The Day John Lennon Died.

I know I've told this story on the blog, but it came roaring back to me when my old drummer, Chris Hawkins, found me on Facebook and sent me this note.

Steve, I am sure you vividly remember Dec.8, 1980. We were in Columbus Ohio playing at the Rodeway Inn hotel. There was snow on the ground and it was freakin cold for us Texas boys. I will always remember that day. We had heard that John Lennon was shot and killed in NYC and you opened our set that night with a few songs of John's. I was only 18 at the time. That day will never be forgotten for me. You made such an impact on me just seeing how sad you were with Lennon's death and you performed a few songs beautifully in John's name. I will be thinking of that day back in 1980 tommorrow just as I have for the last 29 years. It is so great to have contact with you again.

Best Regards, Chris

What Chris did not know at the time was the rest of the story.

It was really cold, as he said. We were in the middle of a long night doing cover songs to a crowd of two, the bartender and a drunk chick at the bar. But the manager said we had to play the whole night, so we had done three or four sets already and I had gone back to the room before the last set, flipped on the TV and saw the announcement.

A profound sadness settled over me. I called my best friend back in NY, Diane, and commiserated with her. Then went back to the club.

With no one in there, I agreed to just sit and sing so that we'd fulfill the contract, and everyone else could just chill until the clock ran out.

I sat down at the piano, feeling the enormity of the death, when I reached out to the piano and began playing "Imagine." I played it all the way through without a single mistake. Now, you're thinking, not such a big deal. Popular song. Everyone knew it, etc.

But I had never played it before.

Not once. Not even in rehearsal. I just heard it in my head, put my fingers on the keys, leaned into the mic, pictured John's face, and started singing.

I guess I must have talked about and sang a few other songs. I don't remember.

So, when Chris sent me this note, I was so happy just to know that he remembered that night from all those years ago -- and that it meant so much to his 18-year old mind.

A Successful Benefit for NCTC.

Steve standing in front of a poster for the show.

I am happy to report that we raised a lot of money for New Conservatory Theatre Center this past weekend. The house was packed, the singers I invited from the SFGMC to sing with me totally kicked ass on their numbers, and Jimmy brought down the house. (Comedian Jim David, who's there doing "South Pathetic" also contributed 10 side-splitting minutes).

Because this was in support of a challenge matching grant, people made pledges at intermission and now the theatre is very close to meeting their goal, the deadline of which is August 31.

So, that's the headline. Here are some photos taken at the rehearsal.

Jim Brochu during rehearsals.

Steve at the piano during rehearsal.

Steve with Ed Decker, Artistic Director, New Conservatory Theatre Center.

Behind the scenes, I spent most of Saturday putting together ring binders full of music. I had invited KC and Ned from Preoccupied Pipers to join me on bass and drums, but the timing didn't work out. Happily, we were able to use the binders for the chorus members (joining me were Stephen Camarota, John J. Sims, Sanford Smith, Gregory Sandritter, Frank Federico, Marc Savitt and David Jenkins).

All day Monday, we had a tech rehearsal where John Kelly lit the show. That was exhausting. The more of these I do, the more I have to learn to lay back during these rehearsals. The problem is that when I sing, I sing. I don't don't do "halfway." It's just not in my blood. By the time the show came around, I was ready for bed.

However, once I stepped into the bright lights, it was like a shot of adrenalin. Before I even knew it, the first act (which finished with Jim and me doing some Big Voice stuff) was over.

Act two would be songs from "New World Waking." I think I scared a couple of the chorus members because we didn't exactly use the chorus arrangements, so what I told the singers to do was to follow me and just sing whatever felt right using the chorus arrangements as the base idea. And they were great!

(Just for the record, few of the chorus members are professional singers. They do it because they love it. For me, I'd rather have 10 people there with the heart than 100 "professionals" who are only making a paycheck, though it goes without saying most professionals I've worked with are professionals precisely because they sing with heart. But the point stands. The audience knows when a singer is singing from the soul -- and these guys sang with electricity and precision.)

