Steve's Space of Bass: Blog

Two Sheds Jackson

Fri, 09 May 2008 02:33:32 GMT

Have a new band - Two Sheds Jackson. Will post more later when there is time, but it's a fun band - great to listen to, great to dance to. We played a great first gig on May 3rd. Working on more bookings - will post info as it comes in.

Check out www.twoshedsjackson.net. It's up and running, but still under constuction.

Best to all! - steve

Still here!

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 18:19:21 GMT

Yes, I haven't written anything for a long time. Lot's of life to live.

White update - not much happening at the moment. Am working toward upgrading the studio - have lot's of JBL speakers for sale! Some power amplifiers, mixers, outboard gear...... let me know if you or someone you know is building a P.A. and needs some great stuff! :)

The other band I've been playing with has been officially named Two Sheds Jackson and it's looking like our first gig will be in early May. Will post more about that later.

Meanwhile, in my day-job life, have been busy - collage events, corportate events, concerts - just did a couple of days with kd lang. I've always admired her voice and she sounds as good or better than the record in person. A great bunch of folks with her. I'd worked with her monitor engineer before - Gordon. Very funny guy and nearly encyclopedic in his knowledge of audio and live sound.

Coming up - the Dalai Lama will be in Seattle for a number of days as part of an event called Seeds of Compassion. Info can be found at http://www.seedsofcompassion.org/ He will be appearing at a number of locations and events during the time he is here. My crew and I will be at the University of Washington at the Bank of America Arena for three days of events, including one with the Seattle Symphony and a choir of at least 200. That should be fun to mix!

And now I turn, look out the window, and on this 28th day of March, mixed rain and snow is falling from the skies. But, hey -it's Spring!

All the best to all - steve

Happy New Year!

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 20:07:14 GMT

Wow - two months since any writing in this space. Never got around to the Woodstick podcast, as you can see. Still like the idea, though. Will certainly experiment with it sometime in the near future....

Happy new year to all and may the best come your way!

Resolutions? We don't need no stinkin' resolutions! But I do have plans for several music projects this year. Over-ambitious? Probably. But what the hell, you gotta go for something! Have started work on a solo CD, with a blues and rock feel to it. One song is pretty much completed so far. More on their way..... White is still alive, although there will be some changes in the works. Perhaps even a name change? Hmmmm..... With Phil Davis in the band, and more time to write and think the whole thing through, it may be a different sounding project than the last record. Actually, I'm certain it will be a different sound. Time will tell..... And if those two things aren't enough to work on - besides my day job, family, etc - I'm also playing in a four piece blues band, yet to be named. 16 Eyes is one possible name (four guys who all wear glasses :). We plan to do some little gigs in the Seattle area this year. This one is pretty fun, as there is no pressure, no real expectations, just some good players who like to play for the fun of it. I'm singing a lot of the songs, so that's a dimension of the band that also draws me in.

So little time and so much to do.....

Still Here!

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 03:02:15 GMT

It's been a month since the last post - wow. Busy month - lot's of work, kids in school, music in the studio, some rehearsals with another group of musicians, and White playing Woodstick. My buddie Paul suggested I do a podcast, since so many people are doing blogs. Not a bad idea! Am not in the position to do a live one, but I took a mini-disc recorder and wandered around Woodstick, gathering some sounds that I'll use in my first podcast experiment. It may not be done until after this weekend, but will give it a shot.....

Woodstick was quite the scene - more drummers than I've ever seen in one place at one time. And the sound! Incredible. I haven't seen an official count yet, but there had to have been at least 300 drummers and drum kits there. Our portion was playing Imagine with all the drummers. Alan had his "Imagine drum set", the one he used on the recording, and everyone played along. There were 2 conductors, who really helped keep everyone together.

A few photos from the extravaganza:

The group photo, left to right: Michael Schrieve, your's truely, Kevin Currie, Carmine Appice, Alan White, Donn Bennett, and Scot Mercado.

The band on stage is the seminal NW rock band, The Wailers - THE first band to record Louie, Louie.

Check out http://www.woodstick2007.com/ for a recap, and I still intend to put a podcast together that will include some of the sounds of the event.

Quite a month

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 19:53:59 GMT

End of summer, beginning of Autum. It's been a busy month. Will need to catch up over several posts - not enough time for it all right now.

Genele and I saw Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein, the Musical on it's official opening night here in Seattle. It was a warm up run before it goes to Broadway. Very good production - I highly recommend it! Funny. Especially if you are a fan of the movie. Genele was aquainted with Mel when she lived in LA, and we got a chance to say hi during the intermission. Very nice man. And he wrote 18 songs - all but one - for the show in his typical Mel Brooks style with with his signauture humor. I hadn't realized he was a songwriter, but he said that's where he started. Wow. So that was on a Thursday night, and Genele gets a call from Mel on Friday to say how great it was to see her again and to meet me and to stay in touch. Then Sunday morning at 8:30am, the phone rings - I say "who the hell is calling this early on Sunday morning?" It was Mel, saying he was leaving the next day and didn't want to leave town without saying goodbye. I think he likes Genele.. :)

Over the Labor Day holiday, we went to Park City, Utah for the wedding of some good friends of ours. One night in Park City and two nights at the Sundance Resort, owned by Robert Redford. Beautiful place, just beautiful. I ended up playing a couple of songs with the band in the Owl Bar the night before the wedding and again with the band who played the wedding. Everyone had a great time - I hope to write more about it later.....

