Tomorrow isn't promised but somone having an opioion is....

          Everyone and everything in life is different in some way. Take a look at your thumb... That is the only thumb print like that on the face of the earth, therefore you are "Thumbbody!" I was in high school the first time I really learned about DNA and how it works; that DNA can be traced back to the originator of the particular strand. It took me until I was 28yrs old to fully buy into the idea that "You are you and you're not here to be someone else." I am the baby of 5 so my story is completely different than most. I always had someone to look up to. The problem was, we were all different and unique in our own way. So I started thinking, if I was like my big brothers I wouldn't get beat up.... WRONG!!! I think it just irked them and cost me more beatings.  Then by the time it was obvious I had my own personality it was a complex hybrid mix to include a big sister who made me play with Barbie and Ken dolls, games like Pretty Pretty Princess and Mall Madness. So as you can see when I say complex hybrid mix, I'm not kidding.

          As I came into young adulthood I realized the more you pleased people the better off you would be. That even if you disagreed with someone influential the best way to keep them in your circle was to simply agree with them, no matter what the outcome was. If I lost a friend, so be it because my friend wasn't as important as the influential person I just agreed with. However, it wasn't as cut and dry as I make it sound. Because of my complex hybrid mixed personality I always tried to persuade the friends I lost to give my idea and chance. Now this being young adulthood, it usually ended up with us being drunk, not remembering why we were even mad. Talk about a great problem solving exercise. This went on for years and I still may use this technique to my advantage on special occasions.

          Being a people pleaser is a double edge sword and can cause a lot of headaches. On one side I want people to like me and be happy to have me around. Then the other side I don't like letting people down and If I do something others don't like by making someone else happy, I lose. I've always thought as I got older it would get easier. My circle would weed itself out and I'd have a core group of people I could call on whenever I needed them. I couldn't have been any more wrong! At the ripe ol' age of 25  I was introduced to a group of guys that would encourage me to be me. A group of grown men that would encourage me to set aside my inner thoughts of "I wonder what they think" and pick up the thought of "It's not about you." A group of grown men that would lead me on what is now a five year adventure to find out who I am...

          I know that being part of something is key for me. Always willing to get in the mix, get dirty, and help. It's safe to say I am a doer and not a watcher. Doing this has opened me up to a world of support that strand from Georgia to California. I know that no matter what state I travel to I can always reach out and have someone remotely close to me. This is the cool part of being on this adventure. However I am here to talk about the not so hot part. To every good moment you have in your life you will always have 2 negative moments that will attempt to ruin the good. It's at this moment you have to be willing to see past the negativity and define who you are. Again, it took me roughly 28yrs to figure this out and I still to this day struggle with it because I have never taken change or negative statements easily... It's part of that complex hybrid personality.

          However I have learned to over come these negative aspects by simply remembering how much I lost trying to keep everyone happy. How many times I agreed with things I was completely against just because I wanted to be liked. How many friends no longer speak to me because of it, though we had fun at the bar trying to figure it all out. It took a long time to figure out the world truly is a cruel place full of cruel people and when you find small pockets of happiness you take advantage of them immediately and make them into your moments.  Please don't get me wrong. I am not going around kicking down doors and telling people I disagree with them. I'm not bullying my thoughts and beliefs on people. I am simply walking away. I am removing all doubt from the situation that I am remotely interested in the subject. However, I will always be interested in the people. I have manage to create and start to live in an agree to disagree world, but that is for another time.

          Don't let people and their opinions define you. Let your actions and your actions alone define you. Better yet, let your reaction to negative actions define you. Whenever you get to a point where you can't walk away remember everyone is different, just look at your thumb. Who knows what that will end up doing for your life. I know it opened up a whole new world for  me where I'm not afraid to blog, where I have a podcast, and I have a live comedy show on YouTube where I don't worry about people's opinions because five years ago I met a group of people who showed me that I am "Thumbbody." Who knows, maybe one day people will share this and it will change the world or I get to do this professionally. For now though, I am content knowing the people who will read this are apart of my world and rather than supporting me, they are joining me on this journey through life!!

"Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself." George Bernard Shaw

-Biscuit
 

When Ru Paul Speaks

          This time last year I was sitting on my couch, wearing an undersized shirt that was only covering half my gut, pants unbutton, eating chettos, and watching some shooter movie. I never really changed from a handful of genres that I love. Shooters, Drama, Comedy and Romantic Comedies. I have always been pulled to these types of movies and shows... Yes, I watched "Dear John" and I liked it so judge not people!! However, I got married and lost my majority stock in the remote control, as well as everything else with the exception of debt. For some reason I went from having the minority share to having the majority share. Marriage is confusing and I am a little upset mom and dad made it look a lot easier!! For the record I love my wife. If I didn't I'd still have majority stock in the remote and sit in a dark empty house alone.

The Client List cancelled after 3 seasons



          One of the biggest differences in not having the remote control freedom that I am use to is that I have to watch new genres of shows. Shows with pink fluffy unicorns in the picture on Netflix and shows that were cancelled 3 seasons in and left us with major cliff hangers. Those shows are the worst and have caused major explosions in our home. However, I have learned that the shows and movies she picks are shows and movies that represent Shelby to the "T." These are the shows and movies with eccentric characters, that preach love, and have a good sense of comedy. One of those show is entitled Ru Paul's Drag Race. *Spoiler alert... It's not about drag racing cars... I wish someone would've told me that!!*

          Over the winter we did some work on our backyard. Part of the work included building a new fence, working in a new filter for the pool and  the ordering of an inflatable outdoor projection system. The screen body for the system is inflatable and stands at a towering fifteen feet tall. The screen it self stops at eleven feet and just to give everyone a visual for the rest of the story, our new fence is six feet. One night after the system arrived I decided to hook it up on the pool deck and see what it was all about. My buddy Danny was over and I think the plan was to watch the Kentucky basketball game while enjoying a few adult beverages.  That is as close to watching basketball we got that night because as soon as the screen was blown up Danny's wife and Shelby were standing there wanting to know what we were about to watch...

          So after a short debate over what was about to happen, Shelby makes a statement to the fact she's been watching "Ru Paul Drag Race" and I wasn't arguing with what I thought was a compromise!!! So we all agreed.... So there we are, 15ft inflatable projection system, 11ft to the top of the screen and it is towering over my 6ft fence as we realize Ru Pauls Drag Race is a Drag Queen competition!!! It was definitely a "WHAT THA!!??" moment. Well after finally realizing this was just the way it was going to be we sat on the pool deck for what seemed like hours watching this show, laughing historically at times but then sitting there jaw dropped at the talent these guys (who prefer to be called girls) had.... We finally called it a night, packed it all up and talked about how crazy that show was. It was an awesome night.



Outdoor Projection System

          The next morning I was out at my truck when my 76yr old neighbor approached me. He asked what I thought about the Kentucky game and I told him I didn't watch it. His response was "Yeah, I was wondering what your definition of ballgame was." Remember the whole towering projector Vs a 6ft fence??? Yeah! So my neighbor came out to have his nightly smoke before retiring and was a little shocked to see men dressed as women prancing across my back yard. He then asked if we were always going to have the projector in that spot. His color started coming back when I told him we were going to put it somewhere else. I'd be lying if I said I haven't watched it since that night. It's actually become a show I thoroughly enjoy!! I actually watch and get jealous at the amount of self confidence these guys have. They grew up in a world that didn't accept them but they didn't let it stop them from being who they wanted to be, rather we like it or not.

Ru Paul's Drag Race Season 9

          I have had my fair share of moments when people have commented on my level of self confidence and how I don't care if the world is watching I am still going to be me. However this is a whole new level of self confidence I have ever seen!!! These guys are truly hero's to the LGBT community and I think that is awesome. At the close of every show Ru always say the same phrase that is aimed towards the LGBT community; I think it should be aimed at the world though. It is “Remember to love yourself, because if you can’t love yourself, how in the hell are you gonna love somebody else?" I've learned that though you think it's not for you and you think it's stupid, give it a chance!! You never know where it will lead your soul!

