J~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~J O R O C K Y M O U N T A I N H I G H O H =============================================== H N The John Denver Internet Fan Club N D D E M O N T H L Y N E W S L E T T E R E N N V J U L Y 1 9 9 7 V E E R http://www.sky.net/~emily Emily Parris emily@sky.net R ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TABLE OF CONTENTS Jacques-Yves Cousteau dies at 87...................... 2 Virtual Dolphin WWW Page Tribute to Cousteau.......... 3 Review of JD 5cd Collection - by Rory Young & Henry Smiley................... 3 Concert Reviews: Saratoga, CA (6/22/97) - by Eve Saizan.............. 6 Concert reviews - Barb & Charles White.............. 6 Jacksonville, OR (6/26/97) - Mike Jones............. 7 Jacksonville, OR (6/26 & 6/27) - Kaye Rains......... 7 Jacksonville, OR (6/26/97) - Debi Pohto............. 8 John Denver Notes / Want Ads.......................... 9 John Denver Concert Schedule..........................10 * * * John's song "Calypso" is dedicated to Jacques Cousteau and the crew of the CALYPSO. CALYPSO by John Denver To sail on a dream on a crystal clear ocean To ride on the crest of the wild raging storm To work in the service of life and the living In search of the answers to questions unknown To be part of the movement and part of the growing Part of beginning to understand Aye Calypso The place's you've been to The things that you've shown us The stories you tell Aye Calypso I sing to your spirit The men who have served you So long and so well... Famed French Oceanographer Cousteau Dies at 87 ============================================== By Alister Doyle PARIS (Reuter) Veteran French oceanographer and prizewinning filmmaker Jacques-Yves Cousteau, who revealed mysteries of the ocean that seemed more fantastic than science fiction and fought to protect the environment, died Wednesday. He was 87. His widow Francine said he died of a heart attack at 2.30a.m. at their Paris home while recovering from a respiratory ailment which had kept him in the hospital for months. She told reporters he was conscious and lucid up to his last day and had just completed a book summing up his legacy. In his trademark sea-blue tunic and red beret, Capt. Cousteau became a familiar figure through his books and films, especially the U.S.-sponsored television series ``The Undersea World of Jacques-Yves Cousteau'' first shown in 1965. French President Jacques Chirac mourned Cousteau as an``enchanter,'' saying he was probably the best known Frenchman in the world for his pioneering films on subjects ranging from the Antarctic ice shelf to the blue lagoons of coral atolls. U.S. Vice President Al Gore called Cousteau ``a hero to men, women and children all over the world'' as tributes poured in for a man who was explorer, ecologist, teacher, filmmaker, writer and inventor. ``He was a giant in every respect,'' Gore said. French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin said, ``The planet has lost one of its best-known defenders.'' More tributes flowed at the United Nations at an Earth Summit to review the latest environmental developments and from the environmental activist group Greenpeace. ``Capt. Jacques-Yves Cousteau has gone to the Silent World this Wednesday, June 25, 1997,'' Cousteau's foundation said. A memorial service will be held in Paris' Notre-Dame cathedral Monday but the foundation did not say where he would be buried. ``The Silent World'' was the name of a documentary that won Cousteau the top award at the Cannes film festival in 1956. The film was made with skindiving gear he invented together with engineer Emile Gagnan in 1943, freeing divers from heavy helmets and allowing them to float as if in space. Cousteau, who spoke English with a thick French accent, toured the world in the Calypso, a converted British minesweeper equipped with a marine laboratory. The Calypso sank in Singapore last year, and Cousteau's 52-year-old widow vowed to pursue his efforts to build a Calypso II to be ``the planet's look-out for the next 50 years.'' Plans are ready for the 200-foot ship, equipped with the 85-foot-tall metal ``turbosails'' he invented. In his tribute, Chirac expressed ``great sadness'' at Cousteau's death. ``An enchanter has just left us,'' he said. ``On behalf of all our compatriots, I would like to express my admiration and gratitude to the family of the 'world's most famous Frenchman' for a life and work in the service of a cause.'' Jacques Cousteau Tribute from the VIRTUAL DOLPHIN WWW PAGE ========================================================== A Tribute to Jacques Cousteau Jacques-Yves Cousteau June 11, 1910 - June 25, 1997 We will miss him.... This page is to serve as a tribute to the life, the work and the spirit of Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Yesterday, June 25th, we learned the sad news of his passing and I thought it only appropriate to add something to the site in his memory. For