=======================================
J O H N
D E N V E R E V E N T S
=======================================
March 4-12, 2005
- Durango, CO - Durango Film Festival -
"The Connecticut Kid" features a tribute to one
of John
Denver's songs. (See "Letters to the Editor"
for info)
March 6, 2005 - Yorba Linda,
CA - Christopher Westfall /
Nixon Library Theater 3:30pm / 18001 Yorba Linda
Blvd.
714-993-5075 * Info:
jht@spamarrest.com
March 11, 2005 - Aspen, CO - Wheeler Opera
House 8:00pm
"Rocky Mountain High" - A musical tribute to
John Denver.
John Adams and Friends $30 and $15 (970) 920-5770
http://www.wheeleroperahouse.com
March 15-22, 2005 Mack Bailey - 2005 Ireland
Trip with Kevin
Brooks and John Sommers. Includes St. Patrick's Day in
Dublin, tours, concerts, and a fabulous trip around Ireland.
http://www.mackbailey.com/Ireland.htm
March 19, 2005 - Cottage Grove, Oregon
- Peace Cloth will
participate in a Memorial Peace Procession and be displayed
at the Community Center.
www.johndenverpeacecloth.com
March 19, 2005 - Moose, WY - Third Annual
Chocolate Moose
Festival & Auction 1-4pm Murie Center Ranch $10
http://www.muriecenter.org
(307) 739-2246
April 2-3, 2005 - Lancaster, PA - John
Denver Weekend /
Highway Cleanup 2:00pm / Potluck Dinner afterwards /
Sleeping bags welcome / Breakfast on Sunday /
RSVP by March 25 * Pat Liddic <
tigersnwolves@comcast.net
>
April 16, 2005 - Altadena, CA
- Coffee Gallery Backstage /
Phil Christie with Mike Valentine and Ellen & Steve
Stapenhorst 7:00pm $15 (626) 398-7917
2029 N. Lake
http://www.philchristie.com
April 22, 2005 - Largo, FL - Ron Rich -
"A John Denver
Tribute" set as the opening act for Lee Greenwood
and Don
McLean at the Largo Music Fest - Tickets $15 727-587-6793
Larry Vanscoy
lvscoy@aol.com
727-398-2649
April 22, 2005 - Moose, WY -
Earth Day Celebration 7:00pm
National Museum of Wildlife Art / Keynote Speaker: Karsten
Heuer
http://www.muriecenter.org
(307) 739-2246
April 23, 2005 - Denver, CO - Windstar
Colorado Connection
is hosting an Earth Day Event at Red Rocks Park. Music
by Chris Collins and John Adams as well as a trail clean
up. 10:00am - 3:00pm
dreauxdog@comcast.net
May 19, 2005 - Columbia, MD "The Hard
Travelers 20th
Anniversary Reunion Benefit for the M.U.S.E. Foundation"
Howard County Community College - Smith Theatre 7:30pm
410-825-7331 $40 (VIP $100)
donnamyoung@comcast.net
Guests John Sommers, Chris Nole and Pete Huttlinger
http://www.musicunites.com
June 24, 2005 - Aspen, CO - A special concert
related to
the Windstar Summer Retreat with music by John Adams
and Chris Collins. Annabelle Inn. 6:00-8:00pm
dreauxdog@comcast.net
July 4, 2005 - Dillon, CO - Lake Dillon
Amphitheatre 6:30pm
"Rocky Mountain High" - annual 4th of July concert.
Bring
your own blanket. John Adams & Friends. Free admission.
July 21, 2005 - Estes Park, CO - Second
John Denver Tribute
Concert sponsored by the Estes Park Arts Council featuring
"Cowboy Brad" Fitch. / Performance Park / 7:00pm
Free /
bring lawn chairs
http://www.cowboybrad.com
October 6, 2005 - Aspen, CO - "Friends
With You" featuring
Mark Cormican and Chris Collins and the Boulder Canyon
Band - Aspen Community Church 8:00pm $10
APokey1@aol.com
October 9, 2005 - Snowmass, CO - A Windstar
Celebration!
