Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

I am truly thankful today.
I do not have a worry that cannot be fixed by some money or a little work.
That is a good feeling.
Today I have my family and my home and that is all I need.
I have my music and my friends and they are a blessing.

I have made a commitment to turn off the news and stop the frantic worry
of fear that the media wants me to believe is real, it is not.

I am limiting my access to social media and becoming more social in my community.
It is much more enjoyable to see a face and speak with a human being in physical
form than just on a screen.

In this moment, right now, I have no problems.
If I look into the past, I can find things to be angry or shameful about.
If I think about the future I can become fearful and worried.
But I do not live in the past or the future, I live only in the present,
and it is a present.
My mind is "My" mind and I control it's thinking, when I begin to think of
things that are not "Reality", I can change the thoughts immediately.
It requires discipline and practice, but it can be done.
In this moment, I am at peace.
I am at the breakfast table with my two youngest girls.
They're watching cartoons and I am reading, no worries in sight.
I can't help but think of all the people in the world that are not so safe.
They are not enjoying breakfast, they have lost loved ones to war and famine.
They deserve this peace and love as much as I do, some maybe more.

I pray for the world and those that are suffering.
I vow to love my family more today and enjoy every gift I have been given.

Today I will do my best to not speak ill of anyone, to bitch or complain
of the politics or the world I live in, I will speak only of love.
I will try to give thanks in every word I say and stay silent when I cannot.

We are so blessed to be safe and have homes and families.
Many do not.
I cannot solve the worlds problems today, but I can be thankful and enjoy my blessings
to the fullest.

Happy Thanksgiving.
I pray that you have everything you desire today.

Peace, Love, Zito

Fear and Loathing.....

Well I have a lot to write about and not sure where to start.

I want to let you know that I lost a dear friend on Sunday, Tonya Ross.
She and her husband, Doug, have been friends of mine going on 20 years.
They opened there home to me when I was down and out in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
I had nowhere to go and they brought me in and helped me the best they could.
She was a kind, sweet loving woman and is absolutely missed.

Obviously there is a lot of turmoil in the world right now and mostly made of
political rhetoric and fear based bullshit.
I am not a serious political person in public, mostly because I do not trust people.
I do have a strong opinion of what is right and what is wrong but I also remain open minded
and understanding, the latter of which I do not believe some people offer in return.
Facebook is a place for building fear and hatred and certainly not for spreading love.
But it is also a place to sell yourself, your music, your concerts, keep people informed of
your tour and stay in contact with your fans, your people.
In a way, Facebook is my business. How else can I reach people so easily and share my new music with them?  I want people to buy my new album, to come to my shows, and to support my cause.
This is my livelihood, my business. I am thankful for the opportunity to stay connected with so many folks all over the world.  But I found out early on, if I share my political beliefs or spiritual beliefs with folks on Facebook, I am excluding at least half of my people.
Not all people feel the way I do.
I do believe that everyone of my people are filled with Love, Compassion and Honesty,
but not everyone shares the same beliefs that I do. I am fine with this. Sure it makes me a little crazy once in a while,  I am certain they feel the same way about me, but I can live with it.
Some people get in there and really let me have it if I post something Political or Spiritual that they do not agree with. They begin sparring with me, and I don't like that at all.
I don't mind a good debate, but it usually gets ugly pretty quick.
Mostly, truth be told......it's bad for business.
So I have for a long time, stopped sharing my beliefs on Climate change, the President, Health Insurance, Foreign Policy and so on, because I don't want to rock the apple cart.
It's best to just stay out of it and keep quiet.
I did this for about 6 months or more and I prayed about it too. I began to feel I was part of the problem. I don't want to express my true feelings for fear of losing customers? that is the problem.
I will say, for the most part my friends that don't agree with me are very respectful. They usually just don't say anything about my post, they don't argue with me and they leave me alone. That is respect.
I try to offer the same respect in return. When I read things that I absolutely disagree with, I just let it slide, especially if it is someone I love and care about. We just don't see eye to eye on everything and that is ok.
So I decided that I am in the wrong here. It's me, not you.
My ideals are not so far left that they're completely misunderstood.
I want peace and compassion for all. That is the America I believe in and love.
Keeping that inside for fearing of not selling enough cd's is absolutely wrong, and I admit my mistake.

So I have decided to share with the world how I feel on key issues that I think about daily.
I read the news, I know right from wrong and I know when something is bullshit or real.
I do not get my news from right or left wing think tank sites, or bogus news sites that spout
fake stories to scare everyone. Fear is all over Facebook and Social Media and it's there for a reason, to take the control away from you and me and give it those who want the power.

