Taylor Hicks' The Fall. Filmed in Waukegan, IL by Samz.

John Mayer's Gravity.

Amos Lee's Arms Of a Woman.

And just to mix it up, a blue-grey eyed man.

David Cook's cover of the Foo Fighter's My Hero.

And we'll end this blog with a story. It's a long one but it's told by one of the most talented troubadours of our time. Do yourselves a favor and watch it from beginning to end. Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds) tells of his and his family's time spent with a primitive tribe in South Africa: Dave's birthplace and the inspiration for Eh Hee.

I think a great deal of my draw to this new artist are the uncanny similarities between he and Taylor. Indulge me while I list a few of them here.

- They're smart, both book and street-wise.

- Both are a little dorky, and don't seem to mind letting that side of themselves show.

- They both gave up career paths that would allow them to live more comfortably in order to pursue their dream of making music their way.

- Both put in long years on stages in bars, often playing for crowds numbering in the single digits.

- Both gave themselves deadlines to "make it" in the business, and both kept pushing those deadlines forward.

- They both released self-produced, independent albums.

- Both are not only accomplished singers, but gifted songwriters and musicians.

- They both have had more than their fair share of family tragedies.

- Both are genuinely nice guys who care about making the world a better place.

- Both are extremely talented at taking songs we know and knocking them on their ear by changing up the arrangements and turning them into brand new songs.

- They are both comfortable stepping outside their chosen genres and trying something new.

- Both found themselves taking a path to success that neither ever expected. 

- Both won by landslide victories.

And lastly, both are gifted with a rich, warm, and gravelly timbre to their voice that manages to snake past my defenses and curl up comfortably in a corner of my heart I reserve for a select few.

Just in case you've been living under a rock these past months and haven't figured out who the other half of this equation is, allow me to introduce you to David Cook, winner of American Idol Season 7.

Right now, for me,  David is like a new pair of jeans. The kind that fit you like a glove and make your ass look magnificent. You yearn to pull them on and strut your stuff because you love how electric it makes you feel. But at the end of the day, when all is said and done, there's nothing you crave more than slipping into your favorite pair of well-worn blue jeans, the ones that are slightly frayed and soft and warm as skin. Taylor is that pair of jeans.

Listening to David Cook sing makes me sit up straight and hold my breath, tremulous and taut.

Listening to Taylor Hicks sing turns my bones to jelly and makes me sigh with relief.

They're not like oil and water, separate and incongruous, not at all. They are like earth and sky - allowing me solid ground to stand upon and the all the room I need to stretch.

A few nuggets of Cookie to nibble on.

Little Sparrow

All I Really Need Is You

The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

The World I Know

The show begins at 8:00pm and tickets are just $10.00. See you there!

Di seguito, il comunicato stampa ABC per il dodicesimo episodio "There's no place like home", ovvero la prima parte della season finale (divisa in tre parti).

SINOSSI: Il faccia a faccia tra i sopravvissuti e la gente della nave ha inizio.

GUEST STARS: L. Scott Caldwell (Rose), Nestor Carbonell (Richard Alpert), Jeremy Davies (Daniel Faraday), Ken Leung (Miles Straume), Rebecca Mader (Charlotte Lewis), Jeff Fahey (Frank Lapidus), Kevin Durand (Keamy) Anthony Azizi (Omar) Andrea Gabriel (Nadia), Byron Chung (Mr. Paik), June Kyoko Lu (Mrs. Paik), Lillian Hurst (Carmen Reyes), Cheech Marin (David Reyes), Veronica Hamel (Margo Shephard), Michelle Forbes (Karen Decker), Susan Duerden (Carole Littleton) e Noah Craft (Hendricks)

Interessante la presenza di Keamy e Omar che sono dunque ancora vivi e di molti parenti degli Oceanic Six, tra cui Nadia, i genitori di Hugo, la madre di Jack e la nonna di Aaron (nonchè madre di Claire e amante di Christian Shephard). Alquanto strana l'assenza di Bernard (visto che c'è Rose)...

"Are you in a high school filled with DRAMA & SCANDAL? Is your best friend sleeping with your boyfriend, do others constantly talk behind your back or did someone steal your prom date? Is your best friend failing and missing class because of drugs and alcohol during 4th period?* Are you ready to divorce your high school completely?

