Drifting With the Tide

My latest song, Drifting With the Tide, is out now.

The subject of the song is easy enough to summarize: carpe diem. Either choose your direction, or get pulled along by the tide. When I first started working on it, I was addressing myself. I have a tendency to see the obstacles; I’m a grade-A procrastinator. So, this song is a way of reminding myself that the most important step you take is the next one. In deciding to release it, I’m hopeful that the message will resonate with listeners.

In a departure from most of the songs on my previous release, there is not a single MIDI note or sampled instrument in the arrangement. Everything was performed on real instruments, including the triangle and up to the slightly out of tune D4 on the piano.

Listen on Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/track/01xvG31wUbqfp853ADNmKz

All streaming services:

https://fanlink.to/drifting-with-the-tide

Lyrics:

Drifting with the Tide

There's sunshine on the gutter.

There's glitter on the floor.

Even music in dark places.

There's a handle on the door.

Chorus:

If you won't open up

It's like binding up your eyes

Falling back in the arms of fate

And drifting with the tide -

Drifting with the tide.

Bridge:

If time had wheels, it would move too slowly;

So, it flies.

Turn around quickly; you might see the shadow of your former self,

Silently following.

Chorus:

If you won't open up

It's like binding up your eyes

Falling back in the arms of fate

And drifting with the tide -

Drifting with the tide.

You're walking through a hallway

With doors on every side;

Choose your own direction,

Swing the doors out wide.

Chorus:

If you won't open up

It's like binding up your eyes

Falling back in the arms of fate

And drifting with the tide -

Drifting with the tide.

Release!

After a number of challenges, the album is finally available from streaming and download sources.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1LovL1lcVFxJ6yvtwDE3AD

YouTube Music: https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_k7yHy7dSR274EdSVdTe-nqhMV9kh5PdxI

Amazon Music: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08LPN2HKK/ref=dm_ws_sp_ps_dp

I will also be posting it on SoundCloud soon: https://soundcloud.com/samuel-jonasson

When the Waves Roared

On August 4th, I will be releasing my first album, When the Waves Roared, through digital platforms (Apple Music, Amazon Music, Spotify, Google Play, etc.). It features a collection of songs about challenge and triumph.

I'm thrilled about the upcoming album because, not only is it my first full-length work, but it also blossomed in ways I couldn't have imagined. The youth chorus in the bridge of the opening song, Let No Darkness, is a favorite part of the album. I feel so fortunate to have had several of the young people in my neighborhood and my own children add their talent to the music.

I was also able to collaborate with some of my favorite musicians, including the following:
Matt Meldrum, the excessively talented bass player, singer, songwriter, guitarist, and, yes, keyboardist for the Sons of Nothing
Allison Drinkwater Johnson, my wife, a fine vocalist and musician
Klay Gustin, atmospheric guitarist and fellow Midnight Oil super fan
Matthew Thomas Nagel, ripping guitarist on Ode to the Songstress
Eddie Sticks, drums on Silent Crusade and Joshua Beside Me

Speaking of Silent Crusade, that was a really fun project. By far, my biggest production to date. Most of it was recorded years ago for a Gene Clark compilation album (it is the only cover on When the Waves Roared). However, I was never happy with the original version we recorded. I had Eddie Stix record the drums again after the compilation album on a different kit, and really liked the result. So, I fished the tracks out of the archives, did a wee bit of editing, and you will soon hear the result. Members of the Celtic band Stonecircle played the lovely 12 string guitar, flute, and fiddle parts.

More to come as the release gets closer.

Logic Pro X - Changing the Space Between the Treble and Bass Clef (Staff - Score Editor)

It took me a few minutes of fishing around to figure this out in Logic Pro X (10.2.2).

