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 M A R C H 1 9 9 5 V E E R Newsletter written by: Emily Parris emily@sky.net R ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TABLE OF CONTENTS March 1995 JOHN DENVER IN NEW YORK CITY Comments by Patty Peavey (Prodigy).............. 2 Comments by Gary Wolf (Compuserve/GEnie)........ 3 Comments by Emily Parris (Skynet)............... 3 Colors, CHords & the Views of an Eagle by Charles Bennett (America Online)........ 4 Zadina Associates Press Release Riddled With Misinformation........................ 6 John Denver News................................... 7 alt.fan.john-denver............................. 7 IRC Channel: #JOHNDENVER........................ 7 Status Report...................................... 8 Poetry Corner: "Of Your Smile" and "Like A Family".............. 8 John Denver Convention in Colorado................. 9 (Summer 1994) - a report by Inge Kaminski TAKE TWO by Gary Wolf.............................10 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Your comments, suggestions, poetry, prose, reviews of concerts, reviews of John's Autobiography, articles, news, etc. are all requested. Please send anything you would like to share to "emily@sky.net". Or if you find an article in your local newspaper about John mail it to me: Emily Parris, P.O. Box 3333; Kansas City, Kansas 66103; or fax it to me (816) 531-2271 (with an email telling me you are faxing it); or just type it into text and send it via email. Thanks! JOHN IN NYC: If you have any more comments about or reviews of John's concert in NYC please send then to me via email. If you need Back Issues of the Newsletter, have friends or relatives who would like to receive the Newsletter, have a JD question, a change of email address, etc., Please write! JOHN DENVER IN NEW YORK CITY Taping of "The Wildlife Concert" 2/23/95 & 2/24/95 ================================================== From: Patty Peavey Subject: Denver, John in NYC Hi everyone, We're back from the great NY adventure!! Had a wonderful time and wished we had another day to sightsee & explore a little more. The taping was fantastic!! I think it's about as close as we will ever get to having JD in our living rooms! He was very intimate with the audience, especially the first evening. Friday night there were more VIP's there, so things weren't quite as relaxed. During the breaks when they had to change tapes or work on the sound, people would ask questions from their seats and John would answer them and talk to us. He seemed to be in a very good mood and he looked great. He's trim and thin and clean-shaven. The outcome of this taping will be a 2 hour show on A&E, scheduled for June 18 for the first showing. It will probably be on several times. There will be a 2 set CD released around the 1st of June or shortly after. There will be merchandise available (t-shirts, sweatshirts, etc., I assume) from the event. It will be sold on the TV shopping channel, QVC, and probably also in a Sony Signature catalog like some of us have received in the past. It all sounds very exciting and the Sony representative talked about getting John "out there" more than he has been. The TV program will be titled "John Denver, The Wildlife Concert". Oh, they also said there would be a video for sale sometime, too. One of the questions asked John was "What happened to Walking Thunder?" His reply was, "I don't know, what did happen to Walking Thunder?" Someone said they heard it was shown on TV in England!! We about froze standing in line to get in both nights for 2-3 hours--Thursday it was raining and Friday it was very windy & cold--but it was worth it and if I had to sum it up, I'd say it was a once in a lifetime chance to see something like that. I met a lot of friends, both old & new, and I think all had a great time overall. One of the good laughs we had was when John was trying to get a guitar in tune and the sound booth asked over the loudspeaker, "John, would you check your G-string please?". The audience immediately broke out in yells and laughter. After things quieted down they said, "On your guitar". To which John replied "I'll get you back for that."! Just a sample of the kind of thing that went on. Love, Patty Some Comments on the NYC tapings from G.Wolf: ============================================ A member of our party got all choked up on John's new song "For Old Lovers". That kinda got me misty too. I thought his singing was better than ever and his guitar playing is as good as his younger years when he was known as an excellent guitar player and writer. The man can play acoustic guitar accompaniements better than most players and writes beautiful music both aesthetically and technically. Since the people I was with all play guitar we each learned a little from watching the technical side of how the show was done. The different tunings that John used on his guitars, the keys he played in (the capo positions on the fretboard) and the position of the microphones and the EQ on the instruments was fascinating for us. James Burton was a real treat playing the two resonator guitars. He's sixty plus years old and can still out-play most if not all the sidemen in the business. John seemed real, happy, and human Friday night. He was much more relaxed than Thursday. He is very much a real guy living a full life that seems like fantasy to us but in reality is no better in human terms than