============================================= *** R O C K Y M O U N T A I N H I G H *** ============================================= The John Denver Internet Fan Club Monthly Newsletter January 2002 Editor: Emily M. Parris ============================================ http://www.rockymtnhigh.org * emily@sky.net ============================================= Table of Contents January 2002 * Issue #93 John Denver Events..................................2 Event Reviews: "Home is a Metaphor for God" by Donna Pinto - Review of the Christopher Westfall Concert Doylestown, PA...................................2 Rocky Mountain High voted "Best Locally Produced Fanzine" by "The Pitch" Magazine - Kansas City, MO........4 John Denver Notes...................................4 Poetry Corner: "A Poem for John" by Anthony Hornby...............6 John Denver Stories: Mary Ledford.....................................7 Carol Sullivan...................................7 Former John Denver Home For Sale....................7 John Denver Want Ads................................7 * * * Rocky Mountain High has now acquired its own domain name: http://www.rockymtnhigh.org The original url still works too! * * * ======================================= J O H N D E N V E R E V E N T S ======================================= January 12, 2001 * Pete Huttlinger in Concert / Boulevard Music / 4316 Sepulveda Blvd / Culver City, CA 90230 Tickets: (310) 398-2583 8:00pm March 3, 2002 * "Let This Be A Voice" - PBS http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/denver/index.html March 16, 2002 - Altadena, CA - Launch of Phil Christie's new CD "Summerstown" at the Coffee Gallery Backstage 8:00pm Mike Valentine will also appear. Reservations: (626) 398-7917 http://www.philchristie.com March 21, 2002 - April 27, 2002 * Denver, CO * World Premiere of a new musical by Peter Glazer "Almost Heaven" / A Denver Center World Premiere / Stage Theatre / http://www.dcpa.org (Discounted tickets for the March 28 performance are available through Colorado Friends of JD - Contact Evelyn Pinney ) Single tickets go on sale February 3, 2002. March 22, 2002 Steve Gillette in performance - Culver City, CA Boulevard Music 8:00pm $15 - (co-writer of "Darcy Farrow") (310) 398-2583 http://www.sover.net/~gillette/index.html April 13, 2002 * Arvada, CO / Pomona High School / John Adams benefit concert for the Front Range Center for Assault Prevention-Child Assault Prevention Project / Tickets $20 303-266-9019 Info: Feather http://www.geocities.com/childassaultprevention May 3-5, 202 John Denver Spring Retreat - Lebanon, PA at Camp Gretna Glen. JD Fellowship and inspiration. $50 due by April 1, 2002. Pat Liddic June 28 & 29, 2002 "A Tribute to John Denver: The Man and His Music, 2002, Hibernia County Park - 4 miles North of Coatesville, PA / Info: Judith http://www.judithgabriel.com * * * =============================== E V E N T R E V I E W S =============================== "Home is a Metaphor for God" by Donna Pinto A Review of the Christopher Westfall Concert in Doylestown, PA on December 16, 2001 What a terrific time we had Sunday at the free afternoon "Sounds of the Season" (and John Denver) Christopher Westfall concert "home" Doylestown, PA! It was combined with the annual live nativity held at the Salem United Church of Christ. The John Denver Peace Cloth even allowed us to display several pieces of the beautiful quilt. The nativity, concert, display and refreshments were all FREE! Attendance was a bit better than usual (about 70 different people wandered in and out). It was a time to gather with great friends! Paul, Judy, Steve, Harold, Evelyn, Denny, Maria & her mom, several Evelyns, Pats, Cindys & Carols, Ann Marie, Cathy, Suzanne & the Gill kids...just tons of new and old friends. As usual, Christopher put his heart and whole spirit into the program. He opened with a breath-taking A Capella version of "Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream." A standing ovation was given for Chris' first-time piano performance of "Whalebones and Crosses." He introduced "Rocky Mountain High" as "...one of my favorite Christmas songs." Now where have we heard that before? Other highlights included "America The Beautiful" and a lovely Westfall original called "I'm Coming Home." We even sang "Happy Birthday" to Carol and Suzanne. After the first set everyone examined the Peace Cloth before heading down for hot chocolate and cookies, then the live nativity right outside the church. Most folks sang along heartily to the second "Sounds of the Season" set. Christopher premiered a self-penned Holiday song "I Want You To Know (It's Christmas)." John Denver Holiday favorites included "Alfie", "A Baby Just Like You," and of course, "Christmas For Cowboys." Chris and Cathy Nole did their "I'm Not Afraid of Flyin', I'm Afraid of Crashin'" routine. Cathy's son Chris Nole was kind to our Christopher during a recent Nashville vacation...he got to see Mr. Nole play at the Grand 'Ol Opry from backstage! Christopher made Cathy come up to the stage to sing the "Five Golden Rings" part of "The Twelve Days of Christmas." Among the other "drafted victims" for this song was the church's pastor, Cindy Cashman, Carol Blevins, Pat Hough, some of the Gill kids and Chris' dad even came up to the front to take parts. We were all laughing so hard we couldn't sing! "Perhaps