I am on vacation this week. I want to pack as much into a week off as I can. This is a busy music week. Today, I have two co-writing sessions scheduled. One this morning and one this afternoon. They are always fun. Especially if you are writing with your friends. 

    Tomorrow, I need to get everything packed and ready to go the Walnut Valley Bluegrass Festival. It is in Winfield, Kansas. It is a couple hours from Topeka to Winfield. I am going on Wednesday but the actual festival doesn't start until Thursday.  I am going to a workshop from 10-4. It is called- Take control of your performance. It is taught by Juni Fisher. 

     Thursday I will be playing my song Polaroid Memories on stage. I was one of the winners in the songwriting contest. The prize for winning the song contest is getting to play on stage and getting a medal. Not everyone that sends in a song gets a medal. This is like the old days when we had winners and losers. I have been a loser more than I have been a winner. We all need to learn how to lose. It builds character. Yeah, I don't want to do that again.

     Friday, I will see if I can play on a stage in the campgrounds. I will have lots of time to practice while I'm at the festival. I might need to  dust off some old songs or learn some newer songs that I haven't played to a crowd. It is a great oppourtunity to see how the crowd likes m songs. It will be a fun week. 

     I like one word song titles. I wanted to write a song about hope. We all need hope. Can you imagine a world without hope? I hope that never happens. lol I used to love to write blogs or tell stories about a song before I played it. The truth be known- sometimes my stories were better than my songs. Trying to keep the focus on the song and let the song speak for itself. Here is a song that I wrote with my friend Fletcher. Hope you like it. It is great to know that God keeps his promises.

Promises 

Wiping a tear from her cheek,she remembers she’s not alone 

She’s looking fear in the face, and she knows she can choose to be strong 

Her body’s been weak 

But her faith ain’t gone, 

the good news she’s holding on 

 

Promises heard , Promises read 

More than words written in red 

He rose from a grave, to do what he said and she knows 

no more doubting, she trusting he’s keeping promises 

 

Every step of the way she walking ,He’s by her side 

All the ups and the downs she’s livin’, he will provide 

Strength in surrender - its all in his hands – 

she’s always known and he understands

 

Promises heard , Promises read 

More than words written in red 

He rose from a grave, to do what he said and she knows 

no more doubting, she trusting he’s keeping promises 

 

So she laughs at the hard times 

Cause she’s found her place in the 

power of  his amazing grace. 

 

Promises heard , Promises read 

More than words written in red 

He rose from a grave, to do what he said and she knows 

no more doubting, she trusting he’s keeping 

Promises heard , Promises read 

More than words written in red 

He rose from a grave, to do what he said and she knows 

no more doubting, she trusting he’s keeping promises.

    The songwriting journey has changed.  I used to write and share what was going on in my life and now I don't. Before I was chasing a dream and it was impossible. It felt like no one wanted to listen to my songs. One thing that I kept doing was writing songs. I have been writing songs for years and years. It is what I do. 

    If you remember, I finally got some single song contracts on some of my songs. I signed single song contracts with Ammar Music Group. It was a great experience. I now had somebody to send my songs to that was glad to hear them and offer feedback. It was the opportunity that I had been looking for. 

    Starting in November I have been writing with the CEO of Ammar Music Group. We have been co-writing songs together. Since November we have written twenty songs. That is a lot more songs than I would normally write by myself. My usual out put writing by myself was one a month. 

    It is great writing with my friend Fletcher. It has been a great experience. Yeah, it is kinda like dating. They always talk how dating and co-writing are alot alike. It can be great to write with someone else or it can be terrible. After writing together you know if it went good or bad. The quality of your song is the proof. Just like dating not all dates are gonna be great. The trip to the lake for a picnic can be ruined by bad weather. And sometimes that can happen in songwriting also. On the days that I don't feel like I'm bringing much to the write that is when Fletcher steps up and hits a homerun. That is one of the great things about co-writing. If we are both having a bad day, well, you get a crummy song that you file away and never look back. 

     I usually write on one of my days off during the week with Fletcher. I look forward to writing and am always looking for a good title or an idea for a song. It is great to be a part of the process and doing the work that is necessary as a songwriter. It is great to be chasing the dream, living the dream, singing the dream, and writing the dream. Be like me and live the dream. Have a great day. Jim

     I wrote a song called Shades of Gray. No, it isn't like the Shades of Gray movies. This is a song about my Dad. A black and white type of man. Call it like it is. Kinda like an umpire. Call strikes- strikes and balls- balls. Call sin - sin . If something is a sin, don't do it. If you do, ask fogiveness. Sounds pretty simple when you type it. lol

      (To all of my family). There are a couple references in the song that aren't completely accurate. Dad wasn't and Awana leader and his singing was pretty good. (not like mine) I take some songwriting liberties to make a song more universal. Guilty as charged.

    Check out the song if you want to hear the rest of the story. Jim

Thisis a song that I wrote with my friend, Fletcher. It is a song that I like but it will probably never go anywhere. It is a sad song and sad songs aren't what the songwriting gods are looking for. They want upbeat songs that have a happy ending. Songs that make the singer look good, even though he is just like you and me with his own struggles. This song is about regrets. We all have a couple of those that we have been trying to shake, but we just can't always shake them. Kinda reminds me of the stick tights that I remove from the top of my cat's head. He knows they are there but he can't remove them by himself.  

Here are the lyrics to the song- Almost, the story of my life.

Almost (Story of my life) 

Jim McCarter/Fletcher Moudy

 

I shouldatrained a little harder,Got up early, hit the weights   

paid attention to my coaches, memorized all the plays 

 shoulda scored a winning touchdown on our final drive 

brought home a championship, held my head up high.

 

Chorus- When I think about my story  

It all starts and ends the same  

If I could do it different, 

 Change my life change my name 

I’m so tired of this memory 

 

How I didn’t get it done 

That Quarterback keeper 

4th and goal from the one 

I’d fake left, run back right 

almost wouldn’t  be, the story of my life 

 

I shoulda found an ounce of courage, shoulda listened to my mom. 

 shoulda knocked on your front door, asked you to the prom 

Coulda danced with you so close, coulda found our favorite song 

We'd be hometown heroes for our folks to brag on 

 

When I think about my story  

It all starts and ends the same  

If I could do it different, 

 Change my life change your name 

 

I’m so tired of the memory 

How I didn’t get it done 

That Quarterback keeper 

4th and goal from the one. 

I'd fake left, run back right 

almost wouldn't be the story of my life.  

 

Now I lie awake at night 

And think about what used to be 

How I almost had it all 

And you almost wanted me.

 

When I think about my story  

It all starts and ends the same  

If I could do it different, 

Change my life change your name 

I’m so tired of the memory 

 

How I didn’t get it done 

That Quarterback keeper 

4th and goal from the one 

I’d fake left, run back right 

Almost wouldn’t  be, the story of my life\\ 

Almost wouldn’t be, the story of my life