For many of us, childhood dreams pulled us in one of three directions: movie star, athlete, or rock star. Sure, visions of somehow morphing into an animal or superhero or even a vampire have danced in the innocent heads of the more imaginative, but for those of us who realistically (key word – realistically) answered the question of “What do you want to be when you grow up?” our responses tended to lean towards the more glamorous roles so lauded and adored by the general public. For me, my general lack of any athletic skill kept at bay any fantasies of hitting that walk off home run in the bottom of the ninth, of catching that last second touchdown, or of sinking that three-pointer at the buzzer – after all, we can’t all be Robert Horry or Tim Harrington. A fear of performing in front of people ruled out acting, but curiously that same fear seem to fade if music was involved. Yes, my dream was to be a rock star.

I would envision myself on stage in front of throngs of people with a guitar strapped on, belting out Oingo Boingo, Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet covers. Yes, oh yes – these were glorious dreams. Of course, with age and maturity and the realization that one must actually make money in order to survive, the dream of rock stardom was set aside for more practical pursuits – that and the fact that I possessed little musical skill or training. Anyway, for me the dream of being a rock star was not fueled by desires of celebrity, fame, or even riches. It was fueled by the inexplicable joy of musical performance, not necessarily for others, not for acceptance or praise, but just in general. And so I am blessed to feel this joy even if I’m not on stage at the county fair singing “Hungry Like The Wolf”. I am blessed whenever I get to play in front of the congregation on Sunday mornings, when I play on a street in Denver, or when I get to hang out with friends at the karaoke bar. At times like these, I feel like a rock star.

In my travels across the country, there I two things I try to seek out – local food and local music – flavors and sounds that may differentiate a city from another and mark the trip in some memorable way. On a recent to trip to Southern California, I stumbled into a coffee shop by the beach and got to catch the tail end of an acoustic set performed by a local singer/songwriter named Taylor Crawford. Perched atop a stool with her Ibanez guitar, Taylor sang a mix of covers and original songs to a crowd that numbered only more than a handful, at the time. I was struck by her soulful, expressive voice (Jewel and Cassadee Pope came to mind) and was especially soothed by her playful rendition of the Beatles “All My Loving.” More importantly, one could not deny the genuine joy that she exuded as she performed. As she sat there on her stool, in front of a meager crowd at a beachside coffee shop, I had to admit – She is a rock star, a rock star following her dream.

I had the opportunity to talk to her briefly after her set and picked up her debut CD entitled California, the result of a Kickstarter campaign. It has a nice mix of songs, but the real gems are Tracks 2 “White Roses” and Track 3 “This is Love” – two songs of contrasting musical style that showcase her vocal flexibility and songwriting skills. Pick it up. Check her out. And Support Local Music!