Episode 121

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Published on:

28th Mar 2020

Life Is Like a Box of Chocolates and Original Music with Bruce Hilliard

Hi and welcome to the Better Each Day Podcast. I know things will get better each day. We know what to do. I continue to be Bruce Hilliard and I’m up at the usual time, I run in the nearby community soccer area, do my exercises, pet the neighbors’ dogs, then I’m back into my humble apartment.

Yep, an apartment. That’s where I record the podcast and all of my music. If you listen closely, you can hear, at least on the podcast, kids screaming, dogs barking, golf balls bouncing off my wall (only once in a while) and my favorite...the yeti guy upstairs that slam dunks his toilet seat after every time he drains his vein.

And it’s not a big apartment, at all. When I record I need to shut off the refrigerator, turn off the heat and silence my phone. It truly defines what a studio apartment is all about. 

But there’s always the neighbor that harshes my gig. She complains to management that my acoustic guitar playing, and my Jackson Browne low energy level singing, is just too damn loud.

I honor her silence. I get it. I’ve been a musician for a long time and I make adjustments. I’ve been rehearsing in a racquetball court at the Y for over a year. No one ever plays racquetball there at 5:00 am. And no one complains. Plus, it has a really cool reverb effect. 

My normal morning routine was: I workout, eat a banana and it’s off to the racquetball court. I even shot selfie artwork for my EP in court #2. But, like so many other things, the YMCA is closed.

So, for me, the COVID-19 isolation hasn’t affected me too much. 

The TV is brutally honest, and to me, the field of play is leveled just a bit because the big guys are working from home, like I always do. Bedrooms, attics and kitchens. Jimmy Fallon is leading the charge with his home version of the Tonight’s Show. In a day and age when he could easily follow suit and go with the reruns, he’s at home with his awesome wife and two daughters doing it the old fashioned way, making something out of nothing.

The jokes are a little on the lame side but talk show monologues are never known as brilliant stand up sets.

Now my jokes. Better than sex. Which brings us to a natural transition. Let’s play some music.

The EP. Extended play. I’m thinking “hey, let’s stop extending this thing and release it sooner.” It was scheduled to drop June 3rd. I dunno. In light of the hand Mother Nature has dealt, and with so many the listeners at home, and I have the music either in my head or recorded...so let’s dance!

Let’s do this. I’ll play three consecutive songs, all contenders for the EP and you decide which one you like at let me know. Please respond to the newsletter, the website, the Bruce Hilliard or Better Each Day Facebook pages, or email me at bruce@bettereachday.me.

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About the Podcast

Better Each Day Podcast Radio Show with Bruce Hilliard
Every day, in every way, I'm getting better and better.--Emile Coue
This is a platform, a stage for singers, songwriters and the creative to share their work, backstories and positive words.
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About your host

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Bruce Hilliard

Born in Seattle, raised in Aberdeen WA, Bruce Hilliard is a singer, guitarist and songwriter with a song list influenced mostly by pop/folk rock of the 60s-80s. He has been an opener for Heart, the Ramones, Dr. Hook, Wishbone Ash and Eric Burdon.
Early in his career Bruce completed Bachelor Degrees in Music and Journalism from Washington State University and, while never allowing a hiatus from performing and songwriting, joined corporate America in marketing and sales. That rocky road led him back to his passion and now records and performs live and with great appreciation to be back in his jam.
He currently resides in Mukilteo WA and hosts the Better Each Day Podcast Radio Show. His musician interview based show has featured recording artists including John Oates; Grand Funk Railroad’s frontman Mark Farner; Steve Fossen, bass player and co-founder of Heart; drummer Carmine Appice; and Dave Bickler, lead vocalist (Eye Of the Tiger) of Survivor. The weekly half hour show has over 181 episodes and is becoming a strong platform for musicians of all levels to showcase their music and their backstories.