Keller & King Quotes

Two people from whom you can usually find a nice quote are Helen Keller and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Helen Keller said:

The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of tiny pushes of each honest worker.

A nice thought. It is also a line in a Serapis song.

Martin Luther King, Jr. said:

It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me, but it can stop him from lynching me, and I think that's pretty important.

My favorite King quote is:

Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars... Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

Christmas 2008

Take a few minutes and drive to Main Street, in Saint Charles. At the corner of First Capitol Drive and Main Street is Berthold Park, site of the City Christmas Tree - a beautiful tree donated generously by Eugene and Suzanne Carroll. The tree stands nearly as tall as the 3-story Lewis and Clark's Restaurant.

I'm not good at estimating sizes - but I'd guess it's around 600 feet tall. See a slide show of the tree-raising at http://www.historicstcharles.com/

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When I was around 10 yrs old, about 1969, I remember being at midnight mass on Christmas Eve at St. Robert's Catholic church in St. Charles, MO. My parents were involved with the choir; my father was the conductor - despite being a Lutheran.

This particular mass, for some reason had a special feel. The church was so pretty, the music sounded wonderful, and, heck, it was Christmas Eve. For some reason the songs of the choir sounded extra beautiful that night. More than just the standard Christmas-feel of the songs, they seemed to ring beautifully in the night. One woman sang "O, Holy Night" - and it sounded so beautiful, the notes were so clear and perfect that I decided right then, that this was my new favorite Christmas song.

When mass was finished, I asked my mom who was singing that song, because it sounded so pretty. She said "Don't you know who that was?" I replied that I did not, she said "That was me"

I always knew that my mom had a beautiful voice, but it was that night that I heard the music through new ears. I heard the beautiful song, and the beautiful performance, and then found out who the singer was. That night raised my mother a notch in the eyes of a Christmas-awed little boy, and put "O, Holy Night" forever at the top of my favorite Christmas song list, where it remains today.

Happy Christmas from Serapis!

More Sphinctor Sheldon

Further…

• It was a terrific night for the Colin Sphinctor cd release party. The cd, titled "The Colin Sphinctor Band" (though some were referring to it as simply "The Brown Album")
• Carol Eder provided a stunningly refreshing jazz guitar improvisation as a prologue to “Tucumcari Tonight”
• It was also a celebration of Brain Sandwich mayhem, brought about through the hard work of Mike Madonna. Thanks Mike. Check out the Brain Sandwich stuff at http://brainsandwich.bravehost.com/
• Mark and Judy Moebeck highlighted their thespianic talents.
• Jay Schober was on hand, helping to Stomp Rats – figuratively, of course.
• The entire evening was captured through the photographic wizardry of Mike Bizelli. Look for pictures soon.

Old friends were there, new friends were there, and we enjoyed seeing them all.

And, dude - it was The Sheldon.

The Colin Sphinctor Band at The Sheldon Concert Hall

You would think…

You would think that playing at the legendary Sheldon Concert Hall would be a noteworthy event in any musical career. After all, it is acclaimed worldwide for its perfect acoustics. The classic setting has been host to performances such as Dave Brubeck, Doc Watson, Bela Fleck, Al DiMeola, Crosby & Nash, David Grisman, and far too many others to mention in this small space.

You would think the sound system to be professionally manned, and sound to be in peak form.

You would expect that the performers would be excited and eager to play.

You would be correct on all counts.

The folks at the Sheldon could not have been nicer – or more professional. Sarah in Marketing, Tim the sound guy, Dale Benz – Operations Manager, all went out of their way to make sure that everything was exactly as it should be. As a musician – whether you are Bonnie Raitt, or The Colin Sphinctor Band, this is all you can ask for.

Thanks mostly to all of the folks that came to share the fun.

Recaps and Things

Okay - first of all, this is so way past due that the teacher probably won't even give me partial credit.

Acknowledged.

Moving on - let's recap a few exciting things that happened this summer.

Serapis in Concert - Live at Bum's Hollow: This is such a cool place to see a show. It has been used as a natural amphitheater since the turns of two centuries. Turn that into a sentence and diagram it.

The weather was beautiful, the crowd was great. Dave Cheli, of Tribal Chicken and The Little Hills Jazz Quartet, sat in on sax, everyone had a great time. Playing for the home town - there's nothing like it.

Near the end of the summer, Serapis kicked the summer tour into high gear with a swing through Shelbyville, KY. This is one of the most beautiful parts of the country - and the Saddle Horse capitol of America. We were thrilled to provide entertainment for the wedding of Toni Knight and Mark Utoft, studs of the American Saddle Horse world. (not "studs" literally, of course)

Through an unfortunate, last-minute turn of events, Bob was unable to make the show, so Todd threw his drums in the truck, and off we set. When we arrived, as luck would have it, approximately 29 people had friends...whose brother played drums...

Fortunately, Mark the groom had a friend, Mark Mayo - an outstanding drummer who would be in attendance, so Mark convinced him bring his stick bag. Honestly, when he arrived you could tell he was a player, so it was nice to have him sit in for the night without haveing to worry if he could follow along. He did an outstanding job. Thanks, Mark. And Mark.

While there, we took a quick jaunt to Lexington to hear guitarist extraordinaire, Ben Lacy. We first heard Ben play at The Sheldon Theater with Al DiMeola. Ben was a very gracious host, and we enjoyed talking with him, and hearing him play. Ben Lacy is a guitar monster.

Then come Octoberfest in Saint Charles. Serapis on the Main Stage. Oddly, it was the end of September, and not November. Again - showing off for the home town. Sound guys were very good, and did a great job of making us sound good. Props and a large kudo to Scott Kanne. Brian Moskop, of QuikTrip reknown was in attendance with his stunning wife, Ruby. Brian is a whiz at presidential trivia. Name a year - he'll tell you who was president.

Up next - Colin Sphinctor Band cd release party at The Sheldon Concert Hall on November 11, 2008.

Serapis at Bum's Hollow

Don't forget the big show at Bum's Hollow, in Blanchette Park , St. Charles.

We're really excited about this one, as it is a great opportunity revive the natural amphitheater as a concert showcase location.

Serapis at Bum's Hollow, June 21, 8pm
http://www.iloveserapis.com

Mount Pleasant Winery 08

Kicked off the 2008 Mt Pleasant season. Mt. Pleasant is one of Missouri's premier wineries, and it sits atop a bluff overlooking the Missouri river valley.

The only thing that kept the temperature from getting unbearable, was the unbelievable wind.

It was a good season opener for us.

The Bizellis stopped for a visit - Beno and Mary, Mike and Kay. The Bizellis are Saint Charles OG. Joining them were Mike and Debbie Hall. Mary and Mike are pretty old skool SC, too. In St. Charles, Bizelli means photography. (In Peers, MO, it makes catfish nervous.)

Annnnnnnnnnnd.................. It was Beno who knew the correct answer to the question about June Cleaver's maiden name(Bronson).

A new question...maybe Gilligan's Island. Ask about names of the two astronauts who flew over over the island, and the flaming log fiasco.

Other assorted Mt. Pleasantries abounded.

Pause ll