Laura Harley

Check it out: As a thank you to you for your support, I have a song that you can have for FREE! I sang on a track that’s a re-mixed version of Madonna’s first hit “Lucky Star”! How fun is that??!! My producer, Jarome Matthew, has been working on this track for a while now and he asked me to sing the hook. It’s totally just for fun, and, let me tell you, it’s been SUPER fun!! I think everyone secretly loves to dance around in their house and sing to Madonna songs. (Come on, admit it! You KNOW you’ve done it.) So during the recording, I was in my little home recording studio grooving around and vogue-ing in between takes. And I’m excited because the track turned out so sassy! So, get ready to groove and have a fun ’80s flashback Laura Harley style—you can download the song for free or you can listen right now here:

I hope you enjoy it!

Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the show last night! It was a lovely evening and I had a great time playing new songs. In fact, I enjoyed the experience even more than usual—I think I’m learning something deeper about how to convey emotion through my voice and how to connect and be present in the moment.

One of the best moments last night was a conversation I had with someone who has followed my career for the last 10 years. He asked me about my music and plans and said some things about my music to me that I will never forget—memories of when I first started up until now, what my music means to him, and what he sees next for me. It was so genuine and heartfelt and it went straight to my heart. As he was talking to me, I felt like what he was saying went even deeper than the words, like it was a very important message for me that I need to remember and honor. It was an unexpected gift that I will carry with me as I move forward with my music.

Last week I learned a new word: leonine. It means “resembling or suggestive of a lion”. Isn’t that cool? Well, the reason I mention it is that lately I feel my love for writing and playing music actually growing. It’s a fierce sort of love that I’ve not felt before….you could even say my love is…..leonine! Raaar! I’m not exactly sure what has led to this leonine love, but I think it may be a combo of:

a) having to take a break from music due to injury and remembering how much I love it and miss it when I can’t do it
b) having a challenging year and turning to music to find my voice, heal, and gain strength
c) being an artist; I mean, I think that when you really love your craft, the longer you do it, the more you develop a love for it, not just any love, but a love that lasts through thick and thin and is unconditional

So, one might ask, what is singer with a leonine love for her craft like live? Well, you can find out THIS Saturday night, July 28th at the Mill City Cafe. I go on at 9:45pm and there’s no cover charge, kitties. I’m actually curious myself to see how this new development will affect my live performances. I hope to see you there! I will be watching for you…

You know that feeling you get when you have way too much going on in your life and you feel like your life is pulling ahead of you, leaving you behind, running to catch up? That’s how I feel lately. I’ve had a weird summer—several times due to my own health problems or other people’s—my plans have changed drastically and suddenly. And I am a girl who really likes and thrives on planning. I’ve had to push back a lot of work and deadlines that previously felt un-postponeable (new word!).

But, as with all things, I know these things have happened to me for a reason. They are here to teach me something and help me grow. Having to change my plans has reminded me that it’s ok to take time to heal when you need to. Having to rest has reminded me that my mind is usually very active and that I worry WAY too much. Having to take time away from some of the work I love has reminded me how lucky I am to do that work and to have my health.

So, I might be trying to “catch up”, but I think I will stop feeling stressed about it. I’m coming back to things a little stronger, a little calmer, and feeling very motivated from a place of gratitude and love. So, it’s been a challenging summer so far, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. How awesome is it that we have a Creator who challenges us in exactly the way we need so that we’ll grow the most?

One of my favorite quotes from the Baha’i Writings states it so beautifully:

“Men who suffer not, attain no perfection. The plant most pruned by the gardeners is that one which, when the summer comes, will have the most beautiful blossoms and the most abundant fruit.”

One of the questions I help people explore in my side work as a life coach is: What brings you alive the most?

It’s a powerful question. It brings people alive just to hear that question—they perk up, open up, and start going deeper. It’s a question I ask myself regularly and I’ve found the answer can shift over time. As a songwriter, I often write about the things that bring me alive the most. Aliveness can be found in so many ways—something that brings tears to your eyes, something that gets you angry, something that makes you slow down and think, something that brings you tremendous joy, something that’s troubling you, something that scares you or thrills you. All of that is aliveness. And as a songwriter I have to be in touch with my own aliveness—notice when something touches me and mine the depths of why it does.

Lately, this exploration has me writing about daring to love completely, struggling to do challenging things that make me feel like I might break, striving to stand strong even when I feel totally alone, longing for certain dreams and feelings, and feeling the joy that comes with striving to be of service in this world. Hmmm….that’s quite an assortment.

So, what brings you alive the most lately? If you were going to write a song right now, what would it be about?

