several months ago i received an email from someone in austin. this person had pulled my address off a compilation cd that had just been released with two songs i recorded a few years ago. the sender commented that he had been a huge fan of the band for quite a while and had been unable to aquire a copy of our first cd after his was stolen last year. this person offered to pay me to tape a copy of the cd in order to once again be able to listen to this music proclaiming it "timeless music for the ages..."

it's always good to have your head enlarged with praise when you're feeling down otherwise. i don't know this person. i could never pick them out in a sparsely populated room unless everyone else present was a good friend of mine. but this person knows me and my music and appreciates it to a great degree. just as another gentleman in the carolinas did when he asked me to come out to their college town and play.

last year i 'discovered' a band from boston called Jim's Big Ego. i thought, and still do, that they are making truthful and fun music. i hold the band's namesake, jim infantino, in high order. i listened to his music, watched his homemade flash videos, and found myself in awe. so i emailed jim to tell him what i thought. i was surprised when he wrote back to thank me for my enthusiasm. wow! this guy actually answers each and every email that comes his way from people all over the world. but this isn't any different from what i did for m. that was in need of new cds. it's that personal interaction with the people that enjoy my creations that makes it all worth the effort for me. that's why i do it. i think that's why jim does it too.

i find that some people don't respond in like fashion when you show appreciation for their creations. maybe they're afraid that you are some fanatical freak trying to stalk them or rub shoulders. maybe they don't want to be appreciated. maybe they figure, since they don't know who you are, that they don't owe you anything.

embrace those that appreciate you. a simple "thank you" will suffice.

thank you m. i hope you enjoy the cds.