Music, to me, is the gift that keeps on giving. In that spirit, and on this note of talking up Ellis Paul, I'll share a recent example of doing just that. About a month or so ago, we journeyed east about an hour to the land of John Gorka's people, New Jersey. The occasion was a special one, a house concert with Eliot Morris and let me just say that after years of fandom I was thrilled to have the opportunity to see him live in concert, at last!
When the day finally arrived and as we were preparing to leave the house for our journey into unknown territory I thought to myself that we simply can't show up empty handed. I enlisted the help of my mother in law, who was staying with us at the time and going with us to the concert, to put together a gift basket for the concert hosts. I mean you can show up to these things empty handed, but something told me no, you would feel better all around if you showed up with something in hand for the hosts.
A bottle of wine, sure, that was a no brainer. But so typical. What can I bring to help convey the magnitude of my appreciation at the chance these kind folks were giving me to finally see Eliot Morris in concert. Well, the answer, to me, was obvious and immediate. Music. Again, a real no brainer.
We put together a really nice gift basket that included not one, but two bottles of wine, and 3 CDs. That's right, 3 CDs. I was hoping for impact with the basket, and these folks were thrilled beyond compare at our graciousness. To me it was but a token of appreciation for what they were giving me. Now to the music included in the basket. Simple, some Ellis Paul. I had picked up 5 copies of Essentials at Eddie's Attic in Decatur last November and had one copy left. So that went in the basket. Next was a new copy of Antje Duvekot's Big Dream Boulevard. What I knew about this couple was next to nothing other than they were fans of Counting Crows and Eliot Morris. These folks knew good music when they heard it and i was almost sure I was introducing them to artists they'd never heard before. I threw in a copy of Bret Mosley's CD to round out the basket just because I was talking up Bret Mosley to everybody I could at the time and had copies to spare.
They were just the nicest couple and family you'd ever want to meet. The kids were working merch the moment you walked in the door and it was just a superb evening of music and community. When they saw the basket they smiled, and when they saw that it contained music, they smiled even wider. "Ooooh, music, too!!," I remember her saying with joy. I got the chance to talk up the music of Ellis and Antje and Brett. Later, at the break, one of their good friends inquired about the basket which sat atop the kitchen counter area bar. He talked about how they share a beach house during summers and when there often listen to and talk music for hours. How they are always looking for good new music to listen to. He asked about the artists in the gift basket with the ear of someone, to me, who was being let in on a hot tip for a stock that showed lots of potential. We decided then and there he would learn all he needed to, and soon!
So talking up Ellis Paul comes pretty easy for me, and in this case, being able to gift a copy of Ellis Paul's music allowed me to put my money where my mouth is...so to speak. So my advice to all of you who already own all of Ellis' music on CDs or however you buy it, it's always nice to have an extra copy or two handy for that time when you just might want to let Ellis do the talking for you!
Now, it is my sincere hope to see these folks somewhere down the road at an Ellis Paul concert. In fact, the concert they hosted in their home had me thinking that it was the perfect setting for an Ellis Paul concert.