Then a few days after coming home from Park City, we took a family vacation to one of our favorite spots on earth, San Juan Island. Nine days. Ahhhh. Great house on the water, with a dock, and one of our friends offered to loan us his new skiff for the week. So we were out on the water almost every day. Got to spend some time with some of our good friends up there. One of the highlights was the seafood feast we do most every time we go up to the islands. Fresh crab, clams, oysters, prawns, salmon and more. Man was that great! Makes my mouth water just thinking about it.....

Now, back into the fray. The band will be getting together again sometime next month to play a song or two at an event called Woodstick. Us and about 500 drummers - that should prove interesting! Some new music is starting to float around, and Paul Secord and I are getting together this evening to discuss and/or plan some changes to the band website. Time to freshen things up!

Hempfest

Wed, 22 Aug 2007 00:33:41 GMT

I've done some funny gigs in my life, but this one was right up there. I'm still chuckling about it - about the entire scene. This is a festival that has been going on for, I was told, 31 years now, and is perhaps the largest festival - of it's kind - in the world. And I have to say, in many ways, it felt like we were transported back about 31 years. Quite a scene.

The park the festival was held in is on the waterfront in downtown Seattle - it's quite narrow, but very long, at least a mile or possible two. I came in from the north and was transported to the stage on an electric cart, driven by a guy named Levi. There was another festival worker on the cart as well, to help maneuver through the crowds along the pathway. We passed 4 other stages and many vendors selling wares along the way. Levi had a duck whistle - shaped like a duck's bill - that he blew the entire time, to part the crowds. His buddy was yelling, as well, to get the people's attention, so as not to run into anyone. It was hilarious! I told Levi I wished I would have had a little recorder to have captured the chaos along the way - duck sounds and shouting for a good ten minutes as we worked our way through. And as one would expect at and event named Hempfest, there were numerous aromas to smell along the way - even with the police presence throughout the festival.

Speaking of the police - there were a number of them cruising around on horses - Kevin told me last night that he was walking along a path, I think it was when he was leaving, pulling his suitcase along, and had the instinct to look down just before he would have taken a full step into a nice steaming pile of horse dung - mmmmm, nice!

So has anyone mentioned what incredibly terrible weather we've been having here this summer? Saturday night, before the show, it was litarally pissing rain all night. And the next morning. And into the afternoon. Phil and Karl had gone down for an early load in - you could get vehicles in only very early, before the event opened, and Phil told me there was no cover on the stage. I thought wow - just our luck. But as it did with our last gig, the weather gods smiled upon us and the skies lightened up - even a little blue sky peeking through. But did I mention the weather here this summer pretty much SUCKS?!?!?!

So I get to the backstage area and find its a bit of a circus - quite a scene. Lots of characters at every turn. However, everyone was very friendly and nice and very happy that we were there. The rest of the band was aleady there - I saw Alan first, across the way, and he just looked at me and laughed. He told me where the hospitality tent was, and added that I might not want to stay in there very long, as it was filled with a smoke of a certain kind.... :) And yes, I had far too much to remember to hang around in that tent very long.....

So I wander around the backstage compound, taking in the sights, chatting with friends and meeting new people. Listening to a number of speakers, talking between the bands, about how hemp should be legal, etc, etc. Truth is, I agree with them, but at an event like this, they're preaching to the choir. And truthfully, most of the crowd seemed to just want to come for the party. At one point, Karl and I peek over one of the fences to look at the scene on the beach. And what a scene it was. People everywhere, in smaller groups, and it seemed they were all smoking big fatties. A very funny scene! I came across some first aid workers in one of the tents, attending to someone, laying flat on his back, who apparently had too good of a time......

Went into the trailer where we stored our gear, and was - kind of - our dressing room, and ran into the band that was just about to go on to play the set before us. The Supersonic Soul Pimps. http://supersonicsoulpimps.com. I had heard their name before, but had never seen them. So here we are, four of them and me, crowded into a very small space and they all seem to have shaved heads and are wearing bright yellow, shiny tights. They were all in good moods, joking around, telling me I must be a brave man to come into the dressing room with a bunch of guys dressed like that. I had to get into a bag of mine and tried to band my knees, rather than bend over, but they all started whooping it up saying, " Hey he's bending over - very dangerous around here!" Yeah, yeah - heard that one before - but it was all in good fun. They went on to play a very lively, energetic set. An entertaining band.

So it became our time to get on stage and ready to play. Once again there were a number of speakers while we got ourselves set. No sound check, just quick little check, checks into the mikes and some verbal direction to the monitor engineer. So then they do the big "It's 420" thing, most everyone in the crowd lights up, and the people on stage unveil "Toking Man", a take of of a famous downtown Seattle art piece - Hammering Man - right above Alan's head. A giant guy with an even more giant joint in his hand. Alan and I looked at each other and once again, just laughed. The crowd, of course, went wild. (We'll be posting at least a few photos from the show, if not some video, and Toking Man will be very easy to spot!)