If you have an instrument that uses a staff system (e.g. piano, which uses a treble and bass clef in a staff system) and you would like to adjust the space between the two staves for better readability and/or printing, here's how to do it:

1. Click on the MIDI region to select it (Tracks area - main top right part of Logic).

2. Click on Score(next to Piano Roll) in the Editor area below the Tracks area. Then click on the Layout menu and choose Show Staff Styles.

3. In the new window that appears, double click on numbers under the Space header, type in new numbers, and hit Enter. You should see the space between the staves change.

In my case, the two staves were shoved together, causing note stems to overlap, so I added some space to each staff, and no more collisions.

Evaluating Your Songwriting and Finding Your Strengths

Recent discussions about evaluating one's songwriting have sparked some thoughts about what the elements of songwriting are.

Simplicity is powerful, but in this case, I prefer identifying more characteristics of songwriting, rather than fewer. Here is a list I made:

1. Melody
2. Rhythm
3. Harmony
4. Lyrics
5. Meaning (does the song communicate something important?)
6. Emotional Impact
7. Engagement (is the subject matter relatable?)
8. Vision (does the song present fresh ideas or a powerful worldview?)
9. Storytelling
10. Visual Imagery
11. Structure
12. Production

By evaluating your songwriting and individual songs using these categories, I believe you can get more insight into your strengths as a songwriter. More items = more chances to find your strengths and feel encouraged. Also, if you haven't thought about some of these items, they may give you a different perspective, hopefully fueling your creativity.

While the first four items on the list are the basic elements of songwriting, the other aspects are different ways of viewing a song that may allow you to increase its success or expand its audience. In particular, if you can improve your song(s) in terms of meaning, emotional impact, and engagement, you are on the path to creating songs that will make a difference in people's lives and earn you devoted supporters.

I see three different groups of items in the list (please apologize a bit of geeking out here as I use a chemistry analogy). The first four are a song's elements. The middle six are its products (the result of a chemical reaction between elements). The last two involve the system or superstructure.

I chose all of these items because I believe they are all things that we can act on and improve. For example, if you would like to convey more meaning in your songs, make a note of the time that you spend in certain activities, the things you look forward to the most, and what you have experienced that is the most memorable. Now you have some seeds for songs.

You can also research these items, such as finding surveys about what news stories, memes, or art is trending at the moment. The research could potentially allow you to make your songs more engaging or relatable.

Here are some of the resources that spurred my interest:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYQ8nDCJXK8

http://tonyconniff.com/5-ways-to-evaluate-your-songwriting/

https://www.lynda.com/Songwriting-tutorials/Learn-your-songwriting-strengths/455723/513616-4.html

http://blog.sonicbids.com/top-4-songwriting-tips-from-the-nashville-songwriters-association-international

One final item to consider is your songwriting process. That could be a whole topic of its own:
Process (Capturing ideas, organizing ideas, deciding what to work on next, finishing songs)

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

The Greatest Immigration-Related Threat to Christianity

My personal view, based on the scriptures that follow:

It is not immigration (Muslim or otherwise) that presents the existential threat to American Christianity, but closing our hearts and homes.

Matthew 25:31-46

31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

 32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

 33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

 34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

 35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

 36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

 37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

 38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

 39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

 40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

 41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

 42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

 43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

 44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?

 45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

 46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Luke 10:25-37

25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

 26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?

 27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.

 28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

 29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

 30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

 31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

 32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

 34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

 35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

 36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?

 37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

1 John 4:15-21

15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.

 16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

 17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

 19 We love him, because he first loved us.

 20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

 21 And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.

Christmas Message

What a tumultuous era this is - marked by international tension and, for many, the loss of dearly loved neighbors, friends, and family.

In this time of strife, many seek for security through multi-billion dollar spying and weapons programs, as well as authoritarian leaders.

But men are not good at establishing and maintaining peace.

Quite the opposite.

There is One who is named the Prince of Peace.

If we have felt joy or comfort in this time of trouble, we know that its source is the Spirit of God.

By turning to Jesus Christ, we can realize his promise:

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." - John 14:27