Stephen Camarota singing "Gabi's Song."

John J. Sims singing "War By Default."

The performance shots were taken by Doug Watt. He took others, but said they didn't turn out. It's very hard to set lighting and focus in a dark room.

But here is a shot of the final number with everyone, including Jim, joining us on stage.

Steve Schalchlin, Jim Brochu & members of the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus.

"Imagine" sung at Olympia, Washington.

I didn't know, going into this that I would be singing this song. It just came out of my talking about it. I love the audience singing along. This turned into a really nice moment.

How I Got To Play John Lennon's Piano

This is an interview I did explaining how I came to play John Lennon's piano up in Olympia, Washington a couple of years ago. I'll be back there THIS SUNDAY to sing a concert at the Capital Playhouse.

Gabi's Song on John Lennon's IMAGINE Piano

From that same trip in 2007, here is the full "Gabi's Song" performed on John Lennon's IMAGINE Piano.

The Torture Debate

From Scott Horton at Harper's:

[The United States'] conduct is sending a clear message around the world: the prohibition on torture is a trivial matter which can be defeated by a tyrant in any corner of the world. All he needs to do is hire a lawyer and have him issue an opinion that when he tortures, it’s completely lawful.

In two weeks, I'm going to be singing a concert. Much of the music I've written this past year is about peace and war and violence.

The people I'm singing for in Olympia in a couple of weeks are people who have joined together to support each other. Many of their own children have been subjected to hate speech and violence in their schools.

Here I am singing "Imagine" back there in Olympia in 1997.

Personal Appearances.

This whole new wave of personal appearances, culminating in the creation and design of a new live solo concert, began with a simple request. Gabi Clayton -- do I have to remind you who she is? -- approached me about going back up to Olympia, the place where I played the "Imagine" piano, to sing a new concert as a benefit for PFLAG-Olympia. Given the fact that I'll do anything, anywhere, for any PFLAG, my answer was yes.

For me, PFLAG is a most vital organization because it is the most "roots." It consists of parents helping parents. They are a support group, both locally and online. I subscribe to the PFLAG-Talk email list (which, I believe is not an "official" PFLAG list, but, rather, a group of PFLAG moms and dads). I've been with them from the beginning because Youth Guardian Services was instrumental in helping them get online back in the dinosaur days of the Internet, and I've been involved with them from the beginning before the beginning.

After more than a few years doing only theatre work, with a script, dialogue, staging, etc., I am really looking forward to returning to what I feel I do best: Sit at a piano, sing, tell a few stories, get some laughs and some tears, and then hang out for awhile, huggin' and talkin' to everyone.

It's not sophisticated. It's not the way "big city" people entertain, where the object seems to be to act as removed and above it all as you can be, but it's who I am.

Facebook has been equally interesting lately because people from my high school have been writing me notes. Buna, Texas where I graduated, is a very small town in southeast Texas. Since my dad moved us around a few times, due to his calling as a pastor, I only knew the Buna folks for 2 and half years. I was a total outsider.

When I left Buna, I only had a couple of close friends, Butch and Dwight. Dwight died last year of throat cancer and Butch is still living on the farm his daddy built. This is why I love Butch. I love the stable feeling of a guy who knows exactly who he is and whom you can always find.

But I'm digressing. Back to the concert.

The last time I did any serious touring was, really, in the couple of years after TLS went to New York. That's 10 years ago. And since all my songs were TLS songs, along with Gabi's Song and William's Song, most of my concerts were about having AIDS. If you needed an AIDS music guy, that would be me.

But now, as I review my material, if I'm not the AIDS guy, then who am I? I have TLS, The Big Voice and New World Waking, along with a handful of love songs and cabaret songs. A career that began as a series of songs designed to keep me alive has grown from my hospital room to off-Broadway to award ceremonies to a Beatle's piano to symphony halls.