what we make of our own environments. I hope all the people saw that Henry John Deutschendorf is a real human being and not a fantasy or demi god type figure. He WORKED both nights at his craft just like we do at ours. He makes people feel good with his music. I hope people saw that John was working. He did seven takes on one song because it had to be right. He fought with guitars and guitar strings all night so that the recording would be as near to perfect as possible. My son commented that JD tuned so fine nobody could hear the difference and that we never have to tune like that at a show. I reminded him that we were having fun and JD was WORKING to make it perfect. JD did a fantastic job with the audience and with the music! He is still the best for me at what he does. G. Wolf Comments on the NYC Taping - by Emily Parris ============================================== Once we actually got to our seats, it was an absolute joy to see John in such a relaxed setting. Between songs he talked naturally and flashed that famous smile and it was almost surreal to have him so close and talking to us so informally between songs. His singing was perfect and when something went wrong - - better yet - - we got to hear the song all over again. He sang his heart out and on the first night it was magical and entrancing to be so close and see him being himself. We were privy to all the wonderful backstage interruptions that we would usually never see and in one break John sang a funny new country song that will probably never be heard on the radio. As John explained it "Country songs often have titles that tell the whole song....songs like "You Dun Stomped on My Heart and You Mashed That Sucker Flat", or "If You Think You've Reached The Bottom, Just Look Down." Then he proceeded to sing his new song which is based on a book title he actually saw in a bookstore. What's the name of John's new song? It's....."Get Your Tongue Out of My Mouth Because I'm Kissing You Goodbye." He sang it with tongue in cheek and all the good-natured humor that such a song deserves. We all loved it. Another new song was called "I See Them Dancing" ("For Old Lovers"?). I'm sure it will be included in the concert and the 2-cd set. From memory...here is a list of some of the other songs that John sang: "Take Me Home, Country Roads", "Different Directions", "Annie's Song", "Calypso", "Leaving on a Jet Plane", "Back Home Again", "Eagles and Horses", "Bet On The Blues", "Hold On Tightly", "Shanghai Breezes", "I'd Rather Be A Cowboy", "Potter's Wheel", "The Harder They Fall", "Falling Out of Love", "Wild Montana Skies", "I Guess He'd Rather Be in Colorado", "Rocky Mtn High", "Rhymes and Reasons", "Sunshine On My Shoulders", "Dreamland Express", "Matthew", "Darcy Farrow" "Here's To Alaska" and "Poems, Prayers and Promises." On Thursday all the women in the audience got to sing backup on the song "Fly Away". Then all of us sang backup on John's new song "Is It Love." In a surprise move on Friday John sang the Marty Robbins song "El Paso." Then he also sang another country song that he had written but I didn't catch the title of it. (Did anyone else?) I didn't think that Friday went as well as Thursday's taping. John had a lot of trouble with tuning and towards the end I sensed that he was very tired. A rumor had circulated that John would come out afterwards and talk to everyone in the audience personally but it turned out to be untrue. Apparently only the VIP's got to talk to John. Colors, Chords and the Views of an Eagle by Charles Bennett ============================================================ Stepping over bundles of video coaxial cable and the guide rails for dolly cameras, participants in the taping of JD's special for A&E knew how surrounded they were by the technology of tv as they made their way to 6 or 7 rows of fold-up chairs downstage. It made you feel like you were in competition with these newest of lenses on wheels, all intent - humans and machines alike - to see John and focus on his every expression. Two heavy looking cameras with large bases flanked the rear of the audience. Camera dollies pushed by technicians rode rails alongside each side of the audience and even made a turn at the 7th row to the middle. Moving backward they challenged the heavy cameras space there for a few minutes, then retreated forward for the next song's setup. For close-up views there was a hand-held mini-cam at stage right. The production value of the event could be seen only one way - on the crystal clear large screen monitor. In contrast to the tiny view-screens that cameramen used to move their cameras - most of which were b&w images - the monitor was beautiful color and on the second night I was sitting where I could see John live on the stage as well as in the monitor. Of course all the predictable light bars were hung overhead and rays of various colors flooded John, the piano, singer and band. The audience surely was too focused on John to notice any subtle differences in stage lighting. For my own part, viewing the scene directly, I saw nothing spectacular in either lighting or backdrop formed of fabric lined geometrical forms and fabric covered trees. To my surprise, however, I found a magical quality in the TV output on screen. Blues were a rich deep blue, yellow was a brilliant sunshine hue and the rest of the spectrum was equally beyond what I saw firsthand. The views centered on John