Make tomorrow better by loving someone today

-Biscuit

Have You Given Up On Yourself?

 There's always a way - if you're committed.
 -Tony Robbins





          I love Tony Robbins! The man  claims he is no Guru but he is a driving force behind what keeps people going. Whenever there is a snag in my life I always turn to him and his wisdom. Whenever there is a new project on the horizon he is my go to guy before I ask anyone else. Be it a blog he's written, a seminar he's done  that is on his YouTube channel, or even a podcast that I find. Heck! I'll even re-watch his Netflix movie "I Am Not Your Guru." If you haven't seen it, put it on your list and take two hours to watch it, you'll thank me later.

          Years ago I set out on a personal journey. A journey that would take me from one end of the world to the other. A journey that would kick me in the shins and run away but come back later and give me a hug. A journey that would push me to my limits and show me where I wasn't complete. It's a journey that I am still on today. That journey is life and it's funny to look back on this journey and say. "WOW!! I've come a long way but have a long long way to go. I've been to what I think is the bottom and was told "To live is to struggle" and when I lived that struggle and got to what I thought was the top I was told "To struggle is to grow." Again, starting the ups and downs all over again.

          Through this journey I have learned a ton about myself. For example, I love being the center of attention... until someone challenges me. I've learned that life isn't about justification to an end but it's an end to justification. You have to justify yourself to no one. Not everyone in this world will like you and support you and that is okay. I have learned that though you may disagree with someone that sometimes the best way to voice your opinion is not to. It's okay to be quiet and let people think they are right. Who knows, you may be wrong. I've learned to agree to disagree and let it go. Life isn't about how lonely you can make yourself with your opinion, it's about how much you can change your world for the better. The best part is there are no rules that tell us how we have to do it.

          Going back to the quote at the top of the page I want you to think about what it says and what it means to you. There is no wrong answer here. It could be an unfinished book you've been working on for eight years. It could be an emotion you've been trying to change for sometime. Or it could be something as simple as getting to work on time. I think this quote is a great slap in the face for all of us. When I first read this quote this is what I read, "Will there's a will, there's a way." It's this horrible trait I've developed where I finish someone's statement before they've finished giving it. I have missed so much in life because of this. While I thought someone was saying something I'd heard a thousand times, they said something else and I missed that opportunity to grow. However as soon as I re-read this quote it all made sense.

Pocketrockpodcast.com

          It's no secret that my passion is live music. I may not be able to play a lick on any instrument or carry a tune in a bucket but it's my passion. There is something about being around live music that makes me crazy. The lights, the sounds, the musicians, and the overall atmosphere. Recently I have gone on an expedition to figure out why live music is dying. I have gone as far as creating a podcast  as a tool to synergize with bands, fans, and venues across America. I want this to be huge (as anyone that starts a project would.) This quote will be a driving force in what we do in the future and I hope it is a driving force with you too. No matter how hard the journey gets, if you are committed to succeed in whatever you are doing, there is a way. Let today be your last tomorrow of failure to commit.  Keep your course and remember, if the mountain was smooth we wouldn't be able to climb it.

                   -Biscuit

         



When the standup comedian sits down.

(The reason I refuse to do standup comedy)

It was in the year of 2010 when I was presented an opportunity to make a living on stage. It wasn’t a major show, or at a major venue with a major promoter but it was a chance to try something that people have asked me to do many of times. So there were a number of people standing in my corner saying “this is your chance, you got to do this.” I was even promised payment upfront for my time. All I had to do was show up the night of the show ready to get on stage. So against my better judgment I decided to go for it…. Wrong answer!

I want to be completely honest about this and tell you, I don’t think I am funny. I never have found myself humorous, ever! I have seen videos and heard recorded conversations where I say something once or twice and get a reaction but it’s in the conversation and not planned, so other than being peer pressured into doing this show I really didn’t want to do it. . So there I was, three days away from my debut as a standup comedian and all I have is a knock-knock joke, a couple plagiarized YouTube acts, and some one-liners off old laffy taffy candies I found in my truck while I was looking for change to pay for the toll bridge. Ready or not here I come and I really hope no one had heard these jokes before.