So they give us a very nice intro and off we went. Turns out Alan couldn't really hear much of any of us - he was on a riser, but waaaaay back behind the rest of us. So the first couple of songs were done by brail. But you just go for it - and we did. There were a few funny moments throughout the set, due to some of us not hearing each other, or ourselves, but all in all I think we did ok and didn't embarrass ourselves...... Everyone really seemed to love the set. It was a blast to play Tempis Fugit onstage again. Everyone was pretty "on" on that one, in particular. We had to drop one song from the set due to time constraints, so we ended the set with Tempis Fugit and Changes. Fun to see lots of people in the crowd singing along to Changes.

And then in an instant, we were finished. Then the chaos begain all over again - getting offstage what gear we brought - a good part of the backline equipment was provided. And Phil - the keyboard master - had his entourage whip his sizeable keyboard rig on and off stage in record time. It was like a small army in action!

So then, a bit of chatting, going out front to find family and friends, we talked to a few folks who loved the set, then started the wheels in motion to get someone to find someone who can find someone else who can find the keys to a golf cart who can drive me and my gang and gear for the ten minutes or so, back through the throngs of Hempfesters, back to my car to make the great escape from Hempfest.

All in all, a very strange trip, indeed......

The world keeps turning

Fri, 17 Aug 2007 19:45:54 GMT

Alright - I've finally done it - created a MySpace page - www.myspace.com/steveboyceplace

Stop by and become a friend! I have one already..... :)

We're very up for the show in a couple of days. May be the largest crowd we've play to yet. Phil is rockin on the keys!

I hear there will be a two camera video shoot, so perhaps we'll be able to get some video onto whitemusic.net.

Was sorry to hear about John Wetton's health problems and the cancellation of Asia's Canada and Western US dates. But it's great the Docs caught it before it caught him! I hear the surgery was a sucess and all is well. Speedy recovery, John!

Our live sound company, Morgan Sound, has been nominated for the Northwestern US Hometown Hero award by the readers of FOH magazine. We were nominated and won in 2004. It would be great to do it again and YOU CAN HELP - if you happen to be a subcriber to Front Of House magazine!!

If you are, go to www.fohonline.com/hometown and vote for Morgan Sound! If you are in the audio business, you can get a free subscription by going to www.fohonline.com and signing up - it's very painless and is a pretty damn fine magazine for us Audio Heads.

Thoughts of the day

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 02:33:44 GMT

Summer is raging - Love this time of year! It's the big Seattle Seafair weekend here - you either totaly embrace it, get into it, go to the events, or hideout and lay low.... The Blue Angels are flying all over the sky - how can you not get a rush from watching their show? The hydroplanes are revving up, making plenty of noise, and thrilling all those who are close enough to watch. And Sunday the big races will be televised. A Seattle tradition. As a kid, we made wooden hydros, attached a string to them, and pulled them behind our bicycles all day during the summer.

Band practice again tomorrow - getting ready for the HempFest on August 19th. Mr. Zulu asked me if we were really going on at 4:20pm. I said yes, that's what I was told, and was told it was Prime Time for the HempFest. It took us all a while to realize the code 420. Once we finally realized the connection, all we could really say was "Duh....".

Phil Davis is just killing us on keyboards. The guy has such incredible talent and energy. Last rehearsal he brought in a keyboard, new to us, that does incredible vocal sounds. It's a Roland V-Synth with some sort of vocal card. He sings or speaks into the mic while holding down notes and the most amazing sounds come out! It's factoring in, big time, to Tempis Fugit vocals as well as Changes. No samples, no faked vocals. Real time cool vocal stuff....

In my life as an audio guy, we almost ended up doing a couple of Asia shows in Canada. It's not going to happen this time around - would have loved to see Goeff again - it's been a while. But with the timing of them coming through this part of the world, if their Vancouver show were to cancel for some reason, perhaps we could get him down for a guest appearance at the HempFest.... you never know.....

So Alan has a MySpace page now - something we should have done with the band a long time ago - but he has a couple of our songs on his page, and we've been getting great response from all over the world on the songs. Meeting a lot of new friends. Much appreciated!

So - anyone in the vicinity - -come to the show at at HempFest, in Seattle, August 19th - it's free! Gotta love that - and since we're playing at 4:20 - primetime - be prepared for sweet aromas in the air..... there will be a lot of people there, so get there early - lot's of other bands playing as well. Should be quite the time...... Phil pointed out to me that they've listed us at the top of the performer list: http://hempfest.org/drupal/?q=node/14

Hope everyone is having a great summer!

Back to you soon -

August date confirmed

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 01:26:59 GMT

August 19th, 4:20pm. HempFest on the Seattle waterfront. A large crowd expected.

This is a festival that has happened each summer for many years. I've never attended, but I know many who have and have had a most excellent time.

Phil is going to play keys with us again. We're talking about what songs to play in the set - will probably have a little pleasant surprise for the Yes fans in the crowd.......

Happy birthday to Hamilton, who turns 21 today!

And rather than going out to the bars to tear up the town, he's playing an intimate set with his band, Song Sparrow Research, at a fairly private gathering.

I have so much love and repect for him - not only going to the University of Washington for the last 3 years studying Biology and Math, he's recorded an album a year, three years in a row and is currently working on a new one. Even if he wasn't my son, I'd be in awe......

Has everyone recovered from iPhone mania? Wow - if we could only be clever enough to market the band like that -

More on the show

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 04:30:41 GMT

So the weather was certainly a factor - kind of a schitzoid kind of a day - it went from fairly warm and slightly breezy to windy as hell and pretty damn cold. As I was walking from the trailer, which was our dressing room, toward the stage to go on, I saw a flash in the sky and thought - whoa- I hope that was fireworks (the Tulalip Amphitheater is on an Indian Reservation). But no, it was the real deal. My buddy Reek told me after the set he saw lightining all around the area - but fortunately, none happened close to us during the show.

