http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:22:57 GMT http://bandzoogle.com http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=176763 Being in a band is fun! The high you get from doing a good show and having people enjoy you is the ultimate drug. The more you do, the more you want to do! More gigs! More people to come see you! More fun! Thank goodness for the Internet. A few keystrokes, and BLAM! A whole bunch of people know about your next gig. No more printed, labeling and sending post cards. Plus, Social Networks like Facebook and even the “8-Track of the Internet”, MySpace add an air of familiarity to the impersonal nature of on-line connections. The problem is, how do you appear interesting enough to compel people to care even a little bit, and not go overboard to where you turn people off? I struggle with these concepts when promoting gigs, like KT & the Wicked Gents playing Armando’s in Martinez, Thursday February 4th from 8 to 10PM! I post on Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, hit as couple of music related forums, and of course use my personal website, www.kennanshaw.com and try to make sure as many people as possible know about what I’m up to. These little diatribes keep the whole things from just being “Electronic Flyering.” So I try to be interesting and funny and entertaining. Lately I’m trying to promote friends and their gigs a little more, and highlight people and music that I respect and enjoy. Maybe not be so “me me me”. Yesterday on MySpace, I deleted two “Friends”. Between the two of them, my entire “Bulletins” section was full with posts that seemed existed purely for the sake of seeing their own names online. I know, I know; but MySpace is still free and doesn’t demand much of my time to do promotion. On Facebook, the entire “Become a Fan Of…” has become too easily abused. I don’t mind being your Internet “Friend”, but I’m not inclined to count myself as a Fan if I’ve never heard you. Hitting the “Ignore” button is easy enough the first couple of times, but when you take that as reason to re-send the “Suggestion”, it almost seems like a personal affront! Somewhere, the number of Facebook Fans you have might be currency, but come on; at best, it’s play money. So I’ll keep doing what I’m doing. My plan is to tell you where I am, what I’m up to, and occasionally really push a gig that might slip through the cracks. I hope you like it. I’m trying to stay one step ahead of the Ignore, Unfollow, and Delete Friend buttons! And come see KT & the Wicked Gents TONIGHT (2/4, 8 to 10) at Armando’s!
Thank goodness for the Internet. A few keystrokes, and BLAM! A whole bunch of people know about your next gig. No more printed, labeling and sending post cards. Plus, Social Networks like Facebook and even the “8-Track of the Internet”, MySpace add an air of familiarity to the impersonal nature of on-line connections.

The problem is, how do you appear interesting enough to compel people to care even a little bit, and not go overboard to where you turn people off? I struggle with these concepts when promoting gigs, like KT & the Wicked Gents playing Armando’s in Martinez, Thursday February 4th from 8 to 10PM! I post on Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, hit as couple of music related forums, and of course use my personal website, www.kennanshaw.com and try to make sure as many people as possible know about what I’m up to. These little diatribes keep the whole things from just being “Electronic Flyering.”

So I try to be interesting and funny and entertaining. Lately I’m trying to promote friends and their gigs a little more, and highlight people and music that I respect and enjoy. Maybe not be so “me me me”.

Yesterday on MySpace, I deleted two “Friends”. Between the two of them, my entire “Bulletins” section was full with posts that seemed existed purely for the sake of seeing their own names online. I know, I know; but MySpace is still free and doesn’t demand much of my time to do promotion. On Facebook, the entire “Become a Fan Of…” has become too easily abused. I don’t mind being your Internet “Friend”, but I’m not inclined to count myself as a Fan if I’ve never heard you. Hitting the “Ignore” button is easy enough the first couple of times, but when you take that as reason to re-send the “Suggestion”, it almost seems like a personal affront! Somewhere, the number of Facebook Fans you have might be currency, but come on; at best, it’s play money.

So I’ll keep doing what I’m doing. My plan is to tell you where I am, what I’m up to, and occasionally really push a gig that might slip through the cracks. I hope you like it. I’m trying to stay one step ahead of the Ignore, Unfollow, and Delete Friend buttons!

And come see KT & the Wicked Gents TONIGHT (2/4, 8 to 10) at Armando’s!

]]> Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:22:57 GMT D735F9E9D7E2AA7F94D1AF6AF01525AE http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=175928    Lucky you, California! Next Tuesday, the 9th of February, whether you live in Southern California, or up here in the North, you have an opportunity to go out and see some world class music!    In Los Angeles, fans of amazing guitar playing are in for a true double bill treat; Monte Montgomery and Danny Click are playing at The Mint at 6010 West Pico Boulevard. I saw Monte play when we shared a bill a couple of years ago in Austin. He completely blew me away, and it took a while to get my jaw off the ground…and everybody knows how jaded I am when it comes to guitar players. Speaking of which, I’ve spent some time playing behind Danny Click in four different countries, and I consider him the best guitarist I’ve ever played with. If you’re a guitarist, or just a fan, don’t miss this show!    Meanwhile, here in the Bay Area, it’s a great opportunity to get a look at the local Zydeco scene, when The Zydeco Flames take the stage at 8:30 at Ashkenaz, on San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley. Zydeco dancing and music are kind of a hidden gem here, and there’s no one who does it better than the Flames. This band is a “Musicians musicians” type of band, and the dance floor will be full from the first downbeat. Get there early and take a dance lesson before the band starts!    In the meantime, before we get to Tuesday the 9th, you have three distinctly different opportunities to come see me play!    Thursday the 4th marks the return of KT & the Wicked Gents to Armando’s. Kathy Tejcka, Kelly Back, Jan Jackson and myself get bluesy, and hard funky from 8 to 10.    Saturday the 6th, I’ll be at Bases Loaded in Antioch with The Billy Martini Show. Old songs in a new venue!    Monday the 8th is the next Good Stuff Guitars Blues Jam, at, of course, Armando’s in Martinez. Come down to play, or just hang, and get you ready for Tuesday’s big Guitar, or Zydeco show!
   In Los Angeles, fans of amazing guitar playing are in for a true double bill treat; Monte Montgomery and Danny Click are playing at The Mint at 6010 West Pico Boulevard. I saw Monte play when we shared a bill a couple of years ago in Austin. He completely blew me away, and it took a while to get my jaw off the ground…and everybody knows how jaded I am when it comes to guitar players. Speaking of which, I’ve spent some time playing behind Danny Click in four different countries, and I consider him the best guitarist I’ve ever played with. If you’re a guitarist, or just a fan, don’t miss this show!

   Meanwhile, here in the Bay Area, it’s a great opportunity to get a look at the local Zydeco scene, when The Zydeco Flames take the stage at 8:30 at Ashkenaz, on San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley. Zydeco dancing and music are kind of a hidden gem here, and there’s no one who does it better than the Flames. This band is a “Musicians musicians” type of band, and the dance floor will be full from the first downbeat. Get there early and take a dance lesson before the band starts!

   In the meantime, before we get to Tuesday the 9th, you have three distinctly different opportunities to come see me play!

   Thursday the 4th marks the return of KT & the Wicked Gents to Armando’s. Kathy Tejcka, Kelly Back, Jan Jackson and myself get bluesy, and hard funky from 8 to 10.

   Saturday the 6th, I’ll be at Bases Loaded in Antioch with The Billy Martini Show. Old songs in a new venue!

   Monday the 8th is the next Good Stuff Guitars Blues Jam, at, of course, Armando’s in Martinez. Come down to play, or just hang, and get you ready for Tuesday’s big Guitar, or Zydeco show!

]]> Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:41:51 GMT 43E941A2BA5021F2D11247176224880F http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=173114    The Grammys are on television this Sunday night. They call themselves “Music’s Biggest Night!” Most musicians I know would just as soon refer to it as “Our country’s musical nightmare”, or perhaps worse. Let’s review, shall we? 1976. The Best Pop Vocal Group nominees for this year include Queen for “Bohemian Rhapsody” - one of the most daring and innovative songs in the history of popular music, which will in subsequent years be voted best song ever in numerous polls. However, the award goes to Chicago for the saccharine and dull “If You Leave Me Now”. 2009. What better way to honor the amazing career and genius talent of Stevie Wonder than to surround him with Disney “abstinence rockers” the Jonas Brothers, and let them butcher one of his biggest hits. Rumor is that this year the Grammys are digging up the grave of Beethoven, and letting Lady Gaga hump his skeletal corpse while lip syncing “Poker Face” over a sample of the Fifth Symphony. 1992. Michael Bolton squeaks his way through “When A Man Loves A Woman”. Instead of hanging him by his uvula in the center of Leighton, Alabama, the birthplace of Percy Sledge, he’s given an award for Best Pop Vocal Performance. 1990. Milli Vanilli.    I could continue, but frankly, I don’t have the stomach for it. About every five years I work up the nerve to watch the show, and I always, always regret it. No wait…’regret’ isn’t quite descriptive enough; more like “deeply disturbed that I’m a few hours closer to death and ashamed by how I’ve spent my time on the planet.”    Fortunately, this year I have something else to do this Sunday night while banality pulls its arm out of its socket, patting itself on the back. The Brothers Goldman are playing at The Boom Boom Room! No red carpet, no little statues, just real musicians, playing real music. There will be guests, and sitting in, and tons of fun, and it will be FUNKY. Deeply funky.    The great thing is, I can offer YOU this same respite from the abyss of modern popular culture. You too can bask in the glory that is LIVE MUSIC, and all the trappings there of! And it’s FREE! No cover charge! So, save yourself! Come see me! Don’t make me play the whole “Metallica/Jethro Tull” card. The Brothers Goldman The Boom Boom Room 1601 Fillmore St., SF Sunday, 9:30 till whenever.
1976. The Best Pop Vocal Group nominees for this year include Queen for “Bohemian Rhapsody” - one of the most daring and innovative songs in the history of popular music, which will in subsequent years be voted best song ever in numerous polls. However, the award goes to Chicago for the saccharine and dull “If You Leave Me Now”.

2009. What better way to honor the amazing career and genius talent of Stevie Wonder than to surround him with Disney “abstinence rockers” the Jonas Brothers, and let them butcher one of his biggest hits. Rumor is that this year the Grammys are digging up the grave of Beethoven, and letting Lady Gaga hump his skeletal corpse while lip syncing “Poker Face” over a sample of the Fifth Symphony.

1992. Michael Bolton squeaks his way through “When A Man Loves A Woman”. Instead of hanging him by his uvula in the center of Leighton, Alabama, the birthplace of Percy Sledge, he’s given an award for Best Pop Vocal Performance.

1990. Milli Vanilli.

   I could continue, but frankly, I don’t have the stomach for it. About every five years I work up the nerve to watch the show, and I always, always regret it. No wait…’regret’ isn’t quite descriptive enough; more like “deeply disturbed that I’m a few hours closer to death and ashamed by how I’ve spent my time on the planet.”

   Fortunately, this year I have something else to do this Sunday night while banality pulls its arm out of its socket, patting itself on the back. The Brothers Goldman are playing at The Boom Boom Room! No red carpet, no little statues, just real musicians, playing real music. There will be guests, and sitting in, and tons of fun, and it will be FUNKY. Deeply funky.

   The great thing is, I can offer YOU this same respite from the abyss of modern popular culture. You too can bask in the glory that is LIVE MUSIC, and all the trappings there of! And it’s FREE! No cover charge! So, save yourself! Come see me! Don’t make me play the whole “Metallica/Jethro Tull” card.

The Brothers Goldman
The Boom Boom Room
1601 Fillmore St., SF
Sunday, 9:30 till whenever.

]]> Sat, 30 Jan 2010 16:35:00 GMT 75E60CA89A401EB7D5F875B04A0F6904 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=169651 &nbsp;&nbsp; Time to spill the beans, and come clean. This weekend I start my new gig! I&rsquo;ll be playing with the one and only Candye Kane! &nbsp;&nbsp; Candye is well known to blues fans all over the world, and her band, featuring Laura Chavez on guitar and Evan Caleb on drums can flat out tear it up. I&rsquo;m thrilled with this opportunity, and look forward to adding what I can to an already fantastic live show. The prospects of going on the road with these people, and playing this music, sounds like more fun than anyone should have! &nbsp;&nbsp; Special thanks to Deb Lubin for recommending me. &nbsp;&nbsp; Please check out Candye&rsquo;s website; <a href="http://candyekane.com/">http://candyekane.com/. There&rsquo;s a ton of stuff, like Tour Dates, and of course Candye&rsquo;s biography and lots of music! Be sure to come out to a show and say &lsquo;Howdy&rsquo;!
   Candye is well known to blues fans all over the world, and her band, featuring Laura Chavez on guitar and Evan Caleb on drums can flat out tear it up. I’m thrilled with this opportunity, and look forward to adding what I can to an already fantastic live show. The prospects of going on the road with these people, and playing this music, sounds like more fun than anyone should have!

   Special thanks to Deb Lubin for recommending me.

   Please check out Candye’s website; http://candyekane.com/. There’s a ton of stuff, like Tour Dates, and of course Candye’s biography and lots of music! Be sure to come out to a show and say ‘Howdy’!

]]> Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:20:00 GMT 4A935A312F0304FAF734304A652E2D12 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=166182 &nbsp;&nbsp; This Saturday I&rsquo;m playing with the fabulous Billy Martini Show 70&rsquo;s Tribute at the Pleasanton Hotel. I love playing with these guys because they understand the whole &lsquo;fun&rsquo; thing! A lot of classics, a few &lsquo;one-hit-wonders&rsquo;, and some really groovy clothes! The fun starts at 8:30. &nbsp;&nbsp; Now I&rsquo;m going to commit something of a sin. This is the internet, after all, and I&rsquo;m a self promoting musician. I have Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and my own web site and mailing list, all focused on putting a little more &ldquo;me&rdquo; in you and your friends lives. In fact, it is all about me. Me me me. Frankly, it&rsquo;s kind of the Rule. That&rsquo;s why this next part is so weird; pay attention&hellip; &nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;m working of course, and you should come see me, but if I wasn&rsquo;t working, I&rsquo;d be at Armando&rsquo;s seeing Wendy DeWitt and Sue Palmer. &nbsp;&nbsp; See what I did there? See that selflessness? How about that? &nbsp;&nbsp; Let me tell you about this Boogie Woogie Piano Summit; it will be great! Wendy DeWitt is a force of nature! I&rsquo;ve played with her a couple of times, including the last Good Stuff Guitars jam at Armando&rsquo;s, and basically, she sits down, roars down the runway, and you&rsquo;re off the ground! If you&rsquo;re lucky, you&rsquo;ll get a key, and you better watch for breaks. All the while Wendy&rsquo;s got this big grin on her face. It&rsquo;s so cool! &nbsp;&nbsp; Her co-star Saturday night is Sue Palmer, a well known pianist in Southern California. Sue spent a lot of time playing with Candye Kane, and just about everyone else down there! She damn near makes the keys dance around the stage. &nbsp;&nbsp; I have no idea what the two are going to do Saturday night. Hopefully there&rsquo;s a little taking turns, and then some no holds barred duets! Hell, these two might pick up their keyboards and &lsquo;sword fight&rsquo; with them! Whatever the case, if you like Boogie piano at all, then Armando&rsquo;s is the place to be Saturday night. &nbsp;&nbsp; Then, Sunday you could come see The Billy Martini Show at the Florence in Fremont, from 5 to 9PM. Whew. There, I feel better. Back to a more self serving mode.
   Now I’m going to commit something of a sin. This is the internet, after all, and I’m a self promoting musician. I have Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and my own web site and mailing list, all focused on putting a little more “me” in you and your friends lives. In fact, it is all about me. Me me me. Frankly, it’s kind of the Rule. That’s why this next part is so weird; pay attention…

   I’m working of course, and you should come see me, but if I wasn’t working, I’d be at Armando’s seeing Wendy DeWitt and Sue Palmer.

   See what I did there? See that selflessness? How about that?

