Last night I think I played the best show of my life so far.  It has reignited my passion for music.

The concert was at the House of James in Abbotsford.  I used to live in Abbotsford and I never thought that it was a great place for gigs, but after experiencing my fair share of dull gigs in the “big city” of Vancouver, I realize that smaller cities and towns are fun to play at because they have less events and places competing for their attention.  And I think this affects the way the people respond to hearing some good music.  They want to support the artist and really get connected (or so I assume from what I observed).

There were quite a few people who bought my CD, plus people payed cover to see the show.  So I made a decent amount of money.  It feels so good to make money doing something I love.  And it’s not about the money in itself.  I’m very content with a simple life and am not in it for fame or fortune.  It’s a weird psychological thing that I’m talking about.  It feels good to get paid for playing music because it shows that people value my work.  They ascribe worth to my music when they pay to listen to it, whether live or on a recording.  Payment is a sacrifice.  In the old bartering system, people would exchange goods or services for other goods or services.  Now we have money as a middleman.  So when I get paid for a CD or concert it’s like people are saying, “Good job.  Your music is appreciated.  I will trade you this for your work.”  Hearing the verbal encouragement is nice too, but it doesn’t take much sacrifice on their part and, therefore, falls a little flat.  I remember the faces of people who buy my CD.  I don’t always remember the people who said, “Good job.”  But in the moment I still appreciate it.

I also want to mention a few people who made the night so great:

- Lando, the owner of House of James who let us perform there

- Adam Roper, who organized the event

- Brad and Shannon who drove me (I don’t have a car)

- Barbara Swain and Josh Hyslop who both performed phenominally as well

And last but certainly not least…

- Emily Ewing, who sang with me and did a fantastic job

Thanks also to everyone who came out to listen.  We couldn’t do it with out you.

A couple weeks ago I visited CIVL radio in Abbotsford and had an interview with host Nathan Moes.  We talked about all kinds of things, including bow saws and life after death.  You can listen to it here or go to www.civl.ca

They also have a podcast, so check that out if you’re interested.

When I was a kid (and by kid, I probably mean teenager), I would daydream about being a rock star.  I remember spending extended periods of time in the washroom staring into the mirror - pretending to sing to huge stadiums full of screaming fans, and conducting one-way interviews where I would explain what life is really like as a tortured artist.  I think my toothbrush made a decent substitute for a microphone, but it wasn’t quite the same.

Now if I’m perfectly honest, I’ll admit that perhaps I still entertain the mirror from time to time.  There’s something fun about picturing a distant life of prestige and stardom.  However, in all reality, I don’t foresee any stadium-rock or MTV interviews coming my way anytime soon.  But things are happening, slowly but surely, and I’m getting pretty excited about it.  

Yesterday was my debut radio appearance.  Tony Bookless, and I drove out to Abbotsford (singing along to Michael Jackson songs most of the way) to meet Nathan at CIVL radio.  I had no idea what to expect.  I didn’t even know if we were going to do an interview, or if I was going to co-host a show, or if I was going to play a song, or whatever other options there could be… so I brought my guitar and some CDs and hoped for the best.

Nathan greeted us at the door and that immediately gave me a good first impression of him and the studio.  We proceeded into one of the booths and just started chatting casually.  Tony joined in the conversation from time to time, but was mostly there to shoot footage for the new Jeffisode # 3, which will be coming soon.  Nathan interviewed me with very well-phrased questions.  He even did some research on me and quoted my bio a couple of times.  I was quite flattered about that.  I felt like I was some sort of professional (which, I guess, is what I’m trying to be).  I am not very good at speaking off the top of my head.  I tend to stumble over words, so I was a bit nervous about being interviewed.  But Nathan asked questions in such a way that made it easy for me to sound interesting.  The guy’s got skills.

After the interview, he had me record something called IDs, which is something like, “Hey! This is Jeff Hawker, and you’re listening to CIVL radio.”  That was pretty fun.  But not quite as fun as what came next… I got to perform “Shame on Me” in the studio.  Interviews and IDs are part of the job and I enjoy them, but it is the music that I get excited about.

Anyway, I had a great time at CIVL radio.  If you get the chance, look them up online at www.civl.ca  They support local artists and they are doing something really good here.  I’ll let you know when you can get the mp3 recording of our interview.

The CD release concert last night was awesome!  There was a great turn out and I had so much fun.  The opening band, Oats, was fantastic too.  Check them out at http://www.myspace.com/oatscollective

At first I was a little unsure of my performance since I forgot the lyrics a couple times, but I think I need to keep remembering that perfection doesn’t match up with my style of music.  I’m a bit rough around the edges and maybe that’s a good thing.  Plus a lot of people encouraged me and said they really enjoyed the show.  Anyway, I love music and there’s no stopping now…