Good Music and Good Friends

You all know from the URL of this blog that I have an immense love for Gavin DeGraw. His music has changed my life. As a live performer he is beyond compare. I got the opportunity to see him twice last week in two different settings. The first one was a fairly large crowd and made me feel kind of like I was at a sporting event. It wasn't a stadium or anything like that, but it had a very impersonal feel. I'm used to seeing Gavin in much closer quarters. I found that performance to be a bit lackluster, not the least of which was because of the sound engineering. I also felt like his set was very generic, which felt right in line with the direction that I see his career going in. Luckily, I didn't pay money for that particular show. One of my friends won free tickets and asked if I'd like to go with her. I also got to meet up with some other friends, so the night wasn't a total loss.

To be perfectly honest, I was dreading going to the show the following night, especially since it was in Hyannis (Cape Cod) and I had to drive to get there. Had it not been for the fact that a friend was depending on me for a ride, I wouldve stayed home. All I can say is thank God I didn't stay home! The second show was in a more intimate setting and Gavin was able to connect with his audience. That's what was missing from the show the night before. I bet all he could see is light and just the faces in the front row. Not so, at this smaller venue, which has a rotating stage. Every seat in the house was a good one. I had an excellent view of him and was able to take a few pics. Unfortunately, I forgot to put my memory card back in my camera from the last time I downloaded pics onto my computer, so I couldn't take very many. Regardless, Gavin electrified the crowd, so much so that the tent we were under was like a sauna! I was covered in sweat by the time his set was over. Words can't describe how happy I was to see the "old Gavin" performing on that stage. I know the more intimate shows don't bring in as much money as shows in larger venues, but Gavin does his best shows when he can really interact with the crowd, which is hard to do when you can't even SEE them.

In the future, if he keeps playing such impersonal venues, I will pick and choose the shows that I go to, looking for the ones with more atmosphere. I almost gave up on him, not as a musician, but as a performer. When you know and have seen what someone can do, it's heartbreaking to see them stray away from that formula. Yeah, we all want money (some of us more than others), but as far as I know, he owns the licensing rights to his songs, so he'll make money until the day he dies, purely off royalties. His work to build a grassroots following paid off in that his fanbase is a very loyal one. I got to hang with some of those awesome loyal fans at both shows. What we have in common, besides our love of good music, is that we look out for each other. We're a community that would've never gotten together were it not for Gavin's music. With the release of this new album, there's been a push by Gavin's "people" to get him new fans, without even bothering to try to retain the old ones. All I can say is that they're making a huge mistake. To quote one of my favorite Gavin songs, "Time will tell. It always does."

Thrifty Gifty Thursday

Since Christmas is a week from Sunday, this is my last Thrifty Gifty Thursday post for 2011. I think it would be helpful to do Thrifty Gifty Thursday posts for every holiday, so I'll start again at the end of January so you can have some gift ideas for Valentine's Day :-). Today I'd like to focus on websites with a charitable slant. The first one I'd like to talk about is the Great Good Network: http://www.greatergoodnetwork.com/. It links you to different advocacy sites for different causes such as breast cancer, animal rescue, literacy, and hunger. A portion of the proceeds from the products that are sold on these sites benefit the causes that they advocate.


Another great organization is the Nothing but Nets program: http://www.nothingbutnets.net/. For a donation of $10 you can provide a family in Africa and other malaria-stricken areas with a bed net to protect them from mosquitoes. My boy Gavin DeGraw is an ambassador and has travelled to Africa to personally deliver bed nets. For those who don't want a physical Christmas gift, a donation in their name is the perfect gift.


I hope I've given you some good ideas over the past few weeks. Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday season!

Album Review

Yesterday my favorite singer Gavin DeGraw released his fourth studio album entitled Sweeter. Because of the glut of shite music out there and Gavin's reluctance to pander to trends and gimmicks, there are still a lot of people that don't know who he is. Of the ones that do know of him, they only know him for his songs I Don't Want to Be, Follow Through, or Chariot. His repertoire contains much, much more. Since he plays both piano and guitar, he can write and sing in a wide variety of styles. I feel like this album is a lot like the "stripped" version of his first album, Chariot, in that you can really hear the nuances of his voice without all of the studio bells and whistles. He doesn't need all of that crap because he can actually sing. Take a listen to Sweeter right here: http://stream.gavindegraw.com/.

