Dr. Joe Vitale’s Blog

Now that my fourth music album (The Healing Song) is complete and ready for the world, I thought I’d give you a little background on each song. This one has three Grammy winners involved, legendary band members, and is a true labor of love.

Credits for "The Healing Song"

You can hear samples of the 11 songs at The Healing Song and of course you can order the audio CD there, too.

“Ghost Train” came from playing around with a brand new Huss & Dalton acoustic guitar made in part from 100 year old “sinker” mahogany, meaning the wood had been under water in Belize for a century. All guitars have something to say. I was holding this Huss & Dalton, fooling around with chords and words, and suddenly a unique strumming pattern emerged, along with my moaning. I never realized the moaning was a train whistle until weeks after recording it. This is a protest song, about ending war, and came from the depths of me. I don’t consciously focus on war, but apparently my unconscious does. When we recorded it, both famous drummer Joe Vitale and renown bass player Glenn Fukunaga said if they heard this on the radio, they’d stop whatever they were doing and turn it up. It’s haunting.

“Pray the Devil (Back to Hell)” erupts from my soul as a type of catharsis. It was almost the title of the album. The idea is to truly beat the devil back into the bushes with rock music and prayer. The rock tempo and impassioned lyrics are a healing in music form. You’ll feel it. It’s intense.

“Faith” came as a tie-in to a book I have coming out in 2013 titled, well, Faith. I don’t seem able to control music, but I can request it. This song came from my prayer to write something that would co-promote the book. The muse honored my request and gave this upbeat yet stern song. The beach music vibe is in stark contrast to the minor key chorus asking you where’s your faith when things turn bleak. Who needs faith? You do.

CD for "The Healing Song"

“Glow” came to me as I worked with my guitar teacher, Mathew Dixon. I wanted to remind people that joy was in them and with them no matter what the world presented. You could “glow” no matter what. This is the kind of song I feel a parent could sing to a child, to convey wisdom about life. It has a Jim Morrison or Black Keys feel. I love it.

“What’s your Name?” is a long and in your face terse song about a woman who betrays you. But the woman is really the muse. She messes with you. You ask for one thing, she gives another. You play a certain style of music, she makes you play another. I’ve learned to obey her, but I still wonder who she really is. I’m the puppet and she pulls my strings. Disturbing yet freeing.

“Empowered!” is a stand out. It triggers inner strength. I’m talking walk-on-water power. Listening to it can make you feel superhuman. It began with me playing a 1960s Danelectro amp-in-the-case vintage electric guitar, trying to improvise the opening of the famous Janis Joplin song Summertime. You won’t hear Janis, though. You’ll hear my band — Glenn, Joe, Daniel Barrett, me — improvising some of the most mesmerizing music EVER. Glenn played the most hypnotic ukulele I’ve ever heard. I then went back and added my vocals; statements of empowerment that are addressed to your big Self not your little self. These are reminders of your God-like power. I’m telling you, this track can change your life FOREVER. The result is hypnotic. I play it daily. Whew.

Cover of "The Healing Song"

“Sunny Side” is my version of the public domain classic, “Keep on the Sunny Side of Life.” Daniel and I kicked around ways to record it. Almost everyone does an upbeat rockish gospel version. I wanted something different. My spoken word, then softly sung chorus, is the ticket. You’ve probably never heard such a soothing version of this famous song. Healing.

“Smile” is a step in the direction of my being a crooner. I love Dean Martin’s approach to this 1954 hit but wanted my own. This is it. While it can be seen as a song of despair, it’s actually a song of hope. It’s barely a minute and a half long, but its message warms my heart and makes me, er, smile. I’m proud of it.

“The Healing Song” is a hypnotic ode, created with my spoken words and the cello playing and original music of Grammy winner David Darling. I kept a lot of things in mind when composing the poetry to this, from the healing mental treatments of Phineas Parkhurst Quimby to what I’ve learned from my forty plus years in hypnosis. This is a powerful track. We recorded this one first, not knowing what the other tracks would be at the time. You can listen to it whenever you have a challenge, and let it help you vanish the issue. It’s magic. (It’s also free to download at www.thehealingsong.com.)

My band for "The Healing Song"

“Perfect Love” is for fun. I had it when I recorded Strut! (my first singer-songwriter album) but didn’t feel it was worthy of being recorded. It seemed silly and confusing. But when I performed it for my music peers, they loved it. So it went on this album. It’s not about anything more than self-delusion and then self-acceptance. You are good enough.

“Put Your Pants Back On” is all fun but with a message. I wanted to warn parents that if they weren’t careful in April, they’d make a Christmas baby. I’m a Christmas baby (born December 29) and know the pain of growing up getting two presents on Christmas day: one for my birthday, one for Christmas. You may think that’s no big deal, until on your birthday there isn’t a gift or a party. People think there were several people in the studio when we recorded this one but it was just Daniel Barrett and myself. It’s spontaneous and fun, and I chuckle whenever I hear it. I dare you not to enjoy it.

You can hear samples of the songs over at The Healing Song and of course you can order the CD there, too.

