Brief Performance Hiatus… for now :)
Posted by Kevin Haden in Show Updates on September 2nd, 2010
So I’m taking a short break from performing for the next couple of months, mainly because I’ll be focusing on getting things rolling with the next album. In the next couple of weeks I’m going to put together a summer recap page on this sight with pics, mp3s, and videos from my shows this summer. Check back soon…
CUMC Concert
Posted by Kevin Haden in Gig Tales on August 18th, 2010
What a great concert this past Saturday! Even thought I was really looking forward to it, it still managed to exceed my expectations. The audience was warm and receptive. Rev. Thompson was an incredibly gracious host. Can’t wait to do it again 
K
Volume II
Posted by Kevin Haden in Start the Tape on July 2nd, 2010
After months of careful thought and deliberation I have decided that I will definitely record and release a second album. Right now, I’m thinking sometime in 2011. My plan is for it to be mostly if not all fully produced tracks. I might post some acoustic versions on my website for download though, since I know some of you like things raw. At this point, I’d say 75% of the songs have been selected. And yes… “Don’t Say Anything”, “What Kind of Love”, and “Helen” are among them.
The Music Industry Professionals of Tomorrow…
Posted by Kevin Haden in Droppin' Knowledge on June 30th, 2010
One of my favorite times of the year is when I get to teach NYU’s summer music business intensive. In fact, I’m sitting in a room full of enthusiastics high school juniors and seniors as I type. Bright and talented young minds renewing my faith in the future of popular music.
K
Final Night at UnWINEd…
Posted by Kevin Haden in Gig Tales on June 28th, 2010
… was unreal. I’m really gonna miss that place. On to the next, I guess… Looking to have a new regular spot by September. Stay tuned.
Way Behind… Let’s start with Sarasota.
Posted by Kevin Haden in Gig Tales on June 28th, 2010
Two weeks ago, I had an awesome time performing in Sarasota, FL. I will definitely have to make a return trip, perhaps before the end of the summer. Thanks to the folks at Box Social for letting me and the Florida Studio Theatre crew take over Tuesday’s open mic night. Also thanks to Carmela for the warm welcome at Pastry Art Cafe. Mega huge thanks to Drunken Poet Cafe for letting me throw down two monster sets on Friday night. Last but certainly not least… thanks to all the new friends and fans I met. You help keep me going.
By the way… I met a very talented Florda singer songwriter by the name of Reggie Williams. He’s definitely worth going out of your way to hear.
K
Last Night’s Relay for Life in Mt. Vernon
Posted by Kevin Haden in Gig Tales on June 12th, 2010
Last night , after a lengthy delay (typical of large festival like benefit concerts) I had the pleasure of performing at the Mt. Vernon Relay for Life. It was a wonderful opportunity to perform for an incredibly worthy cause. If you have a minute and little extra cash, consider donating at the link above to help fight cancer. Thanks to all of you who came out to support both the cause and me.
K
Themed Shows Delayed
Posted by Kevin Haden in Show Updates on June 12th, 2010
SInce I’m only doing two shows at UnWINEd this month, I’m going to hold off on themes until next month. Tonight’s show will feature the usual, orginal songs and my favorite covers. I might even sing a new tune or two…
K
Themed Shows
Posted by Kevin Haden in Show Updates on June 1st, 2010
I need a little more structure in my life, so I’ve decided to theme my Saturday night shows at UnWINEd. I’m planning to change the theme every month so even my most faithful fans will have something new to look forward to on a regular basis. I’d love to jump into some less obvious themes right away like “blue” or “handstands” or “dung beetles”, but it’s probably smarter to start simple. Don’t worry, I’ll save “Tracy Chapman” and “Bill Withers” for later since I’ve been doing that show for the past year 
. Well without further ado, June’s theme is …
One Motown Selection from Each Decade (1950′s to 2000′s)!
Settle down. Settle down… Of course life tends to be more comfortable with at least a little consistency, and I wouldn’t want to be responsible for anyone’s anxiety attack (because I know some of you sleep like little kids on Christmas Eve every Friday night in anticipation of my show the following day, right? Right? …), so I’ll be confining the themed portion of the evenings to one short set, probably starting no earlier than 10 o’clock. You’ll still be able to enjoy a steady rotation of my original songs, favorite covers, and duets with Mike Clifford. So never fear!
I’ll take your suggestions now… That’s not to say I’ll actually follow them (It’s the jerk in me.)
K
On a Scale of 1 to 10 I’m about a 6.5.
Posted by Kevin Haden in Uncategorized on May 30th, 2010
So the UK thinks I’m a decent songwriter… maybe borderline good. A couple of months ago I entered 7 songs in the Adult Contemporary category of the UK Songwriting Contest. This was my first songwriting contest ever. Why so many songs? I wanted to see if there was consistency in my writing. Well… out of a max score of 10, four of my songs got a 6 (Fairy Tale, Helen, Losing, and Quality) and the other three got a 7 (Hook Me, Miss You So, Shouldn’t it Be You). Here’s how they explained their scoring system.
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EXPLANATION OF THE JUDGES’ SCORING
Most songs receive a score of either 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7. Very few songs will receive a low score of 1 or 2 and very few will receive a high score of 8 or 9. The score of 10 is not used during the judging and is reserved for the winning song in each category.
A score of 1 or 2 indicates that your song was considered to be poorly written in comparison to other songs in the contest. It indicates that in the judges opinion the song needs either almost complete re writing or, especially in the case of a score of 1, abandoning.
A score of 3 indicates that this is an acceptable composition and that it follows the accepted standards of song form, presentation, melody, metre etc. Although the song would almost certainly benefit from re working and re writing it clearly shows songwriting ability and talent.
A score of 4 or 5 indicates that this is a good song and it will receive a Commended Entry Certificate. A score of 5 indicates that the song very nearly made the semi finals. All songs with a score of 4 and 5 are considered for the semi finals.
A score of 6 or 7 indicates that the song made the semi finals panels and is one of the stronger songs in the contest. All these semi finalist songs are considered by the selection panels for the finals and a score of 7 indicates that the song was a borderline finalist and almost made it through to the finals.
Songs with a score of 8 or 9 are finalists and are all considered for the winning and runner up positions. All runners up have a score of 9 and these few high scoring songs are all very carefully considered for the winning position in their respective categories. The winning songs in each category receive a score of 10.
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So there you have it. I was a semi-finalist. If you’re curious, here’s a link to the winning song entitled “What Am I Supposed to Do”.
K