The night of the show, I arrived to the venue and as promised I received my payment, a bottle of Jägermeister. Let’s stop here… The idea that the promoter had was that all the comedians would have a drink, get relaxed and deliver a great show. Not my fault he didn’t tell me what his idea was, so I drank the entire bottle before I went on stage that night. Now I’m not talking a big bottle or anything but it was more than enough for one person. So here we are, standing backstage getting prepped and the room starts spinning ever so slowly. At this point the promoter is less than thrilled with me and I’m thinking he’s about to pull the plug, sweet! NOPE! He pats me on the back and says “You’re up.” 

I don't really know what came over me at this moment but as I was walking onto the stage I decided that the best thing to do was throw all my material into the air and watch it fall. Of course this got a reaction from the crowd but left me with nothing. No notes, no que cards, nothing but me an empty music stand and a microphone. Now, I’m not sure if anyone has ever noticed or not but I can't keep track of a conversation sober so doing a standup routine after over serving myself was going to be a "hoot nanny”…. I don’t recall much past this moment but I can tell you I didn’t tell a single bit of my “prepared” material and I spoke every word to the intro song of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Since I was the last performer of the night I thought when I walked of the stage that was it… Again, I was wrong. The promoter got back on the stage and decided to have all the performers do a segment together. This wasn’t in my contract but I decided to go along with it.

So I made it through the night and was actually proud that I survived. I heard the promoter talking with the other talent about doing another show and I was okay with not being asked to do it again. Unfortunately for me I didn’t make it out of the door in time. As I was getting my things together the promoter approaches me. My only thought was, “He wants his money back for the liquor I drank and I don’t have cash.” I wasn’t prepared to be blindsided by the words that came out of his mouth… “I want you to be in the next show!” AHH HELL NO!!! Nope, ain’t gonna happen. I played your game, I lost. Im packing my things and leaving, Thanks for the opportunity…. These were all the things that went through my head but the only thing to come out of my mouth was “Okay, sure! When’s the next show?”

So a month later I am back at the club standing backstage being told I am going last. The difference was I wasn’t drinking. I took time to put a quality piece together and I was going to give this everything I had. No matter the outcome by the end of this night we will find out if I had what it takes to do this. Now the other change that I probably should’ve taken notice about was the change in seating at the club. There were two long tables at the end of the stage that looked like stage extenders. As I was finishing my performance I decided to walk out on these “stage extenders”. I remember my buddy Danny telling me not to walk out there but this isn’t his show so he can be quiet. I took two more steps, the tables collapsed in the middle and I went down and was wedged in between the two tables. I finished my last 30 seconds from the position.

                           That was the last time I ever did standup comedy.

Let the games begin

        "To me, adventure has always been to me the connections and bounds you create with people when you're there. And you can have that anywhere." - Bear Grylls

          Ladies and Gentlemen I am beyond pleased and humbled to be able to write this blog entry. I am also beyond ecstatic to announce my latest project which, with the help of the great music community could be my biggest project yet. Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you Pocket Rock Podcast!! *The crowd erupts in thunderous applauds* Well, that is how I hope this release is happening. Let's get to talking about it and what this means for the community.

          A little over a year ago I saw a need for more access to live music and live music venues. So just like any normal person would do I went to the bar, ordered some whiskey and forgot all about it. The idea came back to me the next day, then the day after and the day after that. So I finally sat down and started thinking of ways everyone could work together to keep live music alive. After what seemed hours it finally dawned on me. A WEBSITE!! A website that had all the major live music venues, the venues band schedules, and you click on the interactive map for the state in which you are looking for some entertainment. However this proved to be to big of a challenge for someone like me with little technology background.

