Dear Friends,
Welcome to the Seven Weeks of Consolation. The what?? Brace yourselves: our year is coming to an end. We leave our three weeks of consternation before Tisha B'av, the saddest day of the year, and ramp up with consolation towards Rosh Hashana 5770, a mere seven weeks away. Don't freak out, but it's time to write that sermon, dry-clean the suit and think about building your sukkah.
Not enough holidays for you? Well, today is Tu B'av, the official Jewish Valentines Day, when shidduchim (matches) were made in the fields under the stars in Second Temple times. That's right...no shadchan, (matchmaker) no nosy parents, no expensive dates. And we thought that Speedating was a recent invention! Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel compared the beloved nature of this holiday with Yom Kippur. At the least, why not go out and buy someone you love some flowers, quickly, before the marketing giants figure out it's a holiday.
Before I started bringing Shabbat into my life on a weekly basis I really didn't know from cycles. Cycles were for women and those who lived outside of L.A. Our only seasons are  fire season and landslide season. Suddenly I was introduced to a profound weekly system where every day builds upon the next in anticipation of the awesome day of rest at the apex. The seven-day cycle is ensconced within our twenty-nine day lunar cycle where we ebb and flow with the waxing and waning of the moon. Punctuating the lunar cycle are the joyous holidays that mark our journey over the course of the solar year.
So now my life is filled with cycles. Cycles are great. They help to mark the time and make life special. Each aspect of the Jewish week, month and year is pregnant with specific opportunities. "Carpe diem" has new meaning when there are so many special days to seize.
Please take a minute to read my article below about the medication dilemma. I'm anxious to know what you think. Also enclosed are the latest additions on the tour schedule and news about the making of The Songs We Sing Volume 2. Great Shabbatons await you this month in New Jersey and Denver. Great music awaits you on the website with up to 50% off CDs and downloads, easily the best deal on Jewish music on the web.
Thank you for taking the time to read my newsletter and ride the cycles with me. And thank you for making my music your soundtrack for the ride.
Sincerely,
Sam Glaser
Glaser Musicworks
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Fifteen Years of
A Day in the Life
Sam Glaser's sophomore Jewish album is his mother's favorite. It contrasts Hineni's exuberance with a seasoned, introspective sound and features deeply spiritual melodies that flow seamlessly into one another. Text from the daily liturgy combines with Sam's English lyrics that express unabashed outpouring of love for G-d.
If you haven't heard it lately, put on your headphones and disappear for an hour of spiritual bliss. This album debuted many popular songs in the contemporary Jewish scene including Modeh Ani, Oseh Shalom, V'ha'er Eyneynu, Lift My Eyes and Learning Machine. The Holocaust based ballad Born to Remember inspired the founding of the Pittsburgh based Born to Remember Foundation which honors righteous gentiles. Click Here to to take a trip down memory lane or enjoy your first experience with this Sam Glaser classic.
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Mood Altering Drugs
by Sam Glaser
August 2009
For five years I taught an L.A.-based class called Seasons of Joy. Every week about a dozen Jews by birth and potential Jews by choice joined me for an overview of the Torah portion of the week, basic Jewish law and handy tips for ecstatic Jewish living. One student who frequented the class would typically raise her hand to ask questions that had little to do with the topic at hand. She usually would ask about angels, the soul or the afterlife and would react with authority to my answers. In private conversations I learned that she could hear and see angels and was in a constant dialog with her guides.
On one occasion I was visiting the 613 Mitzvah store in our 'hood to restock my CDs. This is the best outlet for my music in the US and it's always great to stop in and schmooze with friends and potential friends who are shopping for books, Judaica and music. I usually make a few sales each time I walk in. Sure enough, this aforementioned student of mine was there and she saw me helping a newcomer pick out a mezuzah. When I picked up a scroll I could feel a tangible energy in the parchment. I explained to the customer that a holy Jew devoted himself to the faithful calligraphy of the text and that a kosher scroll has tremendous spiritual power. Next thing you know, everyone in the store wanted to hold the parchment; whereas not everyone felt that energy, my student reacted like she was mainlining heroin.
Over time her statements in my class grew more bizarre and she developed a tic. Her flower-child dress and observations of auras were scaring away others in the group. I felt bad but on my rabbi's advice I had to ask her not to make any more comments in class. I later found out that she had been banned from many other shuls and classes around Pico.
