Let The Nepotism Begin...

nep·o·tism : n. Favoritism shown or patronage granted to relatives, as in business.

Sooooo... I'll get to the purpose behind the definition in a minute, but first... just wanted to let you know I released a NEW 6-SONG EP ON iTUNES and 2 NEW VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE. (videos below)



Click HERE to check out my new EP!


Ok, that said, here's the story behind the cover of my new EP... So my daughter Fiona likes to draw. And paint. And color... a LOT. A few days ago, having decided to put my most recent songs on iTunes, I commissioned her to create an album cover for me (because, when it comes to my kids... let's be honest here... I'm all for nepotism. :) And, I mean... why not? The kid rocks a sweet shooting star, and I figured it could make for some cool cover art (not to mention put a huge smile on her face and quite possibly save my wife and me a few hours of her and her brother fighting :). Anyway... after much deliberation and numerous drafts, Fiona came up with her piece de resistance. A shooting star perhaps? Maybe one of her signature 'unicorn jumps through rainbow' masterpieces? Nope. Not even close. She painted... a turkey. Why, you ask? Because in the mind of a 6-year-old:

Album cover = almost Thanksgiving = Turkey

And, I gotta say... I honestly can't argue with that reasoning. :) So, to represent my latest crop of sensitive-guy-heart-on-my-sleeve acoustic tracks... I give you... a turkey. There ya have it. :)

Kidding aside, you'll be able to get these 6 tracks as part of a full-length release in December (limited edition CD, iTunes download, etc.), but many of you were asking for the most recent covers in the meantime. And, if you wanna buy 'em... who am I to stop you? :)

Ok, as to the second piece of news... 2 new YouTube videos for ya...





Covers of Linkin Park's 'Waiting For The End' and Josh Groban's 'Higher Window.' I'm a long-time Linkin Park fan, and after the Josh Groban story-blog I wrote last year... figured it was high time I covered one of the Grobe's songs. Hope you like it. :) (if you haven't already, you can read the Groban blog HERE)

So, that's it. Have a great Thanksgiving (if you're in the States), and... GO BUY YOURSELF A SHINY NEW iTUNES EP! If not for for me... do it for the CHILDREN... (or more specifically... my beautiful little budding artist... and her turkey. :)

Thanks, guys. :)

Gavin

Ps - To stay up-to-date on future videos, just click    to subscribe directly to my YouTube channel...


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Two New Videos For Ya... :)

Hey there... Hope you're having a great Monday...

So, I just wanted to check in and let you know I posted 2 new videos today - acoustic covers of 'The Only Hope For Me Is You' (My Chemical Romance) and 'The End' (Kings Of Leon). You can click below to check them out...


       


As to the songs themselves... The Only Hope, especially, really struck a chord with me. Ever since you began (thankfully) connecting with my own work as a songwriter, it's been such an amazing thing to realize that the listener's interpretation... YOUR interpretation... really is everything. I can write songs from my own life experience and observations, but how YOU hear those words... that's what ultimately matters.

Anyway, that said, my own interpretation of this song could be worlds away from why it was actually written... but with lyrics like:

Where will we stand?
When all the lights go out
Across these city streets
Where were you when
All of the embers fell
I still remember there
Covered in ash
Covered in glass
Covered... and all my friends
I still think of the bombs they built...

...I can't help but think of events such as 9/11. Or the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Or any one of the many disasters we seem to hear about on an hourly basis these days... And, I guess what I connected with in this song is that, in those situations... without fail... it's always... ALWAYS people coming together that enables us to overcome. Put quite simply... the only hope for me is you.

Ok... pretty sure with that I've now landed squarely in Hallmark-card-cliche-land (cue slo-mo of adorable puppy bounding across field of lilacs, please... :), but many of you have asked why I pick the covers I do... and well... there's the reason behind one of them, at least. :)

Anyway, thanks for checking them out (and, as always, sharing with your Facebook friends, etc.). Have a good one, and we'll talk soon...

Gavin

Ps - If you watch all the way to the end of the videos, you'll see links to my various video playlists as well as info on how to get some of my songs for free, etc... just sayin'... :)

Pps - To stay up-to-date on future videos, just click    to subscribe directly to my YouTube channel...