          About a month after talking about the idea on Facebook, I was approached by a fella named Troy Mowry while his band was setting up for a gig in Millbrook Alabama. Troy is the frontman for the regional band Hunting Delilah and he wanted to help. So we talked ideas, talked about what I was looking for, talked about what it would take and Troy even agreed to design the logo. By this time I had my hand in numerous projects that were doing well and I lost sight of the idea. Sunday Funday was in full swing and the band schedule at the Blue Iguana was picking up. Not to mention all the requests I was taking for Sunday Funday, which was amazing. Who knows, maybe one day we will saddle back up for another run with SFD.

          Once it was obvious Sunday Funday was done for a while I went back to the drawing boards. The first thing that came to mind was Pocket Rock. Since I still didn't know squat about websites I figured I would start asking around to see if I could find someone interested in helping me. It wasn't until I talked to my wife that is really hit me. She pointed out my passion for helping people and my uncanny humor, then went on to pitch me the idea for a podcast and since I already had the equipment to make it happen I should turn my focus to that. So like any good husband..... I did what she told me to. Happy wife happy life, right?

Troy as Mr Kid Rock Sir

          Troy and I had continued to build our friendship from the meeting in Millbrook. He designed the koozys for SFD, he regularly watched on Sundays, and he even filled in on the show when one of us couldn't be there. We called him "Mr Kid Rock Sir." I don't think he really liked it but he took it in stride. So when it came time to build this podcast I mentioned it to him in passing (if he took the bait GREAT!, if he didn't move on) and he actually loved the idea and immediately agreed to be apart of it. So after a year of thinking and planning and forgetting and remembering here we are. At the start of something that could be monumental. So I know at this point, whoever is still reading this, people are asking so what is the catch? How is this supposed to help the community? Well here is your answer!!!

          This is a podcast where Troy and I will reach out to the music, arts and entertainment communities and tell them to send us their events. We will advertise them for FREE!!

Pocket Rock Ready For Takeoff

BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!! We will also have artist interviews that allow the fans to get to know the artist. Not like a Q&A session but a conversation. We will take the show to gigs and do live in house shows with these artist when time allows. The biggest thing about this podcast is Troy and I are doing what we do best, we are sharing our passion with the world and we are doing it with the most effective tool on the face of the earth, synergy. Below is information if you'd like to submit your schedule to us. We look forward to this opportunity and hope everyone gets on board with us.

BANDS: Send us your gig schedule to:  pocketrockpodcast@gmail.com (if you know who we are or not) and we will announce them during the show. If we have to many bands ALL the schedules submitted will be posted to our website. In return, we ask that you share our weekly podcast from the band social media and ask your fans to support Pocket Rock Podcast by downloading the weekly show. Working together will allow us to increase each other's fan base and get people excited about live music.

ARTIST / ENTERTAINERS: We ask you do the same thing but send it to pocketrockpodcast@gmail.com with the subject community calendar. That way we are able to advertise your event in the correct manner your event deserves to be in.

They are who we thought they were.

"They are who we thought they were." – Dennis Green.

This might be one of the most famous quotes in professional football. Let me set up the scenario so you understand why. The year was 2006, the teams playing were the Chicago Bears Vs Arizona Cardinals in Phoenix AZ, the Bears came into the game undefeated on the season, and were losing by 20 points at halftime. Let’s stop there for a second. Now what would you say the outcome was if I told you the Cardinals had already beaten the Bears that year? A lot of people would say I was lying because the Bears were undefeated going into the game that day. However, in fact the Cardinals beat the Bears in a preseason matchup earlier in the fall.  Knowing this and knowing the Cardinals were up 20 points in a professional football game, you’d probably say the Cardinals won the game. Well, they didn’t. The Cardinals gave up a 20 point lead and lost the game 24-23. After the game, the head coach for the Cardinals, Dennis Green, went on a rant where he’d use the saying “They are who we thought they were.” but what did this mean? Later on in an interview Dennis Green explained that the team and coaches built a game plan to put points on the Bears defense because they thought the Bears were a “one-dimensional team.” Meaning, they could only really play one side of the ball well, but not both offense and defense. Yet somehow after all the planning the Bears were still able to pull out the win.

