I can’t believe I haven’t posted this yet.

If you’re wondering about the title of the post, it’s lyrics from my friend Jd’s new Christmas single “I Got Everything I Need This Christmas” (or…the title might be shorter than that, I’m not sure, LOL). Watch for it on radio after Thanksgiving, it’s gonna be heavily placed.

So, anyway, at the photo shoot for the cover of the single, Jd had a bunch of his friends come and dress as Santa. Then we all crowded around him. Inside a school bus. I know. But it was a concept. He’s artsy.

Anyway, because Jd has the most randomly interesting and varied group of friends on the planet , the people there that day (and dressed as Santa!) included:

Me – uber famous blogger (just kidding )
Ah Young Kim – hot LA children’s clothing designer
Matt Locke – of HGTV’s DesignStar
Maiya Sykes – of VH1′s Bands on the Run
Charles Jones – played Carl in Dreamgirls, as well as toured with Jonny Lang, Joss Stone, Jennifer Hudson…everybody

It was a surreal experience, but really fun. The make-up girl ended up getting dressed up as Santa and being in the photo, as well as two of the ladies that worked at the bus company. It was hilariously fun!

Here’s a picture of me and Charles, with Jd peeking in from behind -

WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: The DaVinci Code. I know I hopped on that train kinda late, but there you have it.

AMAZING MOVIE I’VE RECENTLY SEEN: Garden State. SEE IT! I will not speak to you again until you see it. Kickass soundtrack, too.

WHAT I’VE BEEN LISTENING TO: Justin Hopkins. Great singer/songwriter. http://www.justinhopkinsmusic.com I discovered him on soundclick. Soundclick is great, a lot like the old mp3.com. You have to sort through a lot of crap on there to discover someone truly quality, but when you do, it’s worth it. Justin proves that.

WHAT’S BEEN GOING ON: Well, there’s the whole moving drama, which I will update later on. But, in the meantime, I’ll just do a concert review to tide everyone over.

I went and saw Matty Nay (WOO!, of course!) , Howie Day (whatever), Guster (WOO!), and O.A.R. last Thursday at the Greek in LA. Beautiful outdoor venue, right in Griffith Park.

I was really there to see Matt, but LOVED seeing Guster as well.

Here’s the review I posted on Matt’s official board:

the set was rockin’ and funny…the security guard that was stationed near me was bobbing his head and laughed a few times. and when matt’s set was over, he asked me, ‘what’s his name again?’ so, new convert for sure.

As I was walking to my car i found myself thinking “damn hippies!” Then I realized that since I am not, in fact, an old man circa 1967…that’s probably not the correct phrase for me. LOL I think the problem is that I may need to admit to myself that I’m getting too old for the front row. Or maybe just stay away from OAR concerts, I don’t know. Their fans might be a bit much for me.

New shows are on the horizon, as well:

9/11 – Ernie Halter, Highland Grounds, LA
9/18 – David Ryan Harris, Little Temple, LA
9/29 – Joss Stone, Tower Records on Sunset
10/20 – Gavin deGraw, Coach House, San Juan Capistrano (maybe)
10/22 – Gavin deGraw, HOB, Hollywood
10/26 – Ari Hest, Roxy on Sunset