STATISTICS - WES BRYAN MY LIFE IN MUSIC

This blog is a labor of love and so we have not been too concerned with statistics or having a ticker tally all the hits to our site. (However, we are concerned and stymied about our stuck feed which makes it more difficult for some of you to read us!)

But today we were looking at the new statistics feature that comes with GOOGLE BLOGGER. As we say goodbye to 2010 and move into 2011, we think of all our new Internet friends who have come by to read some small part of Wes Bryan, My Life in Music, and we want to report to you the countries, in order of hits, that this blog has been read in! This is exciting for us, because until now we really did not know that we were being read in other countries outside the United States though we did install the TRANSLATOR to help friends who don't read in American English.

The GOOGLE STATISTICS feature began in May of 2010 (and reported from June 2010 on.)

Friends in the United States are our number one readers by far, as we expected.

What we didn't know was that we are also being read (in order of hits) by friends in:

Netherlands
United Kingdom
Russia
Canada
Germany
Spain
Denmark
Luxenbourg
Slovenia

Additionally, Internet Explorer was by far the most common browser used to read us.

Followed by:
Firefox
Opera
Safari
Apple-PubSub
Chrome
Java
UP.Browser
Netscape
NS*

(We've looked at our blog on various browsers and know that it looks great on Internet Explorer but is not intact on all browsers. This and a template upgrade are of concern to us. If you are not getting an intact website please let us know what browser you use!)

We also have some cell phone fans:
iPhone
Blackberry
iPad
IPod
Linux
BREW
(Currently we cannot install the "cell phone view" feature unless we upgrade and change templates and we like the design we have! hmmm.)

We thank all our new friends again, and hope to hear from you in the new year!

Wes Bryan and Christine Trzyna

BRENDA LEE I'LL BE SEEING YOU IN ALL THE OLD FAMILIAR PLACES

Listening to this old Brenda Lee song, thinking of old friends and looking forward to 2011!

Wes Bryan and Christine Trzyna

THANK YOU TO YOUTUBERS for the HISTORICAL MUSIC VIDEOS ! YOUTUBE STATION CTNWB

YOUTUBERS have been terrific!

If you're reading us you know that we have been able to bring the SOUND of MUSIC to our MUSIC BLOG thanks to Youtubers!

If you turn our station (CTNWB) where we have two play lists you can hear a couple hours of music, all pertinent to our story! Our blog goes to PLAY LIST ONE. Using the seach words CTNWB youtube you can go to PLAY LIST TWO.

We want to thank you all again!

(Please let us know if while you are reading you come across a video we've posted that's defunct.)

BING CROSBY : DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR ?

(351) DARLENE LOVE : A LOVELY PERSON TO WORK WITH : CHRISTMAS 1963

CHRISTMAS 1963

DARLENE LOVE worked a bit for me in the studio and I was lucky to have her because she had success of her own before, after, and during the period that she was a studio background singer! Like many studio singers she went uncredited for much of her work but she still has many noteworthy accomplishments. (I'm proud of my daughter Hollie and the professionalism she brings to studio work as well.)

Darlene sang lead on some of the CRYSTALS songs, produced by PHIL SPECTOR, including "He's a Rebel." She did background vocals for JOEY COOPER'S "I'm a Fool," (A song I co-wrote that we posted a Youtube video of recently). In 1968 she worked with ELVIS PRESLEY on his Welcome Back television special.

We're linking to the HISTORY OF ROCK page for DARLENE LOVE (click on the title) and here is the link for the ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME; Darlene has been nominated for induction in 2011: GO TO THE LINK FOR DARLENE ON OUR SIDEBAR!

Though studio musicians and singers are behind the scenes and many never earn the fame of stage and concert performers, they truly contribute to the sound track of our lives. They are often more professional in their attitudes and abilities than some of those who do achieve fame. I come from a time when recording took place quickly and without all the computer equipment that can help turn a mediocre performance into a better one. Darlene is one of those whose voice stood the test of immediacy and of time.

(350) NAT KING COLE THE CHRISTMAS SONG

This song by NAT KING COLE is a classic among classics.


VIDEO REMOVED

WHATS IN THAT PIPE HE'S SMOKING?

Christine here: I couldn't help myself with that title. But doesn't this look like the Santa Arlo Guthrie was singing about? (Pete Tambunga's not the only one allowed to have a sense of humor here!)

(349) FRANKIE AVALON YOU'RE ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS

Frankie Avalon recorded more than one song that I was a co-writer on and we're always looking for a Youtube video so we can hear those recordings again. This recording is Frankie in his best voice.

(348) ELVIS PRESLEY IF EVERYDAY WAS LIKE CHRISTMAS

Another song that Elvis recorded that had Red West as a songwriter... Red is doing well late in life as an actor. (You can search for Red in our blog using the Google search feature!)