So, I will share my feelings politically and spiritually with my world.
Selling cd's and tours is the not the most important thing in the world and making money
isn't everything. Standing up for what we believe is more important.
I also think that I discredit most of the people I know when I think I better not share my feelings
because some of them won't agree with me and stop coming to see me play.......untrue.
Most people are smart enough to know the difference between belief and love.
They know I am coming from a place of love, not hate or fear.
They also love me enough to "let it slide" when they don't agree. The few that don't will get over it.
Maybe just maybe........something good will come of all this.
That is my hope.

Peace, Love, Zito.

Happiness and Death

Wow, that's quite a title huh?
Happiness and Death, not something you would normally order
off the same menu, but what the hell, it's Monday :)

I had a nice long talk with a friend yesterday and we were both in agreement of
how we felt about our place in the world and of course it always feels good to spend
Some time with someone who is like minded.
We both agreed there is a God and believe that it is our responsibility
to follow the Spiritual Principles in our hearts.
We know right from wrong, and for each of us that might be a bit different, but mostly similar.
There is no "magic show" in the eyes of God, no tricks to be had, just the truth.
If you can live with the truth, you can do what you please, as long as you do not harm others.
Anyway......it was a nice Sunday discussion that ended well and felt good.

The bottom line is happiness and death.
We both absolutely agreed on a belief in a Higher Power, but neither of us claimed to know
The exact state of this being, or what it might look like or what gender it was,
We just agreed there was something there that we are all made of and it was pure love.
The trees, stars, moon, mountains, fish, cats, dogs, spiders, ants......man, woman, child
are all made of the same power and energy or love. We may not understand the place of everything
in this world, but that's because we are only man and we don't need to know everything and it would
be arrogant to think we could understand the makings of the Power of the Universe,
But we are connected, not separate. We are one with this Power, not apart, but a part.
The only thing we agreed to know about this life is that we will die.
After that, no living man can profess to know with any certainty what will happen.
Life after death is not of my concern, life during life is.
Which brought us to happiness.
Happiness is a state of mind, a state of well being and comfort.
In this day and age of constant social media, we are endlessly reminded to "BE HAPPY".
It is your duty, your cross to bare. Everyone MUST be happy, or else!
It seems that way, but that is not the truth.
Just as though people try to show us that Karma is some sort of revenge that the Universe uses to get back at bad people, which also is not true at all. The Power of Love knows not of revenge.
Happiness IS a personal responsibility, but not for every second of everyday in every situation.
That would not be living. Living requires anger, remorse, fear, grief, pain, suffering, laughter, hope,
Peace, ....the list goes on and on.
We are people. We are flawed by nature and life is painful at best.
We need to feel pain to find hope, anger to find resolution, grief to overcome.
Eternal happiness is knowing that we will die, and that's ok.
If we can come to terms with our own end now while we are alive, then we can take part in the life
in front of us wholeheartedly. This is our responsibility. To know that we will expire at any given moment, and accept this with peace and serenity, that is true happiness.
Once I have accepted that I do not know what life after death brings, but I believe in the Power of the Universe, I have faith that it will all be ok, I will be set free, then it is my responsibility to live the life I have now. To be faithful and honest, to love and forgive, to have hope and overcome fear.
To mourn the loss of loved ones and friends and know they have crossed over to a better place.
If we are lucky enough to have children, we have a responsibility to raise them to be good, decent members of society. To not be afraid and to have principles to live by, that is my responsibility.

If my own death does not bring about fear and anger, but peace and acceptance,
Life is easy.
If I realize I might die tomorrow, then I will do everything I can to live today,
to love today, to be happy today, to bring happiness to others.

It's a beautiful day, a beautiful life.
Thank God.

Keep Coming Back

Shameless plug.......


Actually, not so true - but yes, my new album is titled "Keep Coming Back".
Right away some people get it, some people just thinks it's catchy.
If you're not in recovery, "Keep Coming Back" is what they tell you from day one.
No matter what, Keep Coming Back.

I had never had a true success in my life until I found recovery.
It's the first thing in life I stuck with and didn't walk away from,
and at 33 years old, I walked away from a lot.

But "Keep Coming Back" is not just for those of us that are in recovery,
it's really become a motto in my life that I live by.
Don't give up, Lifes too short, Keep Coming Back.
Walter Trout told me years ago when I started my music career again, sober this time,
he said "Don't quit, if you quit, the dreams over. You're the only one that can say it's over."
I'm in charge, I am responsible for it all, I can either quit or keep trucking.