And since I've been enjoying this so much, I've been in contact with some other venues in other cities to do more benefit concerts for local groups. Why put together a show and only do it once? As soon as I have more information, I'll post it here.

Anyway, here's the latest generic poster design for my concert. Do I look impressive yet?

The Story Behind "New World Waking!"

Today, in Dr. Kathleen McGuire's blog, she posted the personal background story behind the making of New World Waking!

This is from her blog:

REHEARSAL RETREAT

Members of the chorus have just returned from our fall retreat. The chorus goes away on retreat twice a year, usually at Camp Newman north of Santa Rosa. Retreats are galvanizing insofar as we spend concentrated time learning our music, and we also spend time getting to know each other. This is especially important for our "newbie" members who joined only a a few weeks ago. The Faux Talent Show on Saturday night is a wonderful way for members to showcase their 'talents' before a loving audience of peers.

Joining us at this retreat was guest clinician: Dr. Timothy Seelig from Dallas, TX (pictured left - photo by Erwin Barron). Dr. Seelig is an expert in vocal pedagogy and has written several best-selling books on the subject. He is the artistic director in-residence of GALA Choruses, and was the director of Turtle Creek Chorale for twenty years. In addition to enjoying the swimming pool and water slide in unusually glorious sunshine, the members spent rehearsal time with Dr. Seelig as he reinforced some important principles of vocal technique.

It also bears mentioning that Dr. Seelig was particularly impressed with the new music we were rehearsing. He said to me as he left: "I think you've got a hit on your hands." Some have likened it to "the next NakedMan" (SFGMC's 1996 commission) due to the work's accessibility, the breadth of the material covered, and topics relevant to today's gay and social-justic political climate.

SFGMC's 30th ANNIVERSARY CONCERT - NEW SONG-CYCLE:

by renowned gay composer/performer
Steve Schalchlin
(The Last Session, The Big Voice: God or Merman?)

This wonderful new pop/rock/folk song cycle will premiere on Monday, December 1, 2008, at Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall, commemorating the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus's landmark 30th Anniversary.

Composer Steve Schalchlin wrote the following notes about how the work came to be. There are still opportunities available to sponsor the commission. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact the SFGMC administrative office, ph: 415-865-3650, info@sfgmc.org

THE MAKING OF NEW WORLD WAKING!
Songs on the Road to Peace
Inspired by John Lennon's Piano

by Steve Schalchlin

New World Waking! came together in my mind on the day I was selected by pop star George Michael (and his partner, art gallery owner Kenny Goss) to play John Lennon's IMAGINE Piano in the front yard of a house in Olympia, Washington as part of a photographic project. The piano was being taken to places where acts of violence occurred, such as Ford's Theatre, Dallas, Memphis, Oklahoma City and the kitchen of Alec and Gabi Clayton, where their son, Bill, had taken his life after a gay bashing.

I knew this family, the Claytons, and I had written a song about Bill and the aftermath of his suicide in a song called, "Will It Always Be Like This?" (Now the opening number of NWW, following the Prologue.)

I had been writing the songs over a period of four years, with a general idea of what it was about, but the thing hadn't come together. I didn't know what I was writing. I just knew these songs were making a lot of sense to me. (I've written the scores of both our shows in this Zen fashion, writing without a destination in mind.)

So that sunny day in Olympia, after the truck pulled up and delivered the piano beneath a shade tree in the front yard, I was sitting there looking down at John Lennon's cigarette burns, touching the keys he touched, and thinking about him. What was he thinking the day he wrote this song? How much of a difference did the feel and sound of the piano make in the creation of the number?

I sang "Imagine," remembering that the first time I played it was in a Columbus, Ohio airport hotel lounge the night he was killed. Played it perfectly all the way through that night, to an empty bar, without ever having played it before. My fingers just found the chords and my mouth sang the words. It was like magic, the way the song had imprinted itself in my brain.

And I thought how amazing it would feel to write a song of perfect peace. A song that reaches so far into your heart that it strikes a common chord of yearning we have as human beings for peace and justice (because one without the other is impossible).

