Valley Roses

✨🎄 Feeling grateful ☺️
My new original Christmas song “Magic of the Season” will be playing tonight on KDNK Carbondale Community Access Radio just before 7:00 PM MT (9PM EST).
Huge thank you to KDNK for supporting local music and community voices! 🤍

Tune in online and listen along @ www.kdnk.org

https://www.radiorethink.com/tuner/?stationCode=kdnk

Happy Thanksgiving, friends!
Today I’m feeling especially grateful for the people, places, and quiet little moments that keep inspiring the music. From the Colorado mountains to the beaches of south Jersey, to the loved ones who lift me up, to everyone who listens, shares, and encourages this journey- thank you!

This season has been full of new light, new songs, and a renewed sense of purpose, and I’m so thankful to be creating again. Your support means more than you know.

Wishing you a cozy, peaceful holiday.
🤍🍁
— Valley Roses

The history behind Mad Dog Ranch & Studios — where “Magic of the Season” was recorded ✨

Mad Dog Ranch & Studios carries a legacy woven into American music history. Originally purchased by Jimmy Buffett in 1972, the property served as his family home and creative hideaway, where he wrote iconic songs like “Son of a Son of a Sailor” and “Changes in Attitudes, Changes in Latitudes.” His small workshop—now Studio A—was also where he penned two children’s books with his daughter Savannah. The ranch even inspired “Gypsies in the Palace,” a song sparked by a real-life escapade involving Buffett’s caretaker and the nearby Snowmass Creek.

In 1990, Buffett passed the property to his friend Glenn Frey of the Eagles, who renamed it Mad Dog Ranch after his two spirited dogs. Frey transformed the cabins into a state-of-the-art recording studio designed by Frank Comentale of New York’s famed Hit Factory. Within its walls, he created his solo album Strange Weather, welcomed fellow Eagles and musical collaborators, and hosted unforgettable sessions—including one of John Denver’s final recordings.

In 2016, longtime Aspen local Julie Garside purchased the ranch and lovingly restored both the home and its historic studios, preserving their character while preparing the space for future generations of artists. Today, she continues nurturing its creative spirit, inviting musicians to write, record, and contribute to the ranch’s ongoing musical story.

In recent years, Julie expanded this mission beyond the ranch by co-founding Inspire Aspen Foundation with Tami Word—a Colorado 501(c)(3) dedicated to empowering youth across the Roaring Fork Valley through music education. Built on the belief that music sparks expression, growth, and connection, the foundation carries forward the same spirit that has defined Mad Dog Ranch for decades.

Creating in a space with such a rich musical legacy has been something truly special!

✨ Magic of the Season drops tomorrow, 11/18—available on all streaming platforms! ✨

✨ Magic of the Season… the ✍🏼 process

My songwriting process varies, but most of my songs usually start in one of two ways:
I either get struck by an idea that blossoms into a chorus and build from there, or I “hear” a melody in my head, work out the chords, and let the lyrics follow. Most of the time, once I start writing, I finish what I begin.

But every now and then, there’s a rogue song—one that starts with verses, never quite makes it to a chorus, hits a wall, loses its spark, and ends up abandoned in the scrap yard of half-written ideas.

My newest Christmas song was one of those.
Until this August, when I unearthed it in a voice memo in an old phone from 2019! I guess it just needed to marinate for five and a half+ years. 🤷🏼‍♀️

After listening back, I felt reinspired. I added a bridge and a chorus, and set a goal to record and release it in time for this holiday season.

Endless thank-yous to Valerie Vuolo and the rest of the crew who brought this song to life—so quickly!!

Only three more sleeps until it’s out in the world! As a lifelong holiday-music ju**ie 😅 finally having an original Christmas tune feels like checking off a big bucket-list dream. ☑️

*swipe to listen to the og voice memo