This is his obituary from The San Francisco Chronicle, 1996:

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/OBITUARY-Jim-Boggio-2958216.php

Take a trip down memory lane with this accounting of the …

History of the First Cotati Accordion Festival

Written by Virginia Sager Jansen in 1991

Jim led the popular groups “The Sonoma Swamp Dogs” and “The Gypsy Jazzers”, and his humor and infectious laughter made him a friend to thousands around the world.  Jim was also co-founder of the Cotati Accordion Festival.  (see history below)

To memorialize this extraordinary man Blair Hardman led a committee that commissioned a life-size bronze statue of Jim playing the accordion and laughing his wonderful laugh.  It was installed in La Plaza Park in Cotati, and is the only life size bronze statue of an accordionist in the world.

The artist Jim Kelly of Sebastopol, did the modeling and the foundry, Bronze Plus also of Sebastopol, did the casting.  It was finished  August 22nd, 1997, in time for the annual Cotati Accordion Festival.

Original Accordion Festival Committee: Left to Right. Back Row: Eric Kirchmann, Rebecca Browne, Jim Boggio, Marian Kelly, Linda Rook, Pat Vulgaris, Vivian Weissenburger, Barbara Harris. Front Row: Richard Cullinen, Clifton Buck-Kauffman, Keith Blackstone. Not present: Steve Balich, John Olsson and Sean O’Connell (photographer).

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO make a successful musical festival with a unique concept? When asked to write the history of the first Cotati Accordion Festival, this writer went to the two men responsible for the origination of this event: Clifton Buck-Kauffman and Jim Boggio. It didn’t take long to discover exactly “what it takes”: imagination, great talent, commitment to community service, involving important support groups, and acquiring the help of a dedicated volunteer committee. The job demanded hours of work each day for some three months on the part of Buck-Kauffman and Boggio; and yes, the “calling in of favors” from good friends and business associates. It took innovation (and in this writer’s judgment, courage!) as initially, there was no money. Most importantly, it was because of the love of and respect for the accordian and Cotati, that this festival came into being.

Jim Boggio is a well-known, local, musical artist; band leader; pianist; instrumentalist, with the accordion being his specialty; and producer of shows – “among other things.”

Boggio recorded an accordion album, Accordion to the Blues at the Cotati-based recording company, Prairie Sun Studios. Now, it SO happened that a co-owner of these studios was Clifton Buck-Kauffman, a longtime Cotatian. (Incidentally, Clifton’s grandparents were the Legarretas, early Cotati chicken ranchers. The studios are on the site of the old hatchery.)

Buck-Kauffman thrives on civic involvement: City of Cotati Community Service Commission (1991 Chair); Cotati Chamber of Commerce (Board Member); Cultural Arts Council of Sonoma County (1993 Prexy); a booster of a wide range of local civic activities among other things. Get these two men together and things happen!

When Buck-Kauffman heard Boggio’s accordion album, he was dazzled. The multicultural diversity of accordion music triggered his imagination! Following the recording session, the two men were talking things over at the Tradewinds (a local watering hole in downtown Cotati.) Buck-Kauffman asked Boggio, “What do you think of the idea of having a Cotati Accordion Festival?” Both men grinned – Boggio “loving the idea.” Once the latter realized Buck-Kauffman was serious, he was off and running. The two made a deal: Boggio would be handling the musical end securing the musicians, planning the program, orchestrating the entire musical production and so on. Buck-Kauffman would handle the rest: staging; arranging for the sound equipment, posters, banners and signs; T-shirt sales; vendor booths, etc. As with any community endeavor, funding was a problem. Buck-Kauffman put it this way: “As for obtaining the services of the performers that first year, it was difficult finding people who were willing to work for almost nothing. (Now, musicians are piling out of the woodwork – everybody wants to play the Cotati Festival.)” For financial help, Buck-Kauffman turned to the organizations he served: the City of Cotati, the Chamber, and Sonoma County’s Cultural Arts Council. The coordination and cooperation of these three groups were the needed dynamics that guaranteed the first festival’s success. Private contributions were solicited. A local man, Dr. Richard Gaston, donated $500 toward the event. When one gets support from people like that … those who just believe in an idea … “I can recall that day to this day!” Buck-Kauffman and Boggio, however, bore the major burden of the costs. Out-of-pocket money, coupled with donated performance/work time, respectively, added up to a hefty sum.