All four of my albums were created out of my fiery passion to enjoy life and create music that can heal. I’m hoping it inspires you to pursue your own dreams.

After all, isn’t that what life is all about?

Ao Akua,

joe

PS — My other healing music albums are at —

http://www.GetUpandStrut.com

http://www.HealingMojoMusic.com

http://www.AligningtoZero.info

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A few weeks ago I met a tiny dog. She’s a Chiweenie, a cross between a Chihuahua and a Dachshund, and maybe one month old. If you follow me on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/drjoevitale), you saw the photo of her there. She’s in the picture with me here:

Meet a Chiweenie puppy

We already have a dog, an elderly girl named Wolfie who has a lot of pain and needs a shot every Friday to help relieve it. We also have a senior citizen cat, Nona, who has been on Animal Planet TV, and who likes to be the only feline in the house. After all, she’s a star.

Still, I was drawn to this little puppy in the photo. Turns out, she has a brother.

I asked about the brother and learned he needed a home. His mom was a stray who was rescued and then had a litter. The pups from it were being adopted. The sister was adopted. The brother was still available. Despite the circumstances in our home, I was drawn to him. The owner sent me a photo of him and I took it with us on a trip to Canada. Here’s the pic she sent to me:

Meet the little brother

I looked at him every day. I used to enlarge his picture so I could look into his eyes. Something told me to meet him.

When we returned from our international trip, we called and arranged to meet the little guy. We did and it was love at first sight. We brought him home and introduced him to the family. We called him Taco. I fell in love.

Lonely No More

Not everyone was happy.

Our TV star kitty ran upstairs and moved up there. She wouldn’t come back down.

Our elderly dog didn’t like a little Tasmanian Devil snipping at her face and wanting to play.

Wolfie meets Taco

After three days of this, we realized it would be a mistake to keep him. Even our vet told us not to have a puppy. It would hurt our great-great-grandmother of a dog. It didn’t help our cat. The writing was on the wall.

With tears in our eyes, we made some calls. As it turned out, the friend who introduced me to the little girl puppy told me that her friend visiting from Dallas was interested in the little brother. Within thirty minutes, they came over, met Taco, and fell in love. Taco now lives in Dallas, has a home that adores him, and is happy. His new name is Bugsy.

Taco is now Bugsy

But here’s the rub:

Why did we take Taco to begin with?

Why was he led to us?

And why did we have to give him up?

This bothered me for a day or so. I look for the signs and signals in life that tell me where the flow is. I then usually follow that flow, and all is well. I felt in the flow to hear of Taco, meet him, adopt him and love him.

But letting him go hurt.

Why did it all happen?

I finally realized that our home was simply the stop over in an unseen chain to get Taco to Dallas. Had we not adopted him, we may never have been in a position to find the Dallas home for him. In a way, we were a delivery system. Our job was to get him for a weekend and pass him to the woman visiting from out of town that very same weekend.

Wow. There’s the flow. We just didn’t know it.

Some Divine current was directing me to do something, and directing the woman in Dallas to do something. It all worked out in Taco’s favor. It all ended up being good. Even great.

But during the weekend we had Taco, we didn’t know that. There was a script being acted out, written by an unseen hand, and we were playing our parts. We just couldn’t see the end result. We were caught in the moment and thought the moment was permanent.

The lesson, at least for me, is to trust the flow and the process.

It all leads to happiness, and is happiness, even when you think or want otherwise.

Just ask Taco.

Ao Akua,

joe

PS — Stay tuned for a blog post revealing the secret stories behind The Healing Song, my fourth music album.

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You may remember that Daniel Barrett and I are coming out with a book tilted The Remembering Process (Hay House, Feb. 2013).  It’s the first ever description of a breakthrough new creativity method for stretching your mind and altering time. It’s an advanced Law of Attraction technique. Recently I gave my first presentation ever on the subject, to my peers in the Transformational Leadership Council. You can watch the entire 45 minute talk right here. (It ends with a track from my new music album, The Healing Song.) I remember you loved it… 🙂

Member BBB 2003 - 2012

Filmed years ago for television and just put online in its entirety, you can watch it right here:

Member BBB 2003 - 2012

How do you attract more of what you want?

What do you do when it feels like nothing is working out for you?

Recently I interviewed Patricia Ryan Madson*, author of the book, Improv Wisdom. You might recall that I wrote about Patricia’s book on this blog on May 1st, exploring the question, “Without you, what would not get done?”

In my interview, Patricia said something that jarred me into a new reality.

She said, “In every moment, we are always receiving far more than we ever give.”

I had to reflect on her statement to truly get it:

In every moment, we are always receiving far more than we ever give.

Patricia went on to explain that right now you are receiving air, blood flow, support from a chair, technology from your computer or other device, light from the sun or your room lights, these words from me, and more.

But we take all of that for granted. All we stop and say thank you for is when someone gives you something or does something specifically for you. But what about everything else? The amount you are receiving right now is almost overwhelming.

Are you aware of it?

Are you grateful for it?

I had dinner one night with Paul Zane Pilzer*, author of The Next Millionaires. He explained over 300 people were involved in preparing our meal. He was referring to the farmers and pickers and distributors and carriers and restaurant owner and cooks and servers and more.

