Lots going on this Spring! First of all, the new Proto-Kaw album is finally released. No, I did not have anything to do with it, other than attending the release party, but some of these guys are old friends of mine, and I think you'll enjoy the album. It comes in two flavors -- a standard edition and a "Special Edition." By all means, get the Special Edition! You can buy it from Amazon.com or several other sources. Go to the Proto-Kaw website for more details.
Also, I've started playing regularly with a jazz big-band out of Oregon City. It's pretty much just a bunch of folks getting together for the love of music once a week, and I'm having a ball. There's lots of chart-reading involved, and I'm pretty good at that.
Last week I purchased -- off of eBay -- an album put out in the 1970s by a group I didn't even know I was in! The group was called "Departure," and I'll post more details later.
CNET is launching a service similar to the erstwhile MP3.com. Today I uploaded 8 tunes of mine and 3 tunes of Paul Bass' which should be available soon for download.
On the downside, I've been having a tough time getting around lately. I have to walk with a cane all the time now, and I think someday soon I will have to have a hip joint replaced or repaired. Aging totally sucks.
Sunday, April 18, 2004
Friday, January 16, 2004
Back from Kansas
A belated Happy New Year to all! I'm finally catching my breath after last week's trip to Kansas. Why would anyone take a vacation in Kansas in January? The simple answer is, family, friends, and music.
First, and most important, I went to visit my sister. She's a very talented and creative person, and I spent a wonderful couple of days with her in her art-filled house in Leonardville, near Manhattan. Then I spent three days with my old buddy Dave Zerfas (aka Zerf) and his family (Kim and Karl) at their home -- "the K Z Ranche" -- near Manhattan. They are terrific folks and made me feel very welcome. Zerf and I ate at some of our old haunts like Taco Hut and Vista Burger, and took in a K-State women's basketball game.
On Friday, we drove to Kansas City for a CD release party and concert by the band "Proto-Kaw." This was a night to remember! Proto-Kaw is the band that was called Kansas in the '70s. Go to their website to read the whole story. A couple of old bandmates of mine are in that group, and the evening was a bit of a musician's class reunion. I saw folks there that I had not seen in more than 30 years. I'll get some pictures up as soon as I can scan them.
Oh, yeah...I even got a chance to crawl up on stage and do a set (on guitar!) with Zerf, Tom Bolton, and Derek, as a reconstituted version of Zerf's band Plastique. And as a bonus, Lynn Meredith from Proto-Kaw got up and did a couple of numbers with us! Lynn is still one of the most soulful singers I've ever heard.
It was an exciting week. Of course, the weather helped with the excitement. Blizzards in Oregon just as I was getting ready to leave threatened the trip, ice storms and extreme cold in Kansas made travel somewhat of an adventure, and more snow and ice back in Portland kept the airport closed until just before I returned. I was very fortunate through the whole trip that nothing bad happened.
First, and most important, I went to visit my sister. She's a very talented and creative person, and I spent a wonderful couple of days with her in her art-filled house in Leonardville, near Manhattan. Then I spent three days with my old buddy Dave Zerfas (aka Zerf) and his family (Kim and Karl) at their home -- "the K Z Ranche" -- near Manhattan. They are terrific folks and made me feel very welcome. Zerf and I ate at some of our old haunts like Taco Hut and Vista Burger, and took in a K-State women's basketball game.
On Friday, we drove to Kansas City for a CD release party and concert by the band "Proto-Kaw." This was a night to remember! Proto-Kaw is the band that was called Kansas in the '70s. Go to their website to read the whole story. A couple of old bandmates of mine are in that group, and the evening was a bit of a musician's class reunion. I saw folks there that I had not seen in more than 30 years. I'll get some pictures up as soon as I can scan them.
Oh, yeah...I even got a chance to crawl up on stage and do a set (on guitar!) with Zerf, Tom Bolton, and Derek, as a reconstituted version of Zerf's band Plastique. And as a bonus, Lynn Meredith from Proto-Kaw got up and did a couple of numbers with us! Lynn is still one of the most soulful singers I've ever heard.
It was an exciting week. Of course, the weather helped with the excitement. Blizzards in Oregon just as I was getting ready to leave threatened the trip, ice storms and extreme cold in Kansas made travel somewhat of an adventure, and more snow and ice back in Portland kept the airport closed until just before I returned. I was very fortunate through the whole trip that nothing bad happened.
Wednesday, December 03, 2003
Proto-Kaw
Well, MP3.com closed its doors yesterday, so you can't find my tunes or Paul's there anymore. They have promised to open a new music hosting service early next year, so we'll just have to wait and see.
Proto-Kaw (nee Kansas) is releasing their new CD Before Became After on Jan. 9th in Kansas City. Read all about it and hear some samples of the amazing music this band has made at www.protokaw.com.