This last Shabbat I saw her for the first time in over a year. She was calm and composed, the tic gone, and I found out that she had started taking medication that allowed her to live a "normal" life. In our discourse I learned that she had chosen to sublimate her gift so that she could function in society.
I bring this up to you, my friends, simply to address this
question that I can't get off my mind. In an age of spiritual disconnection, with all of the sadness and fear due to our crippled economy, with gadgets and media in all forms making
profound headway into any
shred of quiet time we might enjoy, I wonder
if we should be medicating those few people who have access to other realms. How rare does one happen upon someone with true vision and deep perspective, without bias and agenda. Tzadikim that walk with G-d can take on many forms. They are a gift not to be squandered.
At a recent
Earth, Wind and Fire concert, my wife and I marveled at the energy of the legendary band, particularly bass virtuoso Verdine White. I'm telling you, you haven't seen hyperkinetic musical passion until you have seen this guy GROOVE! All night! And he's in his late 60's! My wife said to me, "can you imagine if his parents had put him on Ritalin as a kid?" Are we medicating our future Verdine Whites into submission? Getting all of our square peg offspring in round holes, thanks to the miracle of modern pharmaceuticals?
I realize that this former student of mine required intervention. Without the drugs it's unlikely that we would have been having a conversation last Shabbas. Still, she is one of the few that I have met that possess that "knowing" and have the ability to potentially guide others to share the vision. Three times a day we pour our hearts out in prayer; how often are we really connecting? How rare and valuable is accurate rebuke? How often do we meet that person who can look right into our eyes and perceive our soul, knowing exactly what message we need to hear?
In a world bereft of spiritual insight, perhaps the best antidote is to train oneself to become more sensitive to heavenly messages, to the presence of G-d in our lives. Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach used to say that we have to take moments of personal ecstasy and bring them into our service of G-d. The idea is to summon the memory of a perfect ski run, a vacation in Yosemite, the birth of a child and inject that passion into everyday prayer. Check out the Art of Amazement for some practical methods to capitalize on the gift of wonder.
I've heard it said that life is like a perpetual night broken by  occasional lightning. In those brief flashes we can set our reset our path as we trudge through the darkness. Hold on to those flashes! Keep them close and nurture them. And when you meet someone like my spiritual student, don't dismiss him or her as a hippie freak but instead take a moment to share that precious bolt of lightning before you move on with your busy day.
I'm posting this on my new blog and I welcome your feedback.
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Upcoming Tour Dates
The Attitude of Gratitude Concert Tour is coming to a town near you! Click here for the full schedule; dates are added weekly.
Event programmers: Four nights of Chanukah are still available on Sam's Southeast US tour leg. As always, we discount significantly for midweek shows and when Sam is already in your area. Sieze the date!
Upcoming stops include:
Flemington, NJ
Baltimore, MD
Denver, CO
San Diego, CA
Miami, FL
West Palm Beach, FL
Boca Raton, FL
Newton, MA
Marblehead, MA
Orlando, FL
Bryn Mawr, PA
Chattanooga, TN
Albany, NY
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The Songs We Sing Vol. 2 Update
The album is sounding great and I'm so excited to be on track with a Chanukah '09 release date. SWS2 picks up where the first volume left off in the year 2000, continuing my quest to have shiny new versions of the classics available to everyone. I believe that the Jewish people deserves to have a collection of common denominator music that all cherish regardless of age or denomination. It will certainly make my job easier when I come to your town and expect you to sing along.
Today I worked with percussionist extraordinaire, Cassio Duarte (third from the right, above), who has played on nearly every release in my studio. He is so intuitive, durable and fun to work with. Unfortunately a few years back he moved back to his native Brazil and now I have to grab him on those rare occasions when he's in L.A.
Multi-wind player Michael Nelson recently spent a few days blowing on the Songs We Sing and songs for a few other clients. He was joined on one of the days by new recruit Roy Wiegand on trumpet. When I gave Michael the choice of who had the best grasp of the Jewish classics, Roy was top of the list. Now I see why!
Larry Steen and Jake Jacobs make up the rhythm section and Mat Gurman laid down some of the best guitar solos in recent memory. Now it's up to me to finish the keyboards and lead vocals and nudge my talented friend Ramiro to cook up a new cover to match the look of Volume One.
Keep your eye on the website for a free preview mp3!
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Thank you!
Thank you for reading, for listening, for your support and friendship.
Glaser MusicWorks
800-972-6694
Outside of the US 310-204-6111
sam@samglaser.com
1941 Livonia Av.
Los Angeles, California 90034
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