PLEASE RESPOND ONLY IF YOU ARE WILLING TO

APPEAR ON TELEVISION WITH DR. PHIL."

This is what happens when you press the Click Button on the TEENS: HAVE HIGH SCHOOL DRAMA? message scrolling across the top of the Dr. Phil Official Website!

It seems that the good doctor still wants to exploit the "teens in crisis" demographic (with the exception of teens needing paternity tests 'cuz that's Montel's turf). Hopefully, Dr. P won't send out his "staff" to post bail to "get the exclusive." Can Dr. Phil book his teen guests without making a complete ass of himself? He has a good shot if the potential guests answer this cute list of questions. Then Dr. Phil can avoid avoid knocking on the doors of jails and mental hospitals with a camera crew in tow. You've got to admire his tenacity (ten-ass-ity), that is.

PJ

*Note to Dr. Phil's copy editor: I'm sure you take home a pretty sweet paycheck from the Dr. Phil Show so do not insult Dr. Phil with your poor grammar!! This sentence contains a blatant misplaced modifier unless you meant to ask if teens do drugs and alcohol during fourth period.

Yesterday, I saw a scene that was not only eerily similar, it was obviously stolen right from Mother Nature ™….that's right, another SL ripoff!! Ironically, this scene was being acted out in the middle of cries for originality and artistic integrity. How hypocritical that the very ones ready to besmirch someone for being unoriginal would steal this barnyard scene and act as if it were their own, and at the end of the day, not a single one of the “pseudo hens” gave credit where credit was obviously due - both shameful and almost embarrassing in their blatant theft and attempts to mask it. As an avid outdoorsman and one who lives in the middle of the nature's rugged playground, beautiful British Columbia, I feel like I am the best person to act as a spokesman for Mother Nature ™ and demand recompense. If you were one of the human “hens” involved in yesterday's “pecking”, first of all, you need to cease and desist…what you took part in was an act that originated with Mother Nature ™ and is nothing but another form of intellectual theft!! As for the fomenters of this infringement, I and Mother Nature ™ will require a formal apology along with your promise to completely avoid any further “hen pecking” behavior or behavior that is closely related. Be advised that failure to do so could result in legal problems down the road….be advised that we here at Mother Nature ™ frown on theft of any kind, and will not write off future incidents as innocent mistakes.

On a completely personal level, your friends and families must be so proud of you!! Please note if you do not agree with this rant, you are most likely stupid in RL and are probably ugly too…have a great day!!

(written by Lawless McBride and posted here by me!)

Thanks to all the people who made our big show successful. Thanks to Kirby for performing with us. Thanks to everyone who came and witnessed one of the best nights of our professional lives. Thanks.

I'll be back with a few words of my own at the end of this blog entry. Thank you, Tricia, for allowing me to share this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

5/23/07 10:24 PM

I've been laying in bed trying to go to sleep. But one question keeps floating around in my mind.

What is the Measure of a Man?

Tonight, we experienced something bittersweet. We were witness to a level of disrespect one wouldn't expect to see on national television. This disrespect has been going on for over a year...so while it shouldn't be a surprise...it still hurts. I think a lot of us are reeling from it.

Many of us have lamented the way Taylor Hicks has been treated. Sure, that show gave him an incredible opportunity. But everything that has come to him has happened because he has EARNED it. For 15 years he struggled for his music...For months he fought and competed to have his voice heard..to find an audience that would appreciate what he has to offer. He accomplished his goals through hard work, perserverance, faith and most importantly, integrity. In return, Taylor has been blessed with a stalwart legion of loyal fans who have taken his music and his words to heart. This isn't to say he's perfect...no one is. But he is someone you can look at and admire because he stands up proudly for what he believes in. He follows his heart and trusts his instincts. Taylor Hicks is a fighter. Sure, he has money now...he is famous...he's living his dream. But..you know what...he doesn't measure himself by the numbers of his record sales or the dollar signs attached to them. He measures himself by the loyalty of his fans...the numbers of people who buy his records and attend his shows...the people...not the dollars....