and he stood out in full color and sharp detail like you could reach out and touch him. I glanced back and forth from the studio to the screen comparing reality and illusion, then it became apparent how the technicians were painting such artwork with their electronic paintbrushes. You, too, can look forward to the release of the video and the showing of the concert on A&E. They did a beautiful job with all their array of cameras mixed skillfully to fade in and out, highlight this and glide to that, all without detracting from the performance. In the monitor John appeared in brilliant color while the background was faded to black and white. Readers will just have to see the video and concert for themselves to see how fine a job the Sony crew did. The experience humbled me. Here I was seeing it all for myself and I was close enough to see every move John made and every expression on his face. But my eyes could not match the optics in the TV cameras. My eyes saw colors. My ears heard John's chords, but I just couldn't swoop down and skim over the heads of the audience to approach John within 2 feet as Sony's boom camera could. I know what I saw was a real time edit from the control room, but for whatever a novice's opinion amounts to, I felt the sweat and energy and inspiration John put into this taping was well captured and even enhanced by such a truly artistic medium. The director and technicians deserve recognition for presenting John and his music in such a beautiful way. In their own way the director and his technical staff are themselves artists. They are artists interpreting artists. John's talent has been showcased time after time in the same TV medium as this but here he is teamed with real motion picture industry artists who know all the hues and shades they can light up their screens with. Be proud for John that he gave them so much to work with. Despite all the kleig lights in the world, a lesser talent would have remained a black and white image. John came through in living color. Zadina Associates Press Release Riddled With Misinformation =========================================================== by Emily M. Parris One unfortunate part of the concert was the fact that the official "Press Release" from Zadina Associates contained so much misinformation. The date, the time and the address were correct but almost everything else was false. This was particularly unfortunate for those fans who spent a lot of money to come to the concert from out of town. The Press Release said "Congratulations! You have been identified as a special friend of John Denver" but in fact only persons with a VIP pass were treated as such. Although the Press Release said we would be told whether we had "guaranteed seats", it turned out that we did not and instead had to wait in line for hours in the rain the first night and in 20 degree cold the next night not knowing all the while whether we would get in. The Press Release said "Priority seating will be given to those fans who can attend both nights." This was incorrect. The reverse was true! On the second night everyone who had NOT attended the night before was ushered in first while the fans who had previously agreed to come both nights stood out in the cold. Some waited for up to 4 hours and everyone who had attended Thursday's performance ended up at the back of the room for Friday's performance. So Priority seating was NOT given to fans who attended both nights. Priority seating was apparently based on wealth and prestige rather than a "first-come; first-served" basis as the Press Release had claimed. Even people coming from as far away as Europe did not get VIP treatment and fans who had travelled from other places in the U.S. were given no recognition at all. Luckily John Denver's fans are patient, long-suffering and devoted. They got to New York. They waited in line and they persevered until they got a seat inside the auditorium. However, I would like to apologize for printing the Zadina Associates "Press Release" in my newsletter since so much of it was false. It was only later via email and comments from other members that an entirely different picture of the concert arrangements began to emerge. By then non-refundable tickets had been purchased and hotel rooms had been held by credit card. So it was too late to change any plans. I hope that the false "Press Release" from Zadina Associates didn't cause anyone undue hardship and that everyone who wanted to attend was successful in getting in the door. JOHN DENVER NEWS * John Denver will appear at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA. He is scheduled to perform in concert with the National Symphony Orchestra on June 15, 1995 at 8:15PM. Tickets can only be ordered by mail at this time. They'll go on sale by phone on March 26th. * The January/February issue of "American Photo" magazine has a photo and mention of John on p. 116. It says that he was on their TV show "American Photo Magazine Safari" last fall on ESPN. Usenet Newsgroup: alt.fan.john-denver ====================================== alt.fan.john-denver is alive and well but it may not be carried by your service provider. This issue of the newsletter is so packed with information that I don't have space to quote any of the actual messages. However, if you don't receive the newsgroup let me know and I'll send the messages to you via email. There has not been very much traffic on it so