That's when I saw the entire song cycle in my mind, as if John Lennon had given me a little gift.

THE SAN FRANCISCO GAY MEN'S CHORUS

Then, last year, Jim and I were in San Francisco performing our musical, The Big Voice: God or Merman? and I invited Doctor Kathleen McGuire of the SFGMC to attend. Afterwards, I told her I had a song cycle for peace and asked if I could audition it for her. Soon, we sat in a little rehearsal room and, on a tiny, well-worn upright rehearsal piano, I started at the beginning...

"Will It Always Be Like This...", the story of Bill and Gabi Clayton.

I feel like the SFGMC, especially because they were the first gay men's chorus in the history of our planet (well, except for the chorus at the Vatican) was the perfect fit because the thing about John Lennon is that his music and his life were political. His belief in peace and justice, and the open way he advocated and fought for it, his very existence was an activist act.

The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus are political and social activists by their mere existence.
And, I suppose by virtue of my own existence, I became an activist.

PATIENT ADVOCACY & ONLINE HEALTH ACTIVISM
INTERNET PIONEER

It all began in March of 1996, the day I began keeping what Yahoo/GeoCities designated a "Landmark Website," my online AIDS diary called "Living In The Bonus Round." At the time, I was just trying to keep my family informed of how sick I was so they would know when they could order the casket because I was dying. Fast.

Modern blogs do this routinely, but back then, it was totally unique. In fact, my AIDS diary is the oldest, continuous AIDS diary online. But, again, I wasn't thinking in those terms. I was sick. I just needed help and I wanted to make a statement to the world before dying.

Unbeknownst to me, it became a source of crucial information for doctors, caregivers and medical students around the world who were facing HIV and AIDS for the first time, far from the rest of the world.

I became a sample case study played out in real time, worldwide. One of the first, I later learned. By writing about my treatments, my emotions, side effects, etc. they were learning about the disease on a personal basis. (I even got to meet Dr. Bruce Dorsey, the Merck scientist who created the drug that eventually saved my life).

I was then invited to Harvard University School of Public Health, where my diary was incorporated into the course curriculum materials for that year. The Harvard Gay and Lesbian Club sponsored a concert where I sang the songs from my musical about AIDS, The Last Session.

This continued exposure brought me into doing AIDS education programs for high schools, colleges, universities, churches, synagogues, theaters and other groups all over the country, including the prestigious Jonathan King Lecture at the Stanford University School of Medicine Center for Biomedical ethics.

And that's how I became a health advocate.

But the diary reached into more communities than I could have anticipated.

LGBT ACTIVISM

It led me to PFLAG where I became active online, talking to parents and scared gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons. I corresponded with a young man, for instance, named Jason Hungerford who, at 19, was creating safe spaces for teens at AOL. So, I helped in the creation of, and served as Board Chair of Youth Guardian Services, an online peer support group for GLBT youth and their straight friends. They've now counseled tens of thousands of GLBT youth and saved many lives.

I also, in that first year, encouraged a mother named Gabi Clayton to tell the story of her bisexual son's suicide. She has since become very active in the Safe Schools Coalition and helped found Families United Against Hate, for which I proudly serve on the Board of Directors. We provide comfort to the families of hate crime victims.

RELIGION AND NON-VIOLENCE

As a recovering Baptist, my diary also began attracting those who opposed not just the fact that I was openly gay, but that I totally accepted my homosexuality on a spiritual level. My confrontations with conservative religionists led me to reading the Soul Force principals about how to combat violence with non-violence.

I participated in the historic first March To Lynchburg to protest the hate language of Jerry Falwell.

We were supposed to have lunch with him and his church members. But Rev. Falwell, at the last minute, withdrew his offer of a lunch because, he said, 'the bible' told him not to eat with sinners. So, instead, we sat with his church members and drank water. It was a little like visiting strangers in prison.

THE START OF NEW WORLD WAKING!