Though some people may not be football fans and not really care about the “X’s and O’s” enough to know football history, we can all take a lesson from this little tale that I outlined. That lesson is, never assume you know something or someone until you can validate your answer and/or opinion. This happens so many times in our society, especially with social media and having the world at our finger tips. We lose sight of just how much damage ones opinion can do to somebody. This isn’t just a blog for me to release my thoughts. If I am guilty of doing something I will admit it and I admit that I am guilty of doing this. You get an impression of someone through someone else and you roll with it. Never taking time to look back at the destruction you are leaving in your wake. Be it a loss in the NFL, the loss of a friend, the loss of respect that someone had for you, or even the loss of a missed network connection. In a day and age where knowing the right people can get you to the right places, missing a network connection could be devastating to your career. And it almost happened to me…..

For those who found this blog and don’t know me, I have a connection to a well-known band and spend a good bit of time with them. So I get the privilege of meeting all types of people and connecting with them throughout the United States….. Now to the story…..  It was the summer of 2016 in Prattville Alabama at the Blue Iguana. The bill that night was highly anticipated and I believed sold out within hours of the doors opening. The opener was a brand new band with a front woman who has a set of pipes on her. She was someone the music scene needed to see but she isn’t the focus of this story. It was her fill-in guitar player. As she took the stage that night, I looked up from talking to management of the venue and notice a tall man with shredded clothes and a Marge Simpson type hairdo fiddling with his foot pedals. When the lights hit him my mouth hit the floor; there in the smoky music venue stood Voodoo Jones. For those who don’t know, Voodoo Jones is a legend in the State of Alabama. He’s a musician that you listen to and know he could  walk into the local Toys-R-Us and make a Fisher Price guitar sound like Custom Les Paul straight off the assembly line in Nashville Tn and here he is playing a show unannounced and I have the chance to meet him… He got away before I could meet him that night. I don’t recall why her original guitar player wasn’t with them that night but I am glad he wasn’t, even though Voodoo Jones got away.

Me and Roger Jones AKA Voodoo Jones

Fast forward to a month later I received an invite to attend an acoustic show south of Birmingham. The band playing was Jagermuffin and the lead singer of Hunting Delilah, Troy Mowry, who invited me out was in the band. As entered the bar I noticed a tall guy sitting on a stool in shredded clothes and had a Marge Simpson like hairdo. As I slowly brought my head around and focused my site on him it hit me…. That’s Voodoo Jones!! As I walked up to meet him he looked up, smiled, and said “Hey Biscuit, good to see you.” WAIT! Did he just??? I believe he did… He not only knew who I was, he knew my nickname that I go by in the music community. Little did I know, but Voodoo was a fan of Sunday Funday which was a Facebook live show I put together every Sunday afternoon. After this exchange we spent a good bit of time talking and just getting to know each other.

Me with Jagermuffin

Over the past year I have gotten to know the man behind Voodoo Jones. His name is Roger and I think what shocked me the most was when I found out that after having an extremely successful campaign as Voodoo Jones, Roger is now in a country band, Who Shot Lizzy, laying down some southern twang and heavy licks.  His significant other, Bre helped start my jewelry rock business “Biscuit Rocks and What nots” and the friendship and partnership have blossomed from there.  I’d always seen him as Voodoo Jones the rocker. I never thought to see him as Mr Jones, the entrepreneur, the guitar builder, the guy with a heart the size of Texas, or the master of all things home renovator. I dang sure never saw him as a country music guitarist.



Jagermuffin on Sunday Funday

Roger at the 151 for Sunday Funday

When it came time to finally meet him, I had this one persona stuck in my head, Rock Legend. I wanted to ask all these things about music and life on the road. I wanted to know why he wasn’t playing with Voodoo anymore and when the reunion tour was going to be. All he wanted to know was when he could be on my little Facebook live show on Sundays…. I guess this is what momma meant when she’d say “never judge a book by its cover.” While I am sweating trying to keep my composure, this guy wants to come spend time goofing off on a Sunday afternoon with me and my friends. It is also a valuable lesson in how important you are to people whether you know it or not.

