Recent Online Review:
"A HIDDEN TREASURE"
Recently going through a plie of CD's that I wanted to review, but haven't gotten around to. I found a CD "Things are Different Now" by Phil Risen. (Produced by Grammy Award winning Producer Larry Mitchell)
I remember the first time I listened to track 10, "Things are different now", How it spoke to me on a spiritual level of where my life was at the time. His lyrics captured the essence of time and life at a point where people reach a plateau or crossroads.
This cd takes you on a personal journey of people, places and life experience. It should be listened to and savored like a glass of wine. Indulging oneself in the subtle nuances of the lyrics, melodies, arrangements and production. This is a road trip ... not the kind you listen to with the top down. More like the kind you listen to after you have reached your destination and want to reflect on the details of your journey.
©RM Gotham-Sentinel Review 2009
Here is an Excerpt from Keep Going; The Art of Perseverance by my friend Joseph M. Marshall III
"A young man asked his grandfather why life had to be so difficult sometimes. This is the old man's reply."
"Grandfather says this: 'In life there is sadness as well as joy, losing as well as winning, falling as well as standing, hunger as well as plenty, bad as well as good. I do not say this to make you despair, but to teach you reality that life is a journey sometimes walked in light and sometimes walked in shadow.
"Grandfather says this: 'You did not ask to be born, but you are here. You have weaknesses as well as strengths because in life there are two of everything. Within you is the will to win as well as the willingness to lose, the heart to feel compassion as well as the smallness to be arrogant. Within you is the way to face life as well as the fear to turn away from it.
"Grandfather says this: 'Facing the storms of life, knowing loss, feeling sadness and heartache, and falling into the depths of grief can give you strength. You must stand up in the storms. You must face the wind and the cold and the darkness. When a storm blows it is not trying to knock you down, it is really trying to help you be strong.
"Grandfather says this: 'Being strong means taking one more step towards the top of the hill, no matter how weary you may be. It means letting the tears flow through the grief; it means to keep looking for the answer though the darkness if despair is all around. It means to cling to hope for one more heartbeat, one more sunrise. Each step takes you closer to the top of the hill, closer to the light of the next sunrise, and the promise of a new day.
"Grandfather says this: 'The weakest step toward the top of the hill, toward sunrise, toward hope, is stronger than the fiercest storm."
"Grandfather says this .... "Keep Going!"