   Let me tell you about this Boogie Woogie Piano Summit; it will be great! Wendy DeWitt is a force of nature! I’ve played with her a couple of times, including the last Good Stuff Guitars jam at Armando’s, and basically, she sits down, roars down the runway, and you’re off the ground! If you’re lucky, you’ll get a key, and you better watch for breaks. All the while Wendy’s got this big grin on her face. It’s so cool!

   Her co-star Saturday night is Sue Palmer, a well known pianist in Southern California. Sue spent a lot of time playing with Candye Kane, and just about everyone else down there! She damn near makes the keys dance around the stage.

   I have no idea what the two are going to do Saturday night. Hopefully there’s a little taking turns, and then some no holds barred duets! Hell, these two might pick up their keyboards and ‘sword fight’ with them! Whatever the case, if you like Boogie piano at all, then Armando’s is the place to be Saturday night.

   Then, Sunday you could come see The Billy Martini Show at the Florence in Fremont, from 5 to 9PM. Whew. There, I feel better. Back to a more self serving mode.

]]> Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:53:50 GMT 043038817C2E821C4F030D43C0F07508 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=163680 Q: Why does a dog howl when a harmonica player plays? A: He's trying to show him how the song goes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A couple of years ago, I was on tour in Germany, and while out exploring one day, came across a sign that read &ldquo;Hohner Conservatorium of Music&rdquo;. I took a quick picture with my phone, but I can&rsquo;t find that photo now. It&rsquo;s a shame. Comedic gold, really. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Let&rsquo;s face it; the Harmonica is the Rodney Dangerfield of the blues world. It&rsquo;s no secret why; they&rsquo;re small and can be had inexpensively. Anyone can pick one up and make an almost musical noise. And frankly, almost every musician has a story about an annoying harp player. Q. Why do harmonica players say they play a &quot;harp&quot;? A. So you won't think they play a &quot;harmonica&quot;. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; All of that aside, I am here to tell you that, like any other instrument, there are some very good musicians amongst all the noise. In the right hands&hellip;or lips, a Harmonica can cry and moan and wail as good as any guitar or saxophone. It&rsquo;s rare, but true. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Wednesday night you have a chance to hear some of the most talented Harmonica players the Bay Area has to offer at the SF Bay Harper&rsquo;s Quarterly Jam, at Armando&rsquo;s in Martinez. Slated to grace the stage and blow (so far); Beth Kohnen, Mark Fenichel, Joe Lempkowski, Paul Palizzolo, Larry Marks, Danny White, and Peter Sproul. Playing supporting roles will be Awed Ducks, Don Yonder on guitar, and the house band of Brett King Cosby on drums, Kelly Back on guitar, and some guy playing bass. He&rsquo;s always there. Q. How many Harp Players does it take to change a light bulb? A. None--they just steal somebody else's light. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Who said that? So mean. Wednesday night we&rsquo;ll give them all the light they need! Come out and see some real players! SF Bay Harper&rsquo;s Quarterly Jam Armando&rsquo;s, 7 to 10PM, 707 Marina Vista, Martinez. Q: Why does a dog howl when a harmonica player plays?
A: He's trying to show him how the song goes.

    A couple of years ago, I was on tour in Germany, and while out exploring one day, came across a sign that read “Hohner Conservatorium of Music”. I took a quick picture with my phone, but I can’t find that photo now. It’s a shame. Comedic gold, really.

    Let’s face it; the Harmonica is the Rodney Dangerfield of the blues world. It’s no secret why; they’re small and can be had inexpensively. Anyone can pick one up and make an almost musical noise. And frankly, almost every musician has a story about an annoying harp player.

Q. Why do harmonica players say they play a "harp"?
A. So you won't think they play a "harmonica".

    All of that aside, I am here to tell you that, like any other instrument, there are some very good musicians amongst all the noise. In the right hands…or lips, a Harmonica can cry and moan and wail as good as any guitar or saxophone. It’s rare, but true.

    Wednesday night you have a chance to hear some of the most talented Harmonica players the Bay Area has to offer at the SF Bay Harper’s Quarterly Jam, at Armando’s in Martinez. Slated to grace the stage and blow (so far); Beth Kohnen, Mark Fenichel, Joe Lempkowski, Paul Palizzolo, Larry Marks, Danny White, and Peter Sproul. Playing supporting roles will be Awed Ducks, Don Yonder on guitar, and the house band of Brett King Cosby on drums, Kelly Back on guitar, and some guy playing bass. He’s always there.

Q. How many Harp Players does it take to change a light bulb?
A. None--they just steal somebody else's light.

    Who said that? So mean. Wednesday night we’ll give them all the light they need! Come out and see some real players!

SF Bay Harper’s Quarterly Jam
Armando’s, 7 to 10PM,
707 Marina Vista,
Martinez.

]]> Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:58:38 GMT 742A23F2867555E9101E0295F63B03CF http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=160056 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Once again, I&rsquo;m here to tell you about a special gig. Once again, it&rsquo;s happening at Armando&rsquo;s in Martinez. The two seem to go hand in hand! Saturday night, January 16th, 8 to 11PM, come see The Jeff Magidson Blues Band! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Guitarist Jeff Magidson is no stranger to Armando&rsquo;s. His band Duo Gadjo has played too many a packed house, and his work with The Hot Club of San Francisco and his role as Music Director at Red House keeps his schedule full. Jeff &lsquo;honors his roots&rsquo; with an evening of blues, ranging from sophisticated jazz-tinged ballads to swampy delta funk. I love playing with Jeff because he&rsquo;s just so good that it makes the blues a joy! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Originally, Jeff had a very good friend lined up to play drums, but unfortunately, circumstances beyond everyone&rsquo;s control forced him to bow out. You know the old saying; &ldquo;Sometimes when a door closes, a window of opportunity opens&rdquo;? Well, sometimes, when a door closes, someone kicks it in! Coming to the rescue is J. Hanson, from Rick Estrin and the Nightcats! Speaking as a bassist, yeah&hellip;that works! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; My biggest problem will be remembering to keep playing, and not just stop and listen to those two guys play! Most musicians prefer if the bass player plays the bass. The whole &ldquo;sitting around and listening&rdquo; thing is pretty unappreciated, if you&rsquo;re supposed to&hellip;be, um, playing the bass. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; So come out! It&rsquo;s a great opportunity to see some really talented musicians (and me, even!), having a good time, in a great venue! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Oh, and by the way; if you want to come early and get some dinner, I suggest &ldquo;Arigato&rdquo; on Main St. near Alhambra. Super inexpensive Japanese food. Sashimi, California Rolls, Tempura, Teriyaki&hellip;all really, really good! Did I mention &lsquo;inexpensive&rsquo;?
    Guitarist Jeff Magidson is no stranger to Armando’s. His band Duo Gadjo has played too many a packed house, and his work with The Hot Club of San Francisco and his role as Music Director at Red House keeps his schedule full. Jeff ‘honors his roots’ with an evening of blues, ranging from sophisticated jazz-tinged ballads to swampy delta funk. I love playing with Jeff because he’s just so good that it makes the blues a joy!

    Originally, Jeff had a very good friend lined up to play drums, but unfortunately, circumstances beyond everyone’s control forced him to bow out. You know the old saying; “Sometimes when a door closes, a window of opportunity opens”? Well, sometimes, when a door closes, someone kicks it in! Coming to the rescue is J. Hanson, from Rick Estrin and the Nightcats! Speaking as a bassist, yeah…that works!

    My biggest problem will be remembering to keep playing, and not just stop and listen to those two guys play! Most musicians prefer if the bass player plays the bass. The whole “sitting around and listening” thing is pretty unappreciated, if you’re supposed to…be, um, playing the bass.

    So come out! It’s a great opportunity to see some really talented musicians (and me, even!), having a good time, in a great venue!

    Oh, and by the way; if you want to come early and get some dinner, I suggest “Arigato” on Main St. near Alhambra. Super inexpensive Japanese food. Sashimi, California Rolls, Tempura, Teriyaki…all really, really good! Did I mention ‘inexpensive’?

]]> Wed, 13 Jan 2010 12:52:52 GMT CA8FDF13B8691E012823C8DB724CB581 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=155132 I&rsquo;ve got some good news, and some bad news&hellip;but really, mostly good news. Remember the big audition? The big secret one? It looks like I got the gig! So come March I&rsquo;ll be heading out on tour with&hellip;I can&rsquo;t tell you. It&rsquo;s not that it&rsquo;s still a big secret. It&rsquo;s like this; until March, there&rsquo;s a guy doing the gigs, and without really knowing his situation, I don&rsquo;t want to put it out into the Ethernet that I got the job. Common courtesy, really. In the meantime, if you see me, I&rsquo;ll totally tell you the who, what and where, but for now, mum&rsquo;s the word, okay? This is all good news. There&rsquo;s not really any bad news. The only tough part is to keep a schedule of local gigs for the times when I&rsquo;m back at home, between road trips. For a Sideman, out of sight is often out of mind. &ldquo;Out of mind&rdquo; means &ldquo;out of work&rdquo;, and no work, means no&hellip;well, you see where this is going. So how am I going to pull this off? How do musicians pull off the &lsquo;dual career&rsquo;, road and home? I don&rsquo;t know! The last time I was touring, I&rsquo;d come home and have nothing going on for weeks on end until it was time to hit the road again. That&rsquo;s dumb, and that&rsquo;s my fault. I&rsquo;ve got to be better at handling my own career. I&rsquo;ve got some ideas. First of all, schedule management, using Facebook, MySpace, and of course my own web site, www.kennanshaw.com to keep people informed about where I am and going to be. To this end, I&rsquo;ll develop my Mailing List a little bit. Maybe, just maybe I&rsquo;ll even get better at talking on the phone (shudder). Aside from straight gigging, the higher profile of my gig should work for me as far as offering &ldquo;Spot Lessons&rdquo;; one time lessons focusing on real world Blues Bass. I also want to develop some group class/mini-concert concepts, mingling education with a &ldquo;House Concert&rdquo; setting. Things like this can even work while on tour. So I&rsquo;ve got plans. I&rsquo;m also open to other ideas, if you have them! And by all means; if you have gigs, give me a call! I know they call it &ldquo;playing music&rdquo;, but I love to work! I&rsquo;m especially looking for gigs next month! February is looking a little feeble right now. I the meantime, check my schedule and come see me; I&rsquo;ve got some &ldquo;Good Stuff Guitars&rdquo; blues jams (second and fourth Mondays) and a date with the great Jeff Magidson (Saturday the 16th) coming up at Armando&rsquo;s, and some fabulous Billy Martini Show dates soon also. Come out and I&rsquo;ll share secrets!
Remember the big audition? The big secret one? It looks like I got the gig! So come March I’ll be heading out on tour with…I can’t tell you.

It’s not that it’s still a big secret. It’s like this; until March, there’s a guy doing the gigs, and without really knowing his situation, I don’t want to put it out into the Ethernet that I got the job. Common courtesy, really. In the meantime, if you see me, I’ll totally tell you the who, what and where, but for now, mum’s the word, okay?

This is all good news. There’s not really any bad news. The only tough part is to keep a schedule of local gigs for the times when I’m back at home, between road trips. For a Sideman, out of sight is often out of mind. “Out of mind” means “out of work”, and no work, means no…well, you see where this is going.

So how am I going to pull this off? How do musicians pull off the ‘dual career’, road and home?

I don’t know! The last time I was touring, I’d come home and have nothing going on for weeks on end until it was time to hit the road again. That’s dumb, and that’s my fault. I’ve got to be better at handling my own career.

I’ve got some ideas. First of all, schedule management, using Facebook, MySpace, and of course my own web site, www.kennanshaw.com to keep people informed about where I am and going to be. To this end, I’ll develop my Mailing List a little bit. Maybe, just maybe I’ll even get better at talking on the phone (shudder).

Aside from straight gigging, the higher profile of my gig should work for me as far as offering “Spot Lessons”; one time lessons focusing on real world Blues Bass. I also want to develop some group class/mini-concert concepts, mingling education with a “House Concert” setting. Things like this can even work while on tour.

So I’ve got plans. I’m also open to other ideas, if you have them! And by all means; if you have gigs, give me a call! I know they call it “playing music”, but I love to work! I’m especially looking for gigs next month! February is looking a little feeble right now.

I the meantime, check my schedule and come see me; I’ve got some “Good Stuff Guitars” blues jams (second and fourth Mondays) and a date with the great Jeff Magidson (Saturday the 16th) coming up at Armando’s, and some fabulous Billy Martini Show dates soon also. Come out and I’ll share secrets!

]]> Thu, 07 Jan 2010 13:51:17 GMT 3CF96F4C8A88B3EF6F9666696B255A20 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=147626 I don&rsquo;t want to talk about New Years Eve. I mean, every year I trot out my personal tales of NYE horror, and I&rsquo;m just tired of the rant. I want to offer a safer, more sophisticated alternative to hitting the big city on NYE. What you should do, is have your &ldquo;big city&rdquo;, high-fallutin&rsquo; NYE a few days early! Fortunately, I&rsquo;ve got just the ticket; come to Yoshi&rsquo;s San Francisco to see the Brothers Goldman on December 29th! All the glitz and glamour, and none of the ridiculous gouging and hassle. Take parking, for instance. The last time I was in the city for a NYE gig, I had to pay $80 to park! The parking in the historic Fillmore District should be fairly easy on the 29th. There&rsquo;s no show at the Fillmore that night, so surface streets will have spaces. What about ticket prices? That SF NYE show I played a couple of years ago had a ticket price of around $120 a pop! And that was for a show that started at 10:30 and ended around 1:00! Compare that to the value of the Yoshi&rsquo;s Lounge at $5. That&rsquo;s right; F-I-V-E dollars, American. And we&rsquo;re playing from 9:30 until 1:30 in the morning! You can&rsquo;t even compare the value! It&rsquo;s not even in the ballpark! Consider the overall feeling of the two evenings; if you&rsquo;ve shelled out more than three hundred dollars for you and your current squeeze before even taking your seat, the pressure to enjoy yourself can destroy any good time you might have. The pressure is enormous! And what if it&rsquo;s a relatively new relationship you&rsquo;re in? no wonder people drink the way they do on NYE! The Yoshi&rsquo;s show, by comparison, is a hassle free cruise to Shangri-La, and comparatively &lsquo;all expenses paid&rsquo;. You could end up spending less than what you would just to tip two nights later. How often does that big city, NYE &ldquo;celebration&rdquo; include good food? If you&rsquo;re lucky, you&rsquo;ll get a plastic cup of generic Champagne at midnight. Yoshi&rsquo;s will be serving Sushi rolls until 1 AM! Kick ass, Yoshi&rsquo;s Sushi until the wee hours! All in the sophisticated Lounge setting of San Francisco&rsquo;s newest cool nightclub, in the city&rsquo;s funkiest little entertainment district. There are several music spots along Fillmore, and you could make a whole &lsquo;bar-hopping&rsquo; evening of it at a fraction of the cost! Finally, there&rsquo;s the drive home. Trying to get out of San Francisco 2AM on January 1st is like being in a zombie movie. Masses of people lurching around the streets, ignoring street lights, dashing off the sidewalk towards you car, while the gutters run deep with&hellip;well, not blood, but it&rsquo;s all coming from human bodies. Instead of the curse of the undead, it&rsquo;s more the curse of the alcohol impaired. When they lurch at your car, it&rsquo;s not that they&rsquo;re out to eat your brains to convert you to their damned legion; they want to convert your car to a cab, because they&rsquo;re trapped in the city. So, why would you NOT come to Yoshi&rsquo;s for early New Years? You could have a great, big city experience, then two nights later, do something relatively local, and ultimately more fun for Traditional New Years! With The Brothers Goldman bringin&rsquo; the funk and blues, and Yoshi&rsquo;s with the cocktails and sushi, Old Man Time himself will probably be hanging out! http://www.yoshis.com/sanfrancisco/jazzclub/artist/show/1054
I want to offer a safer, more sophisticated alternative to hitting the big city on NYE. What you should do, is have your “big city”, high-fallutin’ NYE a few days early!

