Tommy and Jake

So my buddy Scott sent this to my late last night. It's a video clip of Tommy Emmanuel playing "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" with Jake Shimabukuro, the greatest ukelele player in the world. Prepare to be blown away.

Denver Dan

I was in my car a lot this weekend. Thankfully, because of my Ipod, I was able to listen to nothing but Winfield family music throughout my hours and hours of driving. Maybe because it was Yom Kippur and I wasn't feeling particularly connected to my Jewish roots I listened to the Wilder's album of spirituals "On the Wings Of A Dove". If you don't own this album buy it NOW.

Deena and I had our latest checkup at the doctor, and on the way home I was in a sentimental mood. I popped in Denver Dan Forde's album and put "Hey Dad" on repeat. I didn't really get to know Dan until this year's festival, and I'm wishing that I had hung around with him more in years past. What a fabulous songwriter and person. There's just a warmth that comes through in everything about him.

Particularly, I love his writing style, and his comfort with emotional lyrics. I was so excited to listen to his album and hear how genuine the recording is. It leaves you feeling like he is sitting in front of campfire playing for you and a couple of friends late in the evening. I hope Dan doesn't mind, but I'm putting up his song "Hey Dad" for download. If you haven't heard it give it a listen and enjoy.

jason

Dreaming of Winfield!

 So, I couldn't sleep and used my time  awake to upload all of my and Peter  Seltser's pictures from this year's Winfield  onto Yahoo. Please click on the link to  view and download any of our photos from this  year's festival.

 Enjoy, and if you took any of your own  please email them to me or send me a CD  of them and I'll load them onto the same  picture site.

Jason

And the winner is!

Well, I'm back from another spiritual pilgrimage to the Brigadoon that is Winfield, Kansas. I have much to write, and even more to post, but I thought that I would start with a picture of acclaimed dentist and songwriter Ian Barwick. Ian won a medal at this year’s National Songwriting Contest at the Walnut Valley Music Festival for his song “A Cowboy Gone Bad”.

For those who haven’t heard it, you can click here for a free mp3 download.

Stephen Bennett is a really good man!

So I had this idea recently that I would like to get a little more information from some of our favorite performers at Winfield. I thought about performers that wwe know, love, and respect, and at the top of my list was virtuoso Stephen Bennett. I sent him a list of my questions, and thankfully he was kind enough to answer my questions. Many, many thanks go out to Stephen for taking the time to answer my questions. I'd like to make a series out of this, so if you have other artists that you'd like me to contact, or additional questions you'd liked asked, please let me know. Here are Stephen's unedited responses:

The Questions
1. How many years have you been a part of the Walnut Valley Music Festival?
I HAVE ATTENDED MOST YEARS SINCE 1983. THAT YEAR I CAME TO COMPETE AND PLACED SECOND IN THE FLATPICKING CONTEST AND NOT AT ALL IN THE FINGERPICKING. I RETURNED IN 84,85,87,88, AND I THINK ALSO IN 89. I MISSED 1990 BECAUSE MY SON WAS BORN THAT AUGUST. THEN BACK AGAIN IN 91 AND 92. I'M A LITTLE FUZZY ON THE NEXT FEW YEARS, BUT FOR SURE I WAS BACK IN 95, AND I THINK I HAVE PLAYED EVERY WINFIELD SINCE 96.

2. What or who brought you to Winfield that first time?
I STARTED TEACHING GUITAR FULL TIME IN 1982. THE OWNER OF THE SHOP I TAUGHT AT TOLD ME ABOUT WINFIELD, ALTHOUGH HE HAD NEVER BEEN. HE ENCOURAGED ME TO ENTER SOME LOCAL GUITAR CONTESTS, WHICH I DID QUITE WELL AT, AND SO THOUGHT WHY NOT, GO TRY THIS BIG CONTEST OUT IN KANSAS. SO I DROVE OUT TO SEE WHAT IT WAS ALL ABOUT AND HOW I WOULD FARE.

3. Please tell us a story about your first year at Winfield
WE (MY WIFE, MY FRIEND WHO WOULD ACCOMPANY ME IN THE CONTEST, AND I) ARRIVED LATE ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT, SET UP OUR TENT, AND WENT TO SLEEP. A FEW HOURS LATER A CAR PULLED IN VERY CLOSE TO OUR TENT. WHEN YOU ARE IN A TENT AND A CAR PULLS UP RIGHT NEXT TO YOU, IT CAN BE A LITTLE UNNERVING. I POKED MY HEAD OUT OF THE TENT IN THE MORNING AND SAW THAT IT WAS RAINING. THERE WAS A LITTLE PUP TENT SET UP NEXT TO THE CAR THAT HAD PULLED IN AND SOMEONE TOO TALL FOR THE TENT WAS ASLEEP WITH HIS HEAD OUT IN THE RAIN. ANOTHER PERSON WAS ASLEEP IN THE CAR, WHICH ALSO CONTAINED AN UPRIGHT BASS. IT WAS NOT A LARGE CAR, SO THIS PERSON WAS REALLY CRAMMED IN. THAT WAS PAT DONOHUE, WHO WOULD WIN THE FINGERPICKING CONTEST THURSDAY NIGHT, AND THE BASS PLAYER WITH HIS HEAD GETTING RAINED ON WAS DUANE WEBSTER. WE SPENT QUITE A FEW HOURS JAMMING LATE INTO THE NIGHT THAT YEAR AND I HAVE BEEN FRIENDS WITH THESE GUYS EVER SINCE. IN FACT, DUANE OFTEN COMES UP ON STAGE TO PLAY A FEW TUNES WITH ME. PAT AND I HAVE WOUND UP ON THE SAME STAGE AT THE FESTIVAL A FEW TIMES TOO.

