Vicki Pompea: Folksinger and Songwriter

Just a quick note to let you know I'm still here. I should have a really clever analogy related to "hibernation" "treading water" or "lurking." I'm writing songs, performing when asked, and (not so) secretly longing for another guitar (always). Yes, there's school and kids, house and laundry, and all too often, another fire (or three) to stomp on. You know how it goes.

But like an iceberg that only reveals 10% of itself, and hides the rest below the waterline, I'm still here (and resisting the urge to…

My Facebook post about luthier Wayne Henderson started getting very long, so I cropped and posted there, and I kept on writing to post here...

A luthier (/ˈluːtiər/ LOO-ti-ər) is someone who builds or repairs string instruments generally consisting of a neck and a sound box.

I'm often asked how many guitars I have. On last count there were 8 (but don't hold me to it) which is not a lot for a musician. Really. Each has a different purpose and a different voice. My special, go-to instrument was made just…

I’m late. Isn’t it strange how hard it is to walk into a room after everyone is settled and the presentation has started. The longer it takes to walk through the door, the harder it gets.  If you can relate to this feeling, you understand why it’s been so long since I’ve posted.  

I fight the urge to wait until I write something awesome. It’s a tricky balance for words, and for songs. I have a majority of an album recorded, but the last 4 songs aren’t what I want them to be. Part of me wants to just “get…

Most days I wake up with a song in my head - but I prefer to think that it is in my heart.  Something like Livingston Taylor's "Never Lose Hopet" or Ingred Michaelson's "Be OK" propels me out of bed and into the shower. Sometimes it's from the Mama Mia sound track (which my kids *love*) or from "Phineas and Ferb" (kid's show). 

I heard that we have nerve cells that go both to and from our ears and brains so that we are truly "hearing" the songs that are playing in our heads.  I know sometime a song is not…

Gulp. Can't believe how long it's been since I've said "Howdy."  I performed this summer at the farmer's market and got to see some of you.  But to tell the truth, I've been swamped - thigh deep in mud - slogging through the days.  You see, I've gone back to school.  I can't believe how much work it is to teach an old broad new tricks :-). 

My personal life hasn't been a walk in the park either - but I'll save the stories and put them in songs for y'all. Just know that I haven't disappeared. Remember that…

Thanksgiving (the day) has passed, but I want to post my gratitude and thoughts.

This has been a year of endings and beginnings (thank goodness for the beginnings!) - but all the way through, music has remained a partner to me. I've averaged 2 gigs per month - and I wouldn't get to do that without you. Thank you for coming and listening. I love sharing my music. It's just not the same if it stays in my living room <grin>.

And thank you for listening in *your* home. For buying my CDs and making my songs…

I love playing at Farmer's Markets. Performance is a like a conversation between me and the audience.  At a Farmer's Market, we get to communicate, sweetly and clearly.  When a group of children are nearby, I'll play "Twinkle" or "Puff"; when there are dogs, I'll play my song "Looking Over the Tailgate"; if I see someone with coffee, then it's "The Coffee Song". 

Another way the conversation goes is when I see people singing along, nodding their head, or tapping their feet to the beat. That tells me the…

I remember being on an airplane as a child and being thrilled. So excited to feel the plane move and the engines roar.  And another memory, being on a plane as an adult - terrified as the plane shook and the engines growled.  And I stayed terrified until I remembered my experience as a child.  Then I was excited again - enjoying the ride. Perspective makes a huge difference. 

We can tell ourselves all sorts of stories.  We can make them happy or sad. Positive or negative.  Now I'm off to another…

This is the time of year when time is whizzing by.  My kids will go to school in 2 weeks and I'll be going to school in 1 week - Song School, that is!  Song School is a very special time in Lyons, CO where I get a charge that lasts a whole year. There are classes on performing, singing, playing guitar, music business and more.  But what is truly special is the atmosphere of support and friendship. 

Songs are fragile things. They walk on wobbly legs after they are born.  Only in a kind and nurturing place…

I've been having a ball playing out every other week or so.  But where I've really gotten jazzed is by a concept called "Fearless Songwriting."  Fearless Songwriting is an attempt to overcome internal resistance and that nasty inner critic that can stop any artist dead in her tracks.

So what is it? Simply this - write and record a song in a day; better yet, an hour.  Some of them are pitifully bad; but some are surprisingly good.  The hardest thing I did was commit to write a song a day for a week.  Some…