tom willner

In the last few months my music and story have appeared in print and online. I'd like to share those two articles with you.

First, I had my story published by Joel Martin of the Columbia Basin Herald, the newspaper of choice in Moses Lake, WA, which many of you will recognize as the hub of operations for my west coast tour. It was a pleasure to speak to Joel, and I was honored by his article. Click here to read a copy of "Tom Willner: Good Humor Goes A Long Way" from a special Relay for Life edition of the Columbia Basin Herald. Pardon the large file size - it's a scanned copy (which probably breaks copyright laws). UPDATE: Joel Martin kindly sent me a smaller, cleaner PDF version now linked to instead.

Second, a story about "Turning Thirty," my show about my experience with cancer, was published online at the "Journal of Family Life," an online journal published by Emory University. Here's more about the journal:

Journal of Family Life was created to continue the path-breaking work of the Emory Center on Myth and Ritual in American Life (MARIAL), which is funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The journal is available only online. It is both scholarly and sophisticated, offering general-interest articles and creative works dealing with how modern families (with an emphasis on the American family) make and transmit meaning in their lives as families through story, myth, ritual and celebration.

Click here to read "Life Is Good," my story, which also includes an MP3 of my song of the same name.

Labels: cancer

It was my one city, two show west coast tour, and it was a blast. I had the pleasure to meet and play with guitarist Marcus Ruffalo, performed at both the Relay for Life and at Michaels' On The Lake restaurant, and even got true rock star treatment. More on that in a moment.

It all started at 5 AM on the east coast through two long flights to Phoenix and then to Spokane. From Spokane a rental car to Moses Lake, where it's kind of like a desert but with a big lake. First show, the Relay for Life. I met up with Marcus for the first time in person, having only communicated through email until then. We had an impromptu rehearsal then performed at the Relay that night. I closed with "Every Candle Has A Name" for the Luminaria ceremony.

The next day, after a welcome extended sleep, it was over to Michael's on the Lake, where Sam the bartender created the All Fruits Ripe Martini, named after my song. Marcus and I setup and did a sound check courtesy of Dale Roth (DJ, soundman, and good friend) and had some food. I made a quick stop back at the hotel where I was picked up by a limo (herein lies the rock star treatment). It was quite fun, riding with key members of my official Northwest Fan Club, including Terry, Don, Donna, Al, Samantha, and "Mom," and turning some heads at the restaurant.

Enjoying several AFR martinis, I played with my man Marcus from about 6:30 to past 10. Michael's is a wonderful place, and we got to play on the patio overlooking the lake. Many thanks to Jordan and all the good folks at Michael's for an excellent time.

Anthony and Terry were kind enough to videotape and post several songs out to YouTube. Click here to see All Fruits Ripe (Live) on YouTube. You can also download the All Fruits Ripe (Live) video here. For those of you who subscribe to my podcast, this should automagically download to your iTunes and iPod. I hope you enjoy it.

The next morning began the long trek back to Atlanta. I feel so fortunate to have so many friends out in the middle of the beautiful state of Washington, and I'd like to give a particular shout out to my new friend and fantastic musician, Marcus Ruffalo. Check out his stuff on MySpace. He's a true professional with years in the business out in LA, but more importantly a terrific person with an incredible story. Here's to you my friend, and to everyone who made my west coast tour such a success.

Labels: cancer