Buck-Kauffman and Boggio credit several persons for having worked “above and beyond”: Rebecca Browne (currently Cotati’s Chamber of Commerce President) handled the printing of the program booklets, copy and advertising. Tom Torriglia, was/is a San Francisco-based public relations man, and a leader of the well-known bay area group,Tlwse Darn Accordions. It was Torriglia who arranged the extensive publicity resulting in unprecedented attendance for such an event held in Cotati. Barbara Harris was/is Executive Director of the Cultural Arts Council of Sonoma County. It was at her suggestion that the festival be not a one day affair, but two. She also gave of her expertise and energy. Lou Soper, first president of the Bay Area Accordion Club, contributed much to the production end of the event. Boggio was/is a member of the Bay Area Accordion Club and as such called upon many of that group for help. Behind-the-scene support came from Marian Kelly, Peter DiBono and the membership in general. Pat Ryan and Stanley Mouse, artists, created the design for the posters and T-shirts, respectively. Al and Carla Hines of Hines Signs in Cotati did the banners and signs. Guy and Susie Dynek of Paragon believed in the project to the extent that they “advanced” the cost of the T-shirts. A committee of some eighteen additional local volunteers gave much time and energy to make this project a success. Additionally, the City of Cotati generously allowed the Festival to take place in La Plaza Park, which helped bring back the street festival ambiance for which Cotati is well known. Each day they opened the event with an accordion parade. At one point in the show accordionists at large were invited to join in a Lady of Spain-A-Ring, an event in which all present could join in the playing of Lady of Spain (in the key of C).

The Cotati festival was presented as a community service, free to the public. It was held in the downtown plaza under the oaks. The response was overwhelming. “We were amazed at the reception and response to our idea. It tickled the fancy of music lovers locally, nationally and internationally!” recalled Buck-Kauffman. Boggio put it a different way, “The thing that struck me was all those smiling faces. People of all ages dancing, listening, tapping their feet — all with smiles on their faces.”

Much to the elation of those responsible (and to the surprise of the skeptics) the first outdoor Cotati Accordion Festival was conducted and concluded on a highly successful note.

If you are looking for more information about professional  audio recording, call Zone Recording Studio today at (800) 372-3305 or email us at blair@zonerecording.com.

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He first came to us nearly ten years ago in 2007, as his most popular Food Network show “Diners Drive-ins and Dives” was starting to air. Guy lives in nearby Santa Rosa, and when he needed to record some narration, he picked Zone Recording. In this show he travels the country with a production team, visiting famous and infamous eateries.   Guy interacts with the locals, takes big bites of the food, and joins the cooks in the kitchen to discuss, or rather, rave about recipies, styles, attitudes, philosophies and ways to attack an entrée.

For most of the show Guy is on camera, and either eating or talking.  But for the sections where the camera follows food prep, shows beauty shots of the results, and pans the crowds, Guy’s narration was needed.

We would set him up in our voiceover booth with a microphone, script, and earphones.  Then, via our phone patch, the director in another part of the country could listen to Guy as he read the script and direct him through the earphones. (It’s a difficult task and led to many hilarious outtakes, which I am unfortunately not at liberty to release) I would record only Guy’s voice-over, and at the end of the session, FTP, or send, the audio files to the production studio, where they were waiting with the edited video, eager to drop his narration into the appropriate places in the show.  And of course the show probably had to air the next day so there was no room for error.

Through it all, year after year, he kept up his good humor and supportive nature.

Things really got exciting when he landed the game show “Minute To Win It” on NBC.  The first time my phone rang and the caller ID said “NBC” I thought they were calling to offer me a sitcom.  Actually they were inquiring about rates and schedules to do the same kind of thing for them.  The difference here was sometimes Guy had to dub in some lines that matched the video of him.  This is called ADR, or addition dialog recording.  We would set up a video monitor and he would watch himself and try to say the line exactly as he had said it on tape. When you are dealing with a national network, the timelines get shorter, the stakes get higher, and the money is better. 

