So many things go into making an album. From the purely conceptual to the little details, it can be a daunting task. Sometimes I feel like I’m standing in the middle of field, ready willing and able to run with the ball, and I’m left standing there looking around wondering which direction I’m supposed to go. It seems so easy, and for some it is. Having a clearly defined direction, with well-defined and practiced tunes makes it easy because the bulk of the creative decisions have been made. And for most of my album, that was the case. But there are a few tunes with which I find myself struggling with picking a direction and it leaves me feeling a little overwhelmed.
To be, or not to be, that is the question. Traditional or modern, simple or complex, blues or funk, funny or sweet, there are so many avenues one can take in creative ventures like this that the hardest part is always settling on just one idea instead of trying to incorporate them all. We all want to be a little bit of everything. A “Jack of all trades”, but the reality is that if you don’t pick a side and go with it you’ll have nobody on your team. You can’t be everything to everyone, any more than you can write a song that everyone will love. Certainly, not everyone will see what you want them to see, or hear what you want them to hear, so at the end of the day you can only strive to make yourself happy. And what the heck does that mean anyway? I’m happy if people like it! That said, I’m not a slave to other people’s opinions, I’m just… Sensitive?
Look, I’ve got some funky tunes on this record, with loads of groove thanks to a killer bunch of musicians. Do I have enough blues? Probably not for some people (sorry dad!), but R&B is just a stone’s throw away. What I’m really excited for is performing this record. It’s going to take a BIG band. I’ll be introducing an organ player in the mix, lead guitar, trombone, some back up singers and maybe even a percussionist! The CD release will be one heck of a show, I promise. ☺I’m hoping you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you hear, so keep in touch.
Check in, and see what’s in store here over the next two months as we wrap it up.

Hello and welcome to my new website!
Here you'll find my blog and be able to check out where I'll be performing next.  You can also listen to, and purchase my music here.  And of course, you can contact me!  
So... what's new?  Where to begin?!  Never really blogged much before, so bear with me.
I started recording my second album this past August.  It's an R&B record, and I'm fast becoming very proud of it.  We've been working hard over many months to get this thing together and we're just now starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Working with Ross Murray (my co-producer) and the rest of The All Day Daddies (Kelly Craig, Brian Asselin, Ken Seeley, and Vitas Paukstaitis) has been a lot of fun, but a lot of work too.  We've even had a few guests in the studio lending their talents to the cause.  Over the summer I had the chance to co-write a song with Steve Marriner from Monkeyjunk (www.monkeyjunkband.com)and we got the whole band in the studio to perform our track "Fair Is Fair".  Certainly a bluesy stand-out on the record, but manages to fit in to the picture quite nicely if I do say so myself.  The talented Anders Drerup also made an appearance in the studio, lending us his guitar talents on several tracks as well as writing a really cool soul tune for me called "Ruining Love"....  at least, it's a soul tune now.  When he gave it to me it was more reggae... he was going through a phase.  ;)

This past year has presented many opportunities and challenges for me.  It started with my band Silver Creek recording an album in Pennsylvania, soon followed by a tour of the UK for a few weeks, and we just recently (December 9th, 2011) released that album, our third.  The CD release was a great success!  But for more information on my best friends and our group, you should stop by www.silvercreekmusic.ca.  That being said, I will have Silver Creek's schedule here on my site as well since you'll find me where you'll find them!

I still play around Ottawa every week, whether it's solo, duo, trio, with Silver Creek, The Cooper Brothers (www.thecooperbrothers.com) or with my band Jeff Rogers and The All Day Daddies.  Check out the Gigs page here on my site to be kept up to date on that info.  But if you want to sample the new tunes we've been working on in the studio, the only place to get a real taste (besides this site of course) is every thursday night at The Heart and Crown on Preston.  
Actually, there is another place you can preview tunes from the new album, and that's 101.9 DAWG FM (www.dawgfm.com).  They've been really great to me this year, playing my first single "You're All I Know" regularly.  I can't thank them enough!  J-Man, Geoff Winter and all the folks at DAWG have all supported my music and it means a great deal to me, so a special thanks to them.  Hearing my song on the radio randomly as I was driving home one night was a milestone in my life I'll never forget.
At the risk of this blog entry sounding like an awards acceptance speech, I'd also like to give a shout out to my family and friends.  Love you guys!  That is all for now.  Stay tuned!

Cheers,
Jeff