Best iPod mp3 player, reviews and comparisons.

Best Apple iPod Mp3 Player, Reviews and Comparisons

What is the best Apple iPod mp3 player, you ask? Compare the plethora of mp3 players and recorders from Apple, iRiver, Rio, Sony, Panasonic, Creative Labs Nomad. There's no doubt about it folks, there are more MP3 players on the market then there are apples on a well known fruit tree in Spring. Er... Fall. The point is, if you're a newbie to the whole MP3 player phenomenon, it can be a daunting task trying to wade through the murky, mysterious world of mp3 players. Just so you know, CleverJoe has done some wading himself and found that it's not so murky after all. And the thing is, you're really missing out on buckets of cool. Ok, grab a pair of rubber boots and jump right in.

The "Best MP3 Player" completely depends on your personal needs. There are a few differentiating factors between the various iPod players available, and one of the most obvious is storage space.

CleverJoe's guide to mp3 players:

• MP3 Players Main Page
  
• Apple iPod Top Picks
  
• iRiver Top Picks
  
• Rio Top Picks
  
• MiniDisc Players Top Picks
  

iPod Storage

How much music do you want to store on your iPod? The more music you feed your head, the deeper you'll need to dig into your wallet. These days, you can hold a serious amount of music on your player. Here's a guideline:

• 40GB. Stores up to 10,000 songs
  
• 20GB. Stores up to 5,000 songs
  
• 10GB. Stores up to 2500 songs
  
• 5GB. Stores up to 1250 songs
  
• ...You get the idea...
  

Owners tend to speak about their Apple iPod in religious terms. The iPod is slim and feather-light, offering hours and hours of music along with a small barrage of other bonus features including a personal appointment calendar, phone book, alarm clock and games. Apple has always managed to make it's products both user manageable and sexy. They keep the user's end experience in mind, and this philosophy has translated into a family of iPod mp3 player products that are easy to use, great to listen to, nice to look at, and fun to brag about. Apple iPod mp3 players are the most popular portable media players on the market with something in the iPod family for everyone's music and file storage needs. Check out the links above for reviews and more info.

The Artist's Way, A Guide for Blocked Musicians and Artists

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

So you're a musician, artist, writer, poet, painter... name the particular tune - it's all related. The fact is, we're all naturally creative people, no question. And as creative beings, we all become blocked from time to time, and we're not talking suppositories. It happens to the best of us. Creativity... sigh. It can be a quirky monkey-mind type of affair. CleverJoe recently picked up his still-new and somewhat shiny copy of the Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. Bought in an excited moment many moons ago, the book offered the opportunity of reclaiming the natural flow of creative juices - a return to all the dreams and possibilities that childhood boldly lays on the table. For many of us, it's easy to become bogged down in the 'every day' of adulthood, which, if we're not careful, can end up stretching far and away into and endless series of tomorrows.

So now once again this guide seems like exactly the right moment for a revisit. Happy Valentine's Day all, if you have a sweetie, consider writing them a list of the top 50 things you love about them. If you don't have anyone to snuggle with, trying writing a guilt-free list of 50 things you love about yourself, including that freckle behind your left knee. It can be quite therapeutic and re-affirming process whether you are in a relationship or not.

And if you have a chance, be sure to check out Julia Cameron's book, The Artist's Way. It could change your life, or at least your socks:

• The Artist's Way, by Julie Cameron

Cheers!


 



Cheers!

Nouveau Flamenco Guitar, Canadian Recording Artist

Canadian Flamenco Guitar Music

Flamenco guitar playing - are you a fan? CleverJoe always perks up when a 'world music' CD demo comes across his desk. This week saw the arrival of a great instrumental CD by flamenco guitar player and Canadian songwriter Johannes Linstead. This is Linstead's fifth CD, called 'Mediterranea'. A multi-instrumentalist, Linstead also plays piano, mandolin, bouzouki, bass, wood flute and percussion. He has played and recorded with musicians from around the world, including Cuba, Columbia, Syria, Greece, Mexico, Russia and Ukraine. Influences from many of these countries can be heard on 'Mediterranea', although it never strays too far from Linstead's signature flamenco guitar playing roots. It seems to take a couple of songs for the CD to really 'warm up' to the passion flamenco music is known for, but by the fifth song "Adelita", Linstead is in full form and no longer holding back. Passionate and well written songs such as "Estrellas Sobre Ella" are a treat for the ears and heart, with hauntingly beautiful instrumental arrangements and subtle background vocal layers. Although it takes some time for this CD to abandon restraint, if you're a fan of flamenco music, 'Mediterranea' won't disappoint. To check it out yourself, see www.JohannesLinstead.com.

Remember, if you have a band or musician web site, two great places to promote your music (for free!) are:

• CleverJoe's Musician and Band Directory Resource
  
• IndieMusic.ca Canadian Indie Band Directory
  

Btw, If you're looking for flamenco music guitar tablature or sheet music, try:

• GuitarTab.ca, Guitar Tablature and Sheet Music.

 

Music Copyright. What a Songwriter Needs To Know

Music Copyright Protection - Tips for Songwriters

Wondering how to copyright protect the music you've written? You're not alone. One of the most popular musician articles on CleverJoe.com is part of a series written by Austin Smith, a Canadian songwriter who is doing it for real in Nashville, Tennessee. Yes, it is possible to make a living as a songwriter. Austin is an old friend of CleverJoe's, and Joe is happy to be able share his musician articles about songwriting, publishing and copyright protection. Dig in:

Copyright protecting your music

After my last column, entitled "Songwriting, Music Publishing, and Other Anomalies", I received lots of e-mails from folks with questions about various aspects of this business of songwriting. Since the questions that some of you posed were ones that anyone interested in pursuing a career in songwriting has at one time or another asked themselves, I thought it would be a good idea to address some of those questions in this column. Sound good?

All right, here we go...

Copyright protecting your music for use on the web

One e-mail I got was from a writer whose band was looking into putting samples of their songs on their own website. One of his bandmates was concerned about the possibility of someone ripping off their songs if they put them out over the Web like that, into infinity. He wanted to know if the band should 'copyright' the songs first, not put them on the Web at all, or what? Well, I gotta tell you. I think this is a great question and one a lot of people have pondered since the Internet became such an integral part of our culture. It can be a great promotional tool, but it has also opened up a brand new can of potential copyright infringement worms.

• Click here to continue article...

For more of Austin's musician articles for songwriters, see:

• Confessions of a songwriter
  Join Austin on his strange but true songwriter's musical trek.
  
  
• How Music Publishing Works
  What songwriters need to know.
  
  
  
• Music Publishers
  How to get a good music publisher.
  
  
  
• Writing Lyrics For A Living
  Can you really?
  
  
• Music Copyright Laws: How to use cover song versions legally
  
  
• CleverJoe's Main Musician Articles page