Look, we all get it, life is not for the weak of heart, it's tough,
and just think we live in an easy world without war all around us and true poverty.
Buddhist teachings suggest that life is painful at best.
The attachment to loved ones who leave us, the material world, and even just the
pain of having a human body that gets old and weak and dies.
The only remedy for this pain is a spiritual connection with a Higher Power.
Whatever that may be, getting out of my head and into the spiritual realm eases my pain of living.
BUT, I can't live on a pink cloud, or high up in the mountains,
I live down in the valley where shits going on and I have to be there, this is my life.

In a Zig Ziglar world of catch phrases that are supposed to make everything better,
Keep Coming Back has stuck with me.
It means everything.
You get knocked down, get back up and get you some more.
Cause what are you gonna do? Throw in the towel and walk away?
What kind of life is that?
Get back in there and get knocked on your ass again!

Tenacity: THE QUALITY OR FACT OF CONTINUING TO EXIST.

To make it in this world, you need tenacity.
We must continue to exist until the day we exist no more.
So we make mistakes, so we have to try again, thats what it's all about.
If I did everything right, if I had everything I wanted, and if everything
hurried up and went my way........what would I do then?
Sit around and look at how great everything is?
No, thats just not how it works, and for the few of those have experienced that
grandiosity - they usually get their heads chopped off.

Bottom line is, I am here to do my part no matter how big or small.
I'm trying to raise kids that are not a burden on society and I am trying to leave
this place a little better than it was when I got here.
I have found my purpose in life, and it's not necessarily being a musician.....
it's to be a kind, loving, caring, understanding human being.
If being a father and a husband and a musician is the path I have chosen,
then my responsibility is to be a Kind, Loving, Caring and Understanding
Father, Husband and Musician.

We are flawed. We do not do everything "right".
We make mistakes, we fall down, we walk away,
the important thing is to get back up, try again, get it right,
brush it off, stop being proud and just be me,
and absolutely, no matter what......

KEEP COMING BACK!

Normal.....

It's back to school again.
I just brought the girls to their first day.
My youngest started Kindergarten today and my oldest daughter
started high school today.
All the kids are off and running and everything is getting back to normal.
The summer is over, but it's still really hot outside....of course it's Texas.

I love routines.
They work well for me and my obsessive mind.
I did a lot of work in the late 1990's for the DOD playing concerts for the
troops overseas. I really enjoyed my time working with the Military.
I loved the strict routine.
At one point in my life I was going to join the Army Jazz band.
I was at a pretty low point in my drug abuse and living with my parents.
I needed something, anything to get me on my feet.
I had some connections I had made in the DOD and I reached out and they set
up an audition at my local recruiter.
It's a big deal, it's not easy and they only hire like one guitar player every two years.
They flew in the guy that handled auditions from the DC area and he sat down with me
and worked me through the process.
He was very happy with my audition and told me he would recommend my enlistment.
My parents were overjoyed and I thought I would finally get my shit together and
get off of drugs. I was very excited about the "Routine" life, it's what I needed badly.
I would be the first guitarist in the state of Missouri enlisting as a guitarist in the Army Jazz band
in over 20 years.  My recruiter was very excited.
I had to do my physical and basic tests in one week.
So what did I do?  I went on a 4 day bender of drugs and alcohol.
I went in on Monday morning and took the piss test, all the paperwork, physical etc.
I had a very good friend of mine ask me while we were doing drugs
"Don't you have to take a drug test in a day or two?"
I thought yeah, but it'll be fine.
Long story short.....my recruiter picked me up two weeks later to drop me off for basic training.
I had my bags packed, my parents were proud and I was on my way.
When we arrived my name was not on the list. We were called into an office where
they told me that came up VERY hot for cocaine and marijuana.
They could not accept my enrollment for two more years.
My recruiter was crushed, and I was driven back home
I told my parents that something was wrong with the paperwork, but they knew better.
It was a huge set back and very upsetting......and then within less than a year we invaded Iraq.
I was told if I had enrolled, I would have lost my guitar position and been sent off to war.
Maybe things happen for a reason.

This is just one of so many stories in my life that started out with my intention for "Normal",
for "Routine" and ended in destruction.

This is my disease. I have a need and a want for "Normal"and I have a destruction that
wants to tear it all apart. It's so conflicting and so crazy.
I have always been my own worst enemy and for years I had no idea what was going on.
Luckily I found a program that helped me to change my way of thinking and gave me tools
to deal with my own disfunction, I also have a strong relationship with my Higher Power today.