Proto-Kaw (nee Kansas) is releasing their new CD Before Became After on Jan. 9th in Kansas City. Read all about it and hear some samples of the amazing music this band has made at www.protokaw.com.
Wednesday, November 05, 2003
Remember, Remember...
Gunpowder treason and plot.
We see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot!
Those lines are a mystery to most Americans, but very familiar to most Brits. They refer to Guy Fawkes Day, November 5th. Read up on it, then go light up a bonfire!
In my last entry, I was complaining about the heat. Now it's pleasantly cold and wintry here in the Cascade foothills. We had a very rapid season change this year. We went from record high temperatures (mid-70s in late October) to frost, snow, and record low temperatures within about a week. Essentially, we skipped Fall this year.
I've been having a great time playing with the jazz fellows -- Bob, Steve, and Neil -- on a semi-regular basis. We've made some rough demo recordings and I can see a lot of potential. These guys are all very talented and easygoing. The hardest thing is coming up with a name for the band, oddly enough.
Sunday, June 29, 2003
Hot!
It is too bloody hot! Oregon is NOT supposed to be like this! Actually this is probably the worst it will get, with temperatures in the 90s. We are generally blessed with mild weather year-round, with just a few really nasty cold days in the winter and a few nasty hot days in the summer.
I recently heard from my old friend Dawayne that there was a possibility of a second Proto-Kaw album coming out later this year. That would be very welcome news. If you haven't done so yet, check out the first Proto-Kaw album, and read the whole history of the band(s) we know as Kansas.
I recently heard from my old friend Dawayne that there was a possibility of a second Proto-Kaw album coming out later this year. That would be very welcome news. If you haven't done so yet, check out the first Proto-Kaw album, and read the whole history of the band(s) we know as Kansas.
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
Summer Solstice
It occurred to me that I don't update this thing often enough to really call it a 'blog,' so maybe I'll stop calling it that, and I'll just put in stuff when I feel like it, which seems to be about every 2-6 weeks these days.
Summer solstice is just a few days away, and the weather here in Oregon has indeed been summer-like. The grass is not growing as fast, which is good news. Some folks complain about mowing their back yards, but our back yard is about 5-7 acres. I enjoy mowing it -- it's somewhat meditative to go around and around with the sound of the motor droning like a mechanical monk. That having been said, I am also appreciative when the intervals between mowings start to increase.
Musically, things are still moving along. I'm still writing new tunes occasionally, recording demos, and jamming with some good guys out in the valley from time to time. I have not been getting together with other musicians quite as often as I'd like to, but I think that will work itself out. I recently repaired my old Kramer bass, and I think I'll use that on the next jazz jam I go to. It's interesting how using a different axe takes you in different directions musically. The Kramer is a bit longer scale than my Les Paul bass so I have to work just a bit harder, but it has a nice funky sound that I like on some tunes.
Summer solstice is just a few days away, and the weather here in Oregon has indeed been summer-like. The grass is not growing as fast, which is good news. Some folks complain about mowing their back yards, but our back yard is about 5-7 acres. I enjoy mowing it -- it's somewhat meditative to go around and around with the sound of the motor droning like a mechanical monk. That having been said, I am also appreciative when the intervals between mowings start to increase.
Musically, things are still moving along. I'm still writing new tunes occasionally, recording demos, and jamming with some good guys out in the valley from time to time. I have not been getting together with other musicians quite as often as I'd like to, but I think that will work itself out. I recently repaired my old Kramer bass, and I think I'll use that on the next jazz jam I go to. It's interesting how using a different axe takes you in different directions musically. The Kramer is a bit longer scale than my Les Paul bass so I have to work just a bit harder, but it has a nice funky sound that I like on some tunes.
Wednesday, May 14, 2003
Bachelor life sucks
Well, it has been an interesting 5 days. June went to California to visit her mom for Mother's Day, and I've been looking after the 3 dogs and 5 cats while she's away. They are all very sweet animals, and except for one "jailbreak" from the kennel this morning all has gone relatively well. These little absences always help me to realize how much I depend on June and how hard she works keeping our little piece of Oregon running smoothly.
Several entries back, I mentioned the Big Fake CD, which compiles a dozen well-known fake books on one CD. For my own convenience, I built a master index for the CD in PDF format. It occurred to me that anyone else who has this CD might like to print this out. Please contact me if you'd like a copy.
Several entries back, I mentioned the Big Fake CD, which compiles a dozen well-known fake books on one CD. For my own convenience, I built a master index for the CD in PDF format. It occurred to me that anyone else who has this CD might like to print this out. Please contact me if you'd like a copy.
Thursday, May 01, 2003
Happy May Day
Happy May Day to oppressed workers everywhere! I'll take the oppression of work over the oppression of poverty any day.