Imagine that. Over 300 people were working to deliver a meal!

I’ve been traveling a great deal again, for TV shows, movies, events, speaking gigs, music production and more. When I stop and think about all the “unseen helpers” who make sure me and my luggage get there on time, or all the “behind the scenes” people who do their jobs sight unseen so my face gets projected over the air to millions of televisions in homes nationwide, it is incredible.

New album "The Healing Song"

In order to complete my fourth music album, more people were involved than just my band. I traveled to L.A. and Nashville so Grammy winners could mix and master the music. This is a lot to be grateful for, and can even feel overwhelming when you become aware of it all.

“Wake Up to the Gifts” is the ninth maxim in Patricia’s wonderful and wise little book, Improv Wisdom. She asks us to look for the “unseen” gifts, like the screen and processor allowing you to read these words, or the planet giving you all you need to live and breathe right now.

She also asks us to understand the interdependence of all things.

I can’t write these words without you. You can’t read these words without me writing them.

But it goes further than that. We need the folks who made the computers you and I are using, the Internet providers, the electric company, the people making or delivering our food, handling our flights and our mail, and more. We also need the elements of life itself, that provide both you and me with all we need to stay alive.

You don’t achieve or attract anything by yourself.

Are you aware of that?

Are you grateful for that?

In Improv Wisdom, Patricia suggests you make “Thank you” your mantra.

Of course, in the book I coauthored with Dr. Hew Len, Zero Limits, we suggest you make the four phrases of ho’oponopono your mantra: “I’m sorry, please forgive me, thank you, I love you.”

Either way, these methods are tools to help you see what you are receiving is a miracle.

It also is your opportunity to give back.

Since you are receiving so much, what can you do to give more?

You’ll never be able to give in a way that balances all you receive. That’s the miraculous imbalance of life: it’s stacked in your favor.

Think about this. You are receiving so much right now — most of which you were unaware of and took for granted — that you can never give enough to tip the scales. You can never give more than you receive. You are simply receiving way too much.

Think about it this way…

Every time you turn on your TV and flip through the hundreds of channels, remember that those shows were written, produced, directed and performed just for YOU.

Every time you go to the theatre and see a movie or a play, remember that it was made just for YOU.

Every time you turn on the radio and hear your favorite music, commentators, DJs, guest speakers, etc., for your listening enjoyment, again it was all created just for YOU.

When you think about the world honing its craft for YOUR daily entertainment, that’s powerful.

Can you appreciate how much there is to be grateful for?

It might make you think twice before complaining about having to pay $10 for a movie ticket nowadays. After all, the movie you are about to see probably had a budget of millions of dollars. Your investment is very small compared to what it costs to create a multimillion dollar motion picture…JUST FOR YOU!

The “miraculous imbalance” is also a gift to you.

But you probably never thought about it before today.

And here’s where you can begin to attract more of what you want.

Back to our opening questions…

• How do you attract more of what you want?
• What do you do when it feels like nothing is working out for you?

It begins by noticing everything you have already attracted.

The thing is, most people focus on what they got that they don’t want, or on want they want that they haven’t attracted yet.

That’s hardly a practical approach to success.

And if you know anything about the Law of Attraction, you know that’s the wrong place to put your attention.

When you notice and acknowledge what you are being given right now, you morph your energy and your mood into something far more magnetic, compelling and loving.

Noticing the good you are already receiving tunes your being into a “good magnet.” You can start attracting even more good because you’ve awakened to the good you have and are continuing to receive. This opens your eyes to the magnitude of life; the magic and miracles all around you.

So the next time you hear anyone say, “I’m not attracting what I want,” realize they are declaring their blindness and deafness to all they have been given and are still receiving. Your job isn’t to correct them. It’s to smile, look around, acknowledge the gifts, and find a way to give back.

That said, what can you do right now to give more?

Well?

Ao Akua,

joe

* I interviewed Patricia Ryan Madson (as well as Paul Zane Pilzer) for members of Hypnotic Gold. These are member-only interviews that I’ve been doing for more than seven years now, amounting to well over 80 interviews. For more information, and to find out how to become a member of this select group, just click right here.

PS – One more story of gratitude: When I was growing up, Clint Walker was the cowboy television star I admired. I never stopped to consider how his famous TV series, Cheyenne, entertained me weekly, for years, and yet I paid nothing. It was broadcast right into my parent’s home. Free. Today I realize how grateful I am for Clint and his show. (And my TV set.) He later appeared in many movies, such as The Dirty Dozen and Night of the Grizzly. You might imagine my surprise when I learned Clint Walker is still with us, alive at 85, writing his autobiography, working on a second novel, and selling signed photos and more off his website at www.clintwalker.com.  I wrote to Clint, to thank him for all he did to give me a positive role model all those childhood years. I haven’t heard from him yet, and may never. Still, I’m grateful. I’m pretty sure he is grateful for the “miraculous imbalance” in life, too. In the spirit of giving back, here’s Clint Walker from a few years ago sharing life and death stories about listening to your inner voice:

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