Fortunately, I’ve got just the ticket; come to Yoshi’s San Francisco to see the Brothers Goldman on December 29th! All the glitz and glamour, and none of the ridiculous gouging and hassle.

Take parking, for instance. The last time I was in the city for a NYE gig, I had to pay $80 to park! The parking in the historic Fillmore District should be fairly easy on the 29th. There’s no show at the Fillmore that night, so surface streets will have spaces.

What about ticket prices? That SF NYE show I played a couple of years ago had a ticket price of around $120 a pop! And that was for a show that started at 10:30 and ended around 1:00! Compare that to the value of the Yoshi’s Lounge at $5. That’s right; F-I-V-E dollars, American. And we’re playing from 9:30 until 1:30 in the morning! You can’t even compare the value! It’s not even in the ballpark!

Consider the overall feeling of the two evenings; if you’ve shelled out more than three hundred dollars for you and your current squeeze before even taking your seat, the pressure to enjoy yourself can destroy any good time you might have. The pressure is enormous! And what if it’s a relatively new relationship you’re in? no wonder people drink the way they do on NYE! The Yoshi’s show, by comparison, is a hassle free cruise to Shangri-La, and comparatively ‘all expenses paid’. You could end up spending less than what you would just to tip two nights later.

How often does that big city, NYE “celebration” include good food? If you’re lucky, you’ll get a plastic cup of generic Champagne at midnight. Yoshi’s will be serving Sushi rolls until 1 AM! Kick ass, Yoshi’s Sushi until the wee hours! All in the sophisticated Lounge setting of San Francisco’s newest cool nightclub, in the city’s funkiest little entertainment district. There are several music spots along Fillmore, and you could make a whole ‘bar-hopping’ evening of it at a fraction of the cost!

Finally, there’s the drive home. Trying to get out of San Francisco 2AM on January 1st is like being in a zombie movie. Masses of people lurching around the streets, ignoring street lights, dashing off the sidewalk towards you car, while the gutters run deep with…well, not blood, but it’s all coming from human bodies. Instead of the curse of the undead, it’s more the curse of the alcohol impaired. When they lurch at your car, it’s not that they’re out to eat your brains to convert you to their damned legion; they want to convert your car to a cab, because they’re trapped in the city.

So, why would you NOT come to Yoshi’s for early New Years? You could have a great, big city experience, then two nights later, do something relatively local, and ultimately more fun for Traditional New Years! With The Brothers Goldman bringin’ the funk and blues, and Yoshi’s with the cocktails and sushi, Old Man Time himself will probably be hanging out!

http://www.yoshis.com/sanfrancisco/jazzclub/artist/show/1054


]]> Mon, 28 Dec 2009 02:02:15 GMT ECF2281D087E365DFB7259FE178890E2 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=144317 &nbsp;&nbsp; This past week I had a big-time audition down in Southern California. While I&rsquo;m not positive if I got the gig or not, I feel like I had a great audition. I know that however the chips fall, I did everything I felt I could do, and have absolutely no regrets. So without giving too much away &ndash; seeing as how it&rsquo;s still up in the air &ndash; here&rsquo;s the story of how it came to be, and what I did that made me feel so good about the effort I put into it. &nbsp; You know; bragging disguised as &ldquo;a teachable moment&rdquo;, like the rest of my Blogs! &nbsp; The whole thing was really the result of some hard work, and of course a good deal of luck. The gig is with a fairly well known female blues artist based in Southern California. She&rsquo;s just been nominated for three Blues Foundation Awards, and I think she&rsquo;s on the verge of a big year. Her guitarist is actually a Bay Area native who I&rsquo;ve worked with, and sort of knew for a while. Pretty sweet, right? &nbsp; (See, those were all clues I giving up for right now.) &nbsp; I found out about the gig from a mutual friend, a big fan and supporter of the blues, who was kind enough, lucky for me, to think of me when she heard about the Bass Player job opening up! &nbsp; The first step is to make sure the principles know that I want this gig, and I&rsquo;ll do whatever it takes to get it. So I sent out Emails that said just that. While it might not seem like an ideal geographical match, in reality it&rsquo;s not that far, and as some of you know, I&rsquo;ll drive anywhere for a gig. &nbsp; The next step was material. The advice of two guys kept echoing in my ears; Mel Brown&rsquo;s book &ldquo;Zero to Sideman&rdquo;, and the recent interview I did with Bobby Vega. Mel advocates identifying who you want to play with, and make yourself a book of their material. Bobby, on talking about taking the Tower of Power spot while Rocco was sick, told me he &lsquo;moved in&rdquo; with TOP songs, and spent hours a day learning the tunes. &nbsp; I took it upon myself to get a copy of the latest CD, and set about my process of learning the songs. At first, I just listened to it all the time. For about three days, just soaking in what was going on. Then I strapped on a bass and started playing along, identifying keys and general feels. Then, out came the headphones, and I started really dissecting the bass lines. The disc was produced by the singer and the guitarist themselves, so I figured the bass lines on the songs were the ones they wanted to hear. I made small, quick notes on each tune; not charts, just guides. These I went over a lot, just to cement the connection between the song and what I had written about it. &nbsp; I kept listening to the disc and nothing else, but now I was mentally playing the bass lines away from the bass, and paying attention to the lyrics; what went where and how the music reacted to them. By now I had Cyber-pestered my way into a Face to face audition, so I jumped in the car last Thursday morning and headed south, listening to the disc, pretty much all the way down. &nbsp; My audition was scheduled for 7:00, and I got into town around 4:30, so I got myself a motel room, and just relaxed for a while. After a quick shower and a little practicing to limber up, I headed for my appointment. &nbsp; You know me; terminally On Time or Early. I had about a half an hour to wait, so I got a cup of 7/11 coffee, and ran my last minute check list. The title song from the disc has a lot of subtle shifts, so I spent some time listening to it and mentally playing the bass line. The other thing I noticed was that I was kind of nervous! It was kind of cool! I&rsquo;ve been really fortunate in my silly little musical career, played some big shows all over the world, and that kind nervousness doesn&rsquo;t show up too often. I know from past experience that it resides right in my shoulders, so some breathing and relaxing the shoulders releases that tension. Going over my notes, I knew that this is as good as I was going to be on the material. &nbsp; I was ready. &nbsp; The first part of the audition was more interview. What I&rsquo;d done, who I&rsquo;d played with, why I got fired, who I was. I was honest, upbeat, and motivated. There are some strong reasons that I&rsquo;m perfect for this gig beyond just my playing, and I tried to emphasize those. &nbsp; Then came the all important, &ldquo;can he play?&rdquo; part of the audition. After apologizing for not sending me material, they were trying to figure out what to play, when I told them that I had learned the record. We could play whatever they wanted. Smiles all around. So three tunes were chosen; the title cut (!), a big, raucous number, and a sort of 40&rsquo;s, jazzy tune. Three different feels. &nbsp; Here&rsquo;s where another lesson I learned from a bass player many years ago came into play. When Darryl Jones got the gig with The Rolling Stones, he was asked how he nailed the audition. His reply was that he knew he was dealing with &lsquo;Larger than Life&rsquo; characters here, and everyone auditioning probably walked in a little wide-eyed and hung on everything either Mick or Keith did. His plan was to go in, and while playing, really lock into Charlie. &nbsp; So we&rsquo;d decide what to play, I&rsquo;d consult my notes, set them down, and watch the drummer&rsquo;s bass drum, and concentrate on what he was doing first. &nbsp; Bass and drums, baby. Bass and drums. &nbsp; Without trying to even appear humble here, let me tell you; I nailed it. I knew the tunes, I knew the lines, I grooved with everybody. Bigger smiles all around. I was showered with compliments, from people I was trying like hell to impress! That is a very fine sense of accomplishment, indeed. I mean, come on, I&rsquo;m not saving the world here; I&rsquo;m playing bass. But for this moment, I did it really, really well! &nbsp; Without giving away anything said in confidence, I received a lot of positive feedback from the band. I set out to show I was motivated, and to prove that I was willing to do the work. I made the effort and showed up asking for nothing but a chance to prove I was the man for the job, and I don&rsquo;t think it went unnoticed. &nbsp; So did I get the gig? I think so, but it&rsquo;s complicated. The band doesn&rsquo;t get busy for a couple of months, and until then most of the gigs are local, down there. She&rsquo;s got a &lsquo;local guy&rsquo;, but what the future holds, she&rsquo;s not sure. When I know, I&rsquo;ll let you know. I&rsquo;m just really proud of the job I did on this whole thing! Plus, I&rsquo;m a very lucky guy, so I have that going for me, too. So my fingers are crossed, and every once and a while, I find myself holding my breath. But I already know all that tension is all in the shoulders&hellip;!
  You know; bragging disguised as “a teachable moment”, like the rest of my Blogs!

  The whole thing was really the result of some hard work, and of course a good deal of luck. The gig is with a fairly well known female blues artist based in Southern California. She’s just been nominated for three Blues Foundation Awards, and I think she’s on the verge of a big year. Her guitarist is actually a Bay Area native who I’ve worked with, and sort of knew for a while. Pretty sweet, right?

  (See, those were all clues I giving up for right now.)

  I found out about the gig from a mutual friend, a big fan and supporter of the blues, who was kind enough, lucky for me, to think of me when she heard about the Bass Player job opening up!

  The first step is to make sure the principles know that I want this gig, and I’ll do whatever it takes to get it. So I sent out Emails that said just that. While it might not seem like an ideal geographical match, in reality it’s not that far, and as some of you know, I’ll drive anywhere for a gig.

  The next step was material. The advice of two guys kept echoing in my ears; Mel Brown’s book “Zero to Sideman”, and the recent interview I did with Bobby Vega. Mel advocates identifying who you want to play with, and make yourself a book of their material. Bobby, on talking about taking the Tower of Power spot while Rocco was sick, told me he ‘moved in” with TOP songs, and spent hours a day learning the tunes.

  I took it upon myself to get a copy of the latest CD, and set about my process of learning the songs. At first, I just listened to it all the time. For about three days, just soaking in what was going on. Then I strapped on a bass and started playing along, identifying keys and general feels. Then, out came the headphones, and I started really dissecting the bass lines. The disc was produced by the singer and the guitarist themselves, so I figured the bass lines on the songs were the ones they wanted to hear. I made small, quick notes on each tune; not charts, just guides. These I went over a lot, just to cement the connection between the song and what I had written about it.

  I kept listening to the disc and nothing else, but now I was mentally playing the bass lines away from the bass, and paying attention to the lyrics; what went where and how the music reacted to them. By now I had Cyber-pestered my way into a Face to face audition, so I jumped in the car last Thursday morning and headed south, listening to the disc, pretty much all the way down.

  My audition was scheduled for 7:00, and I got into town around 4:30, so I got myself a motel room, and just relaxed for a while. After a quick shower and a little practicing to limber up, I headed for my appointment.

  You know me; terminally On Time or Early. I had about a half an hour to wait, so I got a cup of 7/11 coffee, and ran my last minute check list. The title song from the disc has a lot of subtle shifts, so I spent some time listening to it and mentally playing the bass line. The other thing I noticed was that I was kind of nervous! It was kind of cool! I’ve been really fortunate in my silly little musical career, played some big shows all over the world, and that kind nervousness doesn’t show up too often. I know from past experience that it resides right in my shoulders, so some breathing and relaxing the shoulders releases that tension. Going over my notes, I knew that this is as good as I was going to be on the material.

  I was ready.

  The first part of the audition was more interview. What I’d done, who I’d played with, why I got fired, who I was. I was honest, upbeat, and motivated. There are some strong reasons that I’m perfect for this gig beyond just my playing, and I tried to emphasize those.

  Then came the all important, “can he play?” part of the audition. After apologizing for not sending me material, they were trying to figure out what to play, when I told them that I had learned the record. We could play whatever they wanted. Smiles all around. So three tunes were chosen; the title cut (!), a big, raucous number, and a sort of 40’s, jazzy tune. Three different feels.

  Here’s where another lesson I learned from a bass player many years ago came into play. When Darryl Jones got the gig with The Rolling Stones, he was asked how he nailed the audition. His reply was that he knew he was dealing with ‘Larger than Life’ characters here, and everyone auditioning probably walked in a little wide-eyed and hung on everything either Mick or Keith did. His plan was to go in, and while playing, really lock into Charlie.

  So we’d decide what to play, I’d consult my notes, set them down, and watch the drummer’s bass drum, and concentrate on what he was doing first.

  Bass and drums, baby. Bass and drums.

  Without trying to even appear humble here, let me tell you; I nailed it. I knew the tunes, I knew the lines, I grooved with everybody. Bigger smiles all around. I was showered with compliments, from people I was trying like hell to impress! That is a very fine sense of accomplishment, indeed. I mean, come on, I’m not saving the world here; I’m playing bass. But for this moment, I did it really, really well!

  Without giving away anything said in confidence, I received a lot of positive feedback from the band. I set out to show I was motivated, and to prove that I was willing to do the work. I made the effort and showed up asking for nothing but a chance to prove I was the man for the job, and I don’t think it went unnoticed.

  So did I get the gig? I think so, but it’s complicated. The band doesn’t get busy for a couple of months, and until then most of the gigs are local, down there. She’s got a ‘local guy’, but what the future holds, she’s not sure. When I know, I’ll let you know. I’m just really proud of the job I did on this whole thing! Plus, I’m a very lucky guy, so I have that going for me, too. So my fingers are crossed, and every once and a while, I find myself holding my breath. But I already know all that tension is all in the shoulders…!


]]> Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:29:53 GMT 0B7927873857E4DA2E32A7081E83761F http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=139465 &nbsp;&nbsp; Standing firmly on a Monday, looking at a big, wild week ahead of me. Let&rsquo;s take a look; &nbsp;&nbsp; Tonight is the Good Stuff Guitar&rsquo;s Blues Jam at Armando&rsquo;s. This one keeps getting better and better. Good players, and a good time. Adding to the general reverie of the holidays will be the appearance of old compatriot Mark Johnson. Mark is, as you well know, now considered the best guitarist in Hammond, LA, and is back home for a short visit. I&rsquo;m sure that besides seeing all his friends, he&rsquo;ll enjoy being able to go out and buy cigarettes and beer without being mobbed. &nbsp;&nbsp; Tuesday and Wednesday is a combination of Holiday Frenzy and homework! Wednesday night, I&rsquo;m off to&hellip;well, I can&rsquo;t tell you. It&rsquo;s a secret. When I can tell you about it, I will, but for now, it&rsquo;s on the downlow. &nbsp;&nbsp; I want to skip ahead to Friday, and recommend a really, really good band; Beaufunk is playing at Vinnie&rsquo;s in Concord. Beaufunk mixes New Orleans style grooves with Classic Oakland funk; in other words, they&rsquo;re perfect! This is a great band made up of really great players and exceptionally good guys. Vinnie&rsquo;s is at 2045 Mount Diablo Street, in Concord. There is no place I&rsquo;d rather be this Friday night&hellip;.except, that is, where I&rsquo;m going. &nbsp;&nbsp; I will be on a secret mission to Southern California. Well, it&rsquo;s not really a secret, but I&rsquo;m just not talking about it right now. I promise to fill everyone in as soon as I know more. As Brad Pitt says in &ldquo;Ocean&rsquo;s 12&rdquo;; &ldquo;Look, it's not in my nature to be mysterious. But I can't talk about it and I can't talk about why.&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp; Never fear, though, because I&rsquo;ll be home in time for The Billy Martini Show, Saturday night at the Pleasanton Hotel, at 8PM! I haven&rsquo;t played at this place yet, but I keep hearing good things. And of course, the Billy Martini Show is always a true spectacle! &nbsp;&nbsp; Sunday night it&rsquo;s back to Vinnie&rsquo;s for something of a celebration. Bob Kinney is hosting some kind of Jam/Party around the occasion of Mark&rsquo;s visit. I&rsquo;ve heard there is quite a celebrity guest list, but I don&rsquo;t think any Cable Channel&rsquo;s are hosting a Red Carpet show. It should be a lot of fun. And probably pretty silly. &nbsp;&nbsp; So there you go! A lot of &ldquo;hush-hush&rdquo; stuff, but I swear, it&rsquo;s all good. New friends will be made, and much bass will be played!
   Tonight is the Good Stuff Guitar’s Blues Jam at Armando’s. This one keeps getting better and better. Good players, and a good time. Adding to the general reverie of the holidays will be the appearance of old compatriot Mark Johnson. Mark is, as you well know, now considered the best guitarist in Hammond, LA, and is back home for a short visit. I’m sure that besides seeing all his friends, he’ll enjoy being able to go out and buy cigarettes and beer without being mobbed.

