“I can’t wait to look in the mirror cause I get better lookin each day!” – Mac Davis
When I first started to really play the guitar, (the end of my faking it with bar chords), and to write and play around Las Vegas ,I was shocked by the number of people doing exactly what I wanted to do. It seemed like every day I met a new person who played, wrote and sang better than I did! It was really great to have people to look up to and to emulate.
On the other hand there were a few who took themselves SO very seriously. They were people who had recently returned from a 6-month gig aboard a cruise ship or who had a couple hosting gigs for open mics, or had some other minor success that was kinda tied to be a good songwriter or performer. Generally speaking the people who took themselves the most seriously were the most lack-luster performers.
The many, MANY, talented people I met were so humble. And in most cases the humility was not only genuine but was directly proportional to the amount of talent they displayed. Simply, the better they were the more down to Earth they were about it.
As I got to be better at writing and playing I started to get a bit of a big head myself. But I was fortunate to have what I call my “humble helpers”.
From the time I started writing music I recorded my songs and scores and kept them all. In all honesty they are mostly awful. And in more than a few cases they are completely awful! Terrible lyrics, horrid singing and instrumental performances that would make deaf people cover their ears.
Listening to these old tracks always has the same impact on me. It causes me to think, “I am getting to be pretty good but I am not so good that one of these old recordings wouldn’t make me the laughing stock of far more people than those who like me now.”
My mother, who was a pro at keeping me humble, used to remind me that a tree is only as strong as it’s roots. I don’t think she meant to put herself down but she is a woman who knows who she is and where she came from.
Musically, we all sucked at some point. As writers and performers we all have had bad days, bad shows, sour notes and lame lyrics. It is helpful to keep these around so that we don’t forget the roots of our good songs and great performances.
Besides all of that, sometimes those Humble Helpers – for all their awfulness – offer some glimpses and flashes of talent and skill that would later become my best stuff. This is a happy accident because if it weren’t for those little moments of “wow” I’d probably be so humbled I’d kill myself.
I would never have written my new song, Somewhere – J. Montoya, without the really awful songs and lyrics that came before it. I won’t post them because I am not exaggerating about the repulsing power they have! They are perfect for me though.. because they keep my feet on the ground. And everyone appreciates that, myself included.
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Jefferson Montoya / Blog
Gonna be Showcased on the front page of Soundsugar.net
Well, HELL!
That's pretty cool, says I.
It should start Sunday the 7th so maybe drop by and see if you can see the promo? http://soundsugar.net/jeffersonm
Reply
Oh, Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way. . “
“I can’t wait to look in the mirror cause I get better lookin each day!” – Mac Davis
When I first started to really play the guitar, (the end of my faking it with bar chords), and to write and play around Las Vegas ,I was shocked by the number of people doing exactly what I wanted to do. It seemed like every day I met a new person who played, wrote and sang better than I did! It was really great to have people to look up to and to emulate.
On the other hand there were a few who took themselves SO very seriously. They were people who had recently returned from a 6-month gig aboard a cruise ship or who had a couple hosting gigs for open mics, or had some other minor success that was kinda tied to be a good songwriter or performer. Generally speaking the people who took themselves the most seriously were the most lack-luster performers.
The many, MANY, talented people I met were so humble. And in most cases the humility was not only genuine but was directly proportional to the amount of talent they displayed. Simply, the better they were the more down to Earth they were about it.
As I got to be better at writing and playing I started to get a bit of a big head myself. But I was fortunate to have what I call my “humble helpers”.
From the time I started writing music I recorded my songs and scores and kept them all. In all honesty they are mostly awful. And in more than a few cases they are completely awful! Terrible lyrics, horrid singing and instrumental performances that would make deaf people cover their ears.
Listening to these old tracks always has the same impact on me. It causes me to think, “I am getting to be pretty good but I am not so good that one of these old recordings wouldn’t make me the laughing stock of far more people than those who like me now.”
My mother, who was a pro at keeping me humble, used to remind me that a tree is only as strong as it’s roots. I don’t think she meant to put herself down but she is a woman who knows who she is and where she came from.
Musically, we all sucked at some point. As writers and performers we all have had bad days, bad shows, sour notes and lame lyrics. It is helpful to keep these around so that we don’t forget the roots of our good songs and great performances.
Besides all of that, sometimes those Humble Helpers – for all their awfulness – offer some glimpses and flashes of talent and skill that would later become my best stuff. This is a happy accident because if it weren’t for those little moments of “wow” I’d probably be so humbled I’d kill myself.
I would never have written my new song, Somewhere – J. Montoya, without the really awful songs and lyrics that came before it. I won’t post them because I am not exaggerating about the repulsing power they have! They are perfect for me though.. because they keep my feet on the ground. And everyone appreciates that, myself included.
Reply
First Blog Post on Reverb Nation
WELL HELL!
(Rhyming.. see? I AM a songwriter)
I should probably warn ya'll that I think I am so funny...
That being said, welcome to my FIRST blog post on reverbnation.com. I have been blogging elsewhere but I think I will eventually move all my blogging to this site. There are some really cool promotion tools here, none of which I have taken advantage of till now, and it will just be easier to keep more things in one place. I will still keep my official site at www.jeffersonm.com though.
Lemme see.. Got some gigs comin up but I need more! So if you think of any place, hit me up!
Now.. how do I get 2500 people who aren't using this site to think it is important enough to sign up? hehe
Peace!
JM
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