And then...there are others. There are men who measure themselves by the dollar sign. Men like Simon Cowell who said he was bigger than Bruce Springsteen because he made more money than him. Men like Clive Davis who base success on records sales. Little men who bolster themselves with their "mighty accomplishments" and have to proclaim" "Look at what I've done! Admire me...shower me with attention." It isn't about helping or touching people...that show uses the idea as a thinly veiled disguise to hide the money machine behind door number one.When "money men" encounter someone whose only objective is to make a decent living writing and performing music...they must be taken aback by the divergent point of view. I believe a great number of us are here at this place for a reason. We are quite similiar in many ways. At one point or another...somewhere in our lives...we've been the underdog. When we see someone good...a truly good man like Taylor Hicks who struggled and believed and fought hard for what he acheived...we can see a little bit of ourselves in him. When those money men disrespect him...they in turn disrespect us...and it hurts.

But...upon stepping back a bit...I have come to understand that we are the ones who are blessed. Taylor is the one who is blessed. There is a special relationship between Taylor Hicks and his fans...something I've never experienced before and probably never will again. A community of caring, sincere people has been created. We don't know Taylor...we know that we like what we see...we hope he is the good man he appears to be. We take his words and music and find personal meaning in them. He gives us something those money men never will and never could.

Taylor Hicks makes us smile, he makes us laugh, he makes us cry, he touches our hearts and he gives us hope.

That is the true measure of a man...the lives that he touches...not the money he makes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wonderland here.

Over the past year I've read countless posts that've shown up on the internet after a less-than-flattering article or review of Taylor appears, and they all state much the same thing. The folks writing them point out that Taylor is thick-skinned and probably not as bothered by the negative publicity as we are. They remind us that years of struggling to break into the music business has to have toughened him and I agree, to a point. The way he presents himself and his demeanor in the face of these articles and reviews proves that, if nothing else, he is a master at biting his tongue. In all cases he's been more gracious than anyone has the right to expect.

No one but Taylor Hicks truly knows if the events of last night hurt him, and if they did, how deeply. But all day long a simple anology has been running through my head and it seems to sum up the situation pretty well:

A man reaches a decision to make carpentry his life's work. He feels it's his calling, the thing he loves the most and is fulfilled by - something he can't imagine doing without. And so he follows this path and hones his art, knowing that there will be times when his thumb and a hammer will make forceful contact, most likely resulting in pain and injury. The carpenter accepts this as part of his career. He knows it will happen. It is inevitable. And so when those days come when he slams the hammer down on his thumb, he deals with it as best he can and moves on. But no matter how many times he does it, he cannot escape the pain. It hurts just as much the 42nd time as it does the first. He just gets better at dealing with it.

On the off chance that Mr. Hicks should wander by and read this blog entry, I invite you to take a few minutes to share your thoughts with him. All I ask is that you keep in mind that this isn't an invitation to vent your anger against The Powers That Be for any real or precieved slights against Taylor. Rather, this is an opportunity for you to show your support, encouragement and appreciation for all he has given us and all that is yet to come. 

Thank you, Taylor. You've always been and will always be much more than just an American Idol.

Thanks, Linda! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today was a blue day --- long hours at work, the woo blues set up in full force, a hard rain driving, pouring down the car windows. I was in a melancholy mood, but had the Nashville set playing on the car stereo as I wove through Boston traffic to my first job. The song that opened me up and lifted me out of my funk today was "Heart and Soul" ---- so here's a little appreciation, a "thank you" for the gift of this particular song to carry me along, even on a bad day.

To begin with, I love Taylor's verbal introduction to the song. He has just finished wailing "Higher", but softens the mood before this one. "We'll try this little original tune here. We'll feature our brother Mr. Jeff Lopez on the saxophone". I love hearing him say this because I can actually hear the smile in his voice. Then a little fiddling around with the instruments, including a small "Deliverance" theme and some verbal banter and an order for four red snappers....and then the song just starts slowly on Taylor's acoustic guitar. Small touches such as this one accentuate the intimacy of this entire set.

