Playing the Nick Drake Tunes Live This Tuesday!

I’ve been thinking about how precious our lives are recently. Many of us have a tendency to feel invincible when things are going well, but as soon as we hit a bump in the road we realize just how fragile life is. In these times, I am reminded that what really matters in life are our relationships and our connections to family and friends. In the end, that’s what life is about: forming and maintaining deep connections. Don’t take it for granted!

This is why I love being a musician. As artists, we are fortunate that our work fosters these connections. At its best, art allows us to go deeper into life and into our relationships, with others as well as with ourselves. And this is why performing live is such a thrill for me. When the JPQ plays on stage in front of an audience I can see and feel first-hand the effect we have on the people in the room. I can see spirits lift, smiles widen, and booties shakin’. The whole room seems to vibrate. There is definitely a “sum is greater than the whole of its parts” effect that happens. Something is actually created in those moments that wasn’t there before. And that thing is deeper connections between people. I can’t think of a cooler way to make a living than that!

Come Connect With Us!

If you’d like to experience what I’m talking about for yourself, come out to Lucid Jazz Lounge on Tuesday night. The Jason Parker Quartet will be playing live from 7:00-10:00pm. We’ll be joined by our dear friends Cynthia Mullis on tenor sax and Michele Khazak on vocals…if you haven’t heard this version of the band you’re missing out! Cynthia and Michele fit in beautifully with the guys and we’ve been making some seriously beautiful music together.

The show is a “dress rehearsal” of sorts for our upcoming recording session, and we’ll be playing all the Nick Drake tunes that will make up our new CD. You can preview some of the tunes in the video below. As always, there is no cover charge at Lucid. Just bring yourself and your desire for deeper connections!

Less Than a Week Left to Kickstart

Speaking of our new CD, there are only 6 days left in our Kickstarter campaign. We’ve raised 80% of our goal so far and need to get to 100% or we lose all the pledges that have been made so far…it’s all-or-nothing! We’re using Kickstarter to help raise funds for the recording process and to give you a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the record. We’re asking you to make a pledge of support to the campaign, much like a public radio fundraising campaign. In return, we are giving you some really cool rewards for doing so. The amount you pledge is less important than the act of pledging itself. We want you to decide how much you are willing to give. $10, $20, $50…whatever you can afford. Each pledge gets us that much closer to our goal and will ensure that when we hit the studio to record “Five Leaves Left: A Jazz Tribute to Nick Drake” in two weeks we can make the best possible record.

If you’ve been putting off your pledge thinking, “I have plenty of time”, now’s the time to act! Time is running out and we need your help to reach that goal. Please take a moment to click here, watch the video if you haven’t already and make a pledge today. It’ll take just a couple minutes, it’s a secure transaction through Amazon Payments, and it’ll leave a warm, fuzzy feeling in your soul. 😉

Thanks for your support, and I hope to see you at Lucid on Tuesday!