
“My fondest Christmas
memory happens to be every
Christmas from the time I
could remember to the time I
was around 15. We do things
a little different down here in
east Texas. We lived about
1000 feet from my Uncle
Buzzard, my Mom's youngest
brother. He had a huge metal
barn where he worked on
everything from lawnmowers
to classic cars. Over in the
corner was an old wood stove
sitting right there in the dirt
with a pipe running straight
up and out of the roof. I will
never forget the smell of the
pine burning and filling up the
barn with smoke, which was
probably not very healthy, but
no one cared
back in those
days. Every year
on the weekend
b e f o r e
Christmas, the
entire family
would gather
around that old
stove. With kids and musical
instruments in tow, they
would eat until they could
hardly move, post up by the
stove and proceed to jam.
While my Uncle Charles Lee
and cousin Charlie played
guitars, my Uncle Curtis
played the mandolin and my
mom played the fiddle. In my
youngest days, I remember
playing on the dirt floor with
my cousins while trying to
keep 4 to 6 dogs from their
wallered out holes by the
wood stove. In my later years,
my interest turned toward the
music. Since then Uncles
Curtis, Charles Lee and
Buzzard have passed away,
but their memory is still going
strong. I guess the fact that
they're all gone is the reason
we have not gotten together
in a while.”
 Christmas
Remembrances
Becky
Schlegel
"I don't know what it is mother crazy because it
about toys, but I love to was soooo loud! I found
collect them. Lately, one of these trains the
I've been thinking other day and then
about my Fisher Price found three of the little
Cash Register. I got this records that go with it
toy from ‘Santa’ for on Ebay. It was so
Christmas when I was exciting! Most of our
five years old. I still to y s w e r e h a n d - m e-
have it today (with all downs, or were from
of the pen marks and the Salvation Army or
colored-in, ripped Goodwill store. These
decals), along with all two toys were extra
the coins that came special because they
with it. That same year, came new, ‘in the box’
my sister Jan, who was and were from ‘Santa.’ I
three at the time, got get warm fuzzy
the Tuneyvillle Train. memories just thinking
The train drove my about those days."
 2009. Onstage, Idol is reunited with
Idol's 'In Super Overdrive Live' Released
dVd Review Onguitarist
DVD and Steve Stevens, and backedht
Blu-ra...
by bassist Stephen McGrath,
keyboardist Derek Sherinian, and
drummer Brian Tichy.

From: Carol Kaye <carol@kayosproductions.com>

His first live concert DVD finds the
To: press@kayosproductions.com <press@kayosproductions.com>
entertainer complete with his
Subject: Billy Idol's 'In Super Overdrive Live' Released On DVD and Blu-ray November 17
trademark sneer, commanding
Date: Mon, Nov 9, 2009 10:39 am
vocals and boundless energy. Idol
rips through such favorites as
Please respond if you are interested in a review copy.
“Dancing With Myself,” “White
Wedding,” and “Rebel Yell” without
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE letting a little thing like potential
heat exhaustion slow him down in
Carol Kaye
the least — if anything the high
Productions, Inc. temperatures only fuel Idol’s
performance.
366.9970
“Flesh For Fantasy” and “Eyes
Without A Eagle Face” areAnother
Readies strategically
Rockin’ Goo
placed gems that provide graceful
decrescendos at key points in the
BILLY IDOL:Stevens’
show. [Note: IN SUPER opening OVER
to
“Eyes Without A Face” is worth the
~First Live Concert DVD and Blu-ray Releas
price of the DVD on its own.] “Kiss
Me Deadly” offers
Includes a poignant
Two Previously Unrelease
statement for the

Billy Idol encore that is

both inspiring and
reflective.

Live Eagle
Entertainment has
created a fabulous
Rock

The heat radiates not from the soaring h y p e r - l i v e

Chicago-July temperatures inside the experience. The
Congress Theater, but from the stage. audio and video
Idol’s
New York, performance on thishislive
NY (November 9, 2009)—With DVD is
raspy baritone, production
bleached are stunning:
spiked hair, and rebellious charisma, Billycrisp
Idol estab
as a one-of-a-kind artist. On November 17, Eagle Rock Entertainment
nothing short of blazing. images reinforced
will proudly release hisbyfirststudio-quality
live concert DVD and