   Tuesday and Wednesday is a combination of Holiday Frenzy and homework! Wednesday night, I’m off to…well, I can’t tell you. It’s a secret. When I can tell you about it, I will, but for now, it’s on the downlow.

   I want to skip ahead to Friday, and recommend a really, really good band; Beaufunk is playing at Vinnie’s in Concord. Beaufunk mixes New Orleans style grooves with Classic Oakland funk; in other words, they’re perfect! This is a great band made up of really great players and exceptionally good guys. Vinnie’s is at 2045 Mount Diablo Street, in Concord. There is no place I’d rather be this Friday night….except, that is, where I’m going.

   I will be on a secret mission to Southern California. Well, it’s not really a secret, but I’m just not talking about it right now. I promise to fill everyone in as soon as I know more. As Brad Pitt says in “Ocean’s 12”; “Look, it's not in my nature to be mysterious. But I can't talk about it and I can't talk about why.”

   Never fear, though, because I’ll be home in time for The Billy Martini Show, Saturday night at the Pleasanton Hotel, at 8PM! I haven’t played at this place yet, but I keep hearing good things. And of course, the Billy Martini Show is always a true spectacle!

   Sunday night it’s back to Vinnie’s for something of a celebration. Bob Kinney is hosting some kind of Jam/Party around the occasion of Mark’s visit. I’ve heard there is quite a celebrity guest list, but I don’t think any Cable Channel’s are hosting a Red Carpet show. It should be a lot of fun. And probably pretty silly.

   So there you go! A lot of “hush-hush” stuff, but I swear, it’s all good. New friends will be made, and much bass will be played!



]]> Tue, 15 Dec 2009 03:03:24 GMT FDB74843242BE105D41501E2B9688F4F http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=136017 &nbsp;&nbsp; The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. &nbsp;&nbsp; When it comes to building a bass guitar, or even one of those &lsquo;lesser&rsquo;, little guitars, that&rsquo;s the goal. That&rsquo;s what you hope for. You take a handful of disparate parts, and through acquired knowledge and good luck, assemble something that can summon magic. Sometimes you can pull a bass off the wall and it just feels right immediately. Sometimes you can tell that a lot of the elements are there, but it needs just a tweak in one area. Sometimes you hold something and know it&rsquo;s special right away. &nbsp;&nbsp; Sometimes, you need the benefit of hind-sight to realize how good something is. &nbsp;&nbsp; Some older videos have showed up on the Net lately, and in them I&rsquo;m playing my beloved modified 1978 Fender Precision Bass, with the Antigua finish. I&rsquo;ve had this same bass since I got it used in about 1990 from Subway Guitars. &nbsp;&nbsp; Antigua. The color of this bass is infamous, and Fender fans will fight over its merit tooth and nail. See, Fender used this finish one year only. It was originally conceived as kind of a gray burst, dark on the edges fading lighter towards the center. The problem was, that because of the type of paints Fender used, a heavy &lsquo;yellowing&rsquo; occurred &ndash; owing to ultraviolet light, cigarette smoke, and any other manner of natural exposure &ndash; and turned all of them a greenish shade, generally referred to as &ldquo;Baby Shit&rdquo;, or &ldquo;Snot&rdquo;, or even &ldquo;Flemburst&rdquo;. &nbsp;&nbsp; Soon after acquiring the bass, it was outfitted with a fretless Jazz neck with an unlined ebony board, Duncan Quarter Pound Pickups, and a Hipshot Extender key. For non-musicians, I realize that&rsquo;s pure Greek. Here; the place where my left hand goes is blank, the parts that capture string vibration to turn into sound were upgraded, and I made it so I could go a little lower than a standard four string bass. &nbsp;&nbsp; The small switch behind the control knobs is a Rick Turner modification; it&rsquo;s a &ldquo;No Load&rdquo; switch, which takes the signal directly from the pickups to the output jack. Ummm&hellip;it makes it &ldquo;One Louder&rdquo;. &nbsp;&nbsp; The most easily identifiable feature is the giant &ldquo;THANKS!&rdquo; sticker on the back of the bass. That&rsquo;s the thing most people seem to remember, and I&rsquo;ve had to explain why I don&rsquo;t have it if I&rsquo;ve left it at home more than once. &nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;ve also written all over it. I kind of think of the writing as tattoos for the bass. It started when I read an interview with Abe Laboriel, a great bass player, who was talking about doing less-than-thrilling session work, and how he&rsquo;d get through it by thinking of his playing as a &ldquo;Gift&rdquo;. At the time, I was doing a lot of &ldquo;open jams&rdquo;, and the quality of players I was paired with wasn&rsquo;t always very good. So I wrote a little &lsquo;This is a Gift&rdquo; on the upper part of the bass where I could see it if I looked down as a small reminder. &nbsp;&nbsp; Eventually other small epitaphs started making their way onto the bass. The back of the headstock seemed like a good spot to scrawl Black Bart&rsquo;s poem from his first stage robbery; &quot;I've labored long and hard for bread, for honor and for riches But on my corns too long you&rsquo;ve tread, You fine haired sons of Bitches&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp; Around the rim on the back is a fading list of countries and festivals the bass has appeared in. On the bottom edge it says &ldquo;Less Dr. Phil. More Dr. John!&rdquo; The last thing I scribbled on there is the letters &ldquo;NOMA&rdquo; at the neck heel. That&rsquo;s a reminder, too; &ldquo;Nobody Owes Me Anything&rdquo;, a valuable lesson about the music biz. &nbsp;&nbsp; This bass is very well travelled. With The Danny Click band, it&rsquo;s been to Switzerland, Fiji, and New Zealand. It did a three week European tour and a bunch of US dates with John Lee Hooker Jr., and just this year, it played Country in Nashville, Blues in Vancouver, and Funk in New Orleans. In fact, it even got me VIP boarding on a recent flight! &nbsp;&nbsp; It&rsquo;s had three different bridges, two sets of pickups, a couple of changed tuners, four different pickguards, and so many different strings I couldn&rsquo;t begin to count. &nbsp;&nbsp; Since I bought this bass in 1990, or so, I&rsquo;ve owned a lot of basses. Seriously, a LOT. Newer, older, lighter, heavier, louder, softer, prettier, more beat up&hellip;they come and they go. And when it&rsquo;s been time to head out to the gig, I usually grab the Antigua. This one, feels juuust right.
   When it comes to building a bass guitar, or even one of those ‘lesser’, little guitars, that’s the goal. That’s what you hope for. You take a handful of disparate parts, and through acquired knowledge and good luck, assemble something that can summon magic. Sometimes you can pull a bass off the wall and it just feels right immediately. Sometimes you can tell that a lot of the elements are there, but it needs just a tweak in one area. Sometimes you hold something and know it’s special right away.

   Sometimes, you need the benefit of hind-sight to realize how good something is.

   Some older videos have showed up on the Net lately, and in them I’m playing my beloved modified 1978 Fender Precision Bass, with the Antigua finish. I’ve had this same bass since I got it used in about 1990 from Subway Guitars.

   Antigua. The color of this bass is infamous, and Fender fans will fight over its merit tooth and nail. See, Fender used this finish one year only. It was originally conceived as kind of a gray burst, dark on the edges fading lighter towards the center. The problem was, that because of the type of paints Fender used, a heavy ‘yellowing’ occurred – owing to ultraviolet light, cigarette smoke, and any other manner of natural exposure – and turned all of them a greenish shade, generally referred to as “Baby Shit”, or “Snot”, or even “Flemburst”.


   Soon after acquiring the bass, it was outfitted with a fretless Jazz neck with an unlined ebony board, Duncan Quarter Pound Pickups, and a Hipshot Extender key. For non-musicians, I realize that’s pure Greek. Here; the place where my left hand goes is blank, the parts that capture string vibration to turn into sound were upgraded, and I made it so I could go a little lower than a standard four string bass.

   The small switch behind the control knobs is a Rick Turner modification; it’s a “No Load” switch, which takes the signal directly from the pickups to the output jack. Ummm…it makes it “One Louder”.

   The most easily identifiable feature is the giant “THANKS!” sticker on the back of the bass. That’s the thing most people seem to remember, and I’ve had to explain why I don’t have it if I’ve left it at home more than once.

   I’ve also written all over it. I kind of think of the writing as tattoos for the bass. It started when I read an interview with Abe Laboriel, a great bass player, who was talking about doing less-than-thrilling session work, and how he’d get through it by thinking of his playing as a “Gift”. At the time, I was doing a lot of “open jams”, and the quality of players I was paired with wasn’t always very good. So I wrote a little ‘This is a Gift” on the upper part of the bass where I could see it if I looked down as a small reminder.

   Eventually other small epitaphs started making their way onto the bass. The back of the headstock seemed like a good spot to scrawl Black Bart’s poem from his first stage robbery;
"I've labored long and hard for bread, for honor and for riches
But on my corns too long you’ve tread, You fine haired sons of Bitches”

   Around the rim on the back is a fading list of countries and festivals the bass has appeared in. On the bottom edge it says “Less Dr. Phil. More Dr. John!” The last thing I scribbled on there is the letters “NOMA” at the neck heel. That’s a reminder, too; “Nobody Owes Me Anything”, a valuable lesson about the music biz.

   This bass is very well travelled. With The Danny Click band, it’s been to Switzerland, Fiji, and New Zealand. It did a three week European tour and a bunch of US dates with John Lee Hooker Jr., and just this year, it played Country in Nashville, Blues in Vancouver, and Funk in New Orleans. In fact, it even got me VIP boarding on a recent flight!

   It’s had three different bridges, two sets of pickups, a couple of changed tuners, four different pickguards, and so many different strings I couldn’t begin to count.

   Since I bought this bass in 1990, or so, I’ve owned a lot of basses. Seriously, a LOT. Newer, older, lighter, heavier, louder, softer, prettier, more beat up…they come and they go. And when it’s been time to head out to the gig, I usually grab the Antigua. This one, feels juuust right.

]]> Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:35:00 GMT 8F92BFAA352A8BFB0369026C1C0A0B48 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=128878 &nbsp; &nbsp; Eighteen years ago today, the 27th of November, Cindy and I were sitting in the living room of our rented house in El Cerrito, eating pizza. I remember it was pizza, because it was the night before Thanksgiving, and I had just heard a trivia fact that more pizzas are sold on the night before Thanksgiving than any other day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I remember it was the night before Thanksgiving, because Cindy was hellaciously pregnant, and we were talking about our friends Brian and Margaret, because Margaret was also hellaciously pregnant, and they were scheduled to go in the next day, and induce labor. We were talking about why on Earth anyone would want to have a baby on Thanksgiving. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That was about the time Cindy&rsquo;s labor pains started. Instant Karma, indeed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; We had to call my parents to come over and babysit our &ldquo;tester dependant&rdquo;, Fender the dog. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Here&rsquo;s what I remember about that night from then on; linoleum, a distinct lack of seating, a plethora of machinery, &ldquo;The Wizard of Oz&rdquo; on a seeming continuous loop on the little television, giving away to parades as the sun came up. I&rsquo;m assuming the sun came up, because I think I would have heard if it hadn&rsquo;t. Throughout the long night, my Lamaze training proved to be nothing better than saying &ldquo;Breathe!&rdquo; The machines actually would tell me when another contraction was on the way, so we could gear up for &ldquo;breathe&rdquo; together. I slept about 10 minutes, propped up in the corner. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jack finally decided to make an appearance about 11:30 the next day. Everyone was swept into the delivery room, and the Doctor came in to finish off the process. No videotaping for us; I hung around Cindy&rsquo;s head, and tried to stay out of the way of the professionals. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I should just say right here; I whine about trying to sleep on the lino. I did not, of course, actually have a baby. I am fully aware that the two situations, though related by timing, are not in the least comparable. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; We&rsquo;d been at the hospital for about sixteen hours, with sleep being just a fond memory. I think I had some vending machine food. I think it was mostly Ice chips for Cindy. Thank goodness adrenaline kicks in for the big finish. Hate to fall asleep at that moment. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Looking back on it, I kind of wish we had videoed the birth, so I could either A.) Have proof of what happened next, or B.) Proved that I was, indeed, hallucinating. See, as Jack was being born, after the final push, the Doctor, as part of his good-natured banter, said &ldquo;Hello&rdquo;. To which, Jack answered &ldquo;Hello.&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I remember thinking, &ldquo;Hmmm&hellip;I wonder if I&rsquo;m too crazy to drive home. Maybe I should just sleep in the car.&rdquo; I felt better almost immediately when the Doctor said &ldquo;I think he just answered me!&rdquo; The Nurse laughed nervously and concurred. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The rest, as they say, is history, or at least stories for another time. For now, I would like to wish Jack Shaw a very Happy Eighteenth Birthday! Your Mom and I love you very much, and are proud of the man you have become.
    I remember it was the night before Thanksgiving, because Cindy was hellaciously pregnant, and we were talking about our friends Brian and Margaret, because Margaret was also hellaciously pregnant, and they were scheduled to go in the next day, and induce labor. We were talking about why on Earth anyone would want to have a baby on Thanksgiving.

    That was about the time Cindy’s labor pains started. Instant Karma, indeed.

    We had to call my parents to come over and babysit our “tester dependant”, Fender the dog.

    Here’s what I remember about that night from then on; linoleum, a distinct lack of seating, a plethora of machinery, “The Wizard of Oz” on a seeming continuous loop on the little television, giving away to parades as the sun came up. I’m assuming the sun came up, because I think I would have heard if it hadn’t. Throughout the long night, my Lamaze training proved to be nothing better than saying “Breathe!” The machines actually would tell me when another contraction was on the way, so we could gear up for “breathe” together. I slept about 10 minutes, propped up in the corner.

    Jack finally decided to make an appearance about 11:30 the next day. Everyone was swept into the delivery room, and the Doctor came in to finish off the process. No videotaping for us; I hung around Cindy’s head, and tried to stay out of the way of the professionals.

    I should just say right here; I whine about trying to sleep on the lino. I did not, of course, actually have a baby. I am fully aware that the two situations, though related by timing, are not in the least comparable.

    We’d been at the hospital for about sixteen hours, with sleep being just a fond memory. I think I had some vending machine food. I think it was mostly Ice chips for Cindy. Thank goodness adrenaline kicks in for the big finish. Hate to fall asleep at that moment.

    Looking back on it, I kind of wish we had videoed the birth, so I could either A.) Have proof of what happened next, or B.) Proved that I was, indeed, hallucinating. See, as Jack was being born, after the final push, the Doctor, as part of his good-natured banter, said “Hello”. To which, Jack answered “Hello.”