But man, it got cold! Any time I had an extended period where I didn't have to play, my left hand went right into my pants pocket. No - not for that reason! Anything to keep some warmth going. I heard Todd say, about four songs into their set - "I can't feel my frickin' fingers!"

But all of us in the band had a great time. And although the audience was rather small compared to when we played there with Peter Frampton, they, also, seemed to be having a great time. We got a great reponse from them. Went over to the merch table after our set and met a lot of new folks, as well as seeing numerous friends and familiar faces. Our thanks to all who braved the potentially funky weather. Paul and Jen, Reek and Lydia, Gib and Joan, Mr. Zulu and Mikey, Larry, Mary, Gina, Denny, and so many more...... And also, Eric and Andre from the local sound company for taking good care of us, and thanks to my buddy Redford, who is mixing the New Cars tour, for being so generous with the console and letting Tim have at it.....

It happened

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 06:43:36 GMT

Weather be damned, the show happened. A smaller, but enthusiastic crowd braved the potentially sucky weather and everyone seemed to have a great time. It went from almost hot on stage, at the first of the set, to pretty frickin' cold within a couple of songs. Lightining was periodically flashing around the area, but it didn't rain at all until about 2/3 of the way through the New Cars set.

Phil did an excellent job on the keys - especially considering we had our only rehearsal, all together, yesterday. He really worked his butt off, in a short period of time, to learn the set. And he brought a great energy to the stage. He's agreed to play with us in August at a festival in Seattle. More info to follow. But the rest of the gang dusted the songs off in short order and everyone felt pretty comfortable playing the set.

We got great support from Tim Harding on the front of house mix, Matty and his crew on and off stage, and Phil brought an army of help along to give us all a hand. Much appreciated!

I have to say though, the rain during the New Cars set gave me a chance to hook up with Todd Rungren again. We had spent a little time together a couple of times nine or so years ago, and I was hoping to get a chance to say hi again. They didn't show up until the middle of our set, so I didn't get to see him before the show. But they took a little break when the rain hit during their set, and he and I ran into each other as he was coming off the stage. We started chatting, while walking, and he invited me into their bus while they waited. So he and I sat in the lounge area while the rest of the band was elsewhere, and talked technology and about a few mutual friends. He's been a hero of mine for many years and it was great to have a chance to hook up again. Saw him again after they finished and got a few pics - here a a few of me, Genele, Hadley, and Haddyn with Todd.....

Day of

Sun, 24 Jun 2007 18:11:18 GMT

Rehearsals went great - everyonen in good moods, played great. Phil, on keyboards, was awesome! It had been many, many years since we played together, but I knew he was still as good, or better than way back then. He had played in a band, years ago, called Bighorn, signed to Columbia Records. He kicks ass.....

At this point, we're just hoping the weather cooperates tonight. Should be a good set, no matter.....

Understanding

Sat, 23 Jun 2007 00:59:09 GMT

Being in a band can be the most wonderful and the worst experiences of one's life. Playing music makes us happy. The business of music can be difficult, frustrating, and more - however it, or the lack thereof, has never dampened my desire to make and play music. This will be the first show we've played since January. It'll be great to play again. Are we going to make any money? Are we going to sell many CD's? None of us know the answers to those questions. But the answers to those questions are not why we play. We play because we love to. It feeds our souls.

There are those who thought this band was over. Hell, I've certainly had some of those thoughts myself. I play music with other people sometimes, so does Alan, so does Karl. But that doesn't mean we don't love this band. There is still much more to come from White. Much more..... :) Perhaps we need to work on enlarging our egos so we feel compelled to write about ourselves more, all over the internet! Ok - just joking........... maybe there's someone out there who wants to do that for us.......... :)

Bottom line - there are a few people who seem to want to judge our actions (or inactions) - but who can judge something they don't understand?

----------------------------------------------------

Oh yeah - one person comes to mind - he still lives in the White House.....

Playing again

Wed, 20 Jun 2007 05:08:19 GMT

It's been a while - many things have happened worth writing about - but only so much time -

But today's news is the band is going to play on a bill with the New Cars featuring Todd Rundgren. Short notice. June 24th. Tulalip Amphitheater. 6pm we play.

In my last band MerKaBa, we had the rotating drummer situation. In this band, we have the rotating keyboard situation. But I'm very happy to say my old friend Phil Davis, aka Peter Davis, will be filling the keyboard position. The guy can play anything. It will be great to play with him again.

More to follow.......

R & R Hall of Fame

Fri, 16 Mar 2007 01:52:43 GMT

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - I saw probably the last 2/3 of the show. Came in on Sammy and Michael doing the Van Halen song. Kind of strange, as neither is in the band now, but at least someone showed up! Sammy's a likeable guy - I did some work with him many years ago. Didn't have personal contact with him, but he was around, hangin with the crew, being a regular guy. I wasn't into his music much, but have liked him ever since, just from his vibe. And he makes a pretty damn fine tequila......

Everybody seemed pretty jacked up about the Grand Master Flash thing. I'm happy for them, but it was pretty funny watching them perform for a bunch of - at least - middle-aged white folks.

