Caroleigh, Jill and Lauren, the rhythm of my Sisters

Caroleigh Cheryl- January 25th
Janus Ingrid- January 11th
Lauren Patrice- March 30th

Those are dates that are forever etched on my mind because those are the days that the rhythm of my life always beats strongest...with love.
My 3 Sisters have made my life worthwhile, let me tell you about how they each have affected my life and my music.
Caroleigh (pronounced,carol-lay)
My oldest Sister, was a gifted musician and singer, she played the flute and the violin, and she had a voice like an angel. Caroleigh loved all types of music, but 50's rock and roll just moved her to no end. James Brown and Jackie Wilson would just send her into orbit. Years later when Motown emerged as a force in music she was a fanatic for the Temptations.
They did a song called "Don't Look Back," and Caroleigh would be the female backup singer to Paul Williams vocal...it still moves me to tears when I hear, because it makes me think about my Sis.
Jill the other older Sister is also a gifted pianist, and just a brilliant woman who has always been ahead of her time. She was the first person to graduate from Columbia University with a degree in African American studies. Also, she is the founder and CEO of Backpax, a company which teaches cultural diversity to youngters.
Lauren, the youngest of us is also a musician, she played the clarinet. In High school she was in the concert orchestra and the jazz band, and was first chair in both.
She has now made a career in the United States Navy, recently deployed to Bahrain (north of Saudi Arabia), where she just became a Chief Petty Officer.
My 3 Sisters are among the most beautiful woman that I've ever known, but our lives have taken us to many different stations in life, and it has taken losing one of them to make me realize just how much they all have meant to me.
If you ever listen to a really good drummer, you realize right away that they capture alot of different rhythms at once, yet drummers are the foundation upon which great music is made. All of the beats that they create add to or blend the other instruments and vocals together into a harmony that can move the even the steadfast of folks, so it is with my Sisters.
Their lives are entertwined with mine and it has made me a better person. Each of what they have given me in love has shaped my life in ways that is just like listening to music.
I love songs, singing them, as well as playing them, because the textures that they create with words offer you a glimpse into the soul of the writer.
Musicians bring about the effect of the songs, but the the writer created it to set a mood. So it is with my Sisters, when we talk it's really uplifting and passionate. Sometimes, even without alot of words being expressed, they set a tone for me that reaches deep inside of me.
When I was little, I used to watch Caroleigh play the flute for hours at a time, ask a million questions, and be generally in awe of her. When I'd listen to Jill (Janus's nickname), she just epitomized grace and charm...she still does.
When I went to see Lauren in concert in her senior year in school. I was awestruck by how much I didn't know about music, she did some things on the clarinet that I'm still trying to figure out with my saxophone.
The point here is that within the rhythm of my sisters beats a strength that gives me strength, it's also given me the clarity to be a good musician, and vocalist. They've taught me to take chances with my music, set it free, but tame it all at once.
In short, the love they've given me, I've passed it forward to my audience, and if you play music that's how you should operate too.

This post is dedicated to eveyone who has the pleasure of having a lovingly family,who supports, and believes in them.

Support Live music today tomorrow and always.

Remembering Winston Walls

There aren't too many people that I can honestly say are larger than life, but Winston was truly among those that I could. He is up there with my Parents.
It's with a sad heart that I must relay that the great Winston Walls has left our lives. I'm told that he passed away in his sleep at his home in Florida with his wife Lucille at his side.

Winston for most of the musicians in the Kanawha valley was like our Dad. He was tough, but ever encouraging. He could make you feel your music like no one else, he just had that thing in him that set him apart from everyone else.
I can still remember vividly the day that I met him back in 1971, he just moved my soul with his playing. He was confident and he knew how to GRAB your attention. When he played that Hammond B3, he could not only bend his notes, he could break them like twigs, or make them and you, stand at attention.
He has shown me and my bandmates in the Carpenter Ants how to capture an audience, with real musicianship and not with gimmicks.
Once when we were recording our 2nd CD "Picnic With Lord," he cleared up a discrepency with us that completely changed our direction. His help with our CD became invaluable for me especially, because he made sing from my soul.
There will never be another like "Dad" for me, but I can say with distinction that we are all his sons and daughters, and in his memory we will raise West Virginia music to new heights.Winston, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all that you taught me. I will never forget you. Heaven will really rock now!! Rest in peace.

Be certain to pick up his CD "Boss of the B3," which features another great, his best friend Brother Jack Mc Duff, where ever you find great music. Also Winston is our special guest the Carpenter Ants CD "Picnic With the Lord."



Good night Brother
Winston Walls 2008.