Valerie Borman Blog – New Year

Happy New Year!!

I can’t believe that we’ve begun a new year and that it was over a year ago that I began my “Better Days” recording project. But here we are – it’s 2010, so I thought I’d take a few minutes to review this past year

The first half of 2009 is a blur in my memory. We were blazing through the process leading up to the recording of “Better Days.” We began in early spring with pre-production. It was weird being back in a studio – I’d much rather be on stage! But the pre-production days gave me an opportunity to get re-acclimated with the “sterility” – and loneliness – of the vocal recording booth.

During the whole time that I preparing for and recording “Better Days,” I was also responsible a major fundraising event in Pennsylvania. As a volunteer for the American Cancer Society, I had become involved with the Relay For Life of Northwestern Lehigh in 2007. If you are not familiar with Relay For Life, it is a 24-hour event that raises awareness and funds for cancer research. It involves teams and individuals who walk a track for 24 hours to represent the non-stop, 24/7 fight faced by cancer SURVIVORS (defined as anyone who lives one day with cancer.) For 2009, I was the Event Chair of the Relay scheduled at my high school alma mater. So each month, I would fly back to PA to head the event committee meetings. It was a HUGE responsibility to have on my shoulders at the same time that I was recording. It also made scheduling everything very difficult!

In April, we tracked at Oasis for four days straight! The majority of my vocal tracks were recorded during these tracking sessions. Some of the days were pretty long – and I was singing full-throttle the entire time!! From there, we headed over to The Tool Shed for a few overdub and bgv sessions and voila! – all the parts had been captured and my contribution was complete. Harry and Joey had the hard work now of mixing down the tracks, after which the CD was sent off to New York to be mastered. So while Harry and Joey burned the midnight oil, I headed back to PA for my Relay at which we raised over $20,000!!

The summer zoomed by, with a few gigs here and there. I had the opportunity to play in both PA and TN, with my own band and with my former group, The Starlites. It is always fun to return home to the musicians who also have been my family for my entire career. Since branching out on my own, I’ve learned that it is unusual to have only performed with one group – but that’s what I did and it was a great gig. But now I also have my own band – which is just as exciting as The Starlites are familiar.

By the fall, “Better Days” was FINALLY released, after the mechanical licensing odyssey from Hell. Although I was happy that the CD was now available, I had missed the opportunity to promote it at my gigs at home. And as winter approached, I made adjustments in my band which lead to my not booking gigs until that was all finalized.

For the holiday, I headed home to PA to spend some AWESOME time with my friends and family. It’s really tough to be away from them, but at the same time, I realize the incredible blessing I have in my career.

So it’s a new year and I’m back in TN. I’ve not made any Resolutions – I don’t believe in them. However, I can tell you that in the coming year, I do have some definite plans, first of which is to fill my performance schedule. I have spent my entire adult life on stage singing – and not being there every night is like not breathing. I also will be writing more music. While I have not yet unwrapped anything I have penned to date, I will very soon – you’ll have to check back!