Eddie Vedder's intro for REM was certainly lengthy, but entertaining. Eddie is a big fan of music and musicians, and it was easy to see from his in-depth intro. Not sure what Peter Buck's problem was, though. Certainly pounding the wine on stage, then seemed pissed off about his amp or something during the performance. My old friend Scott McCaughey, who has been one of their side-men for many years, seemed to be asking him several times if he was ok. Peter finally tossed his amp off the stage and into the audience at the end of their last song. Nice touch. I've met Peter only once, but he was a great guy and we spent quite a bit of time chatting about music, bands, and musicians that we knew mutually. Must have just been having a bad night.....

The big finale was weird for me. I just don't get Patty Smith and her songs. Never did a thing for me except to change the radio channel if I ever heard her. But lots of people love her - just not me!

I'm afraid that what sucks about acts like her and Grand Master Flash getting in is that artists like Yes, Genesis, and Todd Rundgren probably never will. Seriously too bad. But who knows, if enough people make a big enough stink about it, perhaps the powers that be might reconsider. I know my friend Mr. Zulu - Michael - was sending around a petition of sorts promoting the idea of Yes being inducted for the HOF.

I mean, really - if Percy Sledge is in - for his one-hit career, shouldn't Yes also be there? They've certainly had more than one hit - and their influence on progressive rock continues to infulence. If Blondie is there, shouldn't Peter Gabriel and Genesis be in? I mean, come on - which one has the substance? And ok, Todd Rundgren may seem a little obscure to some, but his talent and career as a song writer, perfomer, and producer is something that should not be over-looked.

Anyone sick of politics yet?

A clarification

Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:10:48 GMT

i just received a note from a friend who read the last post. It seemed 'it are going in separate directions right now" may have been interpreted as the band being finished. That's not the case. Everyone is doing their own thing right now and no one person is really putting energy or effort into the band. That's all I meant to say. You get what you give and right now not much of either is happening.....

As I was writing the last post, I didn't write a number of thoughts in my mind at the time, but had been thinking about many decisions our band has made, especially at the beginning. It's easy to see in hindsight, how one bad decision can easily lead to two. Perhaps I'll get that out of my system soon, but not enough time right now.

But I had a few minutes earlier and decided to check out a.m.y., as I hadn't looked in on them for a long time. I checked out a thread on The Syn and just started laughing. It's the same old shit, different time. But now, instead of Nardelli being the only "insider" to post, Gerard is airing his grievences as well. And they are going back and forth. With the other posters chiming in along the way. Very funny on one hand and kind of sad and sick on the other. Gerard has my empathy. My band felt the sting of broken promises. We were just too danm naive. And not just on that front - but that's another story.....

Misc. Musings

Mon, 12 Mar 2007 22:37:42 GMT

So I watched The Grammy Awards show and didn't write anything immediately after. I thought about it for a moment, then passed. But it was a fine TV show. There were some good performances. Beyonce was great. Christina was really quite good doing the James Brown song. It was entertaining to watch, but I felt a bit disconnected from the whole thing. I dunno, maybe it was just me. Or perhaps I just don't care about a lot of the current music these days. Maybe it feels too much like a fashion show. But I've certainly seen worse!

Tonight is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Grand Master Flash and the Furious Five - the first of the rap acts inducted. These guys had some substance, and a few things to say - unlike a large portion of the crap that gets shoved down the consumers' collective throats today. REM. Of course. They rock, have had hit record after hit record, and are still together and relevant today. Good for them! The Ronettes - ok, a little sweet for my tastes, but certainly noteworthy. Patty Smith - zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.... oh, I'm sorry, did I doze off there? Hmmmm - this one I just don't get at all. Except for the fact that I imagine there is an East Coast/New Yorkish contingent on the RRHF committe that pushed her through. Seems all politics on this one - unless you were from New York or went there to see her in the seedy punk clubs, she has no relevance whatsoever. Who gets into the Hall with only one radio song - a Bruce cover at that? I don't wish her ill will, I just don't get it. The English prog-rock line of bands is ignored and she gets in? Geez! And that brings us to Van Halen. Well, ok, I guess. They certainly made an impact. They were damn huge for a while. Eddie popularized his style of guitar playing, and David Lee Roth certainly made a spectical of himself - like him or hate him. Sammy is a much better singer - and a pretty good guy, and none of them will be at the ceremony. Their bass player, I hear, will be there, but he'll be the only one. They wouldn't let DLR sing, so he said, screw 'em.

This has been happening at that ceremony, certainly last year and this - some of the people who made the songs, recorded the songs, toured as the band, have not been allowed to play their own stuff. Debbie Harry screwed her original band last year, and this year it will be some all-star config playing Van Halen songs. Geez - I could go to the nearest hotel bar and hear that........

As for our band...... it seems everyone is going in their own directions right now. Without management, or even an advocate, pretty much nothing is happening. I've been in my studio playing with some new ideas. Don't know that it's going to be music for this band, though. Don't know yet exactly what it will turn into, other than something new. I'm craving new and fresh now. Something that isn't bogged down with a bunch of old and funky karma. Something that has new, fresh, positive energy. Music without expectations, or for some people, desperation. I have no illusions. I've played and made music all my life because I love music. The chances, anymore, of having a hit record are probably about as good as chances of any of us winning the Mega Millions lottery. But I don't care - that isn't and never has been what motivates me to play music. The reward is the music itself -all along the way. The new riff, the new key. The new lyric, the new mix. The new emotion that a song evokes. It feels good. And if it feels good to me, then there will be at least a certain number of others who I can share it with for their enjoyment, too. That's the reason to create music. It's about the feelings it can bring to you and me. It's about how it makes us feel inside. That's where the truth is.