many people who have never had the opportunity to experience the magic of the oceans, the voice of the sea spoke with a soft French accent. Growing up, Jacques Cousteau was everything I admired in a man. He has played a large part in my life - and one of the reasons I was "guided" to begin "The Virtual Dolphin Project". He knew that the children are our greatest treasures - through his life and example, he has inspired, and continues to inspire, many to follow in his footsteps. This is the gift of a truly gifted "teacher". ============================================ A Review of "The John Denver Collection" By Henry Smiley and Rory Young ============================================ "The John Denver Collection", newly released by Delta Music under the LaserLight Digital label, is a hearty, healthy, five-CD anthology that includes all of John's WindStar Recordings. The album is a welcome addition to John's albums, even though it comes during a noticeable point in the singer's career when the only US releases seem to be re-compilations of earlier works. This compilation, while not perfect, still wonderfully delivers a few things that other compilations seem to have left out, such as exhilarating acoustical mastering, an overall feeling of a good JD album, and -- most of all -- the believable sense of a collective theme. The collection *IS* all of the WindStar recordings. All of the songs previously released on the WindStar label are here (including a few released only on a Christmas Television Special). There is one new track, by the way, which has never been heard publicly, before ("In A Far Away Land", on the "Calypso" Collection). Additionally, John has performed here some songs from his earlier albums, which allows us to hear them in a familiar, mature 1980's/1990's John Denver voice. The Collection consists of five CDs, each named after some of John's more popular songs ("Take Me Home, Country Roads", "Annie's Song", "Rocky Mountain High", "Sunshine On My Shoulder" [That's the spelling on the collection's cover.], and "Calypso"). With the exception of the Collection "Annie's Song", each CD's Title Track is first ("Annie's Song" is second, behind "WindSong"). What's appealing is that each CD is equally full of sound, all having just over forty minutes of music. All of the songs have that familiar "WindStar" orchestral look and feel to them, which does make one yearn for an "un-plugged" album. One of the artistic qualities about the Collection is the way the songs are arranged. Instead of releasing the tracks in a format similar to the way they originally debuted, Delta has instead dutifully mixed the tracks in a way so as to allow each CD to contain a healthy mix of both new and old songs. This is a blessing, because all of the tracks are John's newer voice, and listeners will have a wonderful time listening to the ways in which John sings the old favorites. For example, "Eagle & The Hawk", "Eclipse", "Rocky Mountain Suite", and "Windsong", are included here, with both the band and John performing them in wonderfully new ways, and, in some cases, new arrangements. Most notable and outstanding is "Eclipse", which deserves a medal for actually delivering a powerful rendition, every bit as wonderful as the original. Equally appealing is "Rocky Mountain Suite". Songs like "The Marvelous Toy" help to round out, and give an applauding touch to the whole Collection. "Rocky Mountain High", however, received mixed reviews when Rory asked people to review it. Some praised it, liking it's clarity, flanging, and serene background percussion. Others thought it wasn't as good as the original, pointing out that the original contained a bit more "wildness" in the vocals. The same is evident in "To The Wild Country", where the original's crescendoing rush while John sang the title's namesake lyric gave it a wild, young feeling. In this track, the background only helps to give it a cushion to sit on. Indeed, it's a more laid back, older John Denver that we're hearing, now, backed by an orchestra, watered down percussions, and limited stringed instruments. "Islands", also, seems a bit too "canned"; it has nothing of the original's vocal loneliness, powerful percussions, or background vocals that made the original track outstanding. It's good, but not as good as the original. Maybe that's the problem: John's original work is so good that some of the reproductions have to work twice as hard! Don't lose faith, however. This Collection is very good. With many outstanding tracks, this Collection will give you hours of entertainment. While you're listening to the CD's, take time to read the inside of the CD cover inserts. They include some great achievements in John's career. One of the good things about Delta's new Collection is the fact that it includes all of the tracks from the now hard to find "Different Directions" CD. This had to be one of John's most diverse albums; much like all of his