CAMARON DE LA ISLA Y TOMATITO/BULERIAS/ TWO MASTERS!

TOMATITO-1980-BULERIAS

Recent Readings

*Vera Stravinsky & Robert Craft - Stravinsky in Pictures and Documents"
*John Irving - "Until I Find You"
*Cormac McCarthy - "The Road" (Pulitzer Prize winner).
*Junot Diaz - "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" (Pulitzer Prize winner).

THE GREATEST ONES ALWAYS SEEM TO GO FIRST!

"An honest man is always a child" Socrates
RIP

Mar azul - Cesária Évora & Marisa Monte

A HAPPY MAN

Last night's dinner...Lots of olives and cappers, garlic, fresh basil... and a good bottle of wine... a happy man! When I hit the wall with music, cooking is always the answer.

BACK IN THE STUDIO 2

One of my favorite musicians in the entire world, the great chromatic harmonica player, Mr. Ron Kalina does his magic on "Manantial".

BACK IN THE STUDIO

After spending a couple of weeks in Costa Rica, having fun with old friends and family, I am back in the studio, doing the very last sessions needed to finish my new CD. Here, my friend and fellow band member, master percussionist Brad Dutz, lays some marimba and hand percussion tracks, while I do an alto flute track on "Tango y Sangre de la media Noche".

COSTA RICA

WITH MY DRUM TEACHER" PITUZA" IN COSTA RICA

I've only received about 9 drum lessons in my life, and several of them where in Costa Rica, in my early teens, with the wonderful "Pituza", whom I just saw last week for the first time in decades.

BACK FROM COSTA RICA

I am back from Costa Rica. I had a wonderful time with friends and family. On my flight back I had the pleasure of hanging with the members of the Club Sport Herediano Costa Rican soccer team, many of them part of the National Team. Here I am with Andy Herron, (ex Chicago Fire, ex Columbus Crew), center forward for the Costa Rican team that beat the US last week 3 to 1.

Costa Rica 3, USA 1

Having a great time...A brake from the business aspect of the trip. An incredible performance by Costa Rica. I had the pleasure of being at the stadium with my friend Agustin.( I am the one wearing a red shirt... :) ). Celebration with a delicious steak at "El Chicote" and a few cold "Imperiales" afterwards. Also working on a Central American tour for next spring. Back in the US on Tuesday.

RAICES

I AM OFF TO COSTA RICA FOR A FEW WEEKS...MY ROOTS...CHILDHOOD...OLD FRIENDS AND FAMILY...THE BEAUTY OF NATURE...

IMAGES FROM RECENT RECORDINGS #2

Jonathan Dane (Trumpet), Emmet Sargeant (Sound Engineer) and Luis (what does he do anyway...?).

IMAGES FROM RECENT RECORDINGS!

A few images from recent recording sessions at Tantrum Studios in Montecito, CA: With bassist Tom Etchart, my good friend Beto de Leon (el Incansable...) and violinist Laura Heckstein

APOCALYPTIC!!!

That's what my son Adam called it as we started to get engulfed in a dark red cloud of smoke and ash during the incredible fire that has been attacking our community for the last 72 hours. After packing our cars with a few things of value (my music, my cat, my computer, a few paintings and old photos) we headed out to our friend's Paco and Jeannette Rodriguez's house (thanks guys!) where we spent a few nights away from the flames. But life goes on and tonight I will be in the studio working again on my new CD...

OLDER BUT WISER...I THINK!!!!!!!!

Tired, after an intense but wonderful session at "Sound Design" Studios in Santa Barbara, CA, with Dom Camardella, studio owner and old friend, and great organ player Jimmy Calire. Check out the absolutely beautiful brand new Neve console. It was a blast and I got exactly what I was looking for!!!!!!!

Recording "Tango"

My friend George Quirin at yesterday's session, doing the guitar track for "Tango y Sangre de la Media Noche". Tomorrow I will be at Sound Design Recording Studios in Santa Barbara, working with my old partner in crime, Dominic Camardella. We'll be recording some Hammond organ tracks with Jimmy Calire ( a great Buffalo, NY musician who used to play with the group "America". His son drums for Ozomatli). I am already more than half way done with the new recording, and very happy with the results so far. L.

CARRIZO PLAINS 4/3/09

BETWEEN RECORDING SESSIONS 2!

Taking a break from recording (next week i have lots of sessions), trying to clear the mind and after cooking a big Moroccan meal ( butternut squash and lentil soup, fennel and black olive salad with lemon vinaigrette, caramelised onions with chargrilled eggplants, spicy prawns, basmati rice, figs with rosewater, almonds and honey, and of course, moroccan mint tea, we went to an orchid show in search of the "Guaria Morada", the Costa Rican National Flower. Hundreds of flowers later, we walked out empty handed but joyful !