One of the great things about being an independent artist today is that there are so many new and interesting ways technology offers to share my music. Lately I’ve been learning a lot about podcasts because podcasters have been approaching me about playing my music on their shows. There are so many fascinating podcasts out there and I think it’s cool that anyone can have their own sort of “radio station” to share their thoughts and fave music. Here are a few that are soon to play my music:

Friday Night Dance Party

Ed’s Mixed Bag

Cadence Revolution

The SoupyGato Show

Jaan’s World

And here are a few more who’ve played my music in the past:

The Chillcast with Anji Bee

Hip Tranquil Chick

Podgy’s Tokyo Talk

Suffering From Sanity

Radio MLM

Digital Experience Podcast

Bald Guy Show

Get Jacked

My Cup of Tea

It’s fun for me to learn about these different podcasts and to get to have my music shared with their listeners. It’s a great way to reach new people. I especially like shows in other languages—I caught one of them once and couldn’t understand anything except when they said “Laura Harley” and then when they played my song!

It is SO good to be playing my guitar again! Many of you know that I injured my hand a few weeks ago and it has only now healed to the point that I can play again. (In fact, I have a little acoustic show coming up that will be a great way to ease back into playing. It’s on Saturday, July 28th at the Mill City Cafe in Minneapolis at 9:45pm. The very talented Brian Larson goes on at 10:30pm. You should come!)

I missed playing guitar so much while I was injured that I got all nostalgic about the various guitars I have known. I got my first guitar when I was 15. It was a $50 imitation Fender, black and white, and when I brought it home and plugged it into my teeny little practice amp, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I remember sleeping with it right next to my bed so I could see it every time I opened my eyes. And then I would be so excited to play in the morning that I’d jump out of bed and start jamming in my PJs.

A few years later I upgraded to a Les Paul. It was jet black, with pearl volume knobs, and it was very shiny. I played that through most of my years in my band, Sliver. It was also during that time that I got a HUGE monster of an amp—it was a Fender Super Twin Reverb. It was unbelievably heavy and I wasn’t able to move it myself. If I got a running start, I could push it myself, but that was it. It was a bummer having to depend on others to help me move it. Fortunately, I had lots of lovely people around who were willing to help, but I think I may have contributed to a few people getting tendonitis and other injuries. Seriously. After touring around the country with that thing I learned that it is highly preferable to have equipment that one can carry one’s self.

Now my set-up is really compact because I need to be able to travel alone with it and fly with it. I play a Japanese issue Fender Jazzmaster and I like her very much. I don’t use an amp, I use a Line 6 Pod (for those of you who aren’t familiar with guitar stuff, the pod is basically a small box that can make my guitar sound distorted, echo-y, or clean—really any sound I need). I can carry my guitar, pod, pedals (to switch the sound of my guitar from clean to distorted while I’m playing), my laptop, and all my cables pretty easily myself—and that’s WITH my suitcase full of outfits, too. Pretty good, no? But now that I have a keyboard in the mix, things might get a little more complicated….

But the most important thing is that my guitar and I are back together again! No more wistful glances over at her, wishing we could interact; no more pouting in the corner that I can’t write a new song on her; no more feeling useless and lame—-I’m back, baby!

One of my fave things I’m involved in right now (and that inspires me all the time in my songwriting) is a girls’ group my friend and I started for girls ages 11-15. The purpose is to help the girls learn about spiritual development, learn how to articulate and communicate ideas, and learn how to be of service to humanity. So, we talk about virtues, talk about their lives, read stories, memorize quotes about virtues and service, find ways to be of service each day of our lives, and do service projects. It is so much fun and we’ve all learned so much together!

Actually, groups like this (for boys and for girls) are happening all over the world—there is such a need for this type of thing in a world where children and teens have so many pressures and experience so many difficult things—and if you are interested, let me know and I’ll get you all the info you need to start your own or get involved in one. It is a Baha’i-inspired project, and people of all faiths and all backgrounds are involved.

So, the other day I had to miss girls’ group because I have been battling a cold/ virus thingy. I was especially bummed, because we’d planned to clean up a park together that day and we were going to be talking about generosity. Sigh. But, the very next day, just LOOK at what arrived in my mailbox:

Isn’t that sweet??!! The girls sent me a get well card! It totally made my day. See the stickers they selected? So sweet. Inside, the card encouraged me to take care of myself and acknowledged me for doing so—-something that means a lot to me, as one of my “issues” is pushing myself too hard. AND, the card also assured me that there will be a suprise for me at the next girls’ group. Well, that’s tonight and I can’t wait to see what it is!! Through this group I have learned how being of service to one another and to the world together can be a lifestyle, not something we do occasionally, AND it is such a joyful, rewarding, and meaningful experience. I am a lucky girl!