The first songs for New World Waking! came from a stack of lyrics given to me by my friend, Rev. Peter J. Carman, the pastor of Lakewood Ave. Baptist church in Rochester, New York.

Peter had taken a bunch of standard "high church" hymns, few of which I'd even heard of since I was raised with a more rural Southern canon. He had written all new lyrics to the old melodies. And since I love writing music to finished lyrics, I took them with me.

Unlike a lot of newer hymns trying to be really theologically neutral, which I think sometimes can feel limp and bloodless, I found Peter's themes and words were deeply emotional and spiritually contemporary without seeming stiff or patronizing. I strung four of them, my favorites, together and played them over and over again.

Then, on New Year's Eve, 2004, I had a vision.

It was about 3am and I was sitting alone in the ship's piano bar playing through these songs when I suddenly saw, in my mind, an image of all the gods sitting around a bar not drinking and not talking to each other.

It felt like a reflection of society and the world's religions. Everyone in their own corners. No one really talking and no one really listening -- and I realized how there seem to be a dearth of role models of peace in the worlds of religion and politics and media.

Then, in my mind, I saw a huge hall. A beautiful piece of music was playing and everyone in the hall, of all ages, races, cultures and creeds, was at one with the music. This was before I played Lennon's piano. But at that moment, I realized that we musicians have the power, as creators of music, to bridge divides and reach across cultures.

I began furiously writing new songs. New lyrics about War. The mass media. Religious violence. But still not knowing what it was all adding up to; just trusting the process.

Fast forward a few years. I'm sitting there beneath and shade tree in the front yard at the Clayton's home in Olympia Washington about to put my hands where John Lennon's hands once were, the instrument whose sound inspired the song 'Imagine', and I knew in that momentNew World Waking! was meant to be:

A simple song of peace from one gay man, and one gay chorus, one gay community, to the world.

And it all starts with "Will it always be like this?"

Wall Street Journal Cover Lennon Piano Project.

Ann Zimmerman in the Wall Street Journal wrote a story about the Lennon Piano PEACE Project. She was going to interview me, but it didn't work out with our schedules. So, I didn't make the article, but there is some video on the site of me playing. So, I guess that's something, right? And, well, it really isn't about me, is it? It's a brilliant project and her article is wonderful. Here's the video that appears on the site with her narrating.

Lennon Piano Hits New Orleans

From Daily Kos:

In a world of strife and tragedy, with new sorrows arriving not as single spies, but in battalions, what would you do to spread a message of peace, to offer a hope of healing to those who've braved the darkest days?

What if you had been fortunate enough to purchase one of the most significant musical instruments of a generation, an instrument on which was composed perhaps the greatest anthem to peace and love of all time? Imagine if you somehow use that instrument to heal the world's broken heart.

Just imagine...

Story continues here.

Bill Clayton Lennon Piano Diary Part 2

Lennon Piano Going To Virginia Tech

John Lennon's Iconic 'Imagine' Piano to Be Photographed in Blacksburg, VA

BLACKSBURG, Va., May 25 PRNewswire —

WHAT: The famous piano on which John Lennon composed "Imagine" in 1971 is being sent to Blacksburg, Virginia, location of the Virginia Tech tragedy by musician George MichaelKenny Goss owner of Goss Gallery in Dallas and will be photographed to help promote peace in an increasingly violent world. The piano will be placed in the private garden of Virginia Tech Assistant Professor Charles Litchfield. and his partner

"Kenny and George both believe by taking the piano to Blacksburg, they hope to honor those that lost their lives, those injured and those whose lives were impacted forever by this great tragedy," said director and producer Caroline True. "Their deepest wish is to imagine a world of peace, a world without violence."

Michael and Goss plan to have the piano photographed at significant locations in the United States and across the world where horrific acts of violence have taken place. The heartbeat of the project continues in creating the opportunity to take tragedy and turn it into victory, ultimately resulting in a more peaceful world. Michael and Goss want to further strengthen the project's peaceful message, by having "Imagine" performed on the piano at each stop.

