Category: What’s New

Just like most people, I can very comfortably put my head in the sand. While I knew this day would come — I’ve been selling out of all of my CD titles — I was putting off making a decision about what to do about it. Should I press up more CDs or not?

Other than a few short run CDs for Necessity, my last few releases have been digital only (they were only available as a download), so you would think my decision would be an easy one. But it’s not. I put a huge amount of time into the CD format. Spent time learning about printing, pressing, shipping costs and learned a few hard lessons about distributors along the way too. I’m an indie, so I’ve also done a whole bunch (read thousands and thousands and thousands…) of packing up and mailing CDs. I guess you would call that skin in the CD game.

But the reality is, pressing up thousands of CDs in the current market is not an easy decision for me to make. And short run CDs are such a hassle — they cost a lot to make and they don’t play in every CD player. To top it off, I’m finding I’m endlessly busy these days doing non-creative stuff. That has to change and part of that change is stopping selling CDs. So I’m taking my head out of the sand — it’s all digital from here on out.

Here’s a new track I’m working on called Just A Thought. Not sure yet if I’m going to finish it off or not, but I think it has a nice vibe.

One of my favorite guitarists, Jamie Bonk, told me he intended to have a holiday music album out this year, but life intruded and he only got one track done. That’s a shame because it’s a great track (no surprise since it is Jamie Bonk we’re talkin ’bout here). The carol is “Noel” and features Bonk, his wife Sonya Mitlewski on keyboards and vocalist Wendy Irvine-Patel. For all intents and purposes, it’s really more of an instrumental as Irvine-Patel’s vocals are only heard singing the refrain. Bonk’s trademark breezy, jazz-inflected guitar flows through the 3:16 duration and wife Sonya’s keyboards flesh out the song nicely. The rendition fuses a touch of rock and jazz into the carol’s melody, but only strict purists would object to the variation. What we’re left with is the desire to hear much more from the Canadian guitarist. Come on, Jamie…give us a whole album next year, huh? The track is up on Bandcamp: http://jamiebonk.bandcamp.com/track/the-first-no-l

– reviewed by Bill Binkelman on 12/6/2013

“Toronto based master guitarist Jamie Bonk offers his very own version of The First Noel as a download. The song opens with a dulcet chorus and transforms brightly with the first strains of Jamie’s guitar. Flute and voice mix seamlessly to form a superb rendition with which you find yourself singing along. I am surprised he does not have a Christmas album out. It would be remarkable.” – RJ Lannan (Zone Music Reporter)

Christmas/Holiday music in October? Why, yes indeed! Here’s my first Christmas/Holiday single, The First Noël. The track features Wendy Irvine on vocals and Sonya Mitlewski on keyboards and is part of a Christmas album I’m working on for release in 2014. Hope you like the music!!