Guy would always park his canary yellow Corvette or his canary yellow Hummer, or his canary yellow Lamborghini around the back of our building to not draw a crowd.  But when someone did recognize him, he took time to greet them and take pictures, sign autographs and everyone left feeling honored.  One day my Engineer at Zone Recording, Mathew Trogner, mention that he had a friend with a young daughter, who happened to be quite ill, and that she was a big fan of Guy’s.  He thought for a moment.  “Get her on the phone” he said, and proceeded to have an inspiring conversation with her.

We will always be grateful to Guy for bringing his business to Zone Recording Studio, and for all the good times we had together.

“My parents were into macrobiotic cooking—vegetarian, nondairy, whole grains, no red meat. I started cooking when I was 10 because I just couldn’t eat that stuff.”

—Guy Fieri

Looking for more information about professional recording? Call Zone Recording Studio at (800) 372-3305 or email us at blair@zonerecording.com.

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photo from: billboard.com

The Grammys are airing this Sunday Feb. 7 at 8 p.m. on CBS. If you have not been paying attention, it’s okay because we have all of the insider information you need for this upcoming ceremony. The Grammys are one of the biggest nights for music, and features the year’s biggest artists and top songs.

You can find the full list here from TIME Magazine Online. However, the most favorable artists this year are Beyoncé, Pharrell Williams and the renowned new artist Sam Smith. With 53 nominations in total, Beyoncé is the most-nominated woman in the Grammys’ history. Some of the other notable performers include: Beck, Drake, Eric Church, Gordon Goodwin, Iggy Azalea, Jack White, Jay Z, Miranda Lambert, Sia, Tom Coyne, and Usher.

Some of the keynote performers are Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, Madonna, with her new single “Living for Love.” Likewise, Rihanna, Kanye West and Paul McCartney will debut “FourFiveSeconds.” Other performances include, Beyoncé with John Legend for the Selma song “Glory,” and Mary J. Blige and Sam Smith are anticipated to perform a duet.

For clarity, Song of the Year honors songwriting, and Record of the Year refers to the actual recording. A song worthy of winning Song of the Year is the kind of track that sounds just as good stripped down and played acoustically as it does in an arena live. Likewise, a worthy Record of the Year focuses more on the quality of the production, engineering and performance.

According to TIME Magazine online, “a ‘new artist’ is defined for the Grammy process as any performing artist or established performing group who releases, during the eligibility year, the recording that first establishes the public identity of that artist or established group as a performer.”

Be sure to keep an eye for for Iggy Azalea as she tries to be the first woman to win best hip-hop album, making it a night that could be historic for many other female artists. Nicki Minaj is also looking to claim her title as the first female rapper to win the Best Rap Song with her acclaimed hit “Anaconda.”

While Beyoncé is in the running for multiple awards, 2014 was the year of breakout artists including Sam Smith, Ariana Grande and her streak of summer hits, and Meghan Trainor with her distinctive style and incredible influence.

According to the Grammys, Sam Smith is nominated in four of the most important categories, and with the success of his first single, “Stay With Me,” he is very likely to take home a win. Likewise, Meghan Trainor is in the running for both Song of the Year and Record of the Year, while Ariana Grande is up for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with “Bang Bang.”

Those are some of the must know topics for this year’s Grammys. Zone Recording Studio of Cotati, California has all of the information you need with this highly popular event.

The post What You Need to Know For the 57th Grammys appeared first on Zone Recording Studio.

MARCUS OWEN/STARTRAKS PHOTO; C FLANIGAN/FILMMAGIC

Perhaps one of the most common controversies in the music industry is copyright, sampling and re-using of other people’s material, and the use of soundbites in radio commercials. Among those, however, is blatant similarities between two songs. This debate brings up the question of whether or not some songs are total coincidences or complete ripoffs.