UK and Denmark To Begin Pullout

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 02:03:27 GMT

How about that? The day after I post, asking for everyone to Visualize Peace Today, Britian and Denmark announce they are about to begin withdrawing their troops from Iraq. Hmmmmmm.......... Geez, this visualization stuff seems powerful! Let's keep it up! ;)

Unfortunately, I'm not betting any money that Bush will change his mind. Hell, he could have everyone in the world disagreeing with him and as long as he and Cheney are still in power, he's going to do what he damn well pleases. To admit they were wrong would be too much. But the scary thing is - he thinks everyone else is wrong and he is right. He believes his own twisted logic. Not that I'm stating anything new here.....

This whole thing is about The Project for the New American Century. If you haven't seen or heard of this before and want to read something really scary go to http://www.newamericancentury.org/statementofprinciples.htm. That is just their Statement of Principals page. Check out the names at the bottom. A who's who of who got us all into this mess. And if you really have the stomache for it, cruise around the rest of their web site. This has been out in the open for a decade now.

On that note, let's think positive thoughts and go back to Visualizing Peace Today!

The U.S. vs John Lennon

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 02:28:38 GMT

John Lennon meant a great deal to many people. For many reasons. I remember seeing The Beatles for the first time on the Ed Sullivan show - John, Paul, George, and Ringo. Ringo was always fun to watch, bobbing his head around, pounding the skins, almost seeming oblivious to the shrieking, screaming audience. George seemed rather serious, yet animated. We found out later he had the flu that day. Paul was certainly the cute one, sang great, smiled great, and played that Hofner bass left-handed! Then there was John. Confident, amused, and out to rock anyone within listening range. He almost seemed to be holding court. Certainly in control of the situation. The big brother in the band, the one the rest looked up to.

And there were the press conferences. Through them, we came to know John's humor and witty sarcasm. Here was a guy - a kid, really - who all of the sudden had the world press following the band's every move and thoughts - and John took delight in having a laugh with them - and at them - at the same time. The others in the band were funny, too, but it was John who usually had the most bite in his comments. He knew what time of day it was. He knew that Beatlemania was kind of a cartoonish phenomenom. But it was his job and he loved his job. And he did it well. So why not have a little fun with it, eh? As the Beatles' music progressed, so did their knowledge and view of the world. And through that, they brought the rest of us along, as well. They helped us open our eyes as we were growing up, to see things from a vantage point - a higher view - than we may have been able to achieve in the sheltered or closed off lives that many of us lived in.

John continued to speak his mind. Sometimes it got him into trouble. Sometimes people just thought he had lost it. Some were just bewildered. But he kept making great music. And much of his music had something to say. Some of it profound. Some songs became anthems. He touched us in ways many could not describe in words. Some didn't even realize it until he was gone, some knew all along. To me, he somehow felt like my big brother. The one who helped you learn about life. The one who helped you learn about love. The one who would stand up for you when you were bullied. The one who stood up and spoke because people would listen to him. His celebrity gave him a ready audience. With the power of that celebrity John was able to speak out about causes important to him, causes he believed in. Best remembered for his anti-war stance - the Peace Movement - he also spoke out about other causes, from feminism to hospital care, and did so effectively. Every time John performed, after leaving The Beatles, he played for free. He took no money. He was in a unique postition of having an audience, not needing the money, and having strong beliefs. He played for causes he believed in.

I recently watched the documentary The U.S. vs John Lennon. For those of us old enough to remember those times, it is a great reminder of what the times were like and what a great champion we had in John. For those who were too young, or not even born yet, this documentary provides an excellent history lesson about the political climate at the time. And a reminder of how, dispite all the things we now know and have learned, history will continue to repeat itself until we hava all learned our lessons and grow as a civilization.

Tyrants will come and go. Tyranny, it seems, will always exist. But they can only do what we allow them to.

If John were alive today, he would be a most vocal opponent of the war in Iraq. His fearless beliefs and leadership would be bringing thousands upon thousands of people together to bring pressure to end this war. He would be a catalyst to help us remember we are better than this.

The time is now and now is the time. Visualize Peace Today.

Still Kickin'

Fri, 09 Feb 2007 18:47:06 GMT

A good blog or website updated frequently with fresh info, audio, video, comments, etc. It keeps people informed, keeps them interested. Keeps them coming back for more. They tell their friends about it and if they get into it, they tell their friends, and so on. This is the way it works in the music business these days. And we've been a bit lame about it lately.

There is no big bucks record label that will sink hundreds of thousands of dollars into a new band that few have heard of. Unless, of course, they feel there is one hit to be milked out of them. If they are pretty enough, "hip" enough, and the song is catchy enough, then the big label will work it's old-fashioned big-business model and see if they can force one more hit upon the public. And if they can get a pay-off on that, most likely they will move on to the next latest and greatest thing.