Overall, I think this album gives you more of a feel for Gavin's personality. He has a very tongue-in-cheek sense of humor and songs such as Sweeter, Candy, and Radiation play into that. Many see him as being all about a love song, which he delivers on with Soldier, You Know Where I'm At, and Where You Are. The first single, Not Over You is a nice, bouncy intro to the album. He cowrote it with Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic. Although I don't listen to OneRepublic, I figured I'd throw that in for for those of you who might. If you actually listen to Gavin's lyrics on any of his albums, you'll know that he's not writing fluffy, meaningless music with a good beat that you can dance to. Saying this may cast me as a music snob, but I like some substance to what I'm listening to. Yeah, I like the fun stuff, but no amount of costumes, tricks, or passes through auto tune can overshadow genuine talent.

Weigh-In Wednesday

As a member of Weight Watchers I'm required to weigh in every week. My weigh-in day (as you can tell from the title) is Wednesday. Last Wednesday I didn't weigh in because I was at the Hard Rock Cafe seeing my boy Gavin DeGraw perform :-). When I stepped on my scale at home last Wednesday it said my weight stayed the same. This morning when I stepped on it, the scale said I was down just a bit. Of course I'm always lighter on my scale at home than I am on the Weight Watchers scale. I wonder why that is? Anyway, I'm hoping for good news this evening at my weigh-in. From now until I reach my goal I'll be writing a Weigh-In Wednesday blog entry, followed by Results Thursday (which of course will be on Thursday). In the results entry, I will actually tell you how much I gained or lost. Since this is a lifetime commitment for me, I want to get more comfortable with the highs and lows that come with weight-loss and maintaining that loss. I think that two entries per week on that subject will help me do so.

Also, I'm in the process of tweaking this blog. I felt like it needed a change because I've changed a lot since I started it. I know that the new background color makes some of the older entries harder to read so I'll be going through them and changing the color of the font to make it easier. In addition, if any of my readers have a subject that they'd like me to address, feel free to leave a comment and I'll do my best to write something vaguely coherent. Thanks for reading!

Two Causes Near and Dear to My Heart

Although I don't have much money, I still like to donate to worthy causes when I can spare a few dollars. There are 2 in particular that I have an affinity for. Those are The Least I Can Do and GA Funny Farm. I've blogged about both of them before, but I wanted to bring them to the forefront again. The Least I Can Do is a concept developed by Gavin DeGraw fans to pay tribute to him by raising money for a charity that he supports. It's a yearly endeavor and we pick a different charity every year. This year's charity is the Wounded Warrior Project. Go to http://www.theleasticando.net to find out more.

The GA Funny Farm is an animal sanctuary whose primary focus is rescue cats. They currently have 59 and are trying to raise money to fence in a large portion of their property so that the kitties can roam free without fear for their safety. Learn more at http://www.gafunnyfarm.org. They are almost halfway to their fundraising goal and every little bit helps. If a large group of us band together and give whatever we can, no matter how small, we can make a big difference.

International Gavin DeGraw T-Shirt Day

It's time for me to promote my favorite recording artist again. Just can't help but love that man ;-)! August 15th is International Gavin DeGraw T-Shirt Day. The details are as follows:

August 15th is International Gavin DeGraw T-Shirt Day. Show your support by sporting a t-shirt on that day. We'll have a special Flickr group set up where you can upload your photos to show off to the world. There will be contests with cool prizes, as well as a few surprises on that day.
Need a t-shirt? Visit the Merch Shop.
GDG Fan Club members get 10% off on all purchases. GDG Web Team members can earn shirts and get points for buying a shirt.
Tell the world. It's coming: August 15th: International Gavin DeGraw T-Shirt Day!

Although he's a very underrated artist, he's puts on one of the best live shows. His fanbase is solid, but his music is so good that it needs to be heard by more people. If you don't know who he is, check him out on YouTube. Watching and listening to him brings back memories of the days when rock and roll was young, and musicians could really sing. He loves to perform and it shows. He also likes interacting with his fans, so I've met him quite a few times. I'm not asking everyone who reads this to rock a GDG t-shirt on August 15th, but at least check him out. He's the real deal and genuinely has a love for music.