late 1980's albums! If you've never heard "The Foxfire Suite", originally from "Different Directions", then you *ARE* definitely missing out on John Denver. It is simply one of John's finest songs, ever. It truly is a nine minute tribute to some of the finest things in life. "In A Far Away Land" is the only totally new John Denver track, although the song itself isn't. The song, written by Luo Bin Wang, is sung by John on the cd called Calypso. This song is a traditional Chinese folk song, written by Luo Bin Wang, who spent over the last forty plus years of his life studying the songs and lifestyles of the peoples in the Qing Hai region of China, an area that is similar to PrairieLands and GrassLands. In this particular region, the Zhang people live a nomadic life, raising such livestock as goats and sheep. Luo Bin Wang is considered the King of Chinese Folk/Country songs. He wrote over 100 songs and has helped to preserve and to promote a very special part of China's social culture. He died in the late 1980's, but his music still lives, today. He will always be highly respected in China, and John couldn't have epitomized a better artist or song to sing, than this particular one. There appear to be many more stanzas to "In A Far Away Land", although John only sings one. In addition, the song seems to be well-known to the Chinese people. John's rendition appears to be somewhat humorous, lending both an austere and comical breath. From what those fluent in Chinese say, John does a great job of singing in Chinese. Although interpretations of a foreign song fail to show the nuances or mannerisms of a particular piece, the lyrics to "In A Far Away Land" are presented, below, in an attempt to show the overall meanings of the tune. "There is a nice, pretty girl, in a far away land." "When people pass by her tent, they always stop and take a double-glimpse." "I wish I can be a young lamb, running towards you, until I am by your side" "I wish her narrow quirt always whips me gently." The collection does have some difficulties, though most of them are minor. One of the most annoying problems lies with a recording flaw with Track 6, of "Annie's Song". About a minute and a half into "A Country Girl In Paris", the right channel fails on John's vocals and the guitar for about six seconds. These are all but inaudible when listening to speakers, but are easy to spot while listening to headphones. Another esthetic problem is with the cover photos on each CD. They were clearly all done from the same photo shoot; the pseudo art-graphics work is appreciated, but it doesn't totally work. Although it's not perfect, "The John Denver Collection" is an excellent reminder than John has written and recorded some excellent music since leaving RCA in 1986. Also, this is an outstanding chance for JD collectors to hear some rare and unreleased material from his "Montana Christmas Skies" TV special. Laserlight is to be commended for making this set available for such an affordable price. Hopefully, this will be the beginning of a long relationship between John and Delta Music. --------------------------------------------- C O N C E R T R E V I E W S --------------------------------------------- JOHN DENVER @ Villa Montalvo, June 22, 1997 =========================================== The morning of June 22, 1997 started off as a hot one and by the afternoon it was warm with a nice breeze. We (my husband, Paris and I) arrived at the West Valley College parking lot at 1:45 p.m. to board the free shuttle bus that would take us up to the Villa Montalvo grounds located in the quaint little town of Saratoga, California (5 minutes from San Jose, CA). It is a beautiful site where a public park and arboretum are also located. The concert started promptly at 4 p.m. with John coming on stage looking fit and tanned. He opened with "Take Me Home, Country Roads". He was dressed in black cowboy boots, jeans, 70's style printed shirt, gold/jade neck chain, turquoise belt, shades and 'the earring'. In the first set he did 13 songs (I have a list if anyone needs to know what they were!) and then after a 15 minute break he came back to do another 11 songs. John seemed to really enjoy himself in this beautiful outdoor atmosphere! He seems so 'at home' among trees, birds, and other wildlife; it suits him well. His voice cracked on several songs and he apologized for being tired and 'too old' to be doing this night after night. For a man who will be 54 in 6 months... I think he looks absolutely GREAT! John loves to hear the audience sing on the choruses of his songs, we did it well! We were privileged to have had 'the band' (Pete, Alan, etc.) accompany him, although I have seen John perform solo in the past. I think he enjoys the company of the guys while on the road. It was my 19th John Denver concert and every few years when I do get to see him perform 'live' I am ever grateful. Thank you John for 'the gift YOU are', as always, it