Sincere . . .

 . . . genuine, talent. . .


(from http://www.irasullivanjazz.com/#!bio)
Hyperbole surrounds Ira Sullivan. It is evident in both his music and his life. His talent has been called "Pure lyric," "Fire," "Formidable," "Complex," "Ornate," "Unparalleled," "Haunting," or, more simply, "Legend." Some reviewers say he is a musical genius; others say this is an understatement. They cite his ability to pick up a strange instrument and, within a few days, to be as conversant with it as if he had been playing it for years. World class multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan plays trumpet, flugelhorn, peckhorn, tenor, alto, and soprano saxophones, flute, and an occasional round of drums, all of them impeccably and not as a gimmick. A master of almost the entire range of brass and reed instruments, he is known for his ability to come in cold and turn in a stellar performance. Ira is widely recorded and tours on the national and international jazz circuits. A five-time Grammy nominee, he serves as a panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts. As a clinician, lecturer, and adjudicator in jazz workshops at universities and schools across the country and abroad, he finds that the History of Jazz programs that he initiated while attending high school in Chicago are now being replicated in many of these institutions. One if his current projects is an ensemble he calls the INTER/OUTER CONTINENTAL JAZZ QUINTET. Together, this unique and multi-ethnic group expresses a wide spectrum of the jazz milieu, dipping freely into both traditional and uncommon territory. Ira Sullivan feels that music is one of the finest gifts God has bestowed upon mankind. One of his greatest joys is leading Jazz Vespers at the many churches he plays, where the congregations share his belief that there is a dynamic spiritual connotation to this most American of musical styles. It is this spiritual impulse that most clearly defines Ira Sullivan's music. For forty years, he has ended his performances all over the world with the venerable hymn "Amazing Grace," a soulful salute to the Spirit within.

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

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

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet

Good & Bad. . .

. . . things in Chicago 

(http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/about/history.html)
Throughout their city’s history, Chicagoans have demonstrated their ingenuity in matters large and small:
    •    The nation’s first skyscraper, the 10-story, steel-framed Home Insurance Building, was built in 1884 at LaSalle and Adams streets and demolished in 1931.
    •    When residents were threatened by waterborne illnesses from sewage flowing into Lake Michigan, they reversed the Chicago River in 1900 to make it flow toward the Mississippi.
    •    Start of the "Historic Route 66" which begins at Grant Park on Adams Street in the front of the Art Institute of Chicago.
    •    Chicago was the birthplace of:
    ◦    the refrigerated rail car (Swift)
    ◦    mail-order retailing (Sears and Montgomery Ward)
    ◦    the car radio (Motorola)
    ◦    the TV remote control (Zenith)
    •    The first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction, ushering in the Atomic Age, took place at the University of Chicago in 1942. The spot is marked by a Henry Moore sculpture on Ellis Avenue between 56th and 57th streets.
    •    The 1,450-foot Sears Tower, completed in 1974, is the tallest building in North America and the third tallest in the world.

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

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

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet

The Darkness. . .

. . .You must acknowledge it.  Then, you must overpower it.  Afterward, although it's always there, you keep it in check.

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

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 and Ray Jozwiak.

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet

Dance to Rockin' Bands . . .

. . . in Ocean City

On your mark get set
Disconnect that internet
Every girl and boy
Breathing in the joy
Not a care at last
Sit outside and bask
In rays of summer's bliss 

Crabs and fish and shells
Feel your tensions melt
Fries and pizza pie
Smiles won't be denied
Everything is cool
in 2 1 8 4 2
Feel the sparkle in your eyes

Catch a wave and ride
Cars and motorbikes
Bikini babes in the sand
Vibin' to rockin' bands
Ocean City

From Memorial to Labor Day
We beckon you to play
To a boardwalk beat
Miles and miles of beach
Your memories to take
Currents dance and sway
leave your footprints in the sand

Fireworks at night
Give your love a kiss
Sail and fish the sea
Here life is a beach
in Ocean City

Now is the time that's right
For you only live once
Time does drag when it's all work and no fun
The ocean gateway calls you
Sport your shorts and shades
It's so divine to dine at life's buffet
It's almost heaven and
There's so much more we can say

Catch a wave and ride
Cool cars and motorbikes
Bikinis on the sand
Dance to rockin' bands
Ocean City


Ocean City Ditty
Live at Johnny's, Ocean City, MD-August 2014 [field recording by OHO - Jay Graboski, David Reeve and Ray Jozwiak]




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

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

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet

Accuracy . . .

Thank you for allowing us the privilege of hosting you during your upcoming  vacation! 

At this time, please allow us to remind you that the final balance remaining due on your rental is past due.  Per the terms of your Guest License Agreement, full payment is required 60 (sixty) days prior to your arrival and access to the vacation rental cannot be provided until this balance is paid in full.  Please see the attached document for the details of the vacation rental to which this pertains.

If you feel our records are incorrect, to make your payment by credit card, or if we can be of any additional help while you plan your stay, please contact our office immediately.  We are happy to assist in any way we can!

================

Did you look at the last page of the contract that we signed, dated and scanned via email? 

At the very bottom of page 6 you will find the following statement: If you would like your final balance charged to the same credit card used to secure your reservation on the due date, please sign here.  My signature  follows that statement.

Surely you have the same information.  And if so, why are you sending us this email advising the balance is overdue???  Why didn't you bill the balance to the credit card you have on file per the lease agreement???

This is aggravating.  We don't understand why you offer the option to bill the balance when due and then not note your records. 

We gave you permission to bill the balance to the credit card. Call me if we are misunderstanding the process.

================

Why not instead, change the statement to read, "If you would like your final balance charged to the same credit card used to secure your reservation on the due date, and would like to receive a nasty email from us shortly after the balance is due, please sign here."  That would be more accurate.

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

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 and Ray Jozwiak.

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet

A Warm August Night . . .

Ghosts are in the air, they're not visible
but they're there in Frederick on a warm August night
History hides in the cracks of every edifice
in fact, in Frederick on a warm August night

There's magic everywhere, no dazzling tricks
but you won't care in Frederick on a warm August night
Many patriots, crooks and good citizens too,
I've read in books, have been through Frederick on a warm August night

You'll find emotions deep inside those places that you
thought were so good to hide;  Frederick on a warm August night
Come flowing through a tear or smile given birth
by artistry of depth and mirth; Frederick on a warm August night

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

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

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet

Indecision. . .

Franklin had a big secret.  It was the kind of secret that he had to keep to himself. It's not that he wanted to tell anyone the secret. It was just that his secret preoccupied him much of the time.  He didn't think that anyone did or would ever detect that he was preoccupied . . . he didn't think.  In fact though, he was. Most of the time as a matter of fact. Would telling his secret to someone else be of any help to him?  Would it relieve him of being preoccupied with it or would it make no difference at all? That was a question that Franklin could not readily answer. He would like to have thought it might do some good.  Might lessen his load.  His burden, if you will. But even of this he was not absolutely certain. It was not a certainty either, whether he really wanted to tell anyone his secret at all.

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

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)

My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)

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

Tweet