    I remember thinking, “Hmmm…I wonder if I’m too crazy to drive home. Maybe I should just sleep in the car.” I felt better almost immediately when the Doctor said “I think he just answered me!” The Nurse laughed nervously and concurred.

    The rest, as they say, is history, or at least stories for another time. For now, I would like to wish Jack Shaw a very Happy Eighteenth Birthday! Your Mom and I love you very much, and are proud of the man you have become.

]]> Fri, 27 Nov 2009 23:15:33 GMT 37C0AC48706C4C3D9D1BE6C4C8A596F6 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=125946 This is my latest article for the Good Stuff Guitars newsletter. &nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;m going to do something I don&rsquo;t usually do; get cranky. &nbsp;&nbsp; Generally, is something ticks me off, I&rsquo;ll let it sit, and when I do finally write about it, try to find a funny, gentle way of approaching it. Well, no more Mister Nice Guy. People need to be taught a lesson. &nbsp;&nbsp; Here&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s been bugging me a lot lately; there is a HUGE difference between &ldquo;Playing Music&rdquo;, and &ldquo;Being a Musician&rdquo;. Face it, we live in &ldquo;The age of the Hobbyist&rdquo; now. Everyone is in a band, or goes to Jam Nights, or does whatever else is involved with dusting off that old Strat or buying a new one. More people now are playing music than at any time in the known history of mankind. &nbsp;&nbsp; Okay, I made that up, but it&rsquo;s probably really, really true, what with population and all. &nbsp;&nbsp; So if you&rsquo;re in that category, and wondering where you stand on the Big-Time Musician scale, answer this; how good are you at listening? Not listening to music in general, but listening to other players while you are playing? Are you so involved and intent on what you&rsquo;re doing that you&rsquo;re missing the forest for the trees? &nbsp;&nbsp; If you&rsquo;re playing with others, and when someone&rsquo;s soloing, you can&rsquo;t hear them, FAIL. Can you hear the lyrics while you play? If not; EPIC FAIL. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s not fair, Kennan, &ldquo; I hear you say, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not me that&rsquo;s too loud; it&rsquo;s the other guy!&rdquo; Well, don&rsquo;t worry. There&rsquo;s enough FAIL to go around. Think about what a song is; is it a drum solo with some guitars sprinkled in? Maybe it&rsquo;s a ham-fisted rhythm guitar part? A room full of monkeys is never going to write Shakespeare, or play &ldquo;I Got My Mojo Workin&rsquo;&rdquo;. &nbsp;&nbsp; A Band, whether it&rsquo;s made up of long-time veterans or just thrown together at Jam Night, works as a unit. Your reputation is tied to the weakest link you share the stage with. How you deal with that is how people will judge you. Emphasis; how you deal with that is how people will judge you. A gentle hand signal is usually all it takes, even if you have to stamp your feet and yell to get someone&rsquo;s attention to do it. &nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;ve written before about how Dynamics are the last thing any band learns, and really separates the good from the ghastly. For a band to have dynamics, you have to be able to listen to each other, and to the song. Otherwise why not just stay home and play Guitar Hero. &nbsp;&nbsp; Here&rsquo;s the secret Musicians know; when you listen, then you start to react to what other people are playing, then the music isn&rsquo;t dictated by pre-conceived boundaries, and takes on a life of its own. I can still remember the first time I played a fill locked into a drummer, completely off the top of our heads, together. That was the drug that keeps me coming back. That was magic. That was the day I felt like a Musician, and not just a guy playing music. That&rsquo;s what I want to be, and that&rsquo;s who I want to play with. The rest of you; get off my lawn. &nbsp;&nbsp; Next time; Self criticism. Because if you don&rsquo;t everyone else will. This is my latest article for the Good Stuff Guitars newsletter.

   I’m going to do something I don’t usually do; get cranky.

   Generally, is something ticks me off, I’ll let it sit, and when I do finally write about it, try to find a funny, gentle way of approaching it. Well, no more Mister Nice Guy. People need to be taught a lesson.

   Here’s what’s been bugging me a lot lately; there is a HUGE difference between “Playing Music”, and “Being a Musician”. Face it, we live in “The age of the Hobbyist” now. Everyone is in a band, or goes to Jam Nights, or does whatever else is involved with dusting off that old Strat or buying a new one. More people now are playing music than at any time in the known history of mankind.

   Okay, I made that up, but it’s probably really, really true, what with population and all.

   So if you’re in that category, and wondering where you stand on the Big-Time Musician scale, answer this; how good are you at listening? Not listening to music in general, but listening to other players while you are playing? Are you so involved and intent on what you’re doing that you’re missing the forest for the trees?

   If you’re playing with others, and when someone’s soloing, you can’t hear them, FAIL. Can you hear the lyrics while you play? If not; EPIC FAIL. “That’s not fair, Kennan, “ I hear you say, “It’s not me that’s too loud; it’s the other guy!” Well, don’t worry. There’s enough FAIL to go around. Think about what a song is; is it a drum solo with some guitars sprinkled in? Maybe it’s a ham-fisted rhythm guitar part? A room full of monkeys is never going to write Shakespeare, or play “I Got My Mojo Workin’”.

   A Band, whether it’s made up of long-time veterans or just thrown together at Jam Night, works as a unit. Your reputation is tied to the weakest link you share the stage with. How you deal with that is how people will judge you. Emphasis; how you deal with that is how people will judge you. A gentle hand signal is usually all it takes, even if you have to stamp your feet and yell to get someone’s attention to do it.

   I’ve written before about how Dynamics are the last thing any band learns, and really separates the good from the ghastly. For a band to have dynamics, you have to be able to listen to each other, and to the song. Otherwise why not just stay home and play Guitar Hero.

   Here’s the secret Musicians know; when you listen, then you start to react to what other people are playing, then the music isn’t dictated by pre-conceived boundaries, and takes on a life of its own. I can still remember the first time I played a fill locked into a drummer, completely off the top of our heads, together. That was the drug that keeps me coming back. That was magic. That was the day I felt like a Musician, and not just a guy playing music. That’s what I want to be, and that’s who I want to play with. The rest of you; get off my lawn.

   Next time; Self criticism. Because if you don’t everyone else will.


]]> Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:11:25 GMT CBDAB1AF9C8F1E6D06EA02822CD27A5D http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=115014 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; After the better part of the day at SIR Studios, listening to a few fabulous bassists, and a whole bunch of guys who sounded like they plugged in, turned way up, then threw the bass down a stairwell, I cut out early. I bailed. Even the good players were getting lost in the wash of &ldquo;a-thumpin&rsquo; and a-pluckin&rsquo;&rdquo; by the afternoon. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I felt sorry for my host for the weekend, Bobby Vega; he was there demonstrating the new EMG X pickups, amidst all the noise, from 10AM to 6PM, and then had the concert that night. I felt bad leaving him there alone (&rdquo;Save yourself!&rdquo;), but his son Rocco and I left with his blessing to get some rest. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The concert that night at the Key Club was the feature that really got Bobby to come down. Rocco Prestia, bassist for Tower of Power, would be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by Bass Player Magazine, with Bobby doing the presentation. Upright Jazz Giant Charlie Hayden was being similarly honored, and a large concert/jam session was slated to ensue! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Francis Rocco Prestia has had a huge influence on the way people approach playing funky, groove-heavy bass for years. His single note approach is all about timing and movement, and while he&rsquo;s often imitated, his technique is singular and far more awe-inspiring than even he knows. Tunes like &ldquo;What Is Hip&rdquo;, &quot;You Got To Funkifize&quot; and &quot;You're Still A Young Man&quot; redefined funk bass. Presenting the award was a huge deal for Bobby; when Rocco received a Liver Transplant a few years ago, it was Bobby who covered the gigs for what has to be the most famous &ldquo;Bass Chair&rdquo; in music today! (For more on the story, read my BV interview http://kennanshaw.com/bobbyvega.cfm) &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; When it was time for the ceremony, Bobby talked about how Rocco&rsquo;s playing with TOP always inspired him to play bass, about how &ldquo;Rocco put the &lsquo;Power&rsquo; in &lsquo;Tower&rsquo;!&rdquo; He talked about going to see Rocco, and telling him about naming his own son Rocco after the bassist, and how Rocco said &ldquo;That&rsquo;s nice Bobby, but if you really fuckin&rsquo; meant it, you&rsquo;da named him Francis.&rdquo; Bobby brought his now 13 year old son Rocco out to help with the presentation. It was perfect, and you could see how touched and surprised Rocco Prestia was by the whole thing. The ovation was long and loud. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Meanwhile, I was working on my whole &ldquo;fly on the wall&rdquo; approach to hanging out backstage. Here again Bobby was the gracious host and introduced me to everyone he knew, from all the members of Tower that were there, to the myriad of famous influential bassists attending the show. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Leland Sklar, who played with James Taylor, Lyle Lovitt and so many others that it would be easier to list who he hasn&rsquo;t played with over the years, was just hanging out. I watched him a lot, because he&rsquo;s got the whole &lsquo;Elder Stateman/Coolest Guy&rsquo; vibe going. He complimented Bobby&rsquo;s presentation, greeted Rocco warmly, shook hands, shared smiles and laughs, and reminded me of the shots of Willie Mays at the All Star Game, surrounded by younger players hoping just a little of his magic would rub off on them. The man played for Barbie Benson, for God&rsquo;s sake! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I was sitting with Rocco Vega waiting for our food when Dave Girabaldi, drummer for Tower sat down behind me and started his warm up exercises on his practice pad, with big ol&rsquo; Marching Band sticks. That was pretty fascinating on its own, but when Tal Wilkenfeld, the young female bass playing phenom from Jeff Beck&rsquo;s band sat down and the two started talking about drumming, I figured I was, right at that moment, in the middle of the strongest Bass Player Fantasy you could possibly put together. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Steve Bailey (six string fretless bass super clinician) was eating a chicken sandwich a couple tables away. Various members of Tower of Power were sprinkled around the room, and singer Larry Braggs had started laughing when he first saw Bobby, and now the two of them were holding court in a booth in the corner. Relocated Brit Fusion ace Rufus Philpot was trying to get something at the bar, and when Stu Hamm (Satriani, Steve Vai, first choice of Shred Guitarists everywhere) made a crack about Rufus being &ldquo;Australian&rdquo;, he kind of froze, reloaded, and in his so-very-British manner said &ldquo;You&rsquo;re joking, right?&rdquo; Jazz chart topper (oxymoron?) Brian Bromberg stood at the bar talking to Leland Sklar, while Sekou Bunch played through the T.C. Electronics Staccato Rocco Prestia Stack against the wall. Bakithi swept through, smiling and laughing as always, and many bassists of great note passed through, some stopping, some just moving through. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The concert itself was amazing. Charlie Haden did a set of straight up jazz with a pianist. That was followed by Juan Aldretti of The Mars Volta, and his latest side band. Talk about &ldquo;And now for something completely different&rdquo;. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Then, following the presentation of Rocco&rsquo;s award, we got a kind of Career Retrospective from the rhythm section &ndash; drums, guitar and keyboards &ndash; and a two man horn section from Tower of Power, with vocals. It was the best of the Rocco tunes, ending with &ldquo;What Is Hip&rdquo; with an extended Rocco solo. Those guys are amazing. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The rhythm section stayed up for the madhouse jam that followed, as Bobby, Tal Wilkenfeld, Rufus Philpot, James Earl, Stu Hamm, and Steve Bailey ( I know I&rsquo;m forgetting someone&hellip;) took the stage for a thunderous take on the TOP song &ldquo;Squib Cakes&rdquo;. The stage looked like a bassists dream music store; everyone on stage had their own stack of amps, and they ran from one side to the other, like some strange Cityscape. Tal, who is about five feet tall, had the biggest stack. If she was a guy, the words &ldquo;over compensation&rdquo; might come into play. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Let me stop, and talk about Tal, because every bass player I know, upon finding out that I was going to this, wanted to talk about Tal. She has taken the bass world by storm the last couple of years, and is definitely is as close to a &lsquo;bass superstar&rsquo; as there is, especially with the release of the &ldquo;Jeff beck Live at Rionnie Scott&rsquo;s&rdquo; DVD. She&rsquo;s a 23 year old Aussie immigrant who&rsquo;s cute as a bunny and plays bass like she was born unto it. So everyone wants to know about Tal. So here&rsquo;s my problem; up close and personal, she&rsquo;s a very young girl who should sit up straight and spit out the gum, and probably wash her hair once in a while. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That&rsquo;s right; she is something short of a Goddess, and I am terminally&hellip;a dad. I&rsquo;m not sure which one is more upsetting. *Sigh*. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Have you ever heard about eight bass players all playing at once? Even if you assemble some of the best in the world, there&rsquo;s a reason bands can have multiple guitarists, a couple of keyboards, and even the rare &ldquo;double drummer&rdquo; set up, but always only one bass. &ldquo;Squib Cakes&rdquo; started off sounding like an avalanche, but the bassists quickly backed off, found a little niche to play in or just laid out. Steve Bailey was acting as &ldquo;player coach&rdquo; (guess who&rsquo;s amp was loudest?), and would introduce different players to solo. Stu Hamm played T.V. theme songs on his Washburn Signature acoustic, but generally looked like he had a date with Hotel Room pending. Tal started slow and then exploded. Bobby &ndash; who was having equipment issues with his signal chain (stupid cable), launched into a solo that had everyone grooving. His son Rocco noticed that &ldquo;everybody started playing when you played!&rdquo; It was cacophonous and beautiful. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; After that, everyone was pretty ready for some rest. There was more to come; Brian Bromberg and Steve Bailey were going to play, and Verdine White from Earth Wind and Fire was looking for a four string bass to borrow (memo to self; people would be more inclined to lend you a bass if you aren&rsquo;t wearing a ton of rhinestone and silver jewelry), but we caught a cab back to our hotel. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I got picked up on Sunset by buddies Audrey and Carol for a quick trip to Barney&rsquo;s Beanery for drinks and talking about how everyone looked 12 years old. They had just seen Echo and the Bunnymen. We laughed a bunch. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The next day was back to SIR for more of Bass Player Live! I took many breaks outside the building. The sonic assault, even with ear plugs, just gets to you after a while. It gets hard to recognize things that sound good, when there is so much &lsquo;sound&rsquo; involved. At one point, a guy had brought an upright out to the parking lot, and was just playing a 12 bar blues, nice and easy, and everyone around kind of went &ldquo;&hellip;ahhhh&hellip;&rdquo;. It can be hard to see it, but too much of anything is too much. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Having said that, I would recommend Bass Player Live to every single bassist I know, regardless of your level or experience. The manufacturers are all there showing off their best and newest junk, and all the players are there, and accessible and for the most part, really friendly people. I know a lot of people want to go to NAMM, the music merchandiser&rsquo;s trade show that&rsquo;s in Anaheim every January for these same reasons, but BPL is waaayyy better, and I&rsquo;ll tell you why; you don&rsquo;t have to wade through a ton of stuff you don&rsquo;t want to find the gems; at BPL it&rsquo;s all gems. Even if you don&rsquo;t have the kind of access I was bestowed by my hosts, even if you go for one day and take it in, you&rsquo;ll love it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I want to thank &ldquo;The Two Scott&rsquo;s&rdquo; from EMG. Those guys know there stuff, and seemed to have a good time. Very funny. Thanks to Mike Vernon for the hang. And a big fat special &lsquo;thank you&rsquo; to Bobby and Rocco Vega, for sharing the whole thing with me. They made me feel like family, and shared insights, hopes, and jokes freely. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Okay; party&rsquo;s over. Back to work. Anybody got any gigs?
    I felt sorry for my host for the weekend, Bobby Vega; he was there demonstrating the new EMG X pickups, amidst all the noise, from 10AM to 6PM, and then had the concert that night. I felt bad leaving him there alone (”Save yourself!”), but his son Rocco and I left with his blessing to get some rest.

