Okay, yes. CD design should technically be under "Packaging."
And when you learn html and crank out your own website,
I will be the first to defend your right to put any darn thing any darn place.
As it stands, I'll do it my way. Thenk yew.
This John Flomer's Opus One, titled "Primal Scream."
It was printed in two-color; metallic gold and black.
(Included J-card for the cassette tape.)
John had ordered the disks themselves to be gold, but they arrived on silver.
It still worked, with a silver-gold thing happening.
( The portrait of John was taken by photographer Marc Norberg.)
For the first Jon deVaal Trio CD, a demo,
I used line art on top of a painted background.
I liked the way the two different images created a dynamic balance.
(It was designed as a sampler for booking agencies and music promoters.)
And it fit the music.
The second CD was for selling retail. (See HOME page for links.)
Bright colors and bold graphics.
Again, I layered the drawing of the Trio over a painted surface.
It has a vibrant, timeless quality that I really like.
Opus 2 was pure Jazz, and the look was muted, more abstract.
There was a rhythm to the geometry of the straight lines
that played off the music.
The musical musings of teen idol and all-round nice guy
Darren "The Cat" O'Donnell. Minnesota's own.
Is there a grandparent alive that wouldn't love this:
All their grandchildren singing Christmas carols
with those sweet little voices?
Recorded for posterity?
( Don't tell me this isn't genius! )
Most people send Christmas cards.
But when one has delusions of grandeur, an errant live microphone,
and a musician in the family...well...take it from there.
(Anything to justify the purchase of that seven-foot grand piano...)
( Viva le Tax deduction.. )
This was the year the kids and I were part of the Holidazzle Parade.
We were mice following the Pied Piper. I was "Mother Mouse" and I had
about 15 youngsters dressed as mice following me.
( "HoliDazzle" is the big Holiday light parade in downtown Minneapolis. )
By now it's a yearly tradition. For some people,
this was the only way they saw how much the kids had grown.
The Christmas following 9/11 was rather a somber one.
I sang "America The beautiful" at the end.
Not terribly original, but it felt right at the time.
This year I only added one new song to the mix; "Silent Night" in four
languages plus English. I found all the lyrics online,
Norwegian, French, German, and Hawaiian and sang it start to finish
in a single take, five times for the individual harmonies.
( It's amazing what can be done in a time crunch! )
My yearly Christmas CD can be a great promotion to send
to clients for DeVaal Design. The line by the logo says
"Making Photoshop dreams come true since 1996."
( That body and mink are fine examples of that...)
New job, new friends, new Christmas stocking stuffer.
( Sometimes all you need is a new audience. )
"And that," she said with a smile, "was that."
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