Today, my release, Lavender Fields, has hit the major streaming platforms. Produced by Chad Quist Music, the music was written by Chris Jones. Chris is locally known for his band, the Chris Jones Band. Chad Quist played the lead and other instruments, including additional vocals. Lynn Sorenson’s violin added the beautiful heart piercing tones.
A Year of Music
It has been about a year since I posted on WordPress. I have written and produced several songs. I have around 11 songs, with a new one coming out December 12, 2023, called Lavendar Fields. Earlier this year, I wrote and produced Pieces One by One. My website: https://www.joyannlajeret.com/
The song began when I saw an ad by Roger Fisher, who was the lead and, with his brother Michael, created the band called Heart. I asked Roger to help me write a rock song. I am country, and the structure of rock song creation follows a different writing pattern. However. The song was written when he challenged me to write a song about his original band, Heart.
The lead player of Heart by Heart is Chad Quist, my producer and guitar instructor. Chad plays lead for Heart by Heart, which has two of the original members of Heart, (Steve Fossen and Michael Derosier.)They are a top-notch tribute band and well known locally and in the United States. He graciously helped me produce the song. Chad is the lead that plays the licks and music Roger played in the early Heart band, as well as the later music.
My newest song, Lavender Fields, is about suicide in the military. My son took his life at 19 years of age. This happened while his older brother and sister and his father were serving in the US Army. He was in the Utah National Guard at the time.
The song was produced with the help of Chris Jones from the band with that name. Chris is a highly skilled musician and singer-songwriter. He recently recorded his songs in Nashville, TN. He wrote the music for the song.
Lynn Sorenson is formally known for his bass playing with Paul B. Rodger’s Bad Company band. Lynn played the violin on the song. Chad Quist played all other instruments and added vocals.
New CD out and available
On Christmas eve, I released a song entitled, My One Desire The reason the song was written was because of my love for horses. I have a long history of equitation. I prefer English style of riding and jumping. I use an Australian saddle not English. I prefer the comfort and versatility of the Australian saddle. Horses have been a part of my life for years and my training was at St Benedicts college in St. Joseph, Minnesota. I have owned a horse and today they are very expensive to own or board; so I ride in a private arena called Gold Creek Equitation Center in Woodinville, WA.
The story of the plight of the western state’s mustang herds is available on my website page: https://www.joyannlajeret.com. I now have a CD for sale and it is posted for sale digitally as well. I encourage you to protect these horse, our national treasure, by donating on their website provided on my web page. It is imperative that we protect the animals on this earth. The most human way to thin herds is injecting mares, so they cannot produce. This needless killing is quite unnecessary.
I still do not have a band put together. However, I am still recording new songs. I have one ready to release, one not yet mastered and one waiting to be worked on. I am, also, trying to get ready for a busking gig in La Conner, Washington. It is being put on for their 10th Anniversary Celebration of La Conner’s Artist Gallery Cooperative. I am also working on the Northshore Senior Volunteer Band project, in Bothell, WA.. We perform every Tuesday at retirement communities and facilities. We have around 12-15 performers and give a two hour show.
That wraps it up for now. I am going to separate my blog from my earlier posts and reserve this blog for my music. It takes a bit of time to do this and it should happen in a few months. Until then, stay safe and hopefully we will get to see each other when I begin to perform with my own band.
Happy New Year!
A whole new year is upon us. I have made no resolutions, but hope to continue making and recording music. I have invested a lot in this undertaking in 2021. I really wonder where the money is going to come from in the future. It has been a challenging time with rising prices and those meat prices! I think we all are feeling the financial squeeze. It is with hope in the economy that I proceed on this course I have set for myself in the music business.
I have released nine songs and the album of these songs should be on my website for sale in February. The song that gave me the most gratification was released on Christmas eve. It is called, ” My One Desire.” It was recorded to bring attention to the unnecessary treatment of the wild mustangs and burros in the western states, specifically Utah. I have a place for you to donate to this cause.
I have three songs coming out in 2022, in February and the others a bit later than that. I have to keep working on a third song that will probably not be released until summer. I am hoping the money will begin to trickle in from sales, but I am not holding my breath. A good many of the musicians I interview on my Facebook site, Matured Musicians group are older and depend on the extra money they get from gigs and producing music. Social Security is not enough to live on and many musicians do not have retirements, per se. I know because I happen to be one of them.
