You can visit, listen and purchase here:
jenwood.bandcamp.com

Read the full press release here!

- JW

CHRIS STAPLES: http://www.myspace.com/chrisstaplesmusic
WHITING TENNIS: http://www.myspace.com/whitingtennismusic

this show is smack dab in the middle of your week, so if you want some
** good music and good vibes ** to carry you on to friday, then come join us.

click this link for details:
http://tiny.cc/JenWood_4-13_Sunset

we’d love to sing to you
& make your wednesday more fun
& more full of love

THE SUNSET TAVERN = COZY.
THE MUSIC = IT’S GOOD.
FLYING SQUIRREL PIZZA = TASTY GOURMET OH MY GOSH YUMMY.

See you soon,
xo Jen Wood

–
/////// find me here /// blog /// listen to music /// record label /// tweets ///////

http://www.jenwood.net

http://www.myspace.com/jenwood

http://www.newgranada.com

http://www.twitter.com/jenwoodmusic

i received an email from a long time friend in response to my blog about the upcoming benefit show for the national eating disorder society. in her response, she brought to my attention that the reason why most people develop an eating disorder has more to do with reacting to and coping with experiencing severe trauma and/or abuse.

//////////

in my last blog, which i wrote hastily, i just skimmed over this issue and made it out to seem that eating disorders are due to an obsession with looking like a skinny model. i didn’t mean to come off sounding that way at all.  i should have spent more time giving it some real thought, rather than just writing and hitting the “publish” button. i should have been more mindful. i want to apologize to any one who read my last blog and felt offended or mis-represented… if what i wrote made you feel that way, i am so sorry.

////////

in my friend’s letter, she shared with me that she has PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and wrote a bit about how that has impacted her life. when she told me that she suffered from PTSD, i was surprised, then saddened and then… comforted, because i too have suffered from it.

i don’t really like to share the true details of my personal life with a lot of people, but my friend reminded me that when we do take that risk and open up, we often are reminded that we are not alone in our struggles and that we all have way more in common than we think.

these kinds of reminders are not only important for everyone, but i believe they are essential. maybe it’s time for you to open up to a friend and really share with them what’s going on in your life?

i’ve known this awesome lady for a long time and i’ve always thought of her as my little sister in way, but we’ve never gone into detail about our personal lives. when she opened up to me about her life, i was really honored and inspired.

i asked my friend for her permission to paste part of her letter to me, because she has a greater understanding of eating disorders than i do. she said some really important things on the topic and got me thinking about everything on a deeper, more real level:

“… When my PTSD acts up, I crave the control again… even though I could not be happier, it just never seems to go away. One bout with the stomach flu and suddenly the addiction you had to that empty feeling comes back.

SO yes, girls do start eating disorders due to body image issues because they see the skinny models and things…

but body image issues that turn into eating disorders are more commonly caused by trauma…abuse, or a stressful life event, or even just a broken heart.

Sorry for the long message… but felt I had to stick up for those of us who do not care what the perfection of beauty is… we are just uncomfortable in our own skin.”

lastly, i wanna say thanks to my sweet friend for taking the time to write and for extending your trust to me.  you make me proud!

love,
jen

i’ve got a show coming up on feb. 5th as part of KEXP’s Audioasis “Community Partnership Concerts”, and it will be a benefit for the National Eating Disorder Society.

i was really happy to be invited to play this show, as i strongly believe that this is a very important issue that needs more attention.  it might be easy for some of us to feel that we’ve made so much progress when it comes to social conditioning about body image, that maybe it doesn’t need to be talked about as much anymore. it might be easy to slip into habits of ignoring the fact that still to this day, women (and men too) are really struggling … with the idea of what beauty is supposed to look like.

i’ve been taking some time to think about all this, and to reflect on women that i’ve known and loved, who’ve suffered and lived with eating disorders… some of which overcame it and some that have not.  i’ve also been able to remind myself of the fact that i too still fight off those thoughts of feeling pressured to look like perfection.  we still are bombarded by images of what we are “supposed” to look like in magazines, movies, billboards, tv and the internet. one thing that i did for myself, years ago, is that i made a conscious choice to stop buying (or limit it a lot) fashion mags and gossip mags. that alone, for me, was really helpful.