Windstar Foundation - All Windstar members, old and new,
are invited to a special day celebrating and thanking you
for all you do to support The Windstar Foundation
9:00am - 4:00pm * Shari <
Apokey1@aol.com
>
October 10, 2005 - Aspen, CO
- "Colors of the Rainbow"
presented by Georgiann McDaniel / Mountain Chalet Roof-top
Conference Room 9:00am - Noon $20 / SASE to Georgiann
McDaniel / 48 E. Tamarack Circle / Battlement Mesa /
Parachute, CO 81635 * Info:
RockyMtnHaven1@msn.com
October 10, 2005 - Aspen, CO - Mt. Chalet
7:30pm - downstairs
concert - "New Friends To Find" Steve Brook,
Rene Wingelaar
and Tim Durnan / John Denver Trivia Contest
$12 <
jht@spamarrest.com
>
*
* * * * *
* * *
WHAT I
DO IN HONOR OF JOHN DENVER
*
* * * * *
* * *
Annalisa
Berns <
aberns@hotmail.com
>
In honor of John I live life to the fullest.
I go white
water rafting on the Colorado river, skiing in Colorado,
flying in a Long EZ, make donations in his honor and listen to
his music!
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Carole Romanowski <
whispjesse@aol.com
>
John Denver's music changed my life.
He became a mentor
to me - someone to imitate in my own way out of respect for
his message and legacy. Both made a major impact by entering
my stream of consciousness, giving me a deeper sensitivity and
respect for life and for all creatures and for the
environment.
Therefore, I honor John through charity donations
- giving
what I can afford to disaster relief such as contributions to
UNICEF for the tsunami victions in Asia ("I Want To Live"),
mess kits for our troops in Iraq, Toys for Tots for needy
children during the Christmas season, turkeys and warm
clothing to soup kitchens for the homeless on Thanksgiving,
warm bedding to animal shelters for their inhabitants housed
outside, etc. Would I have done this before learning about
John? - yes, but not to such a degree as after hearing his
songs nor with the same degree of purpose nor spirituality as
now.
John also opened my eyes to the beauty of nature.
I now
SEE what's around me ("Sunshine On My Shoulders"), appreciate
it and enjoy it. I've planted trees to honor John's Plant-It
2000 program, attended bench dedications in his name in public
parks near me to pay homage to John, and set up a guard rail
on the Saw Mill River Parkway a few blocks from my house to
protect the sloping greenbelt bordering the parkway from car
accidents.
One of the ways I honor John on a more frequent
basis is
hands-on. I volunteer at a nearby nursing home a few hours a
day, three times a week, for the past 4 and a half years. I
have "adopted" a group of patients ("Falling Leaves")
who are
now my "family" as I am their "sister" or
"daughter." I have
sung to them, celebrated their birthdays and all holidays with
cake and presents, assisted in feeding them in the lunchroom,
brought them robes and slippers when needed, and wheeled them
outside to enjoy the gardens and fresh air. ("What One Man
Can
Do"). My daughter, Jennifer, seeing my experience, has
followed in my footsteps not only with visits but has made
homemade craft gifts for the patients at Christmas. It is
gratifying to witness John's legacy passed on to me and,
through me, to my beautiful daughter. It's also a richer
experience knowing John used to visit nursing homes and
befriend and comfort complete strangers - just because he
cared.
Learning about John Denver through his songs
opens up a
whole world of rewarding possibilities ("It's A Possibility").
It is a privilege to honor John in any way we can and keep
John, his message ("Autograph") and his memory alive
in all of
us who listen.
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Carrie G. <
andamaca@comcast.net
>
To keep John's memory alive for me, I planted
one of the
trees I received from Plant-It 2000. It is now about 5 feet
tall. John would have laughed to see my photo album of this
tree from its infancy until now. I take as good care of it as
I do my children and there are days it is a better child.
Every Christmas it gets lights and ornaments and this year it
had the John Denver ornament all to its self.
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Mary Joy <
MaryJoy543@aol.com
>
I always return the shopping cart back to the
store now
and if there is a loose one in the parking lot, I return it
too. I collect shampoos, lotions, soaps and toiletries from my
travels and give them to the homeless. Also toothbrushes from
the dentist.
I've had several JD Weekends and we always
do a little
service project. Once we made Easter Baskets for children in a
homeless shelter. Once we made 300+ cookies for a soup
kitchen. Once everyone brought a bag of groceries to give to
the food bank. John Denver people are just the best and
everyone enjoys doing something for the community.