This past weekend, The Sun reported Sam Smith and Tom Petty had a dispute, which related to this very topic. Recent reports suggest Sam Smith’s three-time Grammy-nominated hit “Stay With Me” and Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down,” were the subjects of an amicably settled copyright dispute. Rolling Stone Magazine released a statement confirming that Tom Petty now has been co-credited to Smith’s “Stay With Me” along with co-writer Jeff Lynne of “I Won’t Back Down.”

Additionally, Rolling Stone Magazine explains in an article released this week that the publishers for Petty’s song contacted the publishers for Smith’s “Stay With Me,” about similarities they detected in the melodies of the choruses of both songs. Smith’s rep explained he was not familiar with the 1989 Petty and Lynne song previously to writing “Stay With Me.” However, after listening to “I Won’t Back Down,” he acknowledged the similarity.

This is just one instance where this has come up. In fact, other artists have undergone this same issue including George Harrison with his song “My Sweet Lord” vs. “He’s So Fine” by The Chiffons, written by Ronnie Mack. Other songs include “Rudy Can’t Fail” by The Class vs. “Hate Everyone” by Say Anything and “Heartbreak Song” by Kelly Clarkson vs. “The Middle” by Jimmy Eat World.

According to the article by Rolling Stone, Smith’s rep said, “Although the likeness was a complete coincidence, all involved came to an immediate and amicable agreement in which Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne are now credited as co-writers of ‘Stay With Me’ along with Sam Smith, James Napier and William Phillips.”

Ultimately, it was decided that Sam Smith’s hit-song “Stay With Me” and its relation to Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” was completely accidental and nothing more than an innocent coincidence. That said, it was still ruled that Petty and Lynne would be co-credited for “Stay With Me.” However, the overall feel of the case was completely amicable.

While it may be a simple and innocent mistake, there is no question that copyright infringement is very real and can greatly affect a songwriter or recording artist. Here at Zone Recording Studio of Cotati, California, we desire for you to be safe and above board with your music. However, at the end of the day, there are only 12 notes, and expecting every single artist to come up with something completely original every time they sit down to write a song is perhaps ambitious.

While this may be true, it is important to check sources and verify that your songs are as original as possible. Remember, originality is key. For any tips, tricks and suggestions, call Blair at Zone Recording Studios at (800) 372-3305.

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Steve Vai, has sold over 15 million albums and started his career as a music transcriptionist for Frank Zappa. Vai then recorded and toured in Zappa’s band for two years, from 1980 to 1982. He began a solo career in 1983, has released eight solo albums and won three Grammy Awards. He has also recorded and toured with Joe Satriani, Alcatrazz, David Lee Roth and Whitesnake.

So what was he doing at our Sonoma County Recording Studio?  He came to Zone Recording Studio to do a big promotional appearance for his signature guitar the “Jem”.  Blair Hardman, owner of Zone Recording Studio, explains Vai’s visit and exactly what is happening in the picture you see here:

He is autographing my guitar, which is made by Ibanez, a company that endorses him.

Hardman also mentioned the following:

My favorite Steve Vai performance is in the movie “Crossroads” where he plays the devil in a guitar duel for the soul of a young Ralph Macchio.  Even though Vai has a huge rock star image, in person he was very humble, kind and quite intellectual.  In the background you can see a photo of me sitting in with The Persuasions, the “Kings of Acappella”.  They were performing a song called “I’m So Glad That I’ve Got Skin, (Because That’s What Keeps My Insides In)”, that I co-wrote with Country Joe McDonald of Country Joe and the Fish.

[youtube_sc url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw4dUbutja4″ title=”Steve%20Vai%20in%20%22Crossroads%22″ modestbranding=”1″ autohide=”1″ rel=”0″]

More on Steve Vai:

In addition to the brief history listed above, Vai has been a regular touring member of the G3 Concert Tour which began in 1995. In 1999 Vai started his own record label Favored Nations, intending to showcase as he describes,

“…artists that have attained the highest performance level on their chosen instruments.”

[hr]

If you’re interested in seeing the Jem guitar that Vai signed, stop by the recording studio here in Sonoma County.  It’s proudly on display in a very conspicuous location.  Just send us an email or give us a call and we’ll make sure you get a full tour of the recording studio.

(800) 372-3305

Email us here.

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