That sabotage in my mind is much better these days.
I have learned from my mistakes, Thank God, and I make better choices today.
I have finally found the joy in "Routine" with my family, my music and my spiritual life.
Words like "Routine" and "Normal" seem horrible to many people, maybe they take it for granted.
I love new experiences, I am always for trying something new and mixing it up......
but I love the joy of being normal these days.
I go to bed early, I make my coffee every morning, I practice my guitar, we eat dinner as a family.....

Today I am thankful for normalcy, for routine.
I am also thankful for the ways things worked out in my life, even when I thought I was being let down....everything happens for a reason, even if I don't know why.
I am and have always been looked out for by my Higher Power,
for that I am grateful.

Summertime Blues

It's gonna be 95 today in South East Texas, and thats just fine with me.
I will take the heat any day of the week over cold and snowy,  I guess I'm getting old.
Growing up in St. Louis, I got more than enough cold and snow for a lifetime.

Well, the summer has begun and we are knee deep into touring with the band.
We had a pretty easy spring and I was home much more than I have been in recent years.
But now it's on the road again and back to work.
We hit the ground running the past few weeks in the Northeast and then spent a week in Germany
and Poland, then wrapping up one more week in the Pennsylvania area.
Home for two days and we fly out today to Bosnia and Italy and end up in Norway with Ms. Samantha Fish before coming back home......the summer is in full swing!
I plan these trips 6 months or more in advance and you get everything ready and lined up
and before you know it, you are right in the middle of what you worked on, I love it.

When things get going this quick and we are on the move constantly, I need to remind
myself to pray and meditate everyday, or I am in for some trouble.
Like anyone, I can get crabby and tired and when I do, I start to take it out on those around me.
My problem is, I have mental illness and I take it to the extreme.
I get really worked up about nothing in my head and start to really resent anyone who says
something I don't like.  Then I spend the whole day or more arguing with them over and over.....
in my head :)
Of course they have no idea, I am the one suffering.
At the most, I might be snippy with them or ignore them because I am upset, but inside
I am chewing their ass out!
I'm sure most people can relate to this, this is not just an addicts mind, but consider this same
feeling times 1000%.
It's overwhelming to say the least.
What I have found to work best is to have a more personal conversation with the person or people and start to see them again as loving, kind individuals that are human just like me.
When I do, I start to forgive almost instantly and my mind begins to ease.
Again, most of all of the trouble centers in my mind, not from any real posing threat.
They have actually done nothing to offend me, I just created the problem in my mind.

So, since I am aware of this problem and that it happens mostly when I am very busy and gone from home for long stretches, I know I should pray and meditate more often to stop this process
before it starts.  It's amazing to me that by praying and making my spiritual connection, I can
almost instantly change my thought process.  What a connection I have made with my Higher Power!
Like most people, I wait until things get really bad before I reach out for help.
Just like when I was drinking and using, I wouldn't pray until I was hugging the toilet bowl
"Please God, I'll never do this again! Help me Lord!"

I still wait until I am hurting pretty bad to ask God for help and ease my pain.
SO......this summer I am taking it One Step at a Time and I am putting my good foot forward.
I am going to try very hard to pray everyday and meditate and give myself a break.
When my mind begins that resentful process, I am going to try and step in immediately and begin praying to change that pattern.  I am hopeful that this will be a success, sometimes my mind
is so willful it's hard to recognize the pattern, but I think if I stay focused and spiritual I will have
a more peaceful summer.

I must also remember to be humble and ask for help when needed.
As soon as I get some humility and realize I cannot do it all on my own, God sends people
into my life to help me.  This past week, I was constantly reminded of God in my life.
Dear friends in the program came out to my shows and gave me support when I needed it most.
I also met folks for the first time that shared their recovery with me, in fact one man
gave me his 27 year coin just minutes before we rocked the Briggs Farm Fest.
It was so inspiring and uplifting, I had the most fun ever on that set.
I am truly blessed with so much good around me, it's incredible........if I can just stay out of my mind!

Thanks to all of the fans and all of my friends for all your love and support.
It means a lot when people tell me they love the blog and I should keep writing.
I love writing and sharing with you and it certainly helps me.

I hope you all have a great summer, be good to each other and share the love.
Peace,

Mike

The King has left the building......

I know this blog is mostly based on my spiritual findings as a recovering addict and alcoholic,
but other times it's just a place for me to write what I am feeling or share a story.

I would be remiss to not share with you the deep fondness and appreciation I have
for the now late B.B. King.