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Rosemary Robinson
Laurel, MD
Whenever my church has a special collection
for something
to do with music, I make a donation in memory of John Denver.
I also have this printed on my checks right
above the
signature line:
The Music Is You
John Denver 1943-1997
I try to keep
his name in people's minds wherever I can.
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Emily Parris
Kansas City, MO
Rosemary's news reminded me of something
I used to do
long before I started the Rocky Mountain High newsletter.
This was back when regular lp's were still around. Whenever
I would go to a music store I would look for John Denver lp's
and before I left the store I would put his records in the
front of each stack. Now with cd's it doesn't make as much of
an impact since they are small. But back then with the nice,
colorful covers it made a big impact.
When I started Rocky Mountain High I
would occasionally
go to our local used cd/record store and put a small RMH flyer
inside the John Denver lp's. One time I was there looking
at
JD cd's and putting in flyers when someone noticed me and we
started talking about John Denver. He was a big JD fan and
said that he always came there looking for John's albums.
Then someone else overheard us and started asking a question
about one of John's Christmas albums. So we had a JD fest
going right there in the used record store!
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===========================
JOHN DENVER CONCERT REVIEWS
===========================
John Denver Tribute Concert 12/31/04 - Scottsdale,
AZ
Reviewed by Carole Campbell
The John Denver Band concert in
Scottsdale, Arizona was
fabulous. The only body missing was John and he was there in
spirit, for sure. We even heard his voice for a few seconds as
they overlaid the music with him actually singing.
The entire evening was a treat. At the silent
auction I
bought a copy of the "Poems, Prayers and Promises" club
newsletter from 1977. The money goes to the Hunger Project and
a couple of other worthy charities.
The concert came next from 7:00 - 9:30. The
band members
are not only magnificent musicians, but also sing very well.
Among the singers were Jim Salestrom, Chris Nole and Molly
Weaver. John Sommers played a piece he composed that JD was
supposed to write the lyrics for (but it didn't get done
before he died). The audience was asked to think about what
the lyrics might have been. I thought of cowboys and stars,
although it could have been about nature, too. All in all the
concert was great fun. The band's connection with the audience
was magical. I don't know how many in the audience sang along
but I did for almost every number. I lost track of the curtain
calls.
After the concert we stayed seated for the
live auction,
very ably conducted by Twirp Anderson. I wished I could have
bid on John's beaded leather guitar strap but it started at
over $100 and sold for $350.
The evening wound up with a reception and buffet
dinner. I
tried to connect with each band member during the reception
but realized I missed a few. I had a particularly nice chat
with Pete Huttlinger from whose video I am learning to
fingerpick ala JD. Molly Weaver is very youthful and charming
with a wonderful voice. Her father was a flying buddy of
John's so she knew him as a child and once beat him at
Scrabble. Alan Deremo is a very quiet man but really does his
share.
Dinner was excellent - we chose the Mexican
alternative
but there was also a buffet of typical American/English food
available. The party broke up around 11:30 so we made it back
to our hotel just in time to see the ball drop in Times
Square. For people who usually struggle to keep awake until
midnight on New Year's Eve this was an especially great treat.
<*> <*> <*> <*> <*> <*> <*>
<*> <*> <*> <*> <*> <*>
======================
JOHN DENVER CD REVIEWS
======================
Norm Schmidt's "A Tribute to John Denver"
Reviewed
by Emily M. Parris <
emily@parris.net
>
On his 4-cut
cd single called "A Tribute to John Denver",
Norm Schmidt sings 3 John Denver songs and one original song
called "Carry One." Norm has won an award as a National
songwriter and has been the opening act for such singers at
Kenny Rogers, The Oak Ridge Boys, Ricky Skaggs and Sawyer
Brown. He has 3 independent albums on cd. Norm hails from
Euclid, Ohio and for 6 years he appeared there on local tv on
"The Gene Carol Show."
Norm's arrangement of "For You" has
additional lyrics
making it very personal and full of love. It is very beautiful
and John would be very happy with the additions. The simple
piano and organ accompaniment is also very appealing. He also
does a nice job with "Annie's Song" and "Calypso"
with the
arrangements very similar to John's originals.