I mean really, how many one-hit wonders have been forced on us in the last five or more years? Sure, there are a few artists that stick around, but out of all the musical acts in the universe, how many of them get a shot in the first place, much less have a long, lasting career? The amount of crap that the big label conglomorates shove down our throats is pretty amazing. It's enough to choke a porn star. Flavor of the moment. They've always shoveld shit at us, but there was a time when the substance to shit ratio was higher. Sure they's put out an Archies, but they'd also put out a Genesis. But now, not only are there just a handful of big labels any more, the few that are left have fewer artists and focus on even fewer. They don't sign acts with the idea of building them. They sign them to suck the life out of them as soon as possible and then move on to the next big thing. Vampires come to mind.....

Even a great act like Los Lonely Boys doesn't get the push they should. These guys rock, have great songs, great vocals, great playing, and had they come out years ago would have had a hell of a lot more support than they do in this day and age. But we live in a new age of music and media. There is more music out there now than ever before, but unless you look for it or find out what your friends like these days, you'll be stuck hearing the crap that the big business is trying to shove down our collective throats.

But the good news is that in this new age of media, there are other ways to get the music out. It takes a different mindset and approach, but it is possible. But it takes time, energy, and dedication from the team of people trying to spread the word. Everyone involved needs to be charged up about it. Or at least there needs to be one driving force to market the band, the music. And it needs to be relentless.

It takes time and energy and this is something that has been scattered in this camp for a while now. But I believe it is worth the effort. I believe the music is good. I believe there is an audience for it. But unlike the old model, where the "Rock and Roll Machine" kicked into gear and took care of most everything for the artists, it is now entirely up to us. We are on our own to make it or break it. We are on our own to spread the word. We are on our own to get people excited. We are on our own to make things happen.

And you know what? Even though things have been a bit quiet lately, we're still here and we're still kickin'.

Illusionz - R.I.P.

Wed, 10 Jan 2007 20:12:10 GMT

Just heard that the owner of Illusionz has decided to close it's doors. Really too bad. Not totally surprizing, but still, a shame. A fun gaming faclitiy - laser tag, video games, etc, a restaurant, and the little theater in the back. I played there with MerKaBa at least a couple of times, and rehearsed there many times with White. And now it turns out that, although none of us knew, we played the last hurrah there.

Thanks, Mike, for being such a great host and friend to the band, and we wish you all the best in the future. I know a business such as that would have been a lot of work and taken much heart and soul to keep it running.

The Day After

Mon, 08 Jan 2007 03:54:24 GMT

So Friday evening, after rehearsal, I headed out the door and was met with more blowing winds and lots of rain - nice. And on the drive home it's blowing and raining and people are driving slow in the fast lane, as they always do around here - it drives me nuts! They are so afraid of wind and a bit of water on the road they drive slow on the freeway - that in itself isn't so bad, but when they choose to do that in the fast lanes, it makes me crazy - one would think I'd be used to it by now, but nooooooooo!

Later, as I'm putting my daughters to bed, one of them asks me, "Daddy, is the power going to go out tonight?" And I assure her, "No sweetie, the storm a couple of weeks ago thinned out any of the trees and branches that were weak. Anything that was going to fall down already did. And the wind tonight isn't as strong as it was during the last storm." "Ok daddy", she says with a smile on her face. And about 20 minutes later, with a couple of flashes in the sky, the power went out at our house again. The night before our rescheduled show. All I could do was shake my head and roll my eyes.

So Genele and I light some candles, break out the cards, and play a few games of Rummy before we go to bed, and I, in my mind, know when we wake up in the morning, the power will be back on.

But nooooo! No power in the morning - show day. Can you spell ironic? But after the last storm we bought a generator, so I push it out the back door of the garage and crank it up - power up a few key items and start to go about the day. Alan calls to talk about some show details and I ask him if his power went out - he said it did a couple of times, but came right back on each time. And pretty much everyone else we talked to that morning had their power, so I knew the show would go on...... our power finally came on at noon, Saturday. And we don't live out in the sticks - however, there are a lot of trees in our area. It can happen......

And the show did go on. Went to the venue about 1pm for sound check. Our good friend David Harris (HTS Audio) and his crew - Ted, Gil, and Kenny did a bang up job for us. The room itself has pretty great acoustics, and David's system was great. And having time for an proper sound check is always a nice perk! Headed back home after sound check for a while to change clothes and watch the first part of the Seahawks playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys.

Back to the venue a few hours later and they had a big screen down with the game on for the people who came for the dinner and early arrivals. The game was an agonizing, nail-biter. We watched for a while from the back of the room and I had to get up and leave several times - couldn't stand the botched plays - Once, after getting up after a particularly painful series of plays, I walked out the front door and heard a huge cheer from the pub next door. So I had to go in for a little while to watch more. It would be alternately unbelievably great, then right after, amazingly bad. It was one of those games. Gut-wrenching. Our home team, the Seahawks finally came out on top as the clock ran out. 21 to 20. Whew!

The opening band, Devereaux, was a pleasant surprize. Quite a good band, with a sister-brother combo up front. Good songs, great musicianship, great vocals. I look forward to seeing them again.

There was going to be a magician performing between the opening set and ours, but he had just arrived and wasn't ready to go. So just before we went on we decided to take a break in the middle of our set for him to perform. I didn't really see his act, but could hear the audience reaction, so he must have been entertaining, at least.