To date, photos have been taken at Dealy Plaza, site of President Kennedy's assassination, the Memphis site of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s death, the Texas State Penitentiary at Huntsville, location of all of Texas' executions, the Ford's Theatre in Washington D.C., site of the death of Abraham Lincoln, the former Branch Davidian compound in Waco, TX, the site of the Oklahoma City bombing and Texarkana, AR, site of the "Phantom Killings," and West Memphis, AR, outside the courthouse where the West Memphis Three were convicted. A documentary and a book are under development with plans to donate proceeds to charity.

During the piano's stop in Olympia, WA at the home of Bill Clayton, a bi-sexual teen who committed suicide because of fear of hatred towards his sexuality, singer songwriter Steve Schalchlin played "Imagine", moving the crowd to tears.

"Being a part of this project is probably the greatest honor of my life," said Steve. "I felt honored by the sense of beauty and heartfelt community that we experienced that afternoon. The fact that we all brought forth the spirit of John Lennon, reminds us that a great man's work doesn't die just because he does."

To remember and honor the victims of the tragic events of April 16, the university has established the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund to aid in the healing process. To donate, please visit http://www.vt.edu/fund/index.php or call 800-533-1144.

John Lennon's Piano

Lennon Piano Spreading Peace and Magic.

Remember the reporter who asked me if I felt any "energy" or magic coming from the Lennon piano? She wrote a lovely piece in the Puget Sound arts magazine, Weekly Volcano:

Magic was captured in Olympia Tuesday in the notes to a song that a Steinway & Sons upright piano drew out of John Lennon, a haunting call to peace and love made more poignant after Lennon’s assassination.

...

the piano went to an individual home for the first time. The Clayton family lost their son to suicide after assaults plagued his bisexual psyche. Their Olympia home was the destination of the blue Artemis moving van holding the magic instrument, where composer and good family friend Steve Schalchlin played “Imagine” on the lawn, as well as a song he composed for Bill Clayton titled “Gabi’s Song.”

True was moved by the event, observing that the voice of the family was as strong as the bigger entities such as the Oklahoma City Memorial; the strength of the boy’s spirit brought the magic to Olympia while the strength of the spirit of the piano energized Schalchlin to pay homage to those suffering while suffusing the space with light.

The magic of the piano, painstakingly transported into the home, pervaded the home, filling it with life and hope and music, with impromptu sing-a-longs driving requests for more sing-a-longs. “All we are saying is give peace a chance” became “give love a chance” and “give life a chance.”

Reality: one unprepossessing brown maple piano with John Lennon’s cigarette burns on the right side.

Magic: “You may say I’m a dreamer. But I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world will live as one.”

I think she caught the event beautifully. Maybe she was just testing me to see if I was some kind of supernaturalist.

Thoughts about John Lennon's Piano.

[On May 8th, 2007, I was invited to play and sing on John Lennon's piano, the one upon which he wrote the song, "Imagine." It was the anniversary of the death of Bill Clayton, a 17-year old who committed suicide after a gaybashing and the piano was there as part of the IMAGINE Piano Peace Project, sponsored by George Michael (the piano's owner) and Kenny Goss, his partner in life who owns an art gallery in Dallas.]

I literally woke up at 1:30 the next morning after our event at the Clayton's with this overwhelming feeling that something was... not wrong. Just, well...

After the celebration was over, a reporter -- a girl across the street who was hanging out by the truck -- got this rather conspiratorial look on her face and asked me, "So..." she said leaning in just a bit, "...did you feel any energy coming from the piano?"

I thought to myself, if John Lennon had heard this question, he'd have laughed in her face.

For years now, I've been reading up on the Gandhi/King theories on peace activism. I've participated in events, such as a march on Jerry Falwell's church. I've engaged in debates on the internet with maniacal religious people. And I've been writing this
Peace Cantata or Song Cycle / whatever it is.

