I want to be able to spend my days in leisure with my wife, our friends and family.  I want to never worry about money again.  I want a Great Dane.  I want to see my extended family more often.  I want to hang out with my friends more often.  I want to finish recording my new album.  I want to play a ton of shows.  I want to re-design this website.  I want to design t-shirts and stickers for sale.

I need to do a lot of things too, as all of us do.  I need to eat, drink, and provide shelter for myself and my family.  To do this I need to work at a good job.  I need to clean house, I need to shop.  I need to get my oil changed.  I need to do the laundry.  I need to finish school.

Somewhere between these two things, between the Wants and the Needs, are the things I actually get done.  I will never have everything I want and that’s fine, I don’t think I or anyone else should ever have everything they want, it’s not healthy or fair.  I get to do a great deal of things I want to, and one of those things right this moment is working on a new album.  A lot of work is already done but there’s still a lot more to do.  I’m also playing a few shows here and there, I know it’s sparse, but one only has so much time.

I hope to keep you in the loop about the recording process, I’m really excited about some of the stuff that’s going on and I hope you will be too.  Thanks for the continued support you give me by coming to shows, listening to my music online, telling your friends about my music, and just sending happy thoughts my way.  Hope you’re all having a wonderful 2012 so far, see you soon,

-loren

-loren

Or maybe people were right when they told me as a kid that time seems to slip by faster the older you get!  And I am getting older.

Either way, I’ve got just enough time for one more show before the New Year hits us, it’s tonight the 29th in fact!  I’m playing at the San Luis Obispo Farmer’s Market tonight on Chorro Street from 6:30 to 8:30 pm.  It’s free, fun, and unseasonably warm, should be a good night!  Thanks a lot for checking in, see you tonight,

-loren

Merry Christmas

-loren

I honestly believe that I’ve saved the best for last with this week’s offerings.  The songs are John Lennon’s classic “Happy Christmas (War is Over)” and an original tune (written by yours truly) called “It’s Christmas Time“.

Happy Christmas has been one of my favorite Christmas songs since I heard it, and I’ve only grown to like it more since then.  I really hope you enjoy my interpretation.  My brother once more provided the exceptional artwork, those two kids on the art are representations of two very real people, can you guess who?

As for “It’s Christmas Time“, well, it’s my first and so far only original Christmas song.  There are a lot of facets to Christmas and I’m a big fan of most of them.  I tried to let that come across in this song, I hope it conjures up memories of pleasant times for you like it does for me.

So that’s it, the entire album “It’s Christmas Time” is out there for you to download for whatever donation you feel is appropriate (remember that any and all proceeds are going to charity), share the songs with your friends and family and enjoy them this holiday season!  Remember that you can pay any amount you want, from zero to 5 to 50 dollars, and 100% of the proceeds are going to charity.  These songs are my gift to you, and thank you so much for listening.

-loren christopher radis

This week’s tunes are “Winter Wonderland” and “Silent Night“! 

Winter Wonderland is an interesting case as it’s the first “Christmas” song I’ve recorded that’s not really a Christmas song, it’s just celebrating the season of winter but I still associate it with the holidays and it’s just such a pleasant song, I had fun working on it. 

Silent Night is one of my very favorite Christmas songs, in the top 5 for sure.  I struggled a little bit with my rendition, I went for a capella at first but it just didn’t feel right, then I went way over the top with the arrangement and it got too busy so I had to tone it back down.  I think it came out alright, the mood of the song is the most important part to me, the atmosphere.  I hope you enjoy these both

Remember you can do whatever you want with these, download them for free, share with friends and family, post on your website/blog/facebook/whatever, put them on your Christmas mix, they’re yours to do with what you will.  Don’t forget that while you have the option to pay nothing I’m also accepting donations in whatever amount you feel led to give and I’ll be donating any and all proceeds from this Christmas album to Child’s Play, Compassion International, Blood Water Mission, and Angel Tree.

If you’ve already downloaded the tracks but you feel the desire to donate then you can always use the donation button over there on the right!  (Also right here!)

So thanks a lot, tune in next week for the last batch of songs, I’ve saved the best for last, trust me!  Pleasant Winter to you or, as they say, Bon Iver!

-loren christopher radis

This week’s songs are “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” and “Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want“, coincidentally the longest-titled songs of the collection.  Listen to them here, download them for free or make a donation (we’re donating any proceeds from these songs to charity, namely: Child’s Play, Compassion International, Blood Water Mission, and Angel Tree), and be sure to share with your friends and family this holiday season!

The wonderfully talented Ryan Radis (who also happens to be my kid brother) provided the artwork for this Christmas album and also a specialized piece of artwork for each song.  Here’s the art for the first two songs, check out the album to see the album cover!

Thanks for listening, hope you love the songs.  Tune in next Thursday or join the mailing list for the second batch!

A bright window shines warmth into the dark.

A melody flutters down on the currents of cool air.

A homey upstairs room.