4. When you're at the festival, when you’re not playing on stage how do you
spend your time at Winfield?
VISITING WITH FRIENDS (OF WHOM I HAVE ABOUT A BILLION AT THE FESTIVAL AFTER SO MANY YEARS), CHANGING STRINGS, JAMMING, GETTING READY FOR MY NEXT SHOW.

5. What’s your favorite personal Winfield memory or moment?

THERE ARE QUITE A NUMBER OF FAVORITE MOMENTS FOR ME. ONE WOULD BE MY FIRST YEAR. I GOT 2ND PLACE IN THE FLATPICKING CONTEST AND WHEN THE TROPHY AND PRIZE WERE PRESENTED THAT SATURDAY NIGHT, I GOT TO PLAY A TUNE. THE STANDS WERE COMPLETELY FULL, BECAUSE TONY RICE WAS SCHEDULED TO PLAY JUST AFTER THE AWARDS PRESENTATION. I PLAYED MINOR SWING AND GOT A STANDING OVATION. MAN, WHAT A FEELING!

OTHER FAVORITE MOMENTS: ANYTIME HOT RIZE OR RED KNUCKLES AND THE TRAILBLAZERS WOULD PLAY, THE CAMARADERIE OF 2001, INTRODUCING TOMMY EMMANUEL TO THE FESTIVAL IN 2000.

6. Any new music that you’re working on that we might be interested in learning about?
I AM ALWAYS WORKING ON NEW MUSIC. I HAVE A NEW CD OF ALL NEW TUNES WHICH WILL BE READY BY FESTIVAL TIME. IT MAY BE MY BEST WORK YET. I ALSO AM WELL INTO AN ALL VOCAL CD AND THAT WILL BE READY FOR THE FESTIVAL TOO.

7. Will you be at this year’s festival?
ABSOLUTELY!!! SEE YOU THERE.

AND THANKS!
SB

Flying with your guitar

I'm vacationing in FLA with my wife right now. As I got on the plane it occured to me that not everyone has the linked to help make sure that their guitar can stay safely with them on the plane.

Make sure you have this!

Emmanuel...Tommy Emmanuel

Leave it to Tommy to have one of
the coolest, best websites that I have ever seen. The opening is hysterical, and the content on the site is fantastic. Enjoy!

PS. I GOT MY TICKET TODAY!!!!

The Scrapbooks Are Up

Hey everyone,

Hope you are all having a nice day wherever you are. You may notice on the right-hand side of this site that the photo scrapbooks of the past 3 years are up and running. Please feel free to view, download, order and reprint any that you like. Access and downloading are free (sadly, high resolution copies are not, but that's how they make their money). But I tried to save them as large enough files that the downloaded copies should still be good quality at 4x6" size.

If anyone has photos that they would like to add to these collections please email them to me and I'll put them up as quickly as I can.

Thanks, and see you soon,

jason

Wouldn't It Be Nice?

I hit the gym really early this morning and was pleasantly surprised to hear the Beach Boys' "Wouldn't It Be Nice" over the PA system. It reminded me that I have not listened to "Pet Sounds" in a couple weeks, which is way too long if you ask me. This, of course, got me thinking about Winfield, and one of the last conversations I had two years ago with Dave Schaper about Brian Wilson. At the time, Wilson's 30+ year creation "Smile" had just come out (which I was not aware of), and I hadn't yet heard it. Has everyone heard it? Has everyone had a chance to hear a remastered copy of Pet Sounds? If not, send me an email and I'll burn you a copy of either or both.

I found myself at the gym at 6am because I woke from a Winfield dream for the second morning in a row. You folks have ruined me. Thanks!

Sharing Photos

I am ammending this earlier post as I have switched to a new host for storing our photos. The links in the right-hand tool bar work just fine, but the one listed below does not anymore.

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You may notice in the right hand toolbar that there is a link to the 2004 Group Therapy Photo Album. I set it up on Ofoto for a couple of reasons:

1) I want everyone to be able to view it.
2) I want everyone to be able to download the photos for free.
3) You can purchase copies of any of the photos for very little, and they will mail them right to your house.
4) I want others to be able to post their own photos in the same location. So if you have any photos that you'd like to add please put 'em up yourself, or email them to me and I'll upload them within a day or so.

If you have any questions about how to log onto Ofoto please send me an email.