I wanted to tell the reporter, "Uh, no. It's just a piano." The one thing about John Lennon that I believe, even though I never met him, was that he hated bullshit, especially when it came to the metaphysical. He didn't believe in magic or gods or fairies or "energies" coming from a piece of wood. (My song "Holy Dirt," is about how, when we ascribe "holiness to objects, people start to die.")

As momentum for this project picks up, people are going to start trying to turn the Imagine Piano into a Magic Piano. Trust me. This is what people do. They are going to try to imbue the piano with metaphysical energy and it's going to be tempting for all involved to allow it to happen. I am imploring them to resist this with all their hearts.

Caroline True, Creative Director, IMAGINE Piano Peace Project.

What I loved about our modest event was that Caroline kept it as an art project. Though we invited local press, we didn't hang banners or streamers. We didn't have a parade of public officials. They didn't invite celebrities or stars. I was there because I have a personal connection to the story of Gabi Clayton and it was she who asked them to bring me there.

They allowed the event itself to provide the meaning. We had a simple, unadorned memorial service for a lovely young man, a 17 year old who died of abject fear of more violence. And we had a celebration of his family's ability to survive the hate and turn his life into something much more meaningful than simply, "Our son's dead."

The piano itself is not magic. There was no "energy" coming from it apart from the energy that vibrated off its strings and sound board. No, it was much, much better than that. If we give all our power to a magic piano, then we will expect it to do all the work for us. But it can be a point of inspiration. Its musical energy and sound inspired a great song. And now, thanks to George Michael and Kenny Goss, it continues to inspire, through this unique project, by being transformed from a thing that creates art into a work of art itself that honors life.

Yesterday, a good friend of mine -- a musician -- asked me the exact same question as the reporter. "So, did you feel any of John Lennon's energy coming from the piano?"

My answer was simple, "No, not from the piano" I said. "The energy of John Lennon came from the people around that piano." They, and only they, the human beings on the lawn that day were the ones channeling the spirit, if you will, of John Lennon by standing up and speaking against hate, violence and war. The power and the meaning of it all came from the people surrounding the piano. Those people holding hands and singing along with tears in their eyes, rededicating themselves to relentless non-violence.


The piano is nothing more than a token. A symbol. The beauty of this project is not that Lennon's piano has some magical force to it. It's that Caroline, Ken and George decided to give it meaning by putting in a place where people could bring meaning to it. And that is true art.

I hope they'll call on me again some day, maybe for an AIDS benefit or perhaps another place where the Lennon piano is being exhibited. I'm not famous. I won't bring out the flashbulbs or the paparazzi. I'm too old to be a rock star and too stubborn to write meaningless drivel. But I believe in the work that I'm doing, as humble as it may be.

I write songs about how I am surviving AIDS. Songs about my gay marriage. Songs about peace and survival, and how religion can be both inspiring (in the hands of a Martin Luther King) and deadly (in the hands of a misguided fanatical fundamentalist or an American President). And even a love song every once in awhile.

Being a part of this project is probably the greatest honor of my life. But, oddly, not only because John Lennon's piano was there. That might be the headline, the thing that drags out the media, but I felt honored by the sense of beauty and heartfelt community that we experienced that afternoon. The fact that we all brought forth the spirit of John Lennon, reminding us that a great man's work doesn't die just because he does.

The people, the press, the well-meaning hordes will try to turn the piano into a magic piano. I hope they don't let them. I hope they remind people that it's only wood and steel. Remind them that the true magic happens when we take tragedy and turn it into victory. When we create peace and love in our hearts and in the lives of the people around us. The magic happens around that piano just as a musical instrument can do nothing until someone picks it up and begins to play.

The true "magic" will be in the heart and eye of the person who sees the art created in the picture album and on the documentary, who hears the stories and the music. The magic and the power to transform ourselves and our world is in each and every one of us.

The power to create art. The power to create peace. The power to create love.

Photos I Took

Video on KING5 TV

Here is another video from the event at the KING5 TV site. Since it's outside, my voice doesn't exactly sound "studio-quality," but it is what it is. The camera man did a beautiful job.