far. We need everyone to post in it so that we can keep it alive. One very nice advantage of the newsgroup is that it has been bringing in new members at a very fast pace. They happen upon the group, see the message about our mailinglist and join whereas a JD post in some other newsgroup does not receive as much attention. IRC Channel: #JOHNDENVER ========================= If you like IRC stop by and talk on the #JOHNDENVER channel. If it's not active when you get there, just create it and wait for other members to join. Christopher Roberts is the IRC Coordinator. Why don't we set aside Saturday as the official #JOHNDENVER channel day? 7:00 PM Central - 8:00 PM Eastern - 5:00 PM Pacific. It could also be Saturday evening as it varies in time around the planet for members in other countries. Perhaps some of us can get together to chat live about John and to get to know each other better. =========================================================== ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH: The John Denver Internet Fan Club STATUS REPORT - March 1995 =========================================================== We now have 263 members. Two hundred thirty-two members are from the U.S.; 9 members from the U.K.; 8 from Canada; 3 each from Australia, Germany and New Zealand. Other countries represented with 1 member are Israel, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore and Sweden. In the U.S., the State of California leads the way with 26 members, Ohio is next with 14, New York has 12, Texas has 10 and New Jersey has 9 members. If you haven't sent back any information about where you live then you may not be included in these statistics. We are still looking for members in Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, North Dakota, New Mexico, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming. All the other States have at least one member and some as many as six. =========================================================== >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> POETRY CORNER <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< One of my favorite parts of the concert in New York was John's smile. I've been to a lot of concerts but I have seldom been close enough to see that smile after every song. On the way back to Kansas City on the Greyhound bus, I wrote this poem: OF YOUR SMILE Dedicated to John Denver By Emily M. Parris I've heard you sing songs from country to ballads I've loved you a very long while But one thing I'll cherish as long as I live Is the sweet, gentle warmth of your smile It's almost like sunshine the way that it shines For it fills me whenever it's there Sometimes it's expansive, as big as can be; Sometimes it's almost like a prayer You love singing songs and it's also quite clear That you love sharing love in a song When we give it back by singing each word You make us believe we belong Then after we're clapping and giving you praise Along comes the glow of your smile There's nothing - no nothing - that I'd rather do Than to just be with you for awhile Copyright 2/25/95 by Emily M. Parris LIKE A FAMILY by Emily M. Parris Dedicated to John Denver A legacy of beauty Is here in the songs he sings His songs are always filled with love Inspiration is what he brings John Denver inspires devotion His fans are loyal and true Patiently waiting for him To sing us a song that's new We live on every continent We come from so many places Our common denominator Is the love here on our faces For there in a song by John We see love shining through We share a hopeful vision We feel the love anew Like a family; united He brings us together to share The values in his lyrics The love that is always there Together with him we're sharing When we sing a Denver song He brings us to a peaceful place A place where we belong Copyright 3/3/95 by Emily M. Parris COLORADO WORLD JOHN DENVER CONVENTION SUMMER 1994 Last summer fans from all over the World gathered in Colorado a few days before the Windstar Symposium was to take place. Inge Kaminski (the President of Germany's "Music and Communication fan club) sent me a long report about it. What follows is an excerpt of that report: "There are dreams that stay with you for years. No, not even dreams, just vague imaginations, you know, these things that start with....'wouldn't it be wonderful if....'. Well, for me, for a long time, one of these imaginations has been 'wouldn't it be wonderful if one day John Denver fans from all over the world would come together in Colorado to get to know each other, to sing together, to just be there together where so many of John's songs come from? Impossible? Yes, it seemed so, but last summer the people from "Hearts in Harmony" took the courage to try and prove it was NOT impossible. And they were right. And imagine how excited I was when I found out that I wouldn't only be able to participate in the Windstar Symposium, but also to make this dream come true and be part of a world-wide John Denver fan convention in Colorado. That the event took place on my birthday was something more special for me. "We took the scenic route over Independence Pass to get to Frisco, CO, something I didn't want to miss for anything. When we were finally there, we got a warm welcome from Carol, Donna, Dottie, Mary, Rick, Dora, Jochen, Birgit and everybody. We ate something, talked a bit, enjoyed being together, signed a "Get Well Soon" card for John