After they take out my student loan money, that I have been paying for 25 year, I have $800.00 a month left to live on. My husband does not have a retirement, nor do I. Should anything happen to his job, we will be in a terrible financial place. So I have started working on this project to supplement our income if anythng happens to him. I keep hoping I will find a way to make this musical career work.
Along with creating new songs, I hope to get to work and play my music in this area. I do not have a band and the future is pretty unclear right now, but I am still hoping things will take a turn for the positive. I think dreams take a lot of hard work and accurate decision making to accomplish. I hope you wish me luck on this journey.
Until we meet down the road, do tune into my group on Facebook and learn how the musicians I interview got their careers started and what they are doing now and in the future. It costs nothing to join and nothing to be interviewed! You can find the group here: Matured Musicians group. Please enjoy this new year and make it the best ever.
Moving Right Along
I made it through one holiday and I’m moving toward another. The Christmas season is moving quickly toward us and Covid 19 has mutated in to another set back virus, Omicron is creating havoc for many countries around the globe. Still musicians are struggling to bring music to you in spite of inflation, goods shortages and a country engaged in a war with itself. I released a new song called God Are you Listening in the midst of all this going on.
Since I last posted, I was hacked had to reset my computers to factory reset and had to buy a new phone from a different company. While working on clearing up that mess, a drunk driver without insurance managed to hit the back end of my car, while I was sitting at a stop sign waiting to make a left turn. I’ve been told it will take months to get it fixed due to the parts being held up in the west coast harbors. The good news is, the computers are clean, I needed a new phone and I will not have to pay much out of pocket for the car repairs.
I am working on a new song. I wrote it for and about the band Heart, back in the day. I wanted to write a rock song, so I hired the lead guitarist for that band, Roger Fisher. He challenged me to write a rock song about the band when he was still with the band. I heard the story and his side of it and thought this is at its heart a sad country song! I called it Pieces One on One. It is about a sad love story and the lives that came undone. It should release in about 3 months.
The next release will come out Christmas eve. It is called My One Desire. It is a combination of my experiences with horses and the issues in Utah and in the western states. The story is about a woman’s love for a wild stallion. He was released in the wild and she realizes the horse while wild, is a Arabian stallion. She wants the horse in spite of the cost, in order to teach it how to jump. The cover for the song, is a picture of actual wild mustangs from the state of Utah, my friend Trena Gonzales Alverez photographed while there.
I am hoping people will donate to protect these horses that are often killed when they are rounded up using helicopters. As a result, the fear of the herds drive these horses, especially the colts, to be killed or damage their legs and hoofs. It is inhumane and beyond cruel. They can now sterilize the females and really do not have to thin the herds by allowing black markets to use the horses for dog food. Herding them for adoption with machines that drive them to injury or death is a violation of federal law that was written and passed to protect them and wild burros, in 1971.
I will make hard copies of this song for sale. The cover will have the story and a QR code will direct you to my website, which will have a place to donate to this cause. I have become involved in the issue because I believe killing horses purposely or by accident is wrong. These horses should not be receiving this treatment. The Bureau of Land Management does not seem to understand why or how we are so concerned for these animals. They use the excuse that it is better than having the horses starve to death.
With the holidays coming up, I would like to remind you that there are many senior singer-songwriters who do not have enough to live on with just Social Security benefits. Music and gigs supplement their incomes. Buying from their website stores and going to support their gigs, gives them a bit of coin and merch makes a great Christmas present.
Until we meet again, happy trails to you and yours this blessed holiday season. Click to hear the song God are You Listening!
Where to Begin
Newest Release 10/22/2021
It is difficult to know where to start this blog so much has happened. Having a hard time getting everything done for releases, interviews and keeping up with updating everyone. On top of that classes and trying to practice my guitar are becoming quite the juggling act. Now I wish I could be cloned.
I am finding that I am a bit paranoid. My big mistake was to take someone at their word instead of demanding a contract. With a contract I could go to small claims court if need be. I came from a background in business where professional people keep their word. I am finding out that is not the case for some people. I am certain there were misunderstandings, but I have a hard time arguing my point of view without a contract. I have now lost $650.00 for not making certain I got one, in a couple endeavors.
