Posts by James Newcomb

In the last couple of weeks, I have been reviewing various ads and listings for a new trumpet. Well, maybe not a new trumpet, but a “new to me” type of situation. A pattern that I have seen among some of the older model instruments, which happens to be what I am interested in, is…

In this modern world filled with a multitude of choices, with life blazing by at record speeds, we find ourselves constantly juggling priorities, making decisions that reflect our values. To the dismay of purists in the world of music and audio editing, “good enough” in things such as podcasts, even music listened to on published…

The other day I was perusing Facebook and came across a post advertising a trumpet for sale. It was made by a fellow with the last name Taylor, hence the brand name. And for those not in the know, these are considered top of the line, creme de la creme instruments. Mr. Taylor has an…

In our modern world of endless content creation, few mediums have captured the hearts and minds of audiences quite like podcasts. With an ever-growing library of topics and styles, podcasts have become a cultural phenomenon, connecting creators and listeners from all walks of life. Yet, in the vast array of podcasts, only a select few…

I think we can all agree that the year 2020 was a challenging year for just about everyone on the planet. In addition to the hardships brought upon us by the so-called pandemic, my wife Sana and I found ourselves in the midst of an unexpected and frustrating ordeal. Our objective was simple: Get our…

Recently I interviewed the wonderful trumpeter and human being Phil Snedecor, and have shared it on multiple platforms I own, notably the Trumpet Dynamics podcast, This Is What We C.R.A.V.E. podcast, and recently the Broke v. Busy podcast. Phil is a successful Independent Publisher and Performing Artist in his own right, having recently published a…

I’ve talked quite a bit about AI and its proper role in creating content. Of course there’s the concern that people will just be lazy in having ChatGPT do their thinking for them, or worse never learn vital communications skills which can only be mastered through intensive practice over the course of a long period…

I was getting ready to watch the men’s Wimbledon final yesterday, and was asking myself, “Why do I love to watch this game?” I’m a sports fan, and always have been, but for some reason have always been enamored with tennis more than any other sport. And with no disrespect to any of the tremendous…

One of the few remaining memories from my time in the U.S. Army is one of my bandmasters saying the phrase, “Semper Gumby!” in response to some quickly changing circumstances with our unit. Army bands have two seasons: busy, and not busy. The not busy times are, well, not at all busy. And the busy…

I’ve been keeping a watchful eye on all these developments related to AI, as has everyone else in the digital publishing industry. There are definite uncertainties regarding AI, but it is intriguing isn’t it? Earlier this year I published a couple of podcasts about my thoughts on how AI should be utilized. Essentially my opinion…