Pre-Order Vagabundeo on Amazon

Folks, if you don't see me around to buy a signed copy from me personally and you'd like to get ahold of Vagabundeo/Wanderings, you may wish to pre-order it on Amazon.com. The album will be in stores and shipping from Amazon on June 26. Also, if you are one of the less than 100 people who now own a pre-release copy, and you would like to share your thoughts about it with the world, I'd love it if you posted a review on Amazon. It's easy, and frankly a bit addictive, to review things on Amazon--makes you think about what you've read or heard and how you feel about it.

Thank you!

Three Sweet Nights at Pearl's!

I am almost sufficiently rested to write about our three-night CD release party this past weekend at San Francisco's finest listening room, Jazz at Pearl's. Audience turnout was great, so I guess all those radio interviews and the other promotional activities (dropping leaflets from planes, subliminal messaging via alien transmitters, new fashion line at H&M, streaking on White House lawn) paid off! More importantly, I suffered no wardrobe malfunctions, a decent number of CDs were sold and the band kicked butt! Did I mention the gospel quartet? They were great!

The first night, Bryan Dyer, who sings the bass line of Wayne's a capella arrangement of Calling You on my new record, managed to swing by after his gig with Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir. We were two bars into singing the tune "semi a capella" with Frank Martin accompanying on piano. I heard Wayne say "You might want to start over" from behind me and then Bryan was on stage. We kept going, and he lept right in where he should (Zareen pointed to the music). We did the tune every night. The nice thing about the next two nights is that Sandy Cressman joined us singing alto so we had three-part harmony (albeit without Bryan) which sounded especially nice on the section with bell tones.

The Goddess of War was a lot of fun to do live, if a bit hair-raising the first time. On Sunday we did it in each set, and nailed it! Habanera and El Cantante were also fun productions. We ended each set with a 6/8 gospel rendition of Angelitos Negros, with the choir singing.

The percussion team of David Flores (now touring with Lauryn Hill--wow!) and Edgardo Cambon was smokin'! Omar Ledezma subbed for Edgardo on Saturday night. It was my first time working with him, but I hope to do so again. Sam Bevan was so versatile on bass, driving home the funk and salsa but also playing some nice fretless. Rick Vandivier really impressed me with his guitar chops, taking gorgeous solos but also comping like a master. Frank Martin was spectactular (that's a typo, but it seems apt for a pianist, no?) on keys. Wayne Wallace conducted and soloed with his usual wry intensity. Zareen did a wonderful job on background vocals. I hope to work with her again soon.

I saw lots of dear friends and plenty of tourists from around the world. My folks came on Sunday, and I brought my older son who acted like a total pro at the club. He and I goofed around on the percussion and drumset before the show. My sister-in-law said he really enjoyed the first set and kept jumping up and saying "I love this song!"

Managing the logistics for 12 musicians, including rehearsals--man! Practicing after having little sleep for the next day's show--whew! Dancing in platform heels with a twisted ankle--ouch! Knowing the band is tight and the music is soaring because this is our third night in a row playing together--priceless!

Thanks to everyone who came!

What Not to Wear to a CD Release Party

Finally! I have been banging my head against the wall trying to figure out what I should wear to my CD release party (which I have neglected to mention in this blog, though it's all over the Internet. It is May 25, 26 and 27 at the gorgeous Jazz at Pearl's, 256 Columbus at Broadway, conveniently located in San Francisco's red light district). I knew I wanted something shiny, something pointy, something with long dark socks--this is the kind of glamour I imagined.

What better inspiration than the annual Eurovision contest, always expertly covered by the bitterly superficial bloggers at GoFugYourself.com?

Alexa's Tips for Multitasking Musician Moms, Part 16

Must Read: Sex, Drugs and Updating Your Blog

This is a great piece by Clive Thompson in the New York Times that should interest musicians, media folks and geeks alike. Here are two quotes I like:

This is not a trend that affects A-list stars. The most famous corporate acts — Justin Timberlake, Fergie, Beyoncé — are still creatures of mass marketing, carpet-bombed into popularity by expensive ad campaigns and radio airplay. They do not need the online world to find listeners, and indeed, their audiences are too vast for any artist to even pretend intimacy with. No, this is a trend that is catalyzing the B-list, the new, under-the-radar acts that have always built their success fan by fan.

"Carpet-bombed into popularity" indeed! I'm about to launch my radio campaign to 400 non-commercial stations. There's a plus to not competing in the pop arena: We can't possibly match the payola (I've read earnest descriptions of the types of suggested gifts record companies can send commercial stations, such as SUVs "wrapped" with the radio station's call letters and logo).

Here's how Clive's piece ends:

Which is perhaps the end result of the new online fan world: it allows a fresh route to creative success, assuming the artist has the correct emotional tools. De Torres, a decade or more younger than Coulton and the Hold Steady, is a natural Artist 2.0: he happily spends two hours a day or more parsing notes from teenagers who tell him “your work totally got me through some rough times.” He knows that to lure in listeners, he needs to post some of his work on MySpace, but since he wants people to eventually buy his album, he doesn’t want to give away all his goods. He has thus developed an ear for what he calls “the perfect MySpace song” — a tune that is immediately catchy, yet not necessarily the strongest from his forthcoming album. For him, being a musician is rather like being a business manager, memoirist and group therapist rolled into one, with a politician’s thick hide to boot.

Alexa's Tips for Multitasking Musician Moms, Part 15

Alexa's Tips for Multitasking Musician Moms, Part 14

Alexa Weber Morales with the Reno Jazz Orchestra