Get your copy of FREE on iTunes!

If you haven't already, get over to iTunes and get your copy of Gavin DeGraw's FREE. It'll be the best 10 bucks or so that you've ever spent!

Get "Free" on iTunes!

Gavin DeGraw's new album "Free" is on iTunes. Get yours now!

Lending a Helping Hand

I don't have a lot of money, but I do try to make charitable contributions whenever I can. Sometimes we all might wonder if our $10 or $25 is enough, but if every person out there gave $10 or $25, that would add up to a lot of money. Two of the charities that I like to contribute to are directly related to my love of Gavin DeGraw. He's a big supporter of Nothing but Nets and the Wounded Warrior Project. Like myself, Gavin's other fans have taken an interest in those charities. We've gone so far as to set up a website http://www.theleasticando.net/ to make donations to a designated charity in Gavin's name each year. The Wounded Warrior Project is this year's designated charity. In one of my earlier blogs I have information about Nothing but Nets. Another charity I like to contribute to is called I'm Tired of.... For a contribution of $10 you can get a bracelet that says I'm Tired of...Cancer, Animal Cruelty, Alzheimer's, Diabetes, Child Abuse, Breast Cancer, World Hunger, AIDS, Global Warming, Autism, The Economy, or Heart Disease. The proceeds from the sale of each bracelet benefits the cause that you've chosen. Check them out at http://www.imtiredonline.com/. I'm sure that either you or someone you know is affected by one of the problems that I'm Tired of...represents. Hell, I know we're all tired of the economy. Please do your part to help make this world one that we can be proud of!

That's What We Want

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=54009042


The video above shows Gavin DeGraw talking about his approach for the new album. He mentions that fact that he wants to sound less produced. His voice is one that sounds best in its rawest form. Any production beyond the bare minimum does a disservice to him and to his fans. Although we pretty much love everything that he does, we love him when he's pared down to his essence more than anything else. All of his true fans are really happy that he's giving us what we want with the album "Free".

Sheer Genius!

A single from Gavin DeGraw's new album "Free" has been released. It's called "Stay" and I think it might be his most open, vulnerable recording yet. On their own, the lyrics, themselves would be heartwrenching, but when the plaintive quality of his voice is added, it hits you squarely in your heart. I get the feeling that "Free" is going to be the album that Gavin was born to make. Whether it's critically acclaimed or not means nothing to me, because it's not about that. It's about whether or not music can reach deep down and touch my soul. If you love music in its purest form, you've gotta check this song out. You won't regret it!

www.myspace.com/gavindegraw

Walking the Walk

It looks like maybe every other blog post is going to be about Gavin, but that's not necessarily a bad thing! He's a huge supporter of the charity Nothing But Nets which provides repellant treated bed nets to African refugee camps to prevent malaria. It's not enough for Gavin to support this cause by raising money, he also plans to hand deliver the nets that his fundraising efforts have paid for as evidenced by a bulletin posted on MySpace:

"This Saturday, Gavin will be departing for Uganda to spend a week going to refuge camps to hand deliver the Malaria bed nets to those in need! Please stay tuned for pictures, videos, and very special blogs directly from each camp that he visits!"

Now that's what I call walking the walk. It's easy to talk the talk by saying that you support certain causes, only going so far as to mail a check on a regular basis. It takes real humanitarian spirit to get down in the trenches, so to speak, and actually look the people that you're helping in the eye. That's how you know that you're really making a difference. Gavin, I applaud you for being the kind of person that knows that first-hand experience of others' hardships make you a more compassionate and giving person. I also applaud your parents for instilling such values in you. You've made your fans very proud. Just when we think that we couldn't possibly love you any more than we already do, you prove us wrong by opening your own heart just a little more!

What's going on with Gavin

For those of you who may not know, Gavin DeGraw is releasing a new album on March 31st called "Free". It's going to mainly be a collection of fan favorites from his shows with a cover or 2 thrown in. To promote the album, he'll also be doing the "Where it Began" Tour, which is a way for him to get back to his roots. Below you'll find tour dates and a pic of the album cover.