was so FAR*OUT seeing you again! Take care on the road, my friend. Eve & Paris ********************************************* Re: CALIFORNIA CONCERTS From: XDYG58A@prodigy.com (Charles & Barbara White) All 3 concerts were terrific with Wente Bros. being our favorite. John sounded great and so did the band. We all put on a lot of miles in a short period of time but it was worth it. The concert at Kelseyville was a drive and a beautiful location - it was definitely off the road. It was hard to figure how the bus made some of the turns! The song list was similar to the other shows with a few changes, like closing songs, "This Old Guitar", "Perhaps Love" and the last "A Song For All Lovers". We had hoped for "The Wings that Fly Us Home" but it didn't happen, oh well we'll just have to go to another concert to see if we can hear it! Barb & Charlie - - - - - - - - - - - From: Mike Jones Subject: JD concert - Jacksonville My family and I saw John in Jacksonville last night, and it was a really great concert. His voice is better than ever, and he sang a good selection of songs. The ones we really liked were "Darcy Farrow" (which I haven't heard for years), "For You", "Annie's Song", "Rocky Mountain High", "Home on the Range", and "Calypso" (which he probably sang in remembrance of Jacques Cousteau, who passed away a couple days ago). He also sang "Johnny B. Goode", which our kids really liked, because they remembered it on the first Back to the Future movie. Anyway, it was a really fun night. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - From: Kaye Rains Subject: Concert review Dear Emily, I am still on my own Rocky Mtn. High from the JD concerts in Jacksonville 6/26 and 6/27. The town and people were wonderful and so friendly, I am trying to figure out how to move there! Both concerts were great, under the stars at the Britt Festival Amphitheater. Standing in line waiting for the concert to begin, we were only about 20 feet from the stage. John came out the first night about 5 p.m. and did 30 minutes of warmup. He looked tanned and rested. When we started cheering for him, he grinned at us and said, "Oh yeah, that was real good, wasn't it?" We just cheered louder. We were so lucky to be able to sit right in front, about 10 feet from JD. I have never been so close, it was very exciting. It was about 2 hours until the concert started, but I could not eat the picnic supper we had packed, I was so tense. JD and his band came on with no introduction, and he launched into a string of hits, "For Baby", "For You", "Take Me Home Country Roads", "Back Home Again", "Rhymes and Reasons", "Toledo Ohio" "Get Your Tongue Out of My Mouth", "Wild Montana Skies", "Boy From the Country", "Today", "Mother Nature's Son", "Foxfire Suite" - before taking a short intermission. Then "Rocky Mtn High", "Annie's Song" "Eagles and Horses", "Sunshine On My Shoulders" (he did not sing this the second night), "Calypso", and his encore both nights was a rocking rendition of "Johnny Be Goode". His band was really cooking on this one, and the crowd absolutely loved it. We were whooping and hollering, singing and dancing. The people at Britt were more demonstrative and appreciative than we usually get at places like the more austere Rose Garden or auditorium settings. This is how JD should be seen. Anyone there not already a fan certainly was by the time they left! A very special moment came the second night when after the first encore, JD came out alone in the spotlight (it was dark by this time), and introduced a new song he said he had recently written in tribute to his great friend, Jacques Cousteau, called Blue Water World ("beautiful, beautiful, beautiful blue water world...."). If there was a dry eye in the house, I did not see it. JD had tears in his eyes, and the crowd gave him his third standing ovation of the evening. We were so high we floated back down the hill to a local restaurant, where several people from the concert began filtering in. We ended up shoving all our tables together and talking and reminiscing about JD and other times we had seen him. What a wonderful time we all had, and I couldn't help thinking that JD would have felt right at home, and been delighted to know how much he brought to all our lives that evening. We exchanged names, phone numbers and addresses with more than one person who invited us to stay with them in Jacksonville whenever we wanted. I said, if they have JD back, we will most certainly be there, too. Apparently, JD and some band members like Pete Huttlinger were taken flyfishing on our beautiful Rogue River on Friday before the concert, and JD said what a nice area this was to play in, and that he hoped to be invited back again some time. Needless to say, our thoughts all echoed his. Everything surrounding our two days seemed like it was charmed and preordained to be absolutely wonderful. I can't help thinking that the magic JD brought with him extended to us and