Filmed at the Congress Theater in Chicago, In Super Overdrive Live sound make
was taped this
for the a remarkable
television DVD.Ori
series “Soundstage.”
IN SUPER
Stevens, OVERDRIVE
and backed LIVE was
by bassist Stephen taped
McGrath, for Derek
keyboardist For Sherinian,
more information,
and drummer Brian visit:Tichy.
the television series SOUNDSTAGE and
A proprietor of pop-rock perfection, Billy Idol rouses the crowd through 12 blazing tracks. This 70-minute DVD features hit
originally
addition broadcast
to Generation X favoritesin
and America
newer materialin July
from
http://billyidol.ning.com
his latest CD The Devil’s Playground. Also included are two prev
Overdrive Live is a fantastic display of the raw power Billy Idol exudes.
 Christmas
Remembrances
“Christmas at the Hickman’s was
always a memorable time of year
for us. The importance of
traditions is something my
mother tried to instill in me and
my sister Sadie. There are always
a lot of things to do before the
big day arrives: setting up the
advent calendar, picking out
what songs we are going to sing
for Christmas Day caroling and
roasting marshmallows over
scented candles. One of the
special traditions we honor every
year is the Christmas Eve potato
soup dinner. My mom was one of
four children of a Nazarene
Minister, and they had very little
money for food and holiday frills.
What little money that my
grandparents could spare was
used for simple gifts for my mom,
her brothers and sisters.
Potatoes were free (since they
grew them in their garden), and
Susan
Hickman
if the children ate all of their
soup, they could open their
presents. According to my mom,
potatoes were about as
appetizing as dirt - since they
were a very common menu item.
But needless to say, the kids ate
their soup, presents were
opened, the Christmas story was
read, prayers were said and the
excitement grew as Santa drew
near (my grandfather was the
real Santa Claus). Nowadays, my
dad snaps random pictures while
Mom makes the soup. Sadie, my
husband Matt and I (and the
puppies) sit and watch, decked
out in our new pajamas (another
Christmas tradition). We have
our potato soup, open our
presents and remember humble
beginnings and what Christmas is
all about: family spending time
together, slowing down all the
hustle and bustle of daily life and
of course, the birthday of our
Lord and Savior.”
 Holiday
Remembrances
Brigitte
Zarie
“As a kid, the holidays weren’t official
until there was snow . . . of course being
from Canada that was never too hard. The
snow, the lights and the little box of
presents my parents used to hide. I’m
Jewish, so we always felt a little neglected
around Xmas, but my parents always
made up for it with that little box of
presents, every year. Nothing extravagant,
just something to unwrap!”

“And of course all the holiday songs. ‘I’m

dreaming of a White Christmas, la, la, la,
la, I used to know.’ Not a great song for a
Jewish girl, but I dug it!”

“Hey, I just might record that one!”

 Rosanne Cash
The Story Behind
The List
Rosanne Cash’s latest release is entitled THE LIST. It is a masterful
collection of re-visited classic country tracks that provide an enriching
and thoroughly enjoyable listening experience. The individual songs on
THE LIST come from an actual list of essential country tunes that
Rosanne’s father [Johnny Cash] gave her in 1973.
 “The list was far-ranging and thorough,”
Rosanne noted. “It was assembled from
my father’s intuitive understanding of
each critical juncture in the evolution of
country music. There were old
Appalachian folk ballads, and the songs of
Jimmie Rodgers and Woody Guthrie. The
influence of gospel and Southern blues
were crucial. Then he segued into
rockabilly and the birth of modern country
music by way of Hank Williams, and up to
the present, which was then 1973.”

In 2006, during BLACK CADILLAC: IN

CONCERT, Rosanne revealed how
her father became alarmed when
she was 18. The legendary artist
perceived that his daughter lacked
a deep understanding of country
music because, at the time,
Rosanne was “obsessed with The
Beatles and steeped in Southern
California rock and pop.”

In response to his concerns,

Johnny gave Rosanne a list of
the “100 Essential Country
Songs” and told her that it
was her education and she
should learn them all.
“I endeavored to learn them all
and it was an education,”
Rosanne admitted. “If my father
had been a martial arts master,
he might have passed a martial
arts ‘secret’ on to me, his oldest
child,” Cash stated. “If he had
been a surgeon, he might have
taken me into his operating room
and pointed out the arteries and
organs. If he were a robber
baron, he might have surveyed
his empire and said, ‘Honey, some
day this will all be yours!’. But he
was a musician and a songwriter,
and he gave me The List.”

The benefit of THE LIST is twofold,

besides hearing an incredible
collection of vital country music
performed in an updated setting,
R os a n n e , h e r s e lf , h a s n e ve r
sounded better. The depth and
passion with which she executes
each and every track is absolutely
riveting.

“I looked to that list as a

standard of excellence, and to
remind myself of the tradition
from which I come. This album
enables me to validate the
connection to my heritage rather
than run away from it, and to tie
all the threads together: past and
future, legacy and youth,
tradition the timelessness.”

For more about Rosanne Cash and

to find out exactly which songs
made The List, please visit
www.rosannecash.com.
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