    The concert that night at the Key Club was the feature that really got Bobby to come down. Rocco Prestia, bassist for Tower of Power, would be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by Bass Player Magazine, with Bobby doing the presentation. Upright Jazz Giant Charlie Hayden was being similarly honored, and a large concert/jam session was slated to ensue!

    Francis Rocco Prestia has had a huge influence on the way people approach playing funky, groove-heavy bass for years. His single note approach is all about timing and movement, and while he’s often imitated, his technique is singular and far more awe-inspiring than even he knows. Tunes like “What Is Hip”, "You Got To Funkifize" and "You're Still A Young Man" redefined funk bass. Presenting the award was a huge deal for Bobby; when Rocco received a Liver Transplant a few years ago, it was Bobby who covered the gigs for what has to be the most famous “Bass Chair” in music today!
(For more on the story, read my BV interview http://kennanshaw.com/bobbyvega.cfm)

    When it was time for the ceremony, Bobby talked about how Rocco’s playing with TOP always inspired him to play bass, about how “Rocco put the ‘Power’ in ‘Tower’!” He talked about going to see Rocco, and telling him about naming his own son Rocco after the bassist, and how Rocco said “That’s nice Bobby, but if you really fuckin’ meant it, you’da named him Francis.” Bobby brought his now 13 year old son Rocco out to help with the presentation. It was perfect, and you could see how touched and surprised Rocco Prestia was by the whole thing. The ovation was long and loud.

    Meanwhile, I was working on my whole “fly on the wall” approach to hanging out backstage. Here again Bobby was the gracious host and introduced me to everyone he knew, from all the members of Tower that were there, to the myriad of famous influential bassists attending the show.

    Leland Sklar, who played with James Taylor, Lyle Lovitt and so many others that it would be easier to list who he hasn’t played with over the years, was just hanging out. I watched him a lot, because he’s got the whole ‘Elder Stateman/Coolest Guy’ vibe going. He complimented Bobby’s presentation, greeted Rocco warmly, shook hands, shared smiles and laughs, and reminded me of the shots of Willie Mays at the All Star Game, surrounded by younger players hoping just a little of his magic would rub off on them. The man played for Barbie Benson, for God’s sake!

    I was sitting with Rocco Vega waiting for our food when Dave Girabaldi, drummer for Tower sat down behind me and started his warm up exercises on his practice pad, with big ol’ Marching Band sticks. That was pretty fascinating on its own, but when Tal Wilkenfeld, the young female bass playing phenom from Jeff Beck’s band sat down and the two started talking about drumming, I figured I was, right at that moment, in the middle of the strongest Bass Player Fantasy you could possibly put together.

    Steve Bailey (six string fretless bass super clinician) was eating a chicken sandwich a couple tables away. Various members of Tower of Power were sprinkled around the room, and singer Larry Braggs had started laughing when he first saw Bobby, and now the two of them were holding court in a booth in the corner. Relocated Brit Fusion ace Rufus Philpot was trying to get something at the bar, and when Stu Hamm (Satriani, Steve Vai, first choice of Shred Guitarists everywhere) made a crack about Rufus being “Australian”, he kind of froze, reloaded, and in his so-very-British manner said “You’re joking, right?” Jazz chart topper (oxymoron?) Brian Bromberg stood at the bar talking to Leland Sklar, while Sekou Bunch played through the T.C. Electronics Staccato Rocco Prestia Stack against the wall. Bakithi swept through, smiling and laughing as always, and many bassists of great note passed through, some stopping, some just moving through.

    The concert itself was amazing. Charlie Haden did a set of straight up jazz with a pianist. That was followed by Juan Aldretti of The Mars Volta, and his latest side band. Talk about “And now for something completely different”.

    Then, following the presentation of Rocco’s award, we got a kind of Career Retrospective from the rhythm section – drums, guitar and keyboards – and a two man horn section from Tower of Power, with vocals. It was the best of the Rocco tunes, ending with “What Is Hip” with an extended Rocco solo. Those guys are amazing.

    The rhythm section stayed up for the madhouse jam that followed, as Bobby, Tal Wilkenfeld, Rufus Philpot, James Earl, Stu Hamm, and Steve Bailey ( I know I’m forgetting someone…) took the stage for a thunderous take on the TOP song “Squib Cakes”. The stage looked like a bassists dream music store; everyone on stage had their own stack of amps, and they ran from one side to the other, like some strange Cityscape. Tal, who is about five feet tall, had the biggest stack. If she was a guy, the words “over compensation” might come into play.

    Let me stop, and talk about Tal, because every bass player I know, upon finding out that I was going to this, wanted to talk about Tal. She has taken the bass world by storm the last couple of years, and is definitely is as close to a ‘bass superstar’ as there is, especially with the release of the “Jeff beck Live at Rionnie Scott’s” DVD. She’s a 23 year old Aussie immigrant who’s cute as a bunny and plays bass like she was born unto it. So everyone wants to know about Tal. So here’s my problem; up close and personal, she’s a very young girl who should sit up straight and spit out the gum, and probably wash her hair once in a while.

    That’s right; she is something short of a Goddess, and I am terminally…a dad. I’m not sure which one is more upsetting. *Sigh*.

    Have you ever heard about eight bass players all playing at once? Even if you assemble some of the best in the world, there’s a reason bands can have multiple guitarists, a couple of keyboards, and even the rare “double drummer” set up, but always only one bass. “Squib Cakes” started off sounding like an avalanche, but the bassists quickly backed off, found a little niche to play in or just laid out. Steve Bailey was acting as “player coach” (guess who’s amp was loudest?), and would introduce different players to solo. Stu Hamm played T.V. theme songs on his Washburn Signature acoustic, but generally looked like he had a date with Hotel Room pending. Tal started slow and then exploded. Bobby – who was having equipment issues with his signal chain (stupid cable), launched into a solo that had everyone grooving. His son Rocco noticed that “everybody started playing when you played!” It was cacophonous and beautiful.

    After that, everyone was pretty ready for some rest. There was more to come; Brian Bromberg and Steve Bailey were going to play, and Verdine White from Earth Wind and Fire was looking for a four string bass to borrow (memo to self; people would be more inclined to lend you a bass if you aren’t wearing a ton of rhinestone and silver jewelry), but we caught a cab back to our hotel.

    I got picked up on Sunset by buddies Audrey and Carol for a quick trip to Barney’s Beanery for drinks and talking about how everyone looked 12 years old. They had just seen Echo and the Bunnymen. We laughed a bunch.

    The next day was back to SIR for more of Bass Player Live! I took many breaks outside the building. The sonic assault, even with ear plugs, just gets to you after a while. It gets hard to recognize things that sound good, when there is so much ‘sound’ involved. At one point, a guy had brought an upright out to the parking lot, and was just playing a 12 bar blues, nice and easy, and everyone around kind of went “…ahhhh…”. It can be hard to see it, but too much of anything is too much.

    Having said that, I would recommend Bass Player Live to every single bassist I know, regardless of your level or experience. The manufacturers are all there showing off their best and newest junk, and all the players are there, and accessible and for the most part, really friendly people. I know a lot of people want to go to NAMM, the music merchandiser’s trade show that’s in Anaheim every January for these same reasons, but BPL is waaayyy better, and I’ll tell you why; you don’t have to wade through a ton of stuff you don’t want to find the gems; at BPL it’s all gems. Even if you don’t have the kind of access I was bestowed by my hosts, even if you go for one day and take it in, you’ll love it.

    I want to thank “The Two Scott’s” from EMG. Those guys know there stuff, and seemed to have a good time. Very funny. Thanks to Mike Vernon for the hang. And a big fat special ‘thank you’ to Bobby and Rocco Vega, for sharing the whole thing with me. They made me feel like family, and shared insights, hopes, and jokes freely.


    Okay; party’s over. Back to work. Anybody got any gigs?

]]> Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:57:09 GMT 6686733D5D5B28E0CC64F4BB915C445C http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=111165 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;ve been staring at the computer screen trying to figure out how to start writing about Bass Player Live, last weekend in Los Angeles. In trying to come up with a good &ldquo;hook&rdquo; for an intro, I&rsquo;m trying to put a label on what exactly the whole thing was. The problem is, it wasn&rsquo;t any one thing; it was inspiring, humbling, exasperating, exciting, ridiculous, revealing, and grueling, all at once, within any five minute time span. Most of all, it was a lot of fun, so I guess the safe way to go is to try to impart that, while giving you a taste of all the other things, too. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; First of all, how often do you get to spend that much time with someone who you admire and learn from? The whole trip was courtesy of Bobby Vega, and the chance to hang out, talk to him, and watch how he went about his business was invaluable. Right off the top, I can&rsquo;t thank him enough for the experience. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The event took place at SIR Studios in Hollywood. SIR is a large rehearsal and equipment rental facility right on Sunset Strip. The rooms were full of manufacturers showing off their latest gear and their latest endorsers. Bobby was there on behalf of EMG Pickups, and was showcasing the &ldquo;X&rdquo; pickups he helped develop. He was also there at the behest of Bass Player Magazine to present Tower of Power bassist Rocco Prestia a Lifetime Achievement Award. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Rather than try to tell the story chronologically, which could take hours to read, I want to present it as little snapshots, to give you an idea of how the weekend went. Things were always changing, someone coming in, something going on over here, someone playing this, people pushing that &ndash; sensory overload in a low register. Life imitating quick-cut marketing. If you&rsquo;re not a bass player, I&rsquo;ll try to explain some things as I go, if you are, be patient with me! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In the ever-crowded Ernie Ball Music Man/Markbass room, a Round Table discussion features EBMM Prez Sterling Ball, bass heavyweights Dave Marotta, Juan Nelson, Stan Seargeant, and Tony Levin, long time Peter Gabriel/King Crimson/everyone bassist. Tony Levin has the best line of the show, in answer to &ldquo;What are you currently up to?&rdquo; Tony said &ldquo;I&rsquo;m busy. Busy is the new &lsquo;rich&rsquo;.&rdquo; Sterling talked so passionately about running the company and how certain bass designs came about that I was about ready to enlist. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Canadian fusion giant Alain Caron played in the same room. As good as he is on that six string fretless F Bass, and he is very good, the groove didn&rsquo;t kick in until the drummer came in. Sometimes &lsquo;Funky&rsquo; is more than a one-man job. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Bakithi Kumalo, who played bass on Paul Simon&rsquo;s &ldquo;Graceland&rdquo;, amongst other things, is not very tall, but is about 75% Smile. If anyone had a better time than me this weekend, it was him. Always smiling, laughing, and playing. He bounces around the room the way his bass lines bounce right through the speakers. On Sunday, when Phil Chen showed up at the show, the two of them were hilarious to watch, leaning their heads together and laughing riotously at whatever private moment they shared. Phil Chen, who played Jeff Beck&rsquo;s &ldquo;Freeway Jam&rdquo; and Rod Stewart&rsquo;s &ldquo;Da Ya Think I&rsquo;m Sexy&rdquo;, not to mention that&rsquo;s him playing the bass solo on &ldquo;Hot Legs&rdquo;, is actually from Jamaica, so listening to the African bass player talk to the Chinese bassist from Jamaica was music in and of itself. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; After about a half day of listening to bassists strut and preen in front of each other, Stu Hamm poked his head in to say &lsquo;hi&rsquo; to Bobby and said &ldquo;They should have called this &lsquo;Mid-Range Player Live&rsquo;.&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Chris Chaney (Jane&rsquo;s Addiction, Alanis Morisette) bounding up to say hello to Tony Franklin (Bad Company, The Firm). &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Norwood Fisher&rsquo;s (Fishbone) 10:30AM clinic; &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never really done this kind of thing. I should be out surfing, y&rsquo;all.&rdquo; He was funny, personable, and even though he forgot parts of songs, he was revealing about where &ldquo;this stuff&rdquo; comes from, and how he came up with different techniques and ideas. Asked why he hangs his bass so low, he explained that there were two reasons; reason number one, all the coolest guys on Don Kirshner&rsquo;s Rock Concert and Midnight Special hung their guitars low. The second reason was that when he was starting, he had a bass book that said to &lsquo;adjust your strap so that you&rsquo;re at your most comfortable, and he figured there wasn&rsquo;t anything more comfortable than just letting your arms hang! He then spent all of Sunday hanging at the Warwick booth. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Speaking of booths, there was a lot of &lsquo;Bass Porn&rsquo; on display (non bassists, bear with me!). Bobby and the EMG X&rsquo;s were a big hit, and a lot of players came by to check out him demoing them. The JA-X&rsquo;s were particularly popular. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Aguilar debuted the new 751 Bass head, the replacement for the popular 750. They&rsquo;ve redone the design and mid-range structure, and the price is actually less than the 750&rsquo;s. This could mean there will be a lot of 750&rsquo;s on the used market, too (Dominic)! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Sekou Bunch was all over the place getting people to try the new Carvin SB400 bass. Good reviews all around for the jazz-like, Alnico equipped bass, and Sekou was the perfect Ambassador, with a quick smile and easy laugh. He was always playing something, somewhere. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The new &ldquo;Classic Collection&rdquo; Stingrays were on display at the Ernie Ball booth, featuring cool colors like Seafoam Green, Shell Pink, and Vintage White, and sporting 2-band EQ&rsquo;a and thumbscrew bridge mutes, like the original Stingrays. Sterling said the original mutes were discontinued years ago under threat of lawsuit by someone who apparently cut themselves on the metal edges. He brought them back now because &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got better insurance.&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I was a fly on the wall for a conversation between Michael Tobias and Bobby about tone, strings, and all things bass, and it was fascinating to hear a guy so up on his craft talk about his own stuff. He had a beautiful bass set up with LaBella Black Tape strings, and I&rsquo;ve never heard those strings sound more musical. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Other manufacturers with cool stuff were Alleva-Coppolo Basses, T.C. Electronics, King Doublebass, Spector, D&rsquo;Addario Strings, Fender, and many more. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To illustrate the whole &ldquo;drummer/Bassist dynamic, I &lsquo;Facebooked&rsquo; the fact that John Ferraro was drumming in the Ernie Ball room, and got three text messages from bass players to tell him &ldquo;Hi&rdquo;. Well, two &lsquo;hi&rsquo; messages and one that said to &ldquo;kiss his bald head for me&rdquo;. I passed along the &lsquo;hellos&rsquo;! &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Mikey Vernon was there helping out with the Spector booth and lending a hand setting up EMG&rsquo;s stuff. Mikey is one of those invaluable guys who the general public never knows about, but he&rsquo;s actually the one who makes things &lsquo;go&rsquo;. He&rsquo;s a long-time Bass tech for touring bands, and is what I call a &ldquo;GSD Guy&rdquo;. He &ldquo;Gets Shit Done&rdquo;. Plus he was a great hang all weekend. In the bass world, if you need shit done, check him out; http://totalmetalgear.tech.officelive.com &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In the next installment, I&rsquo;ll tell you about the concert and awards ceremony! Backstage at the Key Club was really Bass Player Heaven! I&rsquo;ll also get to some overall thoughts, and why if you&rsquo;re a bass player, you need to attend one of these beasts, and if you do, how not to lose your mind (if that's possible).
    First of all, how often do you get to spend that much time with someone who you admire and learn from? The whole trip was courtesy of Bobby Vega, and the chance to hang out, talk to him, and watch how he went about his business was invaluable. Right off the top, I can’t thank him enough for the experience.

    The event took place at SIR Studios in Hollywood. SIR is a large rehearsal and equipment rental facility right on Sunset Strip. The rooms were full of manufacturers showing off their latest gear and their latest endorsers. Bobby was there on behalf of EMG Pickups, and was showcasing the “X” pickups he helped develop. He was also there at the behest of Bass Player Magazine to present Tower of Power bassist Rocco Prestia a Lifetime Achievement Award.