Once the vocals start, however, the song means business. No gentle introduction to the blues, this, simply a ripping open, an admission to weariness, loneliness, darkness, pain, sung in Taylor's most plaintive rasp. Taylor does an especially wonderful phrasing of "for those who have no homee--a"

After the first, "living off of Heart and Soul", the instruments come in and give the song a different flavor. Now it's not so raw or simple, but instead admits that even the blues can also swing just a bit. I love Jon Cook's almost relentless guitar lick in this part. The lyrics never cease to amaze me, no matter what version of the song I hear --- "I know that love is around the corner, and heartache is around the bend. When will this lasting darkness ever come to an end?" Love and heartache, darkness and light --- the juxtaposition of these seemingly conflicting themes in a blues song with swing is just a delight. It provides the vessel that can contain everything that life puts before me.

The song then progresses with the addition of the sax and the more insistent guitar licks. Taylor's vocal through this part just sends me, with plenty of "ssss" and "yeah yeah yeahs" --- he's starting to journey off into the zone. The song reaches a peak with a blistering Lopez sax solo, and by this time I'm dancing my blues away.

Until the next verse, when Taylor reminds me that the blues are still the blues.....the song slows down and goes back to "I know love is around the corner....." and here we are back at the beginning. There is still an element of swing, but it's turned sad (Lopez' background sax here is fantastic).

But all is not lost -- Taylor gets caught up in a balmy moment and says "Cheers to Nashville, we appreciate it!!" and the swing starts up yet again....along with Cook's guitar licks and Taylor's promise that "I'm gonna play the blues....play the blues".....

And then there is the harp solo. And I mean a fuckin' harp solo. I think if I had to choose my favorite harp solo of any Taylor song this one might fall out on top. Any time I hear this one, my body can't stop moving and yet I'm smiling and my heart is breaking all at once --- that wonderful, delicious knife-edge between laughter and tears.

And after the ecstasy of the harp solo, the song moves into a three-way call and response with guitar, sax and voice. By this time my heart's wide open, I'm ready for the "zone", that zone where I get "ain't it just like a woman" "if you build your house ---- HUH --- then call me" "there's an old song by Johnny King and the Pilots....." "it's a family affair", etc. By this time I'm ready to travel wherever the song wants to lead me. And the final harp solo seals the deal. I've got the lowdown dirty happy ecstatic blues, man, and it feels so so sooo damn good.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You get the bonus of I've Been Working before Heart and Soul with this download. It's your lucky day!

 http://www.sendspace.com/file/reof6a

PC, one of the moderators on the SOS Message Board, and my personal guiding light, offers up her thoughts to Taylor on the closing of Gray Charles' blog and what it means to his community of fans. Thanks, PC!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Dear Taylor,

This time the demise of GrayCharles.com has a definite finality to it, so I guess this really is the end. I will miss Gray’s blog, not because I was an active participant, but because I knew if anything was happening in Taylor World, Gray would be the first to have it. I will miss the audioblogs from you, the video clips that gave us a glimpse of what you are like, new music I’d never heard of before, Gray’s writing style and just the fact that I knew he was in touch with you. It gave us a window into a person we admire, that I’m sure none of us have had before. So that’s that and Gray left us a message to explain things on that sadly empty front page. But the thing that made me the saddest was this sentence: “My desire to step down from day to day operations coupled with Taylor’s realization that he needs to focus his Internet presence on his own sites…” And, listed above this are: TaylorHicks.com, Fan Club and Headquarters, and Taylor Hicks Myspace. Oh. Lord. No.

Taylor, have you been to your Myspace page? I joined Myspace so that I could get updates. Ummmm….not so much. And the comments can be summed up like this: “Good morning Taylor you’re hawt I had scrambled eggs for breakfast now I have to go to work for 8 hours you rock you’re hawt Good afternoon Taylor just wanted to say hi are you having a good day you’re hawt what did you have for dinner I said hello 5 times today could you visit my myspace Good Night Taylor sweet dreams talk to you tomorrow you’re hawt.” Whoa…..It’s kind of a scary place.

I actually understand www.TaylorHicks.com. I understand what it is supposed to be. Promote the record and be kind of a catch-all for people who are trying to find you on the internet. Cool. But the fan club…that I joined…I just don’t get. There is nothing much there. And if the pre-game activities before the moderated chats with you are any indication of what the “community” is like, it’s not someplace I’d likely hang. I honestly don’t mean that in a snobbish way. It’s just that I think some of the “communication” is disrespectful to you….and I don’t like that.