"Carry On" is Norm's original song
that is dedicated to
his father. It is a very heartwarming song; interesting both
lyrically and musically. It is about multiple generations in a
family. It is certainly a topic worthy of being set to music,
especially when done in such a beautiful and loving way.
=======================================
J O H N
D E N V E R N O T E S
=======================================
John Denver's song "Back Home Again"
was played at the funeral
for Louis Sutter, the first father of Canadian hockey.
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Marrty Dormish <
Dormish@uscm.org
> Marrty Dormish quoted the
entire lyrics of John's "Perhaps Love" in an article
on
Valentine's Day called "Consider Source of Love on Valentine's
Day." It was in "The Round Up" - the student
voice of New
Mexico State University
http://www.roundupnews.com
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An article in the Denver Post on 2-13-05 mentions John Denver.
It is an article about a book called "Sacred Stones:
Colorado's Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre" by Thomas J.
Noel.
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~26~2705367,00.html
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Jim Salestrom <
jim@jimsalestrom.com
> A link to my song about
the Cherry Mash Candy Bar
http://www.cherrymash.com
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Jean Kendle <
jbk944@yahoo.com
>
* Reader's Digest came out with a new CD collection:
"What A
Wonderful World: Timeless Ballads." It has John's picture
on
the advertising (very young), and also "Annie's Song"
and
"Sunshine On My Shoulders" in the collection.
* There's a new collection called "Ultimate Christmas
Album,
Vol 4" which includes "A Baby Just Like You."
This is from "Nina's Discount Oldies catalog."
* "John Denver Christmas Celebration Concert"
- BMG
produced by Kris O'Connor has 10 songs from the actual
concert.
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The Murie Ranch in Moose, Wyoming has tours from May 1 to
October 31st. It is an opportunity to explore the historic
ranch and learn about the conservation legacy of the Muries.
Monday and Wednesday at 3:00pm / Reservations required.
http://www.muriecenter.org
(307) 739-2246
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A group called "Bright Eyes" performed at the Paramount
Theater in Seattle, Washington. Greg Boudreau had this
comment on their performance:
"My favorite part of the show was the
multi-band cover
of "Leaving On A Jet Plane" (John Denver) for the finale.
It was a solid finishing song, and I didn't even notice the
slide guitar in it!"
Spectator Online
http://www.spectator-online.com
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=======================================
J O H N D E N V E R P O E T R Y
=======================================
Symmetry
by Cynthia
Gullage
Just join hands and form
a circle
Only make a space for all
Hearts in symmetry are beating
No one is too great or small
Do not
wait until tomorrow
Everybody has a place
Nobody is great or lesser
Visualize each happy face
Just join
hands and form a circle
One world is a dream to live
Peace in our time? We can do it!
It's but a single word "forgive"
_________________________________
Copyright 2005 by Cynthia Gullage
* *
*
Snowman
by Emily M. Parris
A snowman - white
and icy
Sweet and friendly with a grin
Seeming like a human
Although all is cold within
Created
in our image
With a hat, a scarf and eyes
Made to live in winter
Like a frozen, white surprise
Created
all of snowflakes
Firm, packed down in symmetry
Two twigs to serve as arms;
With some work he came to be
His
frozen days are numbered
If the temperature should rise
But for now we smile
To see our frozen, snow surprise
__________________________________
Copyright 2005 by Emily M. Parris
=================================================
JOHN DENVER W A N T A D S / F O R
S A L E
=================================================
Mary Ledford <
eagleshorses@yahoo.com
> Expect a Miracle Now
Foundation has sent me extra programs from the New Year's Eve
show in Arizona. The front cover has Virginia Allen's prayer
photo of John and the back cover has my photo of John singing
"For You" taken in Camden, NJ in 1995. They are 8x10
with
color covers. $5 checks to be made payable to "Expect
A
Miracle Now Foundation". Also include a separate check or
cash made payable to me for postage $1 for 1 ($.50 each
additional). Mary Ledford / 139 Watkins Mill Road, Apt. F /
Gaithersburg, MD 20879
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*************************************************************
Rocky Mountain High: The John Denver Internet
Fan Club
emily@parris.net
http://www.rockymtnhigh.org
March 2005 * Issue #131 *
Editor: Emily M. Parris
*************************************************************