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Sugar-pop video for ya... :)

Hey there... So, over the past few months of putting out videos, I've been jokingly accused of being able to make any song sound 'moody' or 'depressing'... (I prefer 'intense' and 'existential' myself... but that's neither here nor there... :) ANYWAY... given that fact, this time around, I considered doing one a bit more... centered. Not too intense but not too light either. But, ya know what? Honestly, it didn't feel right. I mean, if I'm gonna lighten things up... why not find the most sugar-pop song I can find and do THAT instead? Sooooo... yeah. 'Tis what I did. :) Two new videos for ya...

       

The Bedingfield song is more along the lines of my other songs and videos (all about finding and holding onto your voice in the world), but the Pink song is my attempt at 'light.' The irony being that, despite my best efforts at not being too intense on the Pink song, I'm pretty sure my delivery ended up coming across as some weird hybrid between my usual over-the-top and tongue-in-cheek. Which is, I guess... kind of what I was feeling as I alternated between a hearfelt chorus and verse lyrics like 'don't be fancy, just get dancey,' 'if you a gangsta,' and 'what's the deal, yo?' :) (haha... wow... even as I type this, I'm laughing at myself. Awesome... :)

Anyway, in one final note... despite some of the lighthearted lyrics, I really DO like the message of the song. Like all of us, I have my moments of self-doubt... sometimes feeling like I don't belong... that maybe I need to change somewhat to fit in... And, I think the song does a great job of championing just being who you are. Celebrating all the 'wrong-ness' that makes you unique... (but again... just to reiterate... when you hear me sing 'gangsta,' 'dancey,' or 'hot damn'... feel free to laugh at my expense. I'm ok with that. :)

As always, thanks for watching... sharing my videos with your Facebook friends... buying my music... and basically doing all the other little things you do on a daily basis. Your support is, quite frankly... amazing.

Thank you.

Gavin

Ps - To stay up-to-date on future videos, just click    to subscribe directly to my YouTube channel...


***TO SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER (AND RECEIVE A FREE DOWNLOAD OF 5 SONGS + 1 VIDEO), VISIT:

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_________________________________

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

THE GAVIN MIKHAIL STORE

iTUNES

AMAZON MP3

FACEBOOK

YOUTUBE

CD's sold out... and... new videos for you!

Hey there... hope you're having a great week...

So, just a quick update for ya... First off, I wanted to let you know the limited edition cd's are... officially sold out! If you're someone who bought a copy... THANK YOU... and your cd should be arriving soon!



Secondly, over the past month or so, inbetween the cover videos, we've been oh-so-quietly releasing interview and lyric videos as well. The interview/studio segments all being footage from my trip to record at Peter Gabriel's studios in England and the lyric videos being versions of some of my more popular songs. So, if you're curious to see some of the behind-the-scenes footage from the trip and hear me wax philosophical about you, what it's like to be in music, etc... OR... if you've ever been listening to one of my songs thinking 'Wait... WHAT did he say there? Hold on, that can't be right...' ...then now's a good time to check those out. :)

Here are the links to the YouTube playlists... you can access any video on the right side of the page:

INTERVIEWS

LYRIC VIDEOS

COVER VIDEOS

Thanks again for all your kind words on the new album, by the way... If you haven't heard them yet, you can listen to full versions of the songs and share them with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, etc. at my:

BANDCAMP PAGE

(just click the SHARE button above the tracklist on the left-hand side to pull up the sites you can share to!)

Have a great rest of the week, and we'll talk soon!

Gavin

Ps - To stay up-to-date on future videos, just click    to subscribe directly to my YouTube channel...


***TO SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER (AND RECEIVE A FREE DOWNLOAD OF 5 SONGS + 1 VIDEO), VISIT:

www.gavinmikhail.com/signup


_________________________________

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

THE GAVIN MIKHAIL STORE

iTUNES

AMAZON MP3

MYSPACE

Thank you...

Hey there... hope you're having a great weekend...

So, first off... THANK YOU SO MUCH for all your positive feedback on the new album! Every time I put out something new, I'm reminded of just how caring and supportive you are. And, as an independent musician, that truly is an amazing thing. Unbelievable, really. So, thank you...



Ok, that said... a quick heads up on two things... First, if you're planning on getting one of the LIMITED EDITION AUTOGRAPHED CD's... now's the time to do it. :) Seriously, I've been stunned by your response so far, and at this point, there aren't that many left. If you do order, please make sure to let me know the name you want it autographed to (in the 'Note to seller' section of the purchase process - on the final Review and Pay Now page):

LIMITED EDITION AUTOGRAPHED CD's

Secondly, I forgot to mention in the previous email that you can listen to FULL VERSIONS of all my new songs at BANDCAMP. Like most people, I'm an iTunes junkie, but I gotta say... quickly becoming a Bandcamp convert. It has full preview versions of all the songs (not clips), lyrics, etc. and you can buy the songs at any quality level you want (all for the same price as iTunes). Plus, I've included album art in the downloads from Bandcamp which you can't get at iTunes... Even if you aren't planning on buying anything (although, I obviously hope you are :), you can use the SHARE button to share my music with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, etc. (I'd really appreciate you doing that, by the way... :).