(347) ELVIS PRESLEY HOLLY LEAVES AND CHRISTMAS TREES

Here is what we said on post 89:

Elvis' recording of Holly Leaves and Christmas Trees is here in this YouTube Video presentation. It was written by entourage member and body guard Red West and another songwriter, Glen Dale Spreen. Elvis published it himself, buying it for his Elvis Presley Music, one of three publishing entities he owned.

Can you tell we're warming up to the holidays here? Well, we think today is the first of the twelve days of Christmas. And Elvis always made a big deal of Christmas, with gifts to others, gifts to The Entourage, gifts to his employees, gifts to his family, gifts to his friends, and gifts to strangers, through generous donations to a great number of charities, mostly Memphis-based.

But for Elvis this spirit of giving had everything to do with his idol, the only idol he ever had, King of all Kings, Jesus Christ.

(346) ELVIS PRESLEY BLUE CHRISTMAS

Here's what we said on post 96:

Elvis' recording of "Blue Christmas," that came out on his Christmas album in 1957 brought forth the Memphis sound he was known for with masculine background vocals and soul.

Elvis would sing this song hundreds of times in his life, and good thing, because he loved it personally.

Now, we've got the hang of posting YouTube video presentations to help illustrate the history of my story, but choosing which one, so you could listen to Elvis' rich baratone in the original version wasn't easy. The one we chose doesn't have any pictures of Elvis and it wasn't made as a "cover" by an Elvis interpreter or impersonator.

... This one is like a living Christmas card though, a real work of art, and with it we say "Merry Christmas," to all of you.

(345) ERNEST TUBB BLUE CHRISTMAS

Here is what we said in post number 95 about Ernest Tubb :

(95) ERNEST TUBB DOES BLUE CHRISTMAS FIRST

Country music star, Ernest Tubb did this song first. The song is more known as Elvis' now, "Blue Christmas."

Guess who owned publishing on it? Sylvester Cross, the owner of American Music, the music publishing company where I worked as a staff songwriter, who also had Cross Music.

My dad's cousin owned a coffee shop - restaurant with a juke box. I used to "pearl dive," wash dishes for him. This was when a juke box was stocked with big 78's. I went around singing "I'm Walking The Floor Over You," and "Blue Christmas," Ernest's hits. Elvis listened to this rendition of his favorite Christmas song too.

WILL PETE TAMBUNGA PLEASE STAND UP ?!

Pete Tambunga is an old friend of mine who I've lost contact with. He's a prankster who pulled off a few over the top practical jokes in his life, and he has always had an interesting way of putting things. I believe he's in Arizona...

Pete, where've you been hiding out?
(I'm still telling your jokes!)

(344) END OF THE YEAR HOLIDAY MUSIC MEMORIES

Christine remembers that her family brought live trees that waited outside until Christmas eve to be brought indoors and decorated, which is, she tells me, the custom in Central and Eastern Europe, and I was thinking about living surrounded by evergreen trees in the Smokey Mountains where my family lived when I was growing up and I still have so many well loved relatives and friends who I don't get to talking to near enough.

We don't want to rush into Christmas here, but at the same time, as we blogged a while back, CHRISTMAS was the COVER TUNE ERA way back and ever since and that is on topic!

So we looked back upon some of our older posts, discovered that many of the videos we attached were, as happens, expired, and decided we would go ahead and replace those as well as update our Youtube station and represent some of the finest memory music in the Western World!

We hope you'll enjoy listening and remembering with us!

Wes Bryan and Christine Trzyna

ELVIS PRESLEY'S "GURU" PASSES - SRI DAYA MATA of SELF REALIZATION FELLOWSHIP

From the TIMES OF INDIA comes this take on Elvis and his involvement with Self Realization Fellowship : link now by clicking to the title above.

The Elvis Presley I knew had one idol, and that was Jesus Christ. He read from the Bible to me and he read from it at some of the parties. The acceptance of Jesus Christ by the Self Realization Fellowship founder Paramahansa Yogananda nodoubt made it easier for Elvis to talk to Dri Daya Mata. Elvis began to explore other religions in his life as he tried to make sense of his talent and his fame and the role he was playing in the world. He did not take the gift of his voice for granted and he lived for entertaining his fans and demonstrating the generosity he is known for, and there was a spiritual basis in Elvis always, no matter what else.

Elvis used to go to Self Realization Fellowship and try to meditate in the little boat there stationed on the lake at the Lake Shrine. I myself became a visitor to the Lake Shrine for a while.

SMOKEY BLUE EYES by ROY STERNHAGEN (DAVID HOUSTON ALSO RECORDED THIS ONE!)

Friends, Roy Sternhagen honored me by recording this song not once but three times and putting it up on YouTube which is where we met. An artist who had an album out named David Houston recorded this one.

ROY STERNHAGEN reminds me so much of the musicians that I grew up around in the Smokey Mountains, listening to him is like going home again. And I always think of home at THANKSGIVING. This year, though our country continues in terrible economic times, we as Americans still have so much to be thankful for.

I am thankful for my family and old friends and new friends like Roy.

Quote from THE BIBLE, APOCRYPHA

"A faithful friend is the medicine of life." - The Holy Bible