I have been waiting to make a video recording for several weeks now and the weather turned rainy and blustery. Therefore it has been canceled. Trying to reach the cinematographer is harder than getting a hold of Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Because I do not know this business as well as I should, I am afraid I may have been scammed. I do have a contract if I need it. But if I have been scammed, I lost a $250.00 down payment for now.
I seem to be making people irritated with me. I must have stars moving against me, figuratively! Every single person I have tried to get a hold of, either do not answer or respond in one way or another. I am going to chalk it down to bad timing. This music stuff almost has beaten me. Maybe this is my Halloween trick…lol!
I have a few new photos coming out. They were taken by a newer less experienced photographer on a dark and rainy day! She has worked her heart out trying to get them to my liking. I hope she is learning how to use the different tools on the computer that changes the photo coloring etc. I am very glad I did not hire the more experienced, professional photographer I first asked to do them! I am reserving her for better light and better conditions, sometime in the future.
To the people that have liked my page Country Hot and Matured Musicians I salute you. Regardless of all the problems right now, you are the reason I keep going. I know that if only one person likes this music, then I have succeeded.
I hope all of you have forgiven me any trespasses. Unless you tell me, I do not know how to improve. Our relationship is too precious to let silliness and mis-communication stand in the way of it. I have been known to confront people if things are not as they should be. Hopefully, I am not too overwhelming.
Please support your local musicians. Without a record company, these expenses are paid by the artist. Events or gigs is where they make their money along with store sales. Take care until we meet again on the internet.
Bumps in the Road
I suppose there is no journey that doesn’t have a few roadblocks or bumps in the road. My career as a musician is being stifled by the uncertainty of Covid issues. I do not want to put a band together and then have it come apart because the gigs fall off again. Nor do I want to bring people together where they may become ill with the two new variants of Covid. It seems right now the music scene is not in a good place for musicians!
I have been busy trying to build my site. I cannot figure out why so few people subscribe to a persons music on YouTube. My coach, Kira Michele, send me videos to watch in order to get the tools I need to grow my fan base. It can be perplexing. I have tried to create a banner, a professional banner for my YouTube page and realize, I need help! So I am tearing my hair out trying to get it done. I seem to have an issue with the pixel sizing.
I hired a songwriting coach as well in the genre of rock. I now realize, I can write a country rock song, but rock will never be something I am good at. No matter what I write it comes out country or alternative country. I now have to put what I wrote to music and realize 3 chords and the truth is about where I’m at. The very concept of the circles of 5 have my head spinning and my patience spent.
My interviews seem to be going well. I recently had Jessica Lynne Witty on my Matured Musician Group site for a interview stream. I learned that she started very early on writing words to music that was out already in the United States. Since she lived in Denmark, she re-wrote them in Danish. A language she spoke there; but because her father lives in the states she knew English as well. She visited him as she was growing up and is fluent in both. I think the woman has music in her brain and all she does is shake her head and all the right music comes out!
My coming days will be filled with the making of a new video based on my album theme song, Country Hot and website theme. My next album will start, this late fall, if Chad Quist will take me on again. Money will be far more scarce this time around. I can only release one song every few months or so. I have new pictures to be taken in 2 weeks. There is no moss growing under my feet! I still have time to jam and write music. Practicing is a bit difficult to get done though.
I hope the music lovers realize that money struggles we go through as artists. The only real money we make is at gigs. Even then, unless they are big concerts very little money is made. I now have a store on my website and hope a few fans will spend a penny or two to purchase what I have. I am trying to keep the cost down. My downloads will be around .99 cents. The album of songs that came out as singles will be available, hopefully in the late Spring.
Please support our independent singer/songwriter musicians. We need you and I believe you want and need us as well. Until we meet down the road, thank you for supporting them and my musical journey!
New Music and Interviewing
I have been busy growing my sites and group. I am trying to manage about 200 comments and posts a day. It can get a bit overwhelming. I now have circa 330 people in my Matured Musicians Group, close to 300 on my Country Hot Music by Joy Ann LaJeret page and circa 1700 Facebook friends. I am, also, continuing my guitar lessons with Dave Nichols and marketing lessons from Kira Michele and song writing lessons from Roger Fisher, past lead for the band Heart. I go to Physical Therapy once a week in order to be able to get on the stage and play in the future. None of this could have been done without your support.