i encourage you to take a moment to re-visit this issue, to look around at your friends, your peers and your family and see if there might be a need for you to be of help to someone who you love and care for.

please use this website as a solid resource for any advice or help:

http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/

love + hugs,
// jen //

so, last night was our first attempt at digging into the new material i’ve been writing. most all my new songs are written on piano and i’m feeling really inspired to push myself to do something different, try some new styles on and see if they stick.  i finally have the courage and confidence to show the world that i am a versatile singer + artist.

it goes back to the first song i ever fell in love with: “fascinating rhythm” sung by ella fitzgerald. i think i was about 10 or so, and i would just sing that song over and over again. here she is:

then there was whitney houston. yep. her first album that i ever got was her first record and i proudly displayed the album cover on my window sill in my bedroom. and, then there was jody watley, bobby brown and mc lyte.  i had to look up jody watley:

one of the many great things about being on an indie label is that artists like me actually have the freedom to create what we want. i have to remind myself that i’m really grateful for this, as it’s too easy to take it for granted sometimes.

as of right now i have about ten or more piano songs and a couple of guitar songs too. out of this batch, we’re gonna select about 4 songs to focus on. this is the plan as of right now but as you know plans can always change.

//////////////////////////////

love,
jen

Okay, so this is a random post that has nothing to do with music. I figure that a blog could be slightly more interesting if maybe once in a while a new topic is tossed into the mix. This might not be exciting to you, but I have to confess that I’m kinda into geeky science stuff, anything NASA and shows about nature and wild life. I also love Sci-Fi and most things that relate to creative concepts of what the future of human civilization might look like. I’m currently immersing myself in episodes of ‘Battlestar Gallatica’ too (I tried watching ‘Caprica’ but gave up on it). Anyhow, here is my random element, revealed!

I recently went to NASA’s website and this article caught my eye. For those of you who love to fly, you’ll get a kick out of this: 

A First Look at Flight in 2025  |  01.13.11

In late 2010, NASA awarded contracts to three teams — Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, The Boeing Company — to study advanced concept designs for aircraft that could take to the skies in the year 2025.

At the time of the award, the team gave NASA a sneak peek of the particular design they plan to pursue.

Each design looks very different, but all final designs have to meet NASA’s goals for less noise, cleaner exhaust and lower fuel consumption. Each aircraft has to be able to do all of those things at the same time, which requires a complex dance of tradeoffs between all of the new advanced technologies that will be on these vehicles.

The proposed aircraft will also have to operate safely in a more modernized air traffic management system.

And each design has to fly up to 85 percent of the speed of sound; cover a range of approximately 7,000 miles; and carry between 50,000 and 100,000 pounds of payload, either passengers or cargo.

For the rest of this year, each team will be exploring, testing, simulating, keeping and discarding innovations and technologies to make their design a winner.

How different will the final designs look from these initial glimpses?

Check back and see.

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/aeronautics/index.html

///////////////////////////////////////

Over & Out.
:: jw ::

For anyone in the Seattle area, I’m participating in a benefit show for KEXP’s ‘Audioasis’ radio show on Saturday 2/05.  All info on the event and the benefit can be found here.

Also, feel free to check out my live on-air performance on ‘Audioasis’ recorded on 11/06/10.
Available for streaming at KEXP’s site.   Thanks to Sharlese and Hannah for making this happen.

Reviews for Finds You In Love are still coming in and I couldn’t be happier:

“Contains the same caliber of songwriting as any platinum selling artist.  Wood’s vocals shine along with the instrumentation which combine to make an engaging album”
- Manual Dexterity Music Zine

“It’s really one of those albums that needs to be listened to as a whole.”
- ‘Earlier Program’; CBC Radio One (Canadian Radio)

Love, light & hope in 2011 - JW

Saturday November 13 I have the pleasure of participating in a live tribute to The Beach Boys ‘Pet Sounds’ album.  The album will be performed in it’s entirety by the Seattle Rock Orchestra accompanied by guest vocalists, myself included.   Links/info on this can be found under the SHOWS tab.

Thank you to everyone for making this year wonderful.
- JW