Love" perfectly closed out the performance. I put together a little program for the event that included "The Musician's Prayer" by B.J. Hoff and a poem about the Peace Cloth that Emily of Rocky Mountain High composed to commemorate this wonderful afternoon celebration of a blessed Holiday and great JD friendships "home" in Doylestown. Thank you's go out to Christopher, the Peace Cloth Board, our gracious hosts Dottie & Kurth Honer, and the members of the Salem United Church of Christ for opening up their lovely building for this event. To paraphrase Chris, "Through the music, our hearts begin to heal." If you'd like a copy of the video email me at donnapinto@yahoo.com * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH" named as... "Best Locally Produced Fanzine" by "The Pitch" - Kansas City, Missouri "Hilltop crooner, bowl-cut champion and sort-of actor John Denver perished in a plane crash on October 12, 1997. Yet his spirit continues to soar like the gleaming love of a mountain girl -- and not just in late-night cable ads peddling his greatest hits. With each monthly e-zine issue, the 'Rocky Mountain High Newsletter' unites the starry-eyed singer's following. Editor Emily Parris, who created the zine in 1995, publishes poems, articles, an astoundingly long list of news and tribute events, even want ads related to Denver's life and music. There's not much to sing about the newsletter's basic design, but if there's a publication with more J.D. content than RMH, color us rocky-mountain-frightened." ____________________________________________________________ The article was published on October 18, 2001 and is also on their website at: http://www.pitch.com It's under the "Arts & Entertainment" section in the "Best of" area and it contains a link to the Rocky Mountain High web site. Direct link to the article: www.pitch.com/issues/2001-10-18/bestarts66.html/1/index.html Editor's Note: The Rocky Mountain High Newsletter made its debut in May of 1994 and it was the Web page that came along in April of 1995. <<<<< >>>>> ======================================= J O H N D E N V E R N O T E S ======================================= Ann Schnitz: The Board of Directors of the John Denver Memorial Peace Cloth is proud to announce the launch of our website at our very own domain. Please update your bookmarks to http://www.johndenverpeacecloth.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mary Ledford Mack Bailey's mother died. She had been winning an 8-month battle with cancer but lost that battle on New Year's Day. Keep Mack and his family in your prayers. You can email him at - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - John Denver Sighting: I was in my local Hallmark store when I spotted some colorful calendars. What caught my eye was the years printed very large on the covers - from around 1940 through 1990 or so. What is this?, I wondered. Finally, I pulled one out of the rack. It happened to be 1974. I turned it over to see what it was about and that sunshine face from Greatest Hits smiled at me. The calendars show the date in history for that years throughout 2002. On that date, John Denver's "Greatest Hits" hit the top of the charts, apparently. Pretty Cool. Mev - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - David Marx For some time now the Windstar board has been working with artist Sue DiCiccio on a statue. A mold of the statue was made in November with artist proofs before the end of the year. Then the full size one will be cast. The statue is called "John Denver Remembrance Monument." It will be located at the Windstar Land Conservancy as a reminder of John's work, his commitment, his inspiration and what still needs to be done. This effort has the full support of John's family and I expect that when fans see it that they will be very pleased. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Kathy Lill Tonight I was shopping on Amazon and found a list of the most requested Christmas music on the radio. The list was composed by Michael Barbieri, national radio programmer. There were 25 cd's listed and guess which was in the #2 position!!...our own John with "Christmas In Concert." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - N. van Gasteren: Perhaps some of you don't know that we have a "Walk of Fame" here in the Netherlands, in Rotterdam. If you ever visit the city then you can find the "Walk" in front of the Maritiem Buitenhuis Museum, Schiedamsedijk in Rotterdam. John gave his handprints here on 18 May 1990. In honour of his silver jubilee John received framed pictures of his handprinting after his concert in the Ahoyhall in Rotterdam on 13 October 1994 as a present from our club. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Susan Moyer A number of people in Maryland and Pennsylvania have expressed an interest in starting up a Windstar Connections Group. Therefore we will begin an email (or snail mail) list and begin communicating this way. Email if you would be interested in joining. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Theresa Workman 12/18/01 Yesterday was a very trying day for me. At work people were rude. I got stressed out, and came home to a phone call from my dad saying my aunt had passed away. On top of all this, we had a falling out. I cried most of the day. I decided to put on my John Denver CD, "Christmas Like A Lullaby." Just hearing him sing these Christmas Carols was uplifting. I put on a smile and went to do my errands afterwards. This afternoon, after listening to John again, I got the surprise of my life! My dad called and apologized. I feel so much better now about the holidays! John always pulls me out of the deep end and brings me up! If only he could be here so I could tell him personally what a Godsend he was while here on Earth. John will always be; a legend for Mother Earth. His music will live on forever! Peace, Theresa - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ====================================== P O E T R Y C O R N E R ====================================== A POEM FOR JOHN by Anthony Hornby The day that your bird fell from the sky, Is the day I'll remember until the day I die, Along with Jet Planes, and Country Roads That Took You Home, Goodbye John Denver, Annie's Song still echoes, On Rocky Mountains alone, The stage is now empty, but the memories linger on, JDs left the building, but your fans still sing While stories of a juggler brings tears to our eyes Now only Poems, Prayers and Promises Will keep you alive, So long my friend, Colorado will never be the same, There'll never be another John Denver To carry your fame, Rest in peace your songs will live in our hearts, Calypso sails on tears around heaven, Amongst the stars, The world has lost an icon, While heaven has gained a son, Please watch over him Lord, He'll never do you no wrong, A man whose gentle music, Touched upon our lives, Now there's enough tears to fill an ocean, Enough grey skies to fill the skies, Goodbye John, long may your music Be played throughout the years, Your faithful fans will sing the songs, Their eyes blinded with tears, We will play your tunes and visualize, You proud upon the stage, In our memories, your book of life, Will never reach the final page. ________________________________ Copyright by Anthony Hornby * * * =================== John Denver Stories =================== Mary Ledford John Denver & GOLF Lately I was reminded of our backstage time in Birmingham, Alabama in February 1997. I made up certificates for John for his Eagle at the Bob Hope Classic and for his making the cut at the Pebble Beach Gold Tournament. When I started to present them to him everyone in the room cheered. John was so touched that he gave me a spontaneous hug! Pam also gave him a cute little button which had an Eagle and the pole with the flag on it stating "Eagles & Courses" which he got a real kick out of. Happy New Year and Happy Birthday John! Mary - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Carol Sullivan What John Denver Meant To Me My current hope for the future of the human family comes from the convictions learned while listening to the music of John Denver some 25 years ago when I was a young teen. Abused and neglected at home by my mother and in particular an older sister, I became an outcast in school at the age of 11, eventually losing all my friends one by one. A few years later, I lost the ability to speak due to the prolonged abuse which in my early teen years came mostly from home. But I had someone who sang of love and the joy of living; who sang of hope and compassion. It was my father-figure from afar, John Denver, the singer and humanitarian. Though I never wrote him a fan letter, I thank him now for helping me sing, then speak again. Thank you, John for being my role model; my mentor, when things were tough. Carol Sullivan The Blossom Foundation for Children and the Environment http://www.blossomfoundation.org ================================ Former John Denver Home For Sale ================================ A former home of John Denver in Nebraska is for sale. The address is 21606 Arbor Street, Elkhorn * $449,900 "Former Home of Singer/Songwriter John Denver * Huge 2-story tiled entry with dramatic staircase * 5,000 Square feet, 6 bedrooms, 5 baths, 2 fireplaces." http://www.fsbolocator.com/index.html Apparently this is a home John rented, rather than owned. The studios of American Gramaphone are nearby. You can take a virtual tour of the house on the website. ================================================= JOHN DENVER W A N T A D S / F O R S A L E ================================================= Dottie Honer John Denver 2002 Calendars are available. The cost in the USA is $20.50 for one, $38.50 for two, and $54.00 for three (that includes postage). Overseas (including postal charges) the cost is $24.00 for one, $43.00 for two and $59.00 for three. Payment in US funds only please. Make your payment out to: Carol Blevins / 1213 River Road / Quarryville, PA 17566 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Kenn Roberts The new double CD entitled "A Tribute to John Denver" Wheeler Opera House / Aspen, CO Oct 14 & 15, 2000 is now available for sale. It is the "live" concerts by former band members and colleagues of John Denver. $27.50 payable to "A Musical Tribute to John Denver" 827 Coachway, Annapolis, MD 21401 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mary Ledford The "Country Roads Folk Festival Tribute to John Denver" Video is now available. It was held this past July in West Virginia. It features Bill Danoff, Mack Bailey, Doris Justis and Sean McGhee as they pay tribute to John. It comes with a beautiful color cover with photos from the event. $10 donation to the Windstar Foundation. Email me for details. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Phil Christie We wanted to jump start the New Year with the announcement that we're recording a brand new studio album this January in Nashville. The "Summerstown" CD (available in March 2002) will feature 11 brand new original songs. The disc will feature new studio recordings of "Dream of Colorado", "If I Could", "Mother's Day", and "Karl the Koala" as well as 7 brand new songs. http://www.philchristie.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Andrea I'm looking for the sheet music for "Around and Around" from Denver's 1975 album, "Poems, Prayers & Promises." Does anyone have a copy? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Carol Cooley Wanted to buy. Your used copy of "Take Me Home", John's autobiography. Please contact me. Thank you. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Karen I have a poetry book called "In The Moment." It is $12 including postage (970) 527-2311 Karen D'Attilo / 1167 3950 Road / Paonia, Colorado 81428 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Margaret For Sale: One vinyl LP of "Rocky Mountain High and 3 vinyl LP's of John's "Greatest Hits." All are in good condition. $10 + shipping. Will sell separately. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - William Johnson I am looking for out of print songbooks by John Denver - "Seasons of the Heart", "Autograph", "Earth Songs", "Portrait" & "One World". Please contact me via email or call (704) 982-6663 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Wayne Whiting My wife wants to sell her 1977 CJ5 Jeep that used to belong to John Deutschendorf with paperwork of his ownership. This real nice, low miles and all restored. I would like to see the Jeep go to one of John's fans. Thank you! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Deborah Smith I have 6 John Denver albums that I want to sell. (One is signed by him). Email me for information. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Emily I received information on the cd: "John Denver Rocky Mountain Memories" - Michael Maxwell SOLCD72 (800) 565-3862 http://www.avalonmusic.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Susan I am looking for some JD Collectible Magazines from his fan club "Hearts in Harmony." The ones I want are in the years 1994 through Feb. 2000. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Judith Gabriel I need patrons/ sponsors to finance "A Tribute to John Denver: The Man and His Music 2002". Please help make this a yearly event by being a sponsor. Make checks payable to "JD Tribute Concert Donation." Mail to Judith Gabriel / 2271 Hampden Blvd. G5 / Reading, PA 19604 * (610) 371-9122 www.judithgabriel.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Amazon.com has a new book listed by Roger Himes. It is "The Singer, His Music: The Heart of John Denver" ($7.95) Apparently it is a sequel to his first book about John. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Gregory Does anyone have the song list of these JD Shows: the 6 JD Shows on BBC, The JD Picture Show, Family Event, That John Denver Show where he sings "San Antonio Rose", the John Denver Show on 11-27-76 as well as all the Tonight Shows in the 70's and 80's. And also does anyone have the old albums of the Mitchell Trio. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For a sample of the It's About Time's CYBER IDEA COOKBOOK: http://people.ne.mediaone.net/tybrenn/iat/ideasample.html - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - If anyone collects old records by John Denver, I currently have some Australian pressings on offer. With $1 Australian Dollar currently equal to around only US 50 cents, there's no better time to catch some of these collectables. Email me for a list of items or go to http://members.ozemail.com/au/~spinauctions/auction.htm - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Emily If you'd like to submit articles, news items, stories or poetry for Rocky Mountain High you can email them to me any time before the 20th of the month for possible publication in the newsletter. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - You can subscribe to other JD Newsletters/Mailinglists: "It's About Time" - write to IATJohnDenver-subscribe@egroups.com "john-denver" - write to john-denver-subscribe@egroups.com "John Denver Trading" Mailinglist - write to JDtrading-subscribe@onelist.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - JD RELATED WEB PAGES: NEW Rocky Mountain High Url http://www.rockymtnhigh.org (or http://www.sky.net/~emily) John Denver Peace Cloth http://www.johndenverpeacecloth.com Steve Gillette Website http://www.sover.net/~gillette/index.html John Denver Lives http://communities.msn.com/JohnDenverLives Linda's JD Christmas Creations http://www.geocities.com/lsettel/jdchristmas.html John Denver Midi Music http://groups.yahoo.com/group/JohnDenverMidiMusic * * * To be a supporting member of Rocky Mountain High send $5.00 (suggested donation) to Emily Parris / 608 E. 96th Street / Kansas City, MO 64131 ************************************************************* Rocky Mountain High: The John Denver Internet Fan Club emily@sky.net http://www.sky.net/~emily January 2002 * Issue #93 * Editor: Emily M. Parris *************************************************************