So what to do? I don’t really have a good answer for you. I do want you to know this, though. There are those of us out here, who while we can get a little “fangirly” from time to time, still respect you and the music…a lot. And I will even venture to say that we love you. Notice that I didn’t say “in love with you.” This journey with you, American Idol and now your career, has been something I don’t think many of us have ever experienced. We feel more invested, more connected with you than anyone that we’ve been “fans” of before. We’re the ones who keep showing up at concerts; we’re the ones who have bonded and become friends because of you; and we’re the ones who give you your space at places like Buddy Guys’…even if we may follow the bus now and then. We want a connection with you in what ever way you are comfortable with, but we don’t want to have to wade through the glitterati and insanity to do it. We’re in it for the long haul, Taylor. If you ever want to chat with some really nice people….we’ve got just the place for you. Keep in touch….please.

Love,
pc
 

Διαβάστε το εδώ.

 We are Harmony for the Soul and would like to introduce ourselves to the legions of Taylor Hicks fans across the planet. We are dedicated to organizing a National Soul Patrol Convention. We were founded with the objective of being a fundraiser for Kid One Transport, a non-profit organization which provides free medical transportation to children and expectant mothers in Alabama, allowing them to receive the essential healthcare and checkups they need and deserve. This is a charity Taylor is very involved in and holds near to his heart. All profits from the convention will go to Kid One Transport.

Plans are currently underway for the convention in Birmingham, Alabama, to be held tentatively on October 12-14, 2007. We are planning multiple activities, a musical extravaganza, and a chance for friends old and new to gather and share the common bond of love for an artist and great soul music. Many of us have wanted a place to gather and meet our fellow soul patrollers and see friends we've come to know along the way who share our love of the music and the artists who create it. Provide the soul and they will come. Venues in the city are being reviewed, however, and we need an idea of attendance and therefore need your help.

We are sending this email to inquire how many of you would be committed to attending depending on the responses we receive, we will then get an idea how and if we shall proceed.

If you are interested in attending this event, please send an email to our secretary at: "mailto:harmonyforthesoul@earthlink.net". We will keep your name and address on record and will continue to keep you updated with developing news.

Please remember we are constantly working behind the scenes to make this a great event for everyone and all information will be provided as it becomes finalized. Anyone interested in helping to organize and assist in future planning of this event, please send an email to our president at: "mailto:onefussybg@aol.com" for details on joining our group.

I know I have no one but myself to thank - and curse - for the fact that the whole Boogie world now knows of my sudden affection for Senor Lopez. I don't think anybody was more suprised by it than me, though. I mean, of course I've always shared that amazingly fierce, sometimes painful infatuation over Mr. Hicks with everybody else around here. That's just a given. I don't even need his music to make me want to grab him and throw him down and . . . well, you know. Actually, on a good day, that sweaty picture you posted up above is enough to do that to me. And mind you, he's the first and only guy to make me feel that way since I was in high school. I'm easy, but not THAT easy.

But then here is the Workplay cd. Now I've read the recaps and drooled over the pictures and such, but damn. Nothing prepared me for this. The first cd is amazing! Love everything about it. Makes me just want more and more, and makes me wish more than anything that I had been there in person. Then there's the second cd. The final set, including, but not limited to, Mr. Hicks Himself. Damn. First of all, I just have to point out that the WOO is not just a silly phrase somebody made up. It is a tangible thing. You can feel it as soon as he is introduced. I felt it, you felt it, LMBO felt it, and the crowd sure as hell felt it. It affected everybody there in an indescribable way. I love LMBO, and I thought they were in amazing form for this show, from beginning to end. But once Taylor joined them something changed. They kicked it up a notch or two and became a different band. They pull us in with Call Me the Breeze. Just whet our appetite with it. Then Taylor calls out Elliot. Then the music starts again, quietly, and that flute starts up. OMG that flute! I have never in my life gotten anything out of listening to the flute being played other than to think "that's so pretty". I mean, I like it and all, but it has never done anything for me. Ever. But what he does with that flute on this song just does my ass in every dang time. What is it? I have no freakin idea! It's just a little flute music. I've heard it in countless marching bands and orchestras. And I've never had the desire to take the flute player and throw them down and do stuff to them. Ever. But listening to this song, with that flute in the background, ever so seductive, makes me want to do just that! I just can't explain it, but that's what it does to me. Apparently I've caught the flute WOO. It's probably the combination of that, and Taylor's and Elliott's voices together, and the kickass guitar, just makes me want to pull the blinds while I'm listening.