BETWEEN RECORDING SESSIONS!

Photos by my lovely wife HollyAnn!

Astor Piazzolla: milonga del angel

BLISS!

PINKER PLACE # 2

My first time posting from my iPhone . The wonders of modern technology!

PINKER PLACE #1

Hanging out in the snow at Mountain High's Pinker Place Park Road with some strange characters:

GIL SCOTT HERON/MESSAGE TO THE MESSENGERS

SIN COMENTARIO

Happy Cannyon/Santa Inez Mountains/ Business meeting

Agustin Fallas, my dear friend from childhood and my manager for issues in Latin America came and visit me to plan some concerts down south and at the same time, have some fun together in CA. Good conversations, good meals and a few great Jazz concerts (David Binney at the Pasadena Jazz Institute)...Here are a couple of pictures taken during our drive up north to Happy Canyon in the Santa Inez mountains. Not a bad spot at all to talk business!

“Everything you can imagine is real." Pablo Picasso

3RD SESSION, TAMTRUM STUDIOS, MONTECITO, CA 12/08

THIRD SESSION FOR NEW PROJECT ON 12/19/08. FIRST, WE REHEARSED AT MY STUDIO, THEN AFTER A GOOD HOME COOK MEAL, WE HEADED TO TAMTRUM STUDIOS IN MONTECITO, CA WHERE GUITARRIST CHRIS JUDGE AND BASSIST TOM ETCHART LAID DOWN SOME AWSOME TRACKS ON "DE ALMA Y SOMBRA" AND "ESPERANZA". GOOD URUGUAYAN FRIEND, EX MANAGER AND ALL AROUND GOOD GUY/ MUSIC LOVER BETO DE LEON JOINED IN. THINGS ARE GOING BETTER THAN EXPECTED. THIS MORNING AT 3:00 AM I AM OFF TO TUCSON, AZ. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!

SECOND RECORDING SESSION AT BEAGLE STUDIOS FOR NEW CD

Th greatest joy in the world for a composer is to get in the studio exactly what at one point only existed in his or her imagination. Lois Mahalia gave me just that last night with her performance of "HYMN". Beautiful voice, beautiful soul. Thanks Lois!

FIRST RECORDING SESSION AT BEAGLE STUDIOS FOR NEW CD

I was very glad to be back this weekend to Beagle Studio for the first session for a new CD to be released next year. Located in Montecito, CA, Beagle Studios is a beautiful place surrounded by fields of green and forests of pine trees and oaks. Singer Andy Zuñiga and studio owner Emmet Sargeant were also there. This coming week, beautiful and talented singer Lois Mahalia, along with guitarist Chris Judge and bass player Tom Etchart will cut some tracks including the lead vocals for a Gospel spiritual "Hymn"

HYMN


Blessed are the ones who surrender to Love
For they’ll inherit the Kingdom of Heaven
Few are the ones who will rise from despair
Many the ones who are bowed down and fallen (but)

Hope is a waking dream, it’s a sunrise
Hope…from a withered tree, flowers blossom.

Open your heart to the world and rejoice (and)
Live as if you’ll die tomorrow
Learn as if you’ll live forever and
Hope as if hope were the beat of your heart.

In the twilight each star is a dream
Blessed are the dreamers on top of the mountain
Wise are the ones who seek treasures within
For they will find and drink from the fountain

Hope is a waking dream, it’s a sunrise
Hope…from a withered tree, flowers blossom.

Open your heart to the world and rejoice and
Live as if you’ll die tomorrow
Learn as if you’ll live forever and
Hope as if hope were the beat of your heart.
----------------
Hope is a waking dream, it’s a sunrise
Hope…from a withered tree, flowers blossom.

Open your heart to the world and rejoice (and)
Live as if you’ll die tomorrow
Learn as if you’ll live forever and
Hope, step away from the shadow
Love with no fear and no sorrow

.

MY MUSIC ON NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

My music gets mentioned in an article on National Geographic Magazine. To read more: http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/worldmusic/view/page.basic/country/content.country/costa_rica/

NEXT GENERATION-WYSE LA KID @ HOME STUDIO B

MPC, MICROKORG, DX7 AND A THOUSAND RECORDS AND YOU ARE ALL SET FOR MAKING BEATS. MY SON ADAM WILL BE COLLABORATING WITH ME ON ONE TRACK ON MY UPCOMING CD, TO BE RELEASED NEXT YEAR.

THE NEXT GENERATION-ADAM AND MATT WORKING HARD/HOME STUDIO #2