The Cricket and Seagull Fireside Chat

He's a folk singer -- except when he's singing jazz and improvising scat-singing solos. He's a songwriter -- except when he was a Seminary Teacher and being a writer of history books for children. And he's Sam Payne -- except when he's The Sam Payne Project; the person and part of the group behind "Coming Just to Go,"; this week's featured album.

We'll hear what sparks a song in his mind and why you never really have to choose between being an artist and being a Latter-day Saint and what folk singers give their kids for Christmas.

That’s this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

He’s an internationally acclaimed pianist, composer and entertainer whose musical career spans four decades and three continents.  His studies include a music scholarship to Tel Aviv University School of Music, the famed “Mozarteum” of Salzburg, Austria, plus Bachelor and Master of Music degrees at Florida State University. 

And besides his many, many performances a year world-wide, his greatest passion is his Peace with Music Foundation whose mission is to bridge the cultural, religious and political differences of people everywhere through the medium of music.  

Marvin Goldstein is the name, and inspiring audiences everywhere through music is his game.

That’s this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

A recent letter to local church leaders everywhere announced the new Young Men & Young Women’s theme for 2007 -- including a portion of Doctrine and Covenants 121:45;

“... and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God...”

Songwriter Lynne Perry Christofferson is releasing a new CD addressing this theme directly.  It’s called “Lift Your Mind Higher,” and she talks about leaps of faith, writing with your hands in the dishwater and even while sleeping, growing up as Janice Kapp Perry’s only daughter, and why an echoey unfinished basement is an advantage.

That’s this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

Every year the Faith-Centered Music Association, the FCMA, gathers for the annual Pearl Awards -- recognizing excellence in recorded music.

This year's ceremonies in the BYU Fine Arts Center featured the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award to the very-deserving Ron Simpson.  He's an LDS musician, songwriter, player, studio owner, teacher, music publisher, record label general manager, columnist for Meridian Magazine, and so much more.  A man who has made a difference in the church and in the world with his own music and in the way he has mentored and encouraged others.

Today we'll bring you the audio of that presentation, including live and phoned-in comments from (in this order) country singer Dave Lemmon, performer/writer/arranger Clive Romney, composer/producer Merrill Jenson, studio owner Cliff Maag, director of BYU's Living Legends Janielle Christensen, sound company owner Joe Anderson, BYU Young Ambassador director Randy Boothe, managing director of BYU's Tantara Records Ben Fales, member of Diamond Rio Dan Truman, singer Wendee Jensen Truman, songwriter/artist Mindy Gledhill, songwriter/playwright/broadcaster Steven Kapp Perry, songwriter/producer Staci Peters, singer/songwriter Cherie Call, and songwriter/producer/arranger Tyler Castleton.

That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

Happy pioneer day!

Music has been a part of the Mormon tradition from the very beginning.  Whether it was hymns or folk songs, it seems there was music created to mark most important occasions.  For instance we have the dedication of the Kirtland, Ohio, temple to thank for "The Spirit of God" in our hymn books today.

And the migration West was no exception.  The wagon company of 1847, nearly 160 years ago, was hardly under way before William Clayton came up with his new version of "All is Well" which we know as "Come, Come Ye Saints."  And it was 150 years ago when the first of many handcart companies set out for the Rocky Mountains.  They pushed and pulled their way across a continent finding strength in "The Handcart Song."

This week in celebration of Pioneer Day on July 24th-- a state holiday in Utah -- we feature Mormon folk songs from the Library of Congress Archive of Folk Culture.  These examples were recorded in 1946 and 1947 by Austin Fife and his wife Alta on a trip covering Utah gathering songs passed on in the folk tradition -- either learned firsthand from the writer or passed down in families and communities through the generations.

That's this week, on the Cricket and Seagull...

She was born in Mexico City but was raised in the States, loves singing with a Mariachi band but has a recording contract with an inspirational label, is learning to bring the same passion to singing in English she feels in Spanish, and is all about putting message over the messenger.

That's BYU student and performer Rebecca Lopez, and today we talk about her first solo CD "When You Believe," including songs in both English and Spanish.

That's this week, on the Cricket and Seagull...

-SKP