A glass of water sits on a wooden desk.

A bead of condensation glides down the clear side of the glass towards the polished surface.

A microphone on a stand.

A man with a guitar in his hands.

“We are the music makers, and the dreamers of dreams…” the man says quietly to himself.

This is the story of my new Christmas Album, a labor of love to share with friends and strangers alike.  Christmas is the season of giving and in that spirit I give this album freely to any who want it.  Most of these songs are not my own creations, they were given to me and many others like me in the days of our youth.  I grew up learning the meaning of the word Christmas from songs like these ones, and you likely did as well.  I hope you enjoy the works I’ve rendered here; that they remind you of a time when it was easy to believe in Peace on Earth.

Like all good things, these songs come to those who wait.  I’ll be releasing two songs at a time on Thursdays, starting this Thursday.  You’re welcome to download them free of charge, but you will also be permitted to make a donation of any dollar amount when you do download the songs if you feel so compelled.  I will not be retaining any of the profits from this work, instead I’ll be donating them to the four charities I’ve discussed over the past four weeks: Child’s Play, Compassion International, Angel Tree, and Blood Water Mission.

So thanks to you for listening, thanks to my friends and family for their support during the recording of this album, thanks to the writers of these wonderful songs, and most of all thanks to the Father of the Son born on Christmas night so long ago for giving us this season of celebration in the first place.

Have a Merry Christmas.

-loren

 

Alright, down to business, I’ll be quick this week because hey, it’s Thanksgiving!  Hope you’re having a great time by the way

This week’s Christmas Charity is Blood Water Mission, ”a grassroots organization that empowers communities to work together against the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa.”

They’ve got a special program running for the holidays and it’s kind of a unique one.  They want Cement.  From their website :

“Cement. It’s usually not at the top of a Christmas list, but in sub-Saharan Africa, it’s a generous gift. Cement is the main component of most of our water and sanitation projects. In many of our communities, it’s also one of the most expensive pieces of these projects. Although not glamorous, this gift will help transform lives for our neighbors in Africa. ”

They’ve got a fun chart on their website here about what exactly the cement gets used for.  Check it out!

This stuff gets used everywhere, apparently, and they need all the help they can get!  You can give a gift on your own behalf or in someone else’s honor as a gift, just check out the website for details!

Thanks for reading everybody, I hope you’re having/had a wonderful and relaxing Thanksgiving day and I appreciate all of you doing what you can to help others this holiday season whether it’s in your own circle of family and friends, your community, or one of the charities I mentioned over the past month or anywhere else!  Making the world a better place for even one person is an amazing accomplishment and I think it’s wonderful when people pursue that goal.  Thank you, talk to you soon

-loren

 Free download, click here!

As Christmas songs go, Holly Jolly Christmas might be one of the sillier ones, but I love it!  Burl Ives is the man and his version from the Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer soundtrack is just great.  Hope you enjoy my kind of folksy re-imagining!

Onto our second item of business, I’m calling attention to one Charity each week (The first week I talked about Compassion International and the second week was focused on Child’s Play) and this week I’d like to talk about Angel Tree (http://www.angeltree.org).  This is a charity with something of a unique mission, to provide gifts to the children of prison inmates.

Now there’s a lot of things we could debate about prison and prisoners and the system in general, but I don’t think anyone would say that just because someone’s in prison their children deserve to suffer.  Here’s a testimony from one of the families who benefited from this charity in the past.  This explains better than I can what Angel Tree is all about.

From the website – “Alcoholism. Drug abuse. Divorce. Homelessness. Imprisonment. Little Forrest has witnessed them all. With his father in prison and his mom lost in a haze of drug abuse, Forrest’s maternal grandparents got custody of him when he was just two years old.

“He was like a wild animal,” his grandmother Bonnie says. Unable to articulate his hurt and frustration, he would hit, kick, bite, head butt, and throw things. One day at a time, “Nanna BB” and “Pappy” brought peace and stability to Forrest’s world. But as Christmas neared, Bonnie began to worry. If Forrest’s mom didn’t visit, or he didn’t get phone calls from his dad, Forrest’s behavior would often regress.

“We got a call that Forrest’s dad was sending Christmas gifts through Angel Tree,” Bonnie says. “It was just so nice to have people supporting us. Prayer is a powerful thing.”

At such a critical time in Forrest’s journey, Angel Tree connected him with his daddy — helping to make sure that Forrest stayed on a path toward healing and stability. Today, Forrest’s mother is working to turn her life around and restore her relationship with her son. Forrest’s dad will be released from prison soon. He, too, has vowed to turn his life around and be a faithful father.”

This, to me, is a powerful charity that can use everyone’s help whether it’s donating money, gifts, time, or spreading the word to your circle of friends about Angel Tree (http://www.angeltree.org/) and what they do.  So consider them this Holiday season, thanks for reading!

I hope you liked the song, don’t forget to download it for free, and tell your friends!

-loren