Stagnation . . .

. . . and immediate gratification . . .

. . . which is worse, exemplifying the first or demanding the second?


(http://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/mcdonalds-all-day-breakfast-may-debut-nationwide-october-n396621)
". . . Pope Francis' popularity in the United States has dropped significantly . . . fueled in part by conservatives . . . 59 percent of Americans have a favorable view of the pontiff, down from 76 percent a year ago. The plunge was greatest among those who identify as conservatives — from 72 percent a year ago to 45 percent now. . . Francis' criticism of capitalism, comments on climate change and focus on the poor may have hurt him with conservatives. Liberals who were drawn to Francis' populist message may have become impatient with the slow pace of change in church policy, the pollsters theorized. . . "

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html  or at
http://www.ohomusic.com 


OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD) OHO is Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak.  Please Visit http://www.ohomusic.com 


My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music is now available at - Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak

(To Access all Ray Jozwiak - Gonzo Piano music you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/RayJozwiak)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

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Cash . . .

(from http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/legal-and-management/5820021/lost-johnny-cash-album-out-next-spring)
There's new never-before-heard music coming from Johnny Cash. Cash's estate is releasing "Out Among the Stars," an album he recorded with Billy Sherrill in the early 1980s that was never released by Columbia Records, then disappeared when the company dropped Cash in 1986. Turns out Cash and his wife, June Carter Cash, stashed the tapes - along with just about everything else that came into their possession. . .

. . . Columbia paired him with Sherrill, a producer and Country Music Hall of Fame member who was then the president of CBS Records Nashville. One of the main architects of country music's so-called countrypolitan sound, Sherrill helped push the genre toward pop sounds and conventions - and away from Cash's more independent-minded ways.

The pairing came at a time when Cash was at a low ebb in his popularity. The music on "Out Among the Stars" is taken from 1981 and `84 sessions, at a time when country music was going through great change.

It was clear record company executives didn't think much of the outcome. They put out a few more Cash albums after the recordings were made, but never used the music from those sessions before dropping him. Sherrill backed Cash with a band that consisted of fellow Country Hall of Fame member Hargus "Pig" Robbins and a young friend of Cash's named Marty Stuart. . .

. . . [It] was recorded during some of the most difficult years of Cash's life. He felt like he'd lost his legacy and he was still dealing with the fallout from personal problems including infidelity and drug addiction.

He soon met producer Rick Rubin, though, and wrote a coda to his career that gave his life something of a mythic quality.

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My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
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The calendar . . .

 . . . is running my life . . .

 I don't think it's 'popularity' but lately I feel like the calendar is the be-all end-all of my life.  And as I do not have a smart phone (smart phones and dumb owners do not a compatible relationship make) I fumble with trying to make calendar entries on my dumb  phone, foul them up, then forget the date against which I was making an entry in the first place.

And since I am such a klutz, pen and paper would simply not work for me.  I would most certainly drop the pen at every opportunity or have the ink leak in my shirt pocket and last but not least, how could I possibly remember to take that with me everywhere I go???

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You can NOW download your
very own copy of Ray Jozwiak's
newest release:
AMBIENCE & WINE

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And now, back to our regularly scheduled program. . .

. . . This break from over five years of regular performance was welcome, and for more reasons than one. During that period I was listening to music that I loved and that inspired me to want to make music of my own. Well, at least music more like what I was getting into than what was popular to sing along with, dance to in a drunken stupor or simply ignore while you ate, talked and generally celebrated some special occasion in your life or just a Saturday night's social event. This I was not getting. And I have myself to blame primarily. I had the freedom to leave my musical situation at the time and seek something more to what I envisioned. But alas, freedom is one thing and drive, determination and action are three others. These, quite sadly for my then musical disposition, I lacked. It really comes down to the fact that I really didn't want it badly enough.

In addition, while thoroughly enjoying the sonic antics of my art/prog/jazz-rock favorites and desiring to play things like those they played, I simply did not have the ability to create like they did. At least not on any substantial or meaningful scale. I wrote things sporadically before my retirement (my Sonata In No Particular Key is appropriate to mention here) but there was no consistent force, or inspiration for that matter, fueling the creation of much original material. I would have loved for a million new, creative musical ideas to flow freely and bountifully from my heart, mind and fingers, but it just didn't happen.

So I went happily and peacefully about building a new, married life together with my bride. My Farfisa Fast Four and Leslie 145 were setup in a prominent location in the den of our apartment for quick and easy access. Truth is, I'm not sure if I even played once a week at that time. But I was building my vinyl record album collection of my favorite jazz cats during the period and joyfully and effortlessly soaking in their music as often as I could. My Coltrane, Dolphy, Adderly and McLean collections grew with much less reliance on the old Tull, Gentle Giant and Yes for musical satisfaction. This too combined with sounds exemplifying the musical tastes of my significant other, sometimes not so willingly or graciously.

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ANOTHER SHOT
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On very special. . .

. . . occasions. . .

When celebrating felt right
This place we'd go
With AMBIENCE AND WINE
On a Saturday night
Caricatures hung on the wall
Eavesdropping on our most intimate moments
I love you

It was essential to go there
To mark the passage of time
Between the dates
We used to signify
The bond we shared and to dine
Only served Angus A-1 prime
To patrons of each and every persuasion
I loved you

But now that place is all gone
Where did our love go
Where is the ambience and
McCafferty's piano

While you eat you're serenaded by some local musician
Playing bad renditions of the popular songs
You sing along

And so it ended
Our passion somehow just faded away
And likewise too
That place we held divine
Became a dance club today
The memories come flooding in
Sweet talk and all the romancing we did there
It's gone now

But now that place is all gone
Where did our love go
Where is the ambience and
McCafferty's piano

McCafferty's Piano (from the forthcoming AMBIENCE & WINE [stay tuned])
©2010 Raymond M. Jozwiak


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If my memory serves. . .

. . . my old band-members Jay (guitar/vocals), Jeff (drums), Greg (sax/vocals) and myself (keyboard/vocals) undertook a string of private affairs and wedding receptions. Soon we decided to dedicate ourselves to the pursuit of a regular engagement, most desirably at a nightclub. Our one weak point however in pursuit of this lofty goal was our repertoire. Our rehearsals were few and far between. In fact, I now cannot remember an actual rehearsal with this incarnation of Ful Treatment. To our chagrin, and self-deceiving disbelief, club owners actually wanted the bands they hired to play the current top-forty popular favorites to which the audience could dance. We, in our haughty laziness (or was it lazy haughtiness?) refused to do that. In fact we simply continued to play as much of our uptempo (and preferably 'newer') material instead of succumbing to the current trend of disco music brought about by the recent resurgent popularity of the Bee Gees thanks to the film Saturday Night Fever. In our defense, we did learn a new number or two, just simply not enough to market ourselves as a top-forty act. Another improvement that we opted not to pursue was the hiring of a fifth band member to play the bass guitar, a definite enhancement to a combo's authenticity when reproducing dance music (as well as rock music in general), and mainly for the reason that it would have resulted in another party with whom to share the money.




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ANOTHER SHOT
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