Not . . .

. . . conflicted . . .


To be old enough to be able to afford it
But young enough to be able to enjoy it
Is a hell of a thing

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html  or at
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Other Ray Jozwiak Offerings

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

Get your copy of OHO's  Where Words Do Not Reach now!
Watch The Ocean City Ditty Video on YouTube
Also, be sure to visit: www.rayjozwiak.com and www.ohomusic.com

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Hurry . . .

. . . Some folks are just plain restless.  They bore easily.  They are unsatisfied with many things within their own life as well as things in the world as a whole. Many times these folks are truly just plain brilliant and go on to accomplish wonderful things for mankind. Sometimes, not so. I am not, by nature, restless. In fact, I can be quite complacent at times. There was a time however, when I felt so very restless that it was severely affecting my attitude. When I was approaching the end of my college career, I found myself eager to get on with a 'real' life in the 'real' world. This was actually a phrase that I used frequently to express my frustration with what began to feel like some kind of make-believe world, or role-playing exercise. I simply wanted that chapter to end and to get on with career, personal pursuits and the rest of it. I have not regretted the decisions I have made since that time and I now find a deeper understanding of what I was feeling then.  But also with hindsight, comes an appreciation for those (relatively) responsibility-free days of being young and being a student. . .

Hurry Up and Wait
©2017 Raymond M. Jozwiak

What do you think?
Tell me at
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My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills

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

Get your copy of OHO's  Where Words Do Not Reach now!
The Ocean City Ditty Video is now on YouTube
Also, be sure to visit: www.rayjozwiak.com and www.ohomusic.com

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Evil . . .

. . . and evil . . .



"Don't be so gloomy. After all it's not that awful. Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. . . "
-Harry Lime (character in The Third Man)

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

My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills

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

Get your copy of OHO's  Where Words Do Not Reach now!
The Ocean City Ditty Video is now on YouTube
Also, be sure to visit: www.rayjozwiak.com and www.ohomusic.com

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Bad . . .

. . . poetry

. . . nobody said they'd ALL be gems! . . .


Its all been said
And its all been done
Its all been played
and its all been sung

But that doesn't mean
We'll be singing no more
We don't sing it now
Like we sang it before

Back when we were young
All our cares were so few
Now with wisdom acquired
Our singing is new

So with aforementioned wisdom
We're forging ahead
Pouring all heart and soul
Into song. . .

. . .  til we're dead

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
(check out the new Ocean City Ditty video at https://youtu.be/ZZSd1oe1GcI) 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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Love . . .

Why is it that a young, handsome, twenty-something dude singing about how much he will love is young, cute, blond, girlfriend (in his video) moves so many more (and vocal) people than an old guy singing about how much he loves his significant other, as he has for the past forty years? . . .

. . . YOUTH.  (A stretch of the literal, imaginative and credible, to be sure, but an observation not totally invalid.)



(Reproduced praise for a talented,  young artist on YouTube-NOT undeserved, mind you)
. . . You never cease to amaze me with your pure talent. I really hope this was written for someone special in your life; you truly deserve love and happiness.


I love  this song


This channel is so underrated. It really deserves more attention.


Not only do I adore your amazing talent and personality, I admire this song. Been on repeat for days ever since I heard it for the first time.


I am a huge fan of your music. I love that you do love songs. Not many singer/songwriters do. I have been a fan for a while now. and LOVE your collaborations . . . I hope you guys will make another sometime. but, this song. is fantastic! I feel like i can really relate to your music and hope you never stop writing music.



Pam's Song
from Chromatose
©2007 & 2014 Raymond M. Jozwiak





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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Unsettling . . .

There's something unsettling about sitting amongst these huge photographs of steamy young women in their underwear pouting provocatively at me as I drink my coffee and to write write something mildly amusing. I'm not sure whether they're invading my privacy or I theirs.

Such are the trials and tribulations of sitting at Starbucks in the mall just outside of Victoria's Secret.

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 will be released April 7, 2015  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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Blame . . .

I knew him when the world was still young
Sometimes I liked him but sometimes sometimes I didn't at all
But so little choice did I have
In the matter of just who I am

I watched him struggle with his tribulations
Wanting to lend some kind of a helping hand
Still any amount of advice I would offer
Was just so much spam

Can't you see people like you and me
Are so much the same
After all we're the ones standing tall
We took all that life had to give
There's no one else to blame

He lived an average life in an average place
Who ever gets to choose his own time and space
He never fit into a crowd
If he thought he belonged there somehow

He felt emotions torn between two extremes
Yearned to belong but fueled by some other means
The kind not so easily explained
And the kind he could feel but not know

Can't you see people like you and me
Are so much the same
After all we're the ones standing tall
We took all that life had to give
There's no one else to blame

The springtime came dressed to the nines
We never heard of reading between the lines
Then summer we thought we were grown
As autumn fast approaches
The seeds have all been sown

I try to visit once every now and then
There's not a lot that we have in common now
But in spite of present demands
There's a laugh and some memories again

Can't you see people like you and me
Are so much the same
After all we're the ones standing tall
We took all that life had to give
There's no one else to blame



Blame
©2005 Raymond M. Jozwiak, copyright filing demo recording

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 will be released April 7, 2014  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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Ain't No Drag . . .

Bassist Larry Ridley recalls . . .