our sojourn to Jacksonville, Oregon. We also met Marie and Beverly, two obsessed JD fans who have been to over 30 of his concerts. Marie was at the taping of the Wildlife Concert, and had wonderful pictures of JD and his band to share with us. I could go on forever and never fully express how special this experience was to me. I hope to see all of these people again and share our common love and experiences with JD. A very special feeling followed us out of the Rogue River Valley on Saturday as we left that beautiful spot nestled in the shadow of Mt. McLoughlin, and a piece of my heart will remain on the Britt Festival hillside forever. Thank you, thank you, thank you - I will never forget these two days. Peace, Kaye Rains <*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*><* From: DAVE & DEBI POHTO Subject: Concert in Jacksonville, Oregon - 6/26/97 I wanted to let you know that three of us drove from north of Spokane, WA to Jacksonville, Oregon on 6/26 for John's concert there - 675 miles each way and worth every minute....it was in a beautiful outdoor concert site and while standing in line we could hear him inside practicing, testing the sound system, etc. It was apparent that he'd had a lot of concerts recently, a little hoarse now and then, but still sounding like a million bucks. The encore consisted of his own rendition of "Johnny B Good" and "A Song for All Lovers". Thanks again for doing the newsletter...Debi P. ======================================================== J O H N D E N V E R N O T E S / W A N T A D S ======================================================== From: Christine Egli Subject: JD Tour, Australia Dear Emily, I have just been advised by our Promoters that John's 1997 tour in Australia has been canceled. Apparently, he has too many other commitments and can't fit in a tour of Australia this year. There is a possibility that he will tour Australia next year instead. The Promoters have promised to contact me as soon as they have any further information. Peace, Christine. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - N E W A R R I V A L S........ Alexandria Dawn Holthaus - Linda & David June 12 5:26 AM 8lb. 8 oz Jason Hosea Myers 7 lbs. 13 oz. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Becky Hinson, the P.R. Director at the Ritz Carlton in Aspen, CO reports that the February 4th concert there is a private concert. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - From: The Virtual Dolphin Project To: emily@sky.net / Subject: You have received an award from The Virtual Dolphin Project Dearest Emily, Love your John Denver page! I am awarding your site with The Virtual Dolphin Project's Award for Web Excellence. Keep up the wonderful work! Dolphin Dreams~~~~~Claudia Bartoli Executive Director for The Virtual Dolphin Project - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - From: Rick Loggins Subject: John Denver Concert in Wallingford, CT We (my girlfriend and I) are chartering a bus to go to John's concert in Wallingford, Connecticut and are offering space for others to go. We got tickets for the best seats in the theatre and plan to give door prizes as we go. We live in Barre, Vermont, about 225 miles from Wallingford. Please call or email if you would like to go: (802) 479-1308. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - From: Kee Subject: CDs and LPs and then some...... I found a place on the net that you might find of interest....GEMM is an open, competitive marketplace for music in which you can conveniently search and browse more than 1,480,000 new and used CDs, LPs, and memorabilia and place orders directly with over 900 retailers, collectors and labels around the world! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - From: Paula Subject: "JD - Live with the Boston Pops" Does anyone have a tape or video of "John Denver Live with the Boston Pops"? ============================================ JOHN DENVER CONCERT SCHEDULE =========================================== July 24, 1997 Beverly, MA July 26, 1997 Hyannis, MA July 27, 1997 Cohasset, MA July 30, 1997 Vienna, VA July 31, 1997 Holmdel, NJ Aug 1, 1997 Wallingford, CT Aug 3, 1997 Canandaigua, NY Aug 5, 1997 Saratoga Springs, NY Sept. 20, 1997 Baltimore, MD Sept 26-28, 1997 Houston, TX November 1, 1997 Toronto, Canada (venue unknown) May 15-16, 1998 Minneapolis, MN For more detailed info write to and ask for "concert.txt". I'm sorry that there were a number of reviews, articles & stories that I didn't have room for in this issue of the newsletter. I'll put them on the www page or add them to an upcoming issue of the newsletter. Thank you to all the people who provided articles. :-) Emily ************************************************************* Rocky Mountain High: The John Denver Internet Fan Club emily@sky.net http://www.sky.net/~emily July 1997 * Issue #39 * Editor: Emily M. Parris *************************************************************