And then of course that is followed by Use Me. No flute in this one, but by the time we get to it I'm hot enough to get the same feelin from the sax. And then in Dance to the Music Taylor finishes me off with the harp. Stick a fork in me I'm done for. Of course I just back the cd up and listen to those 3 again, cause I'm just a glutton for punishment.

This is what I believe God invented music for. To move us in ways that nothing else can move us. To make us feel in ways that we aren't used to feeling. To give us joy and sadness and pain and excitement and exhilaration and heartbreak and healing. To make us long for whatever it is we're missing, and to make us celebrate what we've got. To make us feel good and bad at the same time, to make us want to change things, or to leave things just the way they are. Or just to make us want to boogie. I can't explain why this music makes me feel the way it does, it just does. That's all I know and probably all I ever will understand about it, and that's ok. Because it makes me feel stuff that I don't get to feel very often, and I like that. So what if I suddenly have an unexplainable yet undeniable crush on a sax/flute player that I've never met and probably never will? Everybody needs that once in a while. So whenever I listen to that cd, when it gets to that song, just know that my eyes are closed, and I'm imagining things that could probably get me arrested in several states, and that's OK.

Cheers Taylor, Cheers Jeff, Cheers LMBO, Cheers EVER-BODAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!

"Ahem,There are delights in this world that resist words. They possess your mind and body in such a way that you cannot SAY how they do the pleasure but you can only accept the waves of pleasure or you can resist. I have no more resistance to this man. I have come up with every way to think he must be some mirage, some bizarre manifestation of my obsessed and lonely mind. But no, he is real, and a simple miracle of flesh and spirit. I am a natural misanthrope, but he makes me love Mankind. I am a cynic and he batters past all my barriers. I have been closed off from my own creativity and I must write him love letters disguised as essays and jokes. He is what artists are supposed to be; the ones who sing us ALIVE. I am alive to this moment and I think I shall watch it again... "

Basenji's thoughts, and the way she translates them into words, fascinates me. I'm intrigued by how often it seems she's reached into my head and stolen what I was thinking but could never find the words to convey. The bolded section of her post is a prime example of that.

I don't have access to Taylor; there's no easy way to reach him in order to thank him for what he's done for me. I can't invite him out for a beer and a long conversation about the music and its impact on our lives. I can't share a good belly laugh with him, or commiserate over the messy state of our world, or trade embarassing stories about nights of too much partying and not enough common sense. But there is something I can do.

I can write. I can write him love letters disguised as posts and musical analysis; poems borne of dreams and snippets of Life After Taylor. I couldn't write for a long time before he came along. Even grocery lists were painful to compile. I'd been butting my head against a wall of writer's block as unyielding and as massive as the Great Wall of China. We're talking for years.   

I'd like to thank Taylor for the music. And then for the muse. Because somewhere along the line, very slowly and quietly, he woke mine up. It started as a low hum, something barely heard and hardly recognizable. Something easy to shoo away as you would a pesky fly. But the hum got a little louder and I began to hear words forming in the white noise. And I started to think about making friends with my keyboard again, because these little lines would pop into my head and beg to be written. Soon the corkboard next to my computer was filled with scraps of papers; those, in turn, filled with one liners and phrases and sometimes just a single word. The hum faded and in its place came the whispers. My love, my muse, had returned and was speaking sweet somethings in my ear. She never was so crude as to ask me to celebrate her return by writing something for her. But write I did. As a gift for her. A proclamation of my love.

 And all because Taylor sang me alive.

This is the power of the Woo. It's not in the big brown eyes or the silver hair; not the hint of the devil in his eyes or the quirk of his grin; not the long lines and smooth angles of him. It is in the way his voice touches me. The way his music moves my body. The way his journey has restored my faith that sometimes dreams do come true, even if I can only experience and enjoy them second-hand.

He's healed my soul. And I think it's safe to say mine is not the only one. I hope he knows this somehow. I hope he can feel it every morning when he opens his eyes and gets to go out and live his dream. Because we're living it with him and through him. Taylor is our Spokesman of Soul. And can't think of a more deserving ambassador.