My father worked at the Anheuser-Busch Brewery in St. Louis, Mo.
He was 48 years older than me and needless to say, the generational gap was wide and long.
We did not have much in common with the years between us, but we both loved music.
He listened to Big Band and Swing music.......Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Count Basie....
He loved Harry James, Gene Krupa, and countless other musicians from days long gone
in the mid 1970's.  Like any child, when you're very young, you listen to whatever your
parents listen to, you don't really have any taste yet and whatever is around you is what you soak up.
I loved my fathers music, still do today.  Then I got a little older and started to hear rock n roll
from the neighbor up the street and got really excited about guitar.
I distinctly remember making my father take me to Sears on Grand Ave in South St. Louis to
buy Kiss Alive 2 in about 1977.  We stood in line and he looked at the record in disbelief.....
he turned it over and saw the blood covered Gene Simmons and said out loud

"Jesus Christ.....What the hell kind of music is this shit? This guys all covered in damn blood.
You like this? These guys play music???"

It was the beginning of the end.  We were so far apart in age and when I got old enough to
start making my own choices, we grew apart. I was no longer a little boy and it wasn't the 1940's.
I fell in love with rock n roll and pop music and started listening to the radio religiously and never
turned back.  My father hated my music, he had no time for it and was not interested at all in listening
with me.....and God knows I tried.  No one played an instrument in my family, so me getting a guitar
was also not the most desired sound to have around. My parents put up with it all, mostly because I was the youngest and they were old and beaten down.

Eventually I got turned on in high school to Johnny Winter and Stevie Ray Vaughan.
I was just really into guitar and guitar music at that time, but also Prince, Michael Jackson,
and Cyndi Lauper. I did love good pop music.

I got a job at the music store in my neighborhood and got seriously turned onto B.B. King.
They played "Live at the Regal" damn near everyday at that store.
I fell in love, immediately.  The sound of his guitar and his voice and that band, just swinging.
It was the first time ever that I made a connection of my love of the guitar and my fathers music.
Thats what BB sounded like to me, like blues guitar in a Big Band.
I bought that record and played it for my father. He loved it too.
He knew BB had played with Sinatra in Vegas for years at Caesar's Palace in the late 60's.
He said to me..."Now thats music. Thats good. I can hear every note that he's playing and he's playing
pretty. Not a bunch of noise...and he can sing too. Thats good Michael, thats what music sounds like."

I was proud. I found something that we both liked and we listened to it a lot together.
We talked about BB and music and while he was always first to tell me that the "crap" I had been
listening to was no good, he would always say to me that this music here is what I should try and learn.  He also said the same thing about Country Music. He loved Glen Cambell.....because he played guitar for Sinatra :)

BB King became my mentor and I tried my best to learn from him, but I was still very young.
Finally, in about 1999 I think, BB King came to the Fox Theater in St. Louis.
It was his tour with opening acts, Tower of Power, Robert Cray and Indigenous.
My girlfriend at the time, knew how much I adored BB and she surprised me with front row tickets.
I will never forget that concert. I had never sat that close to the stage before and was in complete AWE of his performance. He was on fire and really doing his thing. The band was amazing and he was strong and solid and his guitar amp was hitting me right in the face, I LOVED IT!
At the end of the show he walked to the front of the stage and he shook everyone's hand and gave out guitar picks. He looked at me and said "here you go son"......I was speechless.
I looked at my girlfriend as we walked out and said "I don't care if we get a dog or have a kid someday, we are naming the first thing we get to name after that man right there!!!"
Well......not much longer after that we got pregnant and today she's almost 15 years old, Riley Zito.

Riley has a fabulous, huge photo of BB King taken by the great Jerry Moran at Jazzfest about 5 years ago, hanging on her wall in her bedroom. He's looking right at the camera smiling, playing his guitar.

My father passed away some years ago, but he got to see me get clean and sober and find success
for myself in the music world.  He became my biggest fan and was very proud.

It's weird to look back now and put the pieces together. The puzzle makes sense now.
BB King was such a huge inspiration in my life and brought my father and I together again,
even though we were so far apart in years.
I never played music with him, shared the stage or opened his show, and we never met....
he just shook my hand at his concert, and I think thats the best.

I am a fan of music and I believe in the magic, sometimes it just needs to stay there, in the magic.
Today, we know everything about everyone, and it's just not the same.
I did read his autobiography twice and loved it!

What a life.  B.B. King lived the life he loved. He played the music he wanted to play
and he gave the world so much love and hope.
It was not always easy, but it's not supposed to be.

Thank You Riley B. King.
You will continue to inspire me until he day we meet.