    Rather than try to tell the story chronologically, which could take hours to read, I want to present it as little snapshots, to give you an idea of how the weekend went. Things were always changing, someone coming in, something going on over here, someone playing this, people pushing that – sensory overload in a low register. Life imitating quick-cut marketing. If you’re not a bass player, I’ll try to explain some things as I go, if you are, be patient with me!

    In the ever-crowded Ernie Ball Music Man/Markbass room, a Round Table discussion features EBMM Prez Sterling Ball, bass heavyweights Dave Marotta, Juan Nelson, Stan Seargeant, and Tony Levin, long time Peter Gabriel/King Crimson/everyone bassist. Tony Levin has the best line of the show, in answer to “What are you currently up to?” Tony said “I’m busy. Busy is the new ‘rich’.” Sterling talked so passionately about running the company and how certain bass designs came about that I was about ready to enlist.

    Canadian fusion giant Alain Caron played in the same room. As good as he is on that six string fretless F Bass, and he is very good, the groove didn’t kick in until the drummer came in. Sometimes ‘Funky’ is more than a one-man job.

    Bakithi Kumalo, who played bass on Paul Simon’s “Graceland”, amongst other things, is not very tall, but is about 75% Smile. If anyone had a better time than me this weekend, it was him. Always smiling, laughing, and playing. He bounces around the room the way his bass lines bounce right through the speakers. On Sunday, when Phil Chen showed up at the show, the two of them were hilarious to watch, leaning their heads together and laughing riotously at whatever private moment they shared. Phil Chen, who played Jeff Beck’s “Freeway Jam” and Rod Stewart’s “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy”, not to mention that’s him playing the bass solo on “Hot Legs”, is actually from Jamaica, so listening to the African bass player talk to the Chinese bassist from Jamaica was music in and of itself.

    After about a half day of listening to bassists strut and preen in front of each other, Stu Hamm poked his head in to say ‘hi’ to Bobby and said “They should have called this ‘Mid-Range Player Live’.”

    Chris Chaney (Jane’s Addiction, Alanis Morisette) bounding up to say hello to Tony Franklin (Bad Company, The Firm).

    Norwood Fisher’s (Fishbone) 10:30AM clinic; “I’ve never really done this kind of thing. I should be out surfing, y’all.” He was funny, personable, and even though he forgot parts of songs, he was revealing about where “this stuff” comes from, and how he came up with different techniques and ideas. Asked why he hangs his bass so low, he explained that there were two reasons; reason number one, all the coolest guys on Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert and Midnight Special hung their guitars low. The second reason was that when he was starting, he had a bass book that said to ‘adjust your strap so that you’re at your most comfortable, and he figured there wasn’t anything more comfortable than just letting your arms hang! He then spent all of Sunday hanging at the Warwick booth.

    Speaking of booths, there was a lot of ‘Bass Porn’ on display (non bassists, bear with me!). Bobby and the EMG X’s were a big hit, and a lot of players came by to check out him demoing them. The JA-X’s were particularly popular.

    Aguilar debuted the new 751 Bass head, the replacement for the popular 750. They’ve redone the design and mid-range structure, and the price is actually less than the 750’s. This could mean there will be a lot of 750’s on the used market, too (Dominic)!

    Sekou Bunch was all over the place getting people to try the new Carvin SB400 bass. Good reviews all around for the jazz-like, Alnico equipped bass, and Sekou was the perfect Ambassador, with a quick smile and easy laugh. He was always playing something, somewhere.

    The new “Classic Collection” Stingrays were on display at the Ernie Ball booth, featuring cool colors like Seafoam Green, Shell Pink, and Vintage White, and sporting 2-band EQ’a and thumbscrew bridge mutes, like the original Stingrays. Sterling said the original mutes were discontinued years ago under threat of lawsuit by someone who apparently cut themselves on the metal edges. He brought them back now because “I’ve got better insurance.”

    I was a fly on the wall for a conversation between Michael Tobias and Bobby about tone, strings, and all things bass, and it was fascinating to hear a guy so up on his craft talk about his own stuff. He had a beautiful bass set up with LaBella Black Tape strings, and I’ve never heard those strings sound more musical.

    Other manufacturers with cool stuff were Alleva-Coppolo Basses, T.C. Electronics, King Doublebass, Spector, D’Addario Strings, Fender, and many more.

    To illustrate the whole “drummer/Bassist dynamic, I ‘Facebooked’ the fact that John Ferraro was drumming in the Ernie Ball room, and got three text messages from bass players to tell him “Hi”. Well, two ‘hi’ messages and one that said to “kiss his bald head for me”. I passed along the ‘hellos’!

    Mikey Vernon was there helping out with the Spector booth and lending a hand setting up EMG’s stuff. Mikey is one of those invaluable guys who the general public never knows about, but he’s actually the one who makes things ‘go’. He’s a long-time Bass tech for touring bands, and is what I call a “GSD Guy”. He “Gets Shit Done”. Plus he was a great hang all weekend. In the bass world, if you need shit done, check him out; http://totalmetalgear.tech.officelive.com

    In the next installment, I’ll tell you about the concert and awards ceremony! Backstage at the Key Club was really Bass Player Heaven! I’ll also get to some overall thoughts, and why if you’re a bass player, you need to attend one of these beasts, and if you do, how not to lose your mind (if that's possible).

]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:15:00 GMT 8FDD53FC3A579A206359CE40DDE4CE21 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=102109 &nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;ll tell you a little secret; &nbsp;&nbsp; I think I&rsquo;m a pretty good bass player. In fact, I think I&rsquo;m damn good. There are times that I get just enough warm up time, and the tone and volume are just right, and I feel like anything I try is going to work. Crazy stuff, too. On top of that, my groove is good, too. And I understand how songs work, and how the bass works within a band. I&rsquo;m at the top of my game! &nbsp;&nbsp; So naturally, it&rsquo;s time for a beat down. &nbsp;&nbsp; In 2006 I attended the School of Bass in Arizona. I had come off about 8 months of touring the world, and thought I was the King of the Bass. Being around all the instructors and clinicians adjusted my attitude in about ten minutes. I saw things that had me questioning whether I was actually even playing the same instrument as the faculty that was assembled for that event. &nbsp;&nbsp; I&rsquo;m expecting the same experience this weekend at Bass Player Live in Los Angeles. I&rsquo;ll be there as a guest of Bobby Vega, who will be promoting the new EMG X pickups, presenting Tower of Power&rsquo;s Rocco Prestia with a Lifetime Achievement Award, and just generally being an amazing guy. Bobby called me and thanked me for my recent interview, and said he felt that things were really taking off for him and was grateful for my efforts. &nbsp;&nbsp; Yeah. My efforts to hang around my favorite bass player and soak up pointers and playing tips! That was hard! (Read my interview with Bobby here; <a href="./bobbyvega.cfm">http://kennanshaw.com/bobbyvega.cfm) &nbsp;&nbsp; So I&rsquo;ll be rubbing shoulders with a ton of great players, manufacturers, and general practitioners of the bass this weekend. Notes will be taken, information will be absorbed, hands will be shook, business cards will be exchanged, and in the end, many, many things will be written! &nbsp;&nbsp; By Monday, at the Good stuff Guitars Blues Jam at Armando&rsquo;s, I probably won&rsquo;t be feeling like the awesome bassist I am right now, but I&rsquo;ll have a little better idea of how to get there.
   I think I’m a pretty good bass player. In fact, I think I’m damn good. There are times that I get just enough warm up time, and the tone and volume are just right, and I feel like anything I try is going to work. Crazy stuff, too. On top of that, my groove is good, too. And I understand how songs work, and how the bass works within a band. I’m at the top of my game!

   So naturally, it’s time for a beat down.

   In 2006 I attended the School of Bass in Arizona. I had come off about 8 months of touring the world, and thought I was the King of the Bass. Being around all the instructors and clinicians adjusted my attitude in about ten minutes. I saw things that had me questioning whether I was actually even playing the same instrument as the faculty that was assembled for that event.

   I’m expecting the same experience this weekend at Bass Player Live in Los Angeles. I’ll be there as a guest of Bobby Vega, who will be promoting the new EMG X pickups, presenting Tower of Power’s Rocco Prestia with a Lifetime Achievement Award, and just generally being an amazing guy. Bobby called me and thanked me for my recent interview, and said he felt that things were really taking off for him and was grateful for my efforts.

   Yeah. My efforts to hang around my favorite bass player and soak up pointers and playing tips! That was hard! (Read my interview with Bobby here; http://kennanshaw.com/bobbyvega.cfm)

   So I’ll be rubbing shoulders with a ton of great players, manufacturers, and general practitioners of the bass this weekend. Notes will be taken, information will be absorbed, hands will be shook, business cards will be exchanged, and in the end, many, many things will be written!

   By Monday, at the Good stuff Guitars Blues Jam at Armando’s, I probably won’t be feeling like the awesome bassist I am right now, but I’ll have a little better idea of how to get there.

]]> Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:06:04 GMT 642592806C26D7C6A946BD05D654DD55 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=92746 &nbsp;&nbsp; Shockingly, it seems I&rsquo;ve developed something of a reputation when it comes to&hellip;the &ldquo;R&rdquo; word. Okay, so I may have written some disparaging things about Rehearsals. I admit, I&rsquo;m not the biggest fan. There are times and circumstances where taking an &ldquo;Art is fleeting&rdquo; approach to music is more exciting. &nbsp;&nbsp; There are times, however, when a little rehearsal can be called for. Thursday is the debut premiere grand opening show for KT &amp; the Wicked Gents. This is a band made up of some hardened professionals. We could easily walk in, and play right out of the box. &ldquo;Do you know this song?&rdquo; &ldquo;What key?&rdquo; and BLAM! We&rsquo;d all like this to be a more than a &lsquo;pick up&rsquo; band, so when the first gig was booked, we scheduled in two rehearsals. We&rsquo;re not reinventing the wheel here, we just want to be able to try some different things; put a different beat on a familiar tune, maybe stretch some passages out for solos&hellip;fun musician-type junk! &nbsp;&nbsp; The first rehearsal, a couple of weeks ago, it was the first time we were all together. It was a warm night in Benicia, so we left some doors open, and after about an hour, the Police showed up. It was like I was sixteen again, in Jamie Riddick&rsquo;s garage! So our first rehearsal became a &ldquo;band meeting&rdquo;. &nbsp;&nbsp; The Cop actually said &ldquo;Are you a band?&rdquo; Nope. Podiatrists. Go figure. &nbsp;&nbsp; Last night we had our second rehearsal, this time with doors closed. Smokin&rsquo;! Working our way through arrangements, going over transitions from solo to bridge, and from rumba to swing, &lsquo;jazzing up&rsquo; old favorites&hellip;having a great time, when all of a sudden; POP; power goes out. Pitch black. &nbsp;&nbsp; First thought; blew a fuse. Second thought; somebody cut the power. Third thought; I am not getting out of here without tripping over everything. &nbsp;&nbsp; A peek out the window confirmed that the whole neighborhood was dark. Weird. No storm, not really windy, just a power outage. A little walk down the street, and it became apparent that the whole city of Benicia was dark! From the hill, you could see the lights of Vallejo, Port Costa and Crockett, but Benicia was blacked out. Once again, rehearsal became &ldquo;band meeting&rdquo; as we went over what would be our Set List. Some things had to be dropped. Without playing them, we don&rsquo;t want to try to play them. Not much though; like I said &ndash; professionals. &nbsp;&nbsp; As I made my way out of Benicia, the lights of the city came back on. Flat out conspiracy against us. Damn you, Benicia! Some people are sensitive to the concept of &lsquo;omens&rsquo;, and would say that KT &amp; the Wicked Gents should be mindful of whether there&rsquo;s an overabundance of Bad Mojo, but I have seen Bad Mojo (someday I&rsquo;ll tell you a story of death, heartbreak, and madness, all on a &lsquo;first gig&rsquo;), and I&rsquo;m pretty sure we&rsquo;re okay. &nbsp;&nbsp; Just in case, though, come out and help us with our Karma! Hey, just because I say &lsquo;I think we&rsquo;re okay&rsquo; doesn&rsquo;t mean I ignore this stuff! KT &amp; the Wicked Gents Armando&rsquo;s Thursday, October 8th, 8 to 10PM 707 Marina Vista, Martinez
   There are times, however, when a little rehearsal can be called for. Thursday is the debut premiere grand opening show for KT & the Wicked Gents. This is a band made up of some hardened professionals. We could easily walk in, and play right out of the box. “Do you know this song?” “What key?” and BLAM! We’d all like this to be a more than a ‘pick up’ band, so when the first gig was booked, we scheduled in two rehearsals. We’re not reinventing the wheel here, we just want to be able to try some different things; put a different beat on a familiar tune, maybe stretch some passages out for solos…fun musician-type junk!

   The first rehearsal, a couple of weeks ago, it was the first time we were all together. It was a warm night in Benicia, so we left some doors open, and after about an hour, the Police showed up. It was like I was sixteen again, in Jamie Riddick’s garage! So our first rehearsal became a “band meeting”.

   The Cop actually said “Are you a band?” Nope. Podiatrists. Go figure.

   Last night we had our second rehearsal, this time with doors closed. Smokin’! Working our way through arrangements, going over transitions from solo to bridge, and from rumba to swing, ‘jazzing up’ old favorites…having a great time, when all of a sudden; POP; power goes out. Pitch black.

   First thought; blew a fuse. Second thought; somebody cut the power. Third thought; I am not getting out of here without tripping over everything.

   A peek out the window confirmed that the whole neighborhood was dark. Weird. No storm, not really windy, just a power outage. A little walk down the street, and it became apparent that the whole city of Benicia was dark! From the hill, you could see the lights of Vallejo, Port Costa and Crockett, but Benicia was blacked out. Once again, rehearsal became “band meeting” as we went over what would be our Set List. Some things had to be dropped. Without playing them, we don’t want to try to play them. Not much though; like I said – professionals.

   As I made my way out of Benicia, the lights of the city came back on. Flat out conspiracy against us. Damn you, Benicia! Some people are sensitive to the concept of ‘omens’, and would say that KT & the Wicked Gents should be mindful of whether there’s an overabundance of Bad Mojo, but I have seen Bad Mojo (someday I’ll tell you a story of death, heartbreak, and madness, all on a ‘first gig’), and I’m pretty sure we’re okay.

   Just in case, though, come out and help us with our Karma! Hey, just because I say ‘I think we’re okay’ doesn’t mean I ignore this stuff!