"It's A Bunch Of Baloney"

At the article on The Olympian about the Lennon Piano event, the first "comment" that came up was someone saying, "What a bunch of baloney." It made me laugh, but then I thought I have to respond. So I did. Here's what I said:

Well, you know, to comment on the previous statement, "baloney" or not, it was a stunningly gorgeous day in the northwest. The sun was shining brightly. The air crisp, cool and dry.

Olympia was a jewel in the sun. The shady, expansive downtown park sparsely populated with kids, dogs and sunbathers, the character-filled storefronts on the clean streets, the Chinese restaurant with the HUGE portions, the hotel with the brown on brown rooms.

And the close friends and extended family who attended the event were very sincere people. We talked about Bill, how he was a very smart and involved person. And even with a supportive family, the violence that was visited upon him destroyed him.

Photo by Toni L. Bailey/The Olympian

I was more than humbled to have been asked to perform. As a musician who grew up idolizing The Beatles and who believes in the power of the kind of relentless non-violence as idealized by John Lennon, to play this piano, the very one on which he composed "Imagine" was the kind of once in a lifetime fantasy no self-respecting songwriter would ever turn down.

If that's baloney, serve me up a big deli-sized sandwich.

PS The photos by Toni L. Bailey are breathtaking. But am I really that old? Oy.

A Video From The Olympian.

(Photo by Toni L. Bailey/ The Olympian)

I just got back to Houston and will write up a diary entry soon, but here is a link to the story about our experience in Olympia with the Lennon Piano and some video shot by the newspaper.

Imagine Peace Tour In Olympia video.

UPDATE: Gabi wrote about the event on her blog today. She begins:

Yesterday was a dream I will never wake from, and yet so real. I am grounded in love and community.

John Lennon's piano was on my lawn and in my dining room. You should have seen sweet wonderful Steve Schalchlin's hands dance on that piano, and heard him sing "Imagine", "Will It Always Be Like This?" and so many other songs, bringing the piano to life!

I wish John Lennon had been here, and yet I think everyone felt he was - in spirt. Steve was a channeler for John Lennon's energy through the music. Both of these amazing men have left their songs imprinted on my heart and my home.

The Night John Lennon Died.

The night John Lennon died, I was in the Columbus Ohio Airport Rodeway Inn playing in a bar band for about three patrons and two bar staff. There was snow on the ground outside and no one, included us, wanted to be there.

We took a break, our last one of the night, and headed back up to our rooms, flipped on the TV and that was when I heard the news. It shook me up so badly, the thought of going back to that empty club and playing another set was more than I could bear. Since almost no one was in the gloomy club anyway, the band members asked me if I'd just get on the piano and play out the time.

It wasn't until I sat down behind the keyboard that it hit me that I'd be making the public announcement to whoever was that John Lennon had been assassinated. I wasn't even sure I could say the words out loud.

Still in shock, I took the mic and said, "I have some news. John Lennon was just shot and killed."

And then I did something I had never done in my life.

I played the song "Imagine" all the way through without a single mistake.

I had never rehearsed it. Never sung it before. Wasn't even sure what key it was in. But something gripped me that night, some spirit of sadness and strength, and I just sang the song. The words tumbled out of me. A verse would be approaching and though I had no idea what the lyrics were before I sang them, I'd open my mouth and they'd be there.

Today is May 8th, the anniversary of the day Bill Clayton took his own life. On this day, John Lennon's piano will be carried to his home, and without ceremony, without a plan, without any kind of marching band or hoopla, the IMAGINE piano will sit in this place where violence occurred and they will take a photo and, just as I did on that cold, December day in Columbus, Ohio, I will get to play "Imagine" once again. And the reason I'm there, as Caroline True said last night in Gabi's living room, is because Gabi wants me there.


UPDATE: Covered in the press by Earthtimes.org and The Olympian, and at Box Turtle Bulletin.