And Happy Birthday to Judy Collins, too.
My friend Jade from Santa Cruz -- a fantastic singer, by the way -- was in town last week. Although we didn't get to play any music together, we had a great Indian lunch at Abhiruchi restaurant (3815 SW Murray Blvd. in Beaverton -- (503) 671-0432). Give this place a try sometime; the lunch buffet is moderately priced and delicious. They open at 11:30, and if you get there too late, you have to get in line with Nike employees lunging for the Tandoori chicken.
June and I have been watching Manor House on PBS this week. This is another reality-show, but in this one, modern Brits get to experience what life was like in 1905. Of course, for the rich "upstairs" folks, life was just peachy, save the occasional fit of 21st-century class-consciousness. For the poor slobs "downstairs" it sucked big-time. "Oh dear, it's time to empty Milady's chamber pot again." It occurred to me that they had the wrong family upstairs. They really should have cast the Osbournes. They're rich, clueless, cute, and they're used to living in a big house with servants all around.
And Happy Birthday to Judy Collins, too.
My friend Jade from Santa Cruz -- a fantastic singer, by the way -- was in town last week. Although we didn't get to play any music together, we had a great Indian lunch at Abhiruchi restaurant (3815 SW Murray Blvd. in Beaverton -- (503) 671-0432). Give this place a try sometime; the lunch buffet is moderately priced and delicious. They open at 11:30, and if you get there too late, you have to get in line with Nike employees lunging for the Tandoori chicken.
June and I have been watching Manor House on PBS this week. This is another reality-show, but in this one, modern Brits get to experience what life was like in 1905. Of course, for the rich "upstairs" folks, life was just peachy, save the occasional fit of 21st-century class-consciousness. For the poor slobs "downstairs" it sucked big-time. "Oh dear, it's time to empty Milady's chamber pot again." It occurred to me that they had the wrong family upstairs. They really should have cast the Osbournes. They're rich, clueless, cute, and they're used to living in a big house with servants all around.
Tuesday, April 22, 2003
Mingus Mingus Mingus
Happy Birthday to Charles Mingus, born this day in 1922. Read more about this troubled genius of the bass at:
The Real Mingus Web run by Sue Mingus (Charles' widow)
An interview with Sue Mingus
The Real Mingus Web run by Sue Mingus (Charles' widow)
An interview with Sue Mingus
Thursday, April 17, 2003
Spring update
I know, I know...I'm not really updating my blog as often as I should. It's just that so many other things keep coming up that are more interesting to do. Like watching TV and taking naps.
Last weekend I jammed with the jazzbos again, and we covered some interesting material, like Steely Dan's Josie and Paul Winter's Icarus. We're taking about a month off due to other commitments, and getting back together in May.
I've been looking through the leadsheets in the Big Fake CD, and it very interesting to look at the different transcriptions of the same tune. Often the same tune shows up in 2, 3 or 4 different books. Take the tune Bluesette, for example. In the Real Book, it's just 24 bars -- once through the head. It's much the same in The Book. But the Jazz Fake Book has 4 full verses with lyrics, including the eight-note "bridge" section and an out-chorus with ending. So, it pays to look at all the versions. I've been thinking about printing out all of the books and either binding them separately or just adding them to a 3-hole binder. I did the math and found that the CD contains 4067 leadsheets (although, as mentioned earlier, some are duplicates), on 4677 pages. If I print double-sided, that would be just under 2500 pages, 5 reams of paper. I think not.
A band I'm hearing about more and more is the Robert Randolph Family Band. If you thought pedal steel guitar was only good for adding a whiney background to country music, give these guys a listen. They are hot, bluesey, and soulful.
Last weekend I jammed with the jazzbos again, and we covered some interesting material, like Steely Dan's Josie and Paul Winter's Icarus. We're taking about a month off due to other commitments, and getting back together in May.
I've been looking through the leadsheets in the Big Fake CD, and it very interesting to look at the different transcriptions of the same tune. Often the same tune shows up in 2, 3 or 4 different books. Take the tune Bluesette, for example. In the Real Book, it's just 24 bars -- once through the head. It's much the same in The Book. But the Jazz Fake Book has 4 full verses with lyrics, including the eight-note "bridge" section and an out-chorus with ending. So, it pays to look at all the versions. I've been thinking about printing out all of the books and either binding them separately or just adding them to a 3-hole binder. I did the math and found that the CD contains 4067 leadsheets (although, as mentioned earlier, some are duplicates), on 4677 pages. If I print double-sided, that would be just under 2500 pages, 5 reams of paper. I think not.
A band I'm hearing about more and more is the Robert Randolph Family Band. If you thought pedal steel guitar was only good for adding a whiney background to country music, give these guys a listen. They are hot, bluesey, and soulful.
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