KT & the Wicked Gents
Armando’s
Thursday, October 8th, 8 to 10PM
707 Marina Vista, Martinez

]]> Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:19:52 GMT 67F1B2AD9BFA3FCE597A5AB8FDB8EB3F http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=89556 &nbsp;&nbsp; How many bands have I played with this year? An unofficial count comes out to 23. Twenty-Three different bands just this calendar year! A lot were one-offs, sub gigs that I did one or two shows. Some were put together for a specific show. A couple were bands I was, or am, a &lsquo;member&rsquo; of, but actually joining a band is a rarer thing for me. &nbsp;&nbsp; Twenty three. It&rsquo;s a good number. Twenty Four, on the other hand, is a great number. Willie Mays wore 24. Twenty Four has a lot of symmetry to it. Two dozen. Six times four. Two feet equals twenty four inches. Endless possibilities with 24. &nbsp;&nbsp; All of which is why I&rsquo;m happy to announce a brand new band; KT &amp; the Wicked Gents. I haven&rsquo;t talked about this band at all, because I wanted to make sure it was happening. I didn&rsquo;t want to start talking it up, and then have nothing going on! &ldquo;Yeah, we&rsquo;re excellent! When we start gigging, it will take the world by storm, dude!&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp; KT &amp; the Wicked Gents is a lot more than a lip service band. KT stands for Kathy Trejcka (rhymes with &lsquo;Fresca&rsquo;), the excellent keyboardist and vocalist from Johnny Nitro&rsquo;s band. The guitar section features the incomparable Kelly Back, my partner in crime from the now defunct Wingnut Adams band and the occasional Miko Marks gig. Also featured on guitar is Nick Montes. Remember when the 49ers had Joe Montana and Steve Young? It&rsquo;s like that, but on guitar. Jan Jackson plays drums, and brings his own take on the &lsquo;Soul Stew&rsquo;. I playing bass, like you didn&rsquo;t know. &nbsp;&nbsp; This is a band of serious professionals dedicated to &ldquo;playing&rdquo; music. I&rsquo;ll tell you a secret; we&rsquo;ve only played together once, as I write this. A couple of hours, and we had A.) a huge initial songlist to work from, B.) some crazy, funky arrangements of some veritable R&amp;B standards, and C.) one visit from the Police. Here&rsquo;s the &lsquo;pull-quote&rsquo;; &ldquo;A volatile mix of old and new. The sonic equivalent of showing up at your High School reunion in a &rsquo;59 Caddie convertible with mags and a flame paint job!&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp; Okay, I just made that up, and I don&rsquo;t really know what it means but it sounds cool. And it&rsquo;s a better line than &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what it means, but it sounds cool!&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp; KT &amp; the Wicked Gents is a throwback in another way; we actually booked gigs before setting up a MySpace, Facebook, Twitter account, and all the other social network things. We don&rsquo;t have a CD to sell. As of right now, we&rsquo;re &ldquo;just&rdquo; a band! How quaint! How positively &ldquo;1975&rdquo; of us! &nbsp;&nbsp; So, as of now, there&rsquo;s only one way to get a dose of what we&rsquo;re giving out; come see our debut show! Be the first on your block! You&rsquo;ll be the guy (or gal) saying &ldquo;I saw their first show! Now they&rsquo;re bigger than&hellip;than&hellip;I dunno&hellip;the DMV!&rdquo; Here&rsquo;s the info; KT &amp; the Wicked Gents The Grand Premiere Debut! Thursday October 8th, 8 to 10PM Armando&rsquo;s 707 Marina Vista, Martinez &nbsp;&nbsp; Think about it; our first show. We don&rsquo;t even know what&rsquo;s going to happen! I do know this, though; with these guys, it will be awesome. And you&rsquo;ll be home by 10:30! Why would you think of missing it? http://www.myspace.com/kathytejcka http://www.armandosmartinez.com
   Twenty three. It’s a good number. Twenty Four, on the other hand, is a great number. Willie Mays wore 24. Twenty Four has a lot of symmetry to it. Two dozen. Six times four. Two feet equals twenty four inches. Endless possibilities with 24.

   All of which is why I’m happy to announce a brand new band; KT & the Wicked Gents. I haven’t talked about this band at all, because I wanted to make sure it was happening. I didn’t want to start talking it up, and then have nothing going on! “Yeah, we’re excellent! When we start gigging, it will take the world by storm, dude!”

   KT & the Wicked Gents is a lot more than a lip service band. KT stands for Kathy Trejcka (rhymes with ‘Fresca’), the excellent keyboardist and vocalist from Johnny Nitro’s band. The guitar section features the incomparable Kelly Back, my partner in crime from the now defunct Wingnut Adams band and the occasional Miko Marks gig. Also featured on guitar is Nick Montes. Remember when the 49ers had Joe Montana and Steve Young? It’s like that, but on guitar. Jan Jackson plays drums, and brings his own take on the ‘Soul Stew’. I playing bass, like you didn’t know.

   This is a band of serious professionals dedicated to “playing” music. I’ll tell you a secret; we’ve only played together once, as I write this. A couple of hours, and we had A.) a huge initial songlist to work from, B.) some crazy, funky arrangements of some veritable R&B standards, and C.) one visit from the Police. Here’s the ‘pull-quote’;

“A volatile mix of old and new. The sonic equivalent of showing up at your High School reunion in a ’59 Caddie convertible with mags and a flame paint job!”

   Okay, I just made that up, and I don’t really know what it means but it sounds cool. And it’s a better line than “I don’t know what it means, but it sounds cool!”

   KT & the Wicked Gents is a throwback in another way; we actually booked gigs before setting up a MySpace, Facebook, Twitter account, and all the other social network things. We don’t have a CD to sell. As of right now, we’re “just” a band! How quaint! How positively “1975” of us!

   So, as of now, there’s only one way to get a dose of what we’re giving out; come see our debut show! Be the first on your block! You’ll be the guy (or gal) saying “I saw their first show! Now they’re bigger than…than…I dunno…the DMV!” Here’s the info;

KT & the Wicked Gents
The Grand Premiere Debut!
Thursday October 8th, 8 to 10PM
Armando’s
707 Marina Vista, Martinez

   Think about it; our first show. We don’t even know what’s going to happen! I do know this, though; with these guys, it will be awesome. And you’ll be home by 10:30! Why would you think of missing it?

http://www.myspace.com/kathytejcka
http://www.armandosmartinez.com


]]> Thu, 01 Oct 2009 23:57:41 GMT F954E3AC16544B1091408EF124FBD7D0 http://kennanshaw.com/blog20078.cfm?feature=27307&postid=85009 &nbsp;&nbsp; I go to New Orleans a lot. It&rsquo;s what my Mom calls &ldquo;My Happy Place&rdquo;. Subsequently, I write about New Orleans a lot. Go with what you know, right? So I figured, having just gotten back from another lovely trip, I&rsquo;d better do my travelogue, but I don&rsquo;t want to get all &lsquo;rhapsodizing&rsquo; this time. More &lsquo;Just the facts&rsquo;. &nbsp;&nbsp; Our place is uptown, a block from St. Charles Avenue, with its picturesque Oaks and the iconic Street Cars rumbling along, just across from the Garden District. The trees and power lines are still festooned with Mardi Gras Beads from March&hellip; &nbsp;&nbsp; Sorry. &lsquo;Festooned&rsquo; is definitely a rhapsodizing word. &nbsp;&nbsp; Anyway, Thursday morning we made our way down to Magazine Street, and found coffee and free wi-fi at Community Coffee. This became a ritual right away, and a good &lsquo;jumping off point&rsquo; for our daily adventures. &nbsp;&nbsp; Another thing that marked this trip was free eats. We enjoyed gifted meals at the Palace Caf&eacute;, thanks to the Sevilla&rsquo;s. The Palace has an Old school N&rsquo;awlin&rsquo;s feel, and to have lunch there is to be surrounded with the cities working business men and women. The service is elegant, the surroundings refined, and the food is wonderful. I described my Pecan Pie as having the ability to &ldquo;drive lesser men to suicide, because life would hold nothing but disappointment from now on.&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp; That was not rhapsodizing. I was just quoting an earlier rhapsodic description. &nbsp;&nbsp; We also had a fabulous meal at Emiril&rsquo;s Delmonico, courtesy of Tim and Patty Onorato . Swanky joint, but the staff had a refreshingly casual feel to the service. The food was good, and the evening felt leisurely and fun. I got the feeling that when you put Emiril&rsquo;s name on a joint, you attract a certain clientele, and raise expectations fairly high. One man across the room got mad and said &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve gotten better service at Olive Garden!&rdquo; I don&rsquo;t know what he was so mad about, but the slower, lingering over your meal service pace may have thrown off someone who&rsquo;s more accustomed to&hellip;well, Olive Garden. &nbsp;&nbsp; Also, beignets were eaten (and powdered sugar spilled), the Blackened Gator Bites at Ralph &amp; Kackoo&rsquo;s are still outstanding, as is the crawfish etouffee. Y&rsquo;know; the staples. &nbsp;&nbsp; Musically, it was a special trip. Thursday night, Eric Lindell was playing a free concert in Lafayette Square. I haven&rsquo;t seen Eric for a while. He just came through the Bay Area a couple of weeks ago, but I was in Vancouver, and the number I had for him wasn&rsquo;t any good. Eric&rsquo;s really, really good. Great singer, great songwriter, and everything&rsquo;s is so smooth and funky. He sounded great, and I got a chance to say &lsquo;howdy&rsquo; and reconnect a little. &nbsp;&nbsp; Friday night my &ldquo;Internet Bassist Forum&rdquo; buddy Peter Fuller had a blues gig at a little neighborhood bar out on the Jefferson Highway, and invited me to come sit in. The band threw solos at me on the first three songs. I&rsquo;m pretty sure I used up all the notes there were to play. &ldquo;Doctor Bob&rdquo;, notable Fender bass collector was there, with a fabulous 7 pound &rsquo;59 P-Bass. Drooled on that a little. &nbsp;&nbsp; Saturday night, I had a gig with Sweet Jones at Checkpoint Charlie&rsquo;s on Esplanade! Some of you may remember them from the story about Jon, my friend in Holland, emailing me that a guy from New Orleans on his Tele Forum needed a rhythm section in San Jose. Matt and Melissa are the sweetest people you could meet, and they gave me the gig right away when I said I was coming to town. So I had my rig thanks to Peter lending me all kinds of stuff, and I had a great time! Matt is a hell of a guitarist. &nbsp;&nbsp; So in the last couple of months I&rsquo;ve had the pleasure of going to Nashville to play country, and going to New Orleans to play blues. The fact that I represented myself very well in both settings is kind of an ego boost. &nbsp;&nbsp; Sunday was all about Mark Johnson, my guitar slinging buddy who quit California temperate climes to become the best guitarist in Hammond. The adjustment has had its rocky patches, but I tried to encourage Mark to see the big picture; you&rsquo;re playing guitar five nights a week, and you&rsquo;re considered something of a celebrity. Beats working construction! We had a great time running around the Quarter with Mark and his friend Katie, who was pretty funny too, so she fit right in. &nbsp;&nbsp; Bourbon Street; ever been? If you have you&rsquo;ll understand what I&rsquo;m about to say; Bourbon Street is where music goes to die. That may seem strange in a Mecca like New Orleans, but when the sun goes down, all the bad, soul-sucking &lsquo;classic rock&rsquo; bands take over and the street is awash in &ldquo;Sweet Home Alabama&rdquo; and &ldquo;Play That Funky Music Whiteboy&rdquo;. Sure, it&rsquo;s also got strippers. A lot of strippers, in fact. But if you want to hear music, head out of the Quarter, across Esplanade into the Marigny Triangle, and go down Frenchmen Street. Tons of clubs playing the music you came to New Orleans for. &nbsp;&nbsp; Coming home is always hard. Closing up the condo, and taking the shuttle to the airport, just to make your way through security just seems so depressing. So imagine my surprise when, as we stood in line to board our flight, the gate agent came over and asked if I could do him a favor by jumping to the front of the line, and boarding first &ldquo;so you can get your guitar situated&rdquo;. He moved Cindy and I to the front of the line BECAUSE I had a bass guitar! I don&rsquo;t know if it was a Southwest thing, that certain gate agent, or maybe just a New Orleans thing. Probably a combination of all three, because I don&rsquo;t see it happening anywhere else. Just New Orleans.
   Our place is uptown, a block from St. Charles Avenue, with its picturesque Oaks and the iconic Street Cars rumbling along, just across from the Garden District. The trees and power lines are still festooned with Mardi Gras Beads from March…

   Sorry. ‘Festooned’ is definitely a rhapsodizing word.

   Anyway, Thursday morning we made our way down to Magazine Street, and found coffee and free wi-fi at Community Coffee. This became a ritual right away, and a good ‘jumping off point’ for our daily adventures.

   Another thing that marked this trip was free eats. We enjoyed gifted meals at the Palace Café, thanks to the Sevilla’s. The Palace has an Old school N’awlin’s feel, and to have lunch there is to be surrounded with the cities working business men and women. The service is elegant, the surroundings refined, and the food is wonderful. I described my Pecan Pie as having the ability to “drive lesser men to suicide, because life would hold nothing but disappointment from now on.”

   That was not rhapsodizing. I was just quoting an earlier rhapsodic description.

   We also had a fabulous meal at Emiril’s Delmonico, courtesy of Tim and Patty Onorato . Swanky joint, but the staff had a refreshingly casual feel to the service. The food was good, and the evening felt leisurely and fun. I got the feeling that when you put Emiril’s name on a joint, you attract a certain clientele, and raise expectations fairly high. One man across the room got mad and said “I’ve gotten better service at Olive Garden!” I don’t know what he was so mad about, but the slower, lingering over your meal service pace may have thrown off someone who’s more accustomed to…well, Olive Garden.

   Also, beignets were eaten (and powdered sugar spilled), the Blackened Gator Bites at Ralph & Kackoo’s are still outstanding, as is the crawfish etouffee. Y’know; the staples.

   Musically, it was a special trip. Thursday night, Eric Lindell was playing a free concert in Lafayette Square. I haven’t seen Eric for a while. He just came through the Bay Area a couple of weeks ago, but I was in Vancouver, and the number I had for him wasn’t any good. Eric’s really, really good. Great singer, great songwriter, and everything’s is so smooth and funky. He sounded great, and I got a chance to say ‘howdy’ and reconnect a little.

   Friday night my “Internet Bassist Forum” buddy Peter Fuller had a blues gig at a little neighborhood bar out on the Jefferson Highway, and invited me to come sit in. The band threw solos at me on the first three songs. I’m pretty sure I used up all the notes there were to play. “Doctor Bob”, notable Fender bass collector was there, with a fabulous 7 pound ’59 P-Bass. Drooled on that a little.

   Saturday night, I had a gig with Sweet Jones at Checkpoint Charlie’s on Esplanade! Some of you may remember them from the story about Jon, my friend in Holland, emailing me that a guy from New Orleans on his Tele Forum needed a rhythm section in San Jose. Matt and Melissa are the sweetest people you could meet, and they gave me the gig right away when I said I was coming to town. So I had my rig thanks to Peter lending me all kinds of stuff, and I had a great time! Matt is a hell of a guitarist.

   So in the last couple of months I’ve had the pleasure of going to Nashville to play country, and going to New Orleans to play blues. The fact that I represented myself very well in both settings is kind of an ego boost.

   Sunday was all about Mark Johnson, my guitar slinging buddy who quit California temperate climes to become the best guitarist in Hammond. The adjustment has had its rocky patches, but I tried to encourage Mark to see the big picture; you’re playing guitar five nights a week, and you’re considered something of a celebrity. Beats working construction! We had a great time running around the Quarter with Mark and his friend Katie, who was pretty funny too, so she fit right in.

   Bourbon Street; ever been? If you have you’ll understand what I’m about to say; Bourbon Street is where music goes to die. That may seem strange in a Mecca like New Orleans, but when the sun goes down, all the bad, soul-sucking ‘classic rock’ bands take over and the street is awash in “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Play That Funky Music Whiteboy”. Sure, it’s also got strippers. A lot of strippers, in fact. But if you want to hear music, head out of the Quarter, across Esplanade into the Marigny Triangle, and go down Frenchmen Street. Tons of clubs playing the music you came to New Orleans for.

   Coming home is always hard. Closing up the condo, and taking the shuttle to the airport, just to make your way through security just seems so depressing. So imagine my surprise when, as we stood in line to board our flight, the gate agent came over and asked if I could do him a favor by jumping to the front of the line, and boarding first “so you can get your guitar situated”. He moved Cindy and I to the front of the line BECAUSE I had a bass guitar! I don’t know if it was a Southwest thing, that certain gate agent, or maybe just a New Orleans thing. Probably a combination of all three, because I don’t see it happening anywhere else. Just New Orleans.

]]> Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:34:19 GMT B702B12FA0D8327CC30DC2D8ED43F442