For The Love Of Music

        Being that this is my second post and I am still figuring this out I thought I'd explain where my love of music steemed from. A little later on I will go into greater details of bands and my life behind the scenes with them.

          It was in the summer of nineteen hundred and ninety five when the family went on a life changing family vacation. The location of the trip? Memphis Teneesee but only after traveling through Tupelo Mississippi and understanding where the King of Rock and Roll himself came from. Ya see, mom always had a rule about family vacations that I didn't learn to appreciate until I was somewhat older. The rule was all vacations had to have some type of learning aspect to them. So obviously this vacation was a history lesson. Little did I know that this trip would actually mean something in the future.

          So here we are, Memphis Tennessee in the middle of summer. The same summer a kid from Memphis by the name of Justin Timberlake was auditioned for *NSYNC. Scorching heat, long lines of middle age women excited to see where their childhood heart throb lived, husbands who probably would've rather been down on Beale St, and kids like my sister and I who wanted to figure out what that big pyramid building we saw while crossing the river was all about. After somewhat of a wait we made it to the shuttle buses. Prior to boarding we were handed a Walkman and headphones but not just any headphones. The hot type of headphones that sit over your ear with the black cloth cover. Yea! THOES headphones!! So across the street and through the gates we went. Now, if you've never made the trip to Graceland I throughly suggest going. Things have changed so much and this is a reculection from 22yrs ago... Im sure the Walkman has been retired and they use earbuds.

          It didn't take long for me to realize, this guy named Elvis Presely had EVERYTHING!! From a beautiful piano sitting behind a stained glass window of a peacock that welcomes you when you walk in, to a room with a water fall, to a room with multiple TV's and PLANES! This guy had his own PLANES!! Yes, two planes. The Hound Dog and The Lisa Marie. This shocked me the most since as a kid the 70's were like the Stone Age. Who knew they had planes back then? At the end of the tour you are taken by the memorial garden where Elvis, his mom, his dad and brother lay in rest. It's very quiet and very emotional. Little did I know that at that moment I'd made a connection that would mold me into who I am today.

          The connection was music. For years after the trip Elvis's music was blared through the house every morning as we got ready for school. I remember mom getting mad at a radio station DJ for making fun of Elvis's version of "In The Ghetto". She got so mad she actually called the radio station and let them know she wasn't impressed. The neighbors who happened to be listening to the same station called the house to tell mom good job. It was an exciting morning and to this day I haven't listened to that radio station.  Over the years I learned more about the bands that followed in the footprints set by Elvis. From the Beatles, to KISS, to Journey and far beyond. While learning about these bands and memorizing lyrics this question popped into my head and it has stayed with me ever since. That question is: What if no one showed up to support these guys?

          Think about that for a minute. Where would music be had Sam Phillips quit Sun Records after his first band ended up being a one hit wonder? What would the world be like had we never Rock and Roll all night and party everyday? Better yet, what if we never knew the feeling of thousands of people belting out Living On A Prayer together? Im just a guy from a small town in Alabama and my thoughts are probably mute to the masses but music has connected me to the world. It has taken me on trips to the deserts of New Mexico, to lounging backstage at a Jimmy Buffet  show in the gulf coast of Alabama, to being the biggest fan girl as Garth Brooks was singing 3ft from me, made eye contact, and grined at me. I have a grainy picture to prove it!

         Music has allowed me to connect with people I thought were outside of my little league. Music has allowed me to dream. Music has allowed me to live. Unfortunately, thanks to a number of things, live music is slowly dying. If you think about it all these lengnds had to start somewhere and actually interesting to see how many of them started with Gospel music and found their sound from there. That why it is important to support live music. You never know what that one cover band, who is writing originals on the side will be doing next year. That is why I support local and live music.  That is why I will always be an advocate of live music venues, even though as I get older I prefer nonsmoking venues. Without these things, life in my opinion, is no longer about the journey because there will be no memories once you reach your destination.

                                       FIND A SHOW AND GO SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC!

                                                                     -Biscuit