MY BANDCAMP PAGE

Ok, that's all for now. Have a great rest of the weekend, and thanks again!

Gavin


***TO SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER (AND RECEIVE A FREE DOWNLOAD OF 5 SONGS + 1 VIDEO), VISIT:

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_________________________________

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

THE GAVIN MIKHAIL STORE

iTUNES

AMAZON MP3

MYSPACE

NEW ALBUM OUT NOW!

Hey there... how are you? Hopefully doing well...

So, I've been sitting here for the past hour trying to think of some brilliant way to word this email... pass on the news of my new album in a blaze of clever wordplay... Ramp up your excitement so fully that you can't HELP but to go buy it... now... right now... :) But, honestly? I got nothin'. Nothin' new. No revolutionary way to convince you it's worth checking out. You've read a thousand album release emails before, and it's entirely up to you to decide if you wanna take a listen... That being SAID... what I CAN tell you is that if you've liked some of my recent YouTube releases... they're on there. If you're someone who's been asking for the past 2 YEARS when I'll FINALLY release 'Bring On The Rain'... yep, it's on there too. If you've found yourself bogged down... paralyzed by longing... praying day in and day out 'oh how I WISH Gavin would do some of my favorite songs of his acoustically...' Well... you're in luck, my friend. :) (yeah, ok, that last one might be a stretch :)



Ok, so enough of that. THREE ways you can get the songs/album:

1. LIMITED EDITION AUTOGRAPHED CD **250 TOTAL --- Individually numbered ( __ of 250), personalized/autographed, and including album artwork, this cd has all 13 of the songs plus a new, unreleased Christmas song I wrote called 'Evergreen.' Like the limited edition Real World Sessions release, I'll be signing each one of these for a specific person. Just make sure to let me know when you order (details on the order page).

2. HIGH-QUALITY DOWNLOADS --- I've recently teamed up with a new site called Bandcamp where you can listen to the songs and purchase downloads directly from me (at whatever quality level you choose). If you want high-quality downloads for the same price as iTunes... OR... want more of your money to go to me (and not iTunes)... this is the site for you. (awesome if you fall in the second group, by the way... thanks... :)

3. ITUNES --- pretty self-explanatory. :) If you do check it out in iTunes, even if you don't buy it, I'd REALLY appreciate you leaving a quick review on the album. Just so others can know how you felt about it.

Ok, that's it. In case I haven't said it for awhile... THANK YOU. You've been amazingly supportive over the past few years, and it's because of you listening and buying my music that I'm able to continue MAKING music... so, thanks for that.

I hope you have a great rest of the week, and we'll talk soon!

Gavin


***TO SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER (AND RECEIVE A FREE DOWNLOAD OF 5 SONGS + 1 VIDEO), VISIT:

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_________________________________

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

THE GAVIN MIKHAIL STORE

iTUNES

AMAZON MP3

MYSPACE

Starting your week off with a video...

Ahhhh, Mondays...

So, you SHOULD probably be diving into work/school/etc. right now, but honestly... wouldn't you rather spend a few minutes watching my new video instead? Mmmmm... yes. Yes, I think so... :)

Seriously, just wanted to let you know I posted a new video today - a piano cover of 'Just The Way You Are' by Bruno Mars. After watching, if you feel like extending your Monday mini-break even FURTHER... I'd REALLY appreciate you clicking  HERE  to forward the video to your friends (and maybe rating/commenting/favorite-ing in YouTube... :). Here's the direct link:

JUST THE WAY YOU ARE MUSIC VIDEO





Ok, I need to get back to my work myself, but have a great week, and thanks again...

Gavin

Ps - To stay up-to-date on future videos, just click    to subscribe directly to my YouTube channel...


***TO SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER (AND RECEIVE A FREE DOWNLOAD OF 5 SONGS + 1 VIDEO), VISIT:

www.gavinmikhail.com/signup


_________________________________

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

THE GAVIN MIKHAIL STORE

iTUNES

AMAZON MP3

YOUTUBE