(from Straight No Chaser; The Life and Genius of Thelonious Monk by Leslie Gourse)
". . . He was cool with me.  We'd talk about a lot of things. He would always have interesting kinds of ways of being very succinct and candid about his insights. One time someone made a comment to us-during the civil rights days, and things were pretty touchy, black power and all.  I had a big Afro and dashikis. We were very conscious of this whole movement. This white guy said something about "you boys" this and "you boys" that to me. I turned to Thelonious and said, "I'm tired of these motherfuckers calling us boys. They don't have to go through all that. We're men." Thelonious said to me, "Ain't no drag, Larry, because everybody wants to be young." I said, "Okay, I'll think on that one." So he could really turn things into nothing with a few words. And there I was, upset, with my fist up in the air about respect. It was interesting. . . "

What do you think?
Tell me at
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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
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Also, be sure to visit:
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Don't Smoke. . .

. . . in Bed. . .

Peggy Lee was a successful songwriter, with songs from the Disney movie Lady and the Tramp, for which she also supplied the singing and speaking voices of four characters. Her collaborators included Laurindo Almeida, Harold Arlen, Sonny Burke, Cy Coleman, Duke Ellington, Dave Grusin, Quincy Jones, Francis Lai, Jack Marshall, Johnny Mandel, Marian McPartland, Willard Robison, Lalo Schifrin and Victor Young.

She wrote the lyrics for:
    "I Don't Know Enough About You"
    "It's A Good Day", composed by Dave Barbour
    "I'm Gonna Go Fishin'", composed with Duke Ellington
    "The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter"
    "Mañana (Is Soon Enough for Me)"
    "Bless You (For The Good That's In You)", composed with Mel Tormé
    "What More Can a Woman Do?"
    "Don't Be Mean to Baby"
    "New York City Ghost", composed with Victor Young
    "You Was Right, Baby"
    "Just an Old Love of Mine"
    "Everything's Movin' Too Fast"
    "The Shining Sea"
     "He's A Tramp"
    "The Siamese Cat Song"
    "There Will Be Another Spring"
    "Johnny Guitar", composed with Victor Young
    "Sans Souci", composed with Sonny Burke
    "So What's New?"
    "Don't Smoke in Bed"
    "I Love Being Here With You"
    "Happy With the Blues" with Harold Arlen
    "Where Can I Go Without You?", composed with Victor Young
    "Things Are Swingin'"
    "Then Was Then" with Cy Coleman

Her first published song was in 1941, "Little Fool". "What More Can a Woman Do?" was recorded by Sarah Vaughan with Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker. "Mañana (Is Soon Enough for Me)" was no.1 for 9 weeks on the Billboard singles chart in 1948, from the week of March 13 to May 8.

Lee was a mainstay of Capitol Records when rock and roll came onto the American music scene. She was among the first of the "old guard" to recognize this new genre, as seen by her recording music from The Beatles, Randy Newman, Carole King, James Taylor and other up-and-coming songwriters. From 1957 until her final disc for the company in 1972, she produced a steady stream of two or three albums per year which usually included standards (often arranged quite different from the original), her own compositions, and material from young artists.

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

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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Highs. . .

. . . and Lows. . .

Just look at the morning paper
And tell me what you see
Is something very wrong
Or maybe my eyes deceive me
Somewhere in the local section
A buried paragraph
Someone who had the time to care
And the character to act

The higher the highs
The lower the lows
The older I get
That's the way that it goes
The more that I think that I want
The less that I need
Because I realize how precious
And how short
This time with you may be

When you're young and your biggest worry's
What game you want to play
Such innocence is just surpassed
By the naivete
Take good with the worst
And better
You know they're not the same
Youth somehow brings them all together
Different they are
But subtle the shades

The higher the highs
The lower the lows
The older I get
That's the way that it goes
The more that I think that I want
The less that I need
Because I realize how precious
And how short
This time with you may be

Youth really
Is only wasted
If never
You've tasted
All the bitter
As well as sweet

I hope you don't misunderstand me
Or what I want to say
It's nothing revolutionary
Ignorance won't make this go away
Nobody likes a busybody
Nobody knows it all
There's one thing I can tell you certain
Take none for granted 
Short or the tall

The higher the highs
The lower the lows
The older I get
That's the way that it goes
The more that I think that I want
The less that I need
Because I realize how precious
And how short
This time with you may be


Highs & Lows
©2000 Raymond M. Jozwiak




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AMBIENCE & WINE

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Moderation. . .

. . . in all things. . . 

I've always thought that ego and self-confidence were pretty much the same thing.  And as in all other things, moderation must be practiced in implementing either.

My music gives me pause in this regard quite frequently.  Truth is, my self-confidence increases daily and reassures me that I am doing what I am supposed to with regard to the music.

In fact, I envy young, creative people (musicians in particular) who have a self-confidence that I could never have dreamed of at their age.  That self-confidence is the fuel that will help the truly talented (and even the marginally-talented who possess it) achieve success.

In my case, I have finally developed a sufficient amount of self-confidence after years of honing my skills.  So one complements the other;  the skills combined with the confidence enable me to perform. In the case of the younger ones mentioned above, their inverse amounts of self-confidence and skills will help them persevere, while those skills they need are developed.

The difference between us is, had I possessed quantities of both of these qualities earlier, I would have had more time to develop my market.

But still I am conscious of allowing the confidence to become too great, in which case the delicate balance would surely be ruined.

All things in moderation.
Know what I mean?

MY EGO
©1998 Raymond M. Jozwiak




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Also download your
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AMBIENCE & WINE
by Ray Jozwiak

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