and it was so good to get a chance to talk to some people I had been writing to for I don't know how long. What would a Denver Day be without a sing along? Paul Mendoza, who had flown in from California with his guitars did a very good job. It was a truly International meeting. Along with us and the American people, there were people there from England and the Netherlands and where else did we ever have the chance to hear Birgit from Germany, along with Jennifer from Canada accompanied by Paul from California, sing "A Country Girl in Paris" in English and French?!?" [Note: If you would like to receive the entire report send email to "emily@sky.net" and I'll forward it to you. Ask for INGECONV.TXT] ---------------------------------------------------------- TAKE TWO by Gary Wolf ---------------------------------------------------------- John Denver appears to be in a career revival mode that hopefully will result in some new music and more visibility for us fans. The Upcoming A&E special recently taped in New York at Sony had some interesting twists that excited both the attending live audience and veteran John Denver watchers. This A&E special might just be the springboard to launch a John Denver career: Take Two. Sony Legacy has apparently signed John up for some albums. This will undoubtedly mean better promotion and radio air time for John's work. After John left RCA and started his own Windstar label only American Gramaphone's Chip Davis would give any promotional effort to the albums. "Higher Ground", "The Flower That Shattered The Stone","Christmas Like a Lullaby", and "Different Directions" all had concert tour promotion by John but received hardly any air time if any on radio stations and were scarcely available in the music stores. All of the albums suffered long delays getting into the market. They didn't sell well and I don't believe it was because the music was inferior or the production and packaging poor. It was because each album lacked marketing. Sony Legacy is a major label that will get John's albums properly marketed and showcased. Label change Take Two! Hooray!! John's mix of music for the two hour special indicated that he may be thinking about making albums with more universal appeal. John's singing voice has improved over the years and has become much richer and more full sounding. He has rearranged some of his popular love songs to take advantage of his improved voice. The new album coming out is loaded with John's best love songs and includes a new one (I hope it makes the album) that is absolutely magnificent. "For Old Lovers" is absolutely one of the most emotional and beautiful love songs he's ever done. The new album also has some novelty songs that are humorous, and some new cowboy ballads that I bet Joe Henry wrote the lyrics for. The point? No controversial or "preacher" type stuff like "What Are We Building Weapons For" or "Children of the Universe". John Denver fans have come to appreciate John's music with a message but in the general marketplace those songs often keep his music off the radio and cut down on acceptance by the public. Let's face it the sixties and early seventies are over for that kind of music on a big market basis. Because the album was done for the Wildlife Conservation Society the album has only Dave Mallet's song about wildlife and hunting. This song is used by lots of groups including the Friends of Animals here in New York and may have been a request of Wildlife Conservation. John in honing his music choices took advantage of his improved voice and the market's desire for songs that are lighter, happier, and less controversial. John Denver repertoire Take Two. Hmmm...... John is going back to more and fancier guitar playing. He has switched over to mostly Taylor guitars from the custom made one's he used to use. He added many more 12 string guitar arrangements than he used to do. He has gone back to featuring more of his guitar playing as an accompaniement and cut down on the strings and piano. He still has a wonderful string ensemble for some of the songs, and Jim Horn does some great work with his flutes and sax but John noticeably gets back to more guitar for both the new songs and the remakes of some of his older ones. If you can remember the "Rocky Mountain High" album and "Aerie" you'll get a mental picture of the change in his accompaniment from say the "Higher Ground" or "Dreamland Express" albums which were more heavily produced. John Denver Band Take Two! It's like being back home again.... Hooray. Lastly, John has chosen to redo his appearance. He is attempting to look a little more like other current performers and has modified the hair, started wearing a little make up, (and not just to prevent schvitzing on stage), and contemporized his dress to change his image to a more contemporary and conservative look. He smiled more on stage, was more personal in his stage banter and looked a little more emotional when he was singing. My friend's mom noticed the subtle changes. John Denver Stage appearance Take Two! Pat says yea!!! John is getting ready for a second round in his career. I can hardly wait! For more information on John call the Rocky Mountain High BBS (816) 753-2477 9600 Baud/24 hours ********************************* ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH The John Denver Internet Fan Club March 1995 - - - Issue #11 emily@sky.net *********************************