Last spring at the Disney Social Media Moms conference, we were introduced to Georgia Stitt and Susan Egan. Actually, Georgia and I actually go “way back”. We were in the same undergraduate class at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University. We survived 8am freshman theory classes with Dr. Rose. Just imagine 8am at the exact opposite end of campus from where you live… and it was required of all incoming freshman. All 40 of us. We got know each other very well!
After Georgia and Susan presented/performed, a Disney cast member grabbed and brought me back to reunite with Georgia. I think I cried, and I’m pretty sure I babbled about how cool it was to see them up there. I always get a little crazy when I see my fellow music school friends doing great things. It is not an easy road and when I see where so many of them have ended up there is a sense of pride. Not the patronizing kind,but the awesome kind.
Even more awesome than hanging out with a Disney Princess? (Susan was the original Belle on Broadway). We pushed Susan over the edge and onto Twitter that afternoon, and she literally took to it like a fish to water! Georgia had been blogging since way before I had. In fact, her blog was the first blog I’d ever read. Now the two of them publish Glamour and Goop – a definite must read about two Broadway-types continuing to build their musical careers while raising their families.
Today, November 15th, Susan releases her new album, The Secret of Happiness, and Georgia Stitt produced the album and wrote many of the songs. It’s a compilation of songs that will speak to so many women who have known the joy and humor in that crazy transition from whole woman to whole mother. That phase of your life where you wake up one day and your entire outlook on life has turned upside down. If you’ve ever thrown a cardigan on to cover up the cookie drool stain on your shoulder, if you’ve ever cried the ugly cry of exhaustion while smiling and thinking you’d jump in front of a train to save the screaming creature looking back at you, if you think this sounds familiar then you’ll giggle, cry, and smile your way through this album. And if you should catch yourself tossing your hair, looking in the mirror, and belting out the last few lines of “All things in Time”… once or five times, well then, you are not alone-just sayin’
For me, the absolute BEST part of this album is Susan’s cover of a song we all know well. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” is a gutsy song for any artist to take on. I mean really, who doesn’t know the song, who doesn’t have the Simon and Garfunkle version burned into their memory? I love it – I love Susan’s version of this song, in fact I love it more than Simon and Garfunkle. Her voice creates the most perfect ethereal sound (in harmony no less; I’m assuming there was a bit of studio work involved there!) and truly, my daughter dances around like a princess on a cloud when it’s on, which is often, since Susan and Georgia are now totally on my play list.
You can, and should buy Susan Egan’s new album at Amazon or if you order from LMLMusic.com and enter the promo code MOMBLOG, Susan is giving the fabulous a 20% discount.
A HUGE Congratulations to Susan Egan and to Georgia Stitt! Georgie, just remember I knew you WAY before the drool and goop!
Check out the music video for “Nina Doesn’t Care” …..