Pick One (the music video)

Pick One, huh? Not two or three? What is this guy talking about, you say? How about one of the most exciting presidential races in recent memory. How about having not one, but two (and maybe even three) very qualified and electable candidates? How about, for the first time in the history of this great nation, having a person of color or one who is not a man as the Democratic nominee? Add to that a war hero who is respected by both parties? Pick One? Now are you starting to see what I'm getting at?

A few months ago I had an idea for a song parody about this year's close, and often turbulent, elections. I sat down with my guitar and started plucking about, playing with some lyrics that had been swimming around inside my brain, trying to get those all important key words and phrases necessary to make the song work. What I came up with was a song called "Pick One." The version I originally recorded on video and posted was okay, but not complete. In fact, I titled it, "Pick One (the almost finished version)." I knew that I had inside me a better, more polished version, and I set about attempting to make that happen. But I decided that I would need some help.

Enter my new buddy and sound and video editor extraordinaire, Dale at ProSound (electriccanyon.com). I needed to make the song (and me) sound better. I had worked with Dale before on my "Fun with Fiber" video, but that was just some editing work. So I made an appointment for some studio time, burping down the butterflies as they scurried through my guts at the thought of singing and playing guitar, an instrument I have only messed around with for a few years, in front of a professional sound guy.

But Dale immediately made me feel at ease, partly by his calm demeanor and obvious knowledge and professionalism, but also by the serene surroundings of his Electric Canyon studios. And even though I was nervous, we got some good sounds down on tape. Then we discussed what I had in mind with the video, my vision of how the images would work with the song, and we went from there. The result is the version of "Pick One" that you see below. I would like to publicly thank Dale for his enormous efforts and patience and kindness during this ardours undertaking. As well for his tremendous talents at making a guy like me sound better than he could have imagined. Thanks, Dale.

Also, during the time while Dale and I were putting the finishing touches on "Pick One," I decided to tear down my website and redo a good chunk of it. The end result is more user-friendly, easier on the eye, and exactly what I was looking for when I undertook this massive remodeling. It could not have been done--in less than a week and with no site downtime!--without the enormous efforts of my pals, Eric at Multi Media Information (ememi.com) and Keith at Webxpertz. They did in days what most would have taken weeks to accomplish. Amazing job, guys, thanks. Especially Eric. He also was a great help with the "Pick One" video and is a valuable contributor to my website livelife365.com. Gracias, mi amigo.

So, that's the story behind "Pick One (the music video)". All that remains is that all of you watch and enjoy it. And if you like it as much as I hope you will, then, please, spread the word for others to watch, laugh, learn, and help me to decide which one to pick. Pick One? Are you nuts?

peace,
Mike