I recently had a video made and was unaware I did not communicate effectively until it was sent to me. I was horrified that the very things I did not want were on the video. It was a highly expensive mistake! I am shooting another video with a different studio tomorrow, due to needing it quickly. I am so afraid it will not be a good quality shoot. But that lesson is the way it goes. ( UPDATE: It turned out nicely the second time at Mirror Studio. It will post on September 20, 2021.)
Yes, I have Yelp, but I didn’t see how it was the videographers fault if I did not get the picture of what we were hoping to accomplish. I had pictures taken, a few months back, that were not to my liking either. I am beginning to think I need to learn how to communicate in a way these men understand. Being older, lighting and angles are critical for good videos and pictures. Okay lessons learned at a cost of $700.00 dollars. this mistake means fewer dinners out, less money in savings and no new purchases for a while and more overtime for my dedicated husband. A painful lesson indeed.
I have been able to see a few bands perform in that past month, before masking up again. Not my favorite thing to do, masking that is. Because I am a high risk, I catch illnesses easily and hope I do not have another bout of Covid 19. I have conducted interviews a few times and it keeps everyone safe, streaming is safe!. I will probably wait a bit before doing live performances as well. So videos it is, until then.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my interviews and am thankful we have so many talented people in this area. I am really pleased with how many musicians have continued to keep their skills up-to-date during Covid 19. Interviewing them has been the highlight of my week, Please feel free to join me at Matured Musicians Group on Facebook. I am certain you will enjoy watching the stream of the artist/musician interviews.
Stay safe. See you down the road. Please support all genres and musician! We need all of you! Thank you all for the support you have given artists, especially in this greater Seattle area. Please remember you are the reason we work so hard to bring you music. Also, many talented artists are never heard because the music industry has been the gatekeepers until now. Independent artists are the wave of the future!
Another New Release
I have finished streaming the first five songs I wrote. The next five will come out one a month until January 2022. I have put a lot more detail and thought into the new songs. When the songs are finished posting to the streaming agents, I will have set up a store where you can buy a single CD or the Album online.
The song that I wrote and show above, is a song I wrote for my husband on our anniversary in 2020. I could not buy a card by going out to the store because of Covid 19 and didn’t want an online card or one from Amazon. So I sat and thought about our life together and realized music has always been our number one priority. I continued to write hoping my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren would get to know me through my music.
I may not have the finances to continue to write and publish my songs. I need followers and gigs to make the money I need to continue. I am hoping, somehow, I will be able to continue with this endeavor. I have always wanted to be a writer and hoped the university would give me the skills I needed to do so. I just never envisioned writing songs!
I have taken the time and money to go to the studio, Decade Sound Studio, to record a video with me singing and playing the song, ” Southern Hurricane.” I hope, if it goes well, that I can make a few more. My next song, “Move Over Girls’ ” is the next one I hope to record as a video. I was listening to all the young female country artists song writing and singing and realized they aren’t the only women that have stories to tell. Feeling a bit indignant, I wrote the song. Jessica Lynn Witty and Chad Quist are doing the added vocals and Chad does the guitar work with Country Dave Harmonson on the dobro and lap steel. Lynn Sorensen is on the fiddle, as well.
I hope you all continue to support the musicians you love to listen to. I have a group on Facebook called Matured Musician’s Group. I am interviewing artists in every genre I can reach. My stream is every Monday at 2:00 PM unless I have to make special arrangements. I save the recording so those who cannot watch live, can watch on the site and on my FB site. Hope to see you there!
New Release Ready August 20,2021
Just click on the link to hear a snippet of the song!
I wrote this song because I could not leave the house due to Covid 19. It was our anniversary and I could not go out to get a card. Not thinking about the internet, I decided to write my husband a song. I hope he would understand how much I cared about and love him and our life together.
I could not sing it to him for about a week. Every time I tried to sing it, I would burst into tears and get all choked up. Finally I could sing it and decided to have it produced. Chad Quist is playing guitar parts and singing it with me. He is a local independent artist, producer and man of many talents! I am hoping this song would tell our story in a way others could relate to. I guess I will soon find out.
JOYSTECHTOOL 
You must be logged in to post a comment.