We played probably the longest set to date. Paul Sherman was our keyboard player for this gig. He did a bang-up job learning the set. He has a great feel for the music and really fit right in. We love Geoff to death, but we all live here and he lives waaaaay over there - and he's currently quite busy with Wetton-Downes and Asia. Paul did a great job.

And Wayo is become a regular with this band. He adds so much to our sound - harmonies with Kevin and I, rhythm guitar (and a lead now and then) and keyboards. He and I, and Kevin have played together for so many years, it's a natural fit and easy to put our harmonies together. He was a little skeptical when we first asked him to play with us some time back, but is getting more relaxed and at ease with the band. And we're happy he's there.

Karl and Alan kicked ass, as usual and I felt good all night. Great response from the crowd. Lot's of old and new friends showed up. Erv and his brother drove down from Vancouver B.C., and Michael and Mikey drove down from Ferndale, up close to Canada. Mark was there. And many more than I could name without getting cramps in my fingers!

I'll leave it to others to review the set, but we felt good about it and had a great time playing it. Now if we can just get more shows lined up. I'm hearing rumblings, but nothing firm yet. But we're primed and ready......

Happy Holidays to All!

Thu, 28 Dec 2006 00:53:37 GMT

Wishing everyone the best for this holiday season - and always!

Wind storm update - my house was out of power for 5 days. Alan's house out for 6 days. We're all back on, but the timing for this entire thing put the big pressure on for X-mas - wow - but hey, we all got through it.

It was a great time for family and friends. Still trying to catch up on rest, though. 5 days of preperation lost to being in survival mode!

But we have much to be thankful for - many people lost their lives during this time. At least we are still here, intact, and surrounded by family.

So now New Year's Eve and prep for the show on Jan 6th. Everyone in the band was fairly dissapointed at the cancelation because of the storm. Kind of a blue balls thing, eh? But having to deal with the storm's aftermath was certainly a distraction from thinking about the missed gig too much. But now we're back in the gig mode. Very much looking forward to it.

We'll play most of the album, a few songs we've played on stage before, some we haven't, and there should be at least a couple of surprises in the set. Very much looking forward to it - and like Alan joked to me, we're playing this one even if a tornado hits!

What a mess!

Sun, 17 Dec 2006 20:40:17 GMT

Yes, I've been neglecting this site for a while - but this wasn't the way I intended to start it back up again -

Our show, sheduled for last night, was canceled - due to the fact that there was NO FRICKIN' ELECTRICITY!

It was a heck of a windstorm Thursday night. 1.5 million customers were out of power by the time the storm ended. This is Sunday afternoon and the power at my house has been out since Thursday night. Alan also has no power. Our webmaster, Paul, lives near me and still has no power, otherwise we would have put the word out the show was being postponed. My family spent the night at a friend's house last night, arriving late - so I've been able to log on to write this.

The good news is that the show has been rescheduled to January 6th.

Our apologies to those who made the trip to Issaquah and found no one there!

This should be a fun show - it's an intimate theater, so everyone will be close to the band.

Headed back to my house now to check power crews progress and do some more clean up around the yard - it's a bit of a mess!

This is TOO good!

Fri, 06 Oct 2006 07:24:02 GMT

A friend just sent this link:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1004061iggypop1.html

When a band advances a show, they sent their requirements to the promoter to advance the show. It's called a rider. This link takes you to the rider for Iggy Pop. At least they say it is - I tend to believe that it is. It matters not, because either way, it's really funny, funny, funny!

18 pages - I'm going to have to finish it tomorrow - gotta get some sleep.....

Still Here

Fri, 06 Oct 2006 07:02:19 GMT

It's amazing how much time life can take up - and how fast time rushes by. My last couple of weeks have been full of work - day job type as well as work on our house - before the rainy season starts- and family. The studio is just about ready to go - and has been for what, a couple of weeks now, but I just haven't had the time to get back in and finish it up. NEXT WEEK, I say!

Work has been varied - I don't go on every show - impossible, but I put them together - In the last couple of weeks we did live sound for a policeman's funeral -who died in the line of work, a Jewish wedding, a Hip Hop concert and a VH-1 Comedy show. Also, an all-day show (five or so groups) with the headliner being Flogging Molly. Ah yes- an Irish, drinking-songs, Punk Rock kind of a thing - real up-and comers, I'm told. I know a number of people who are very much into them.

And let's see, we did another Rat City Rolller Girls bout - female roller derby - very entertaining - and really building a following in Seattle. And oh yes, we did a B-Stage at White River Amphitheater for the Cheryl Crow/John Mayer concert and a private Microsoft Party. Oops - almost forgot about the monitor system for Bo Diddley at Benaroya Hall.........

And I am currently sitting in a hotel room in Pullman, WA for rehearsals tomorrow and two shows Saturday with Garrison Keillor and A Prairie Home Companion. I was in Missoula, Montana with them last week. Hadn't been to Missoula in years. Hell, I haven't been to Pullman in decades! But this particular gig is pretty cool to me, personally - I've listened to A Prairie Home Companion for quite a few years now and am a big fan. The band they have, The Shoe Band, really kicks ass - in their folky style. Every one of them is a great player. Rich, on piano and organ is amazing.

Their crew are all great people - it's a big job they do every week, to put on a two hour, live radio show in front of a live audience. But they do it with calm and grace - and humor. For those of you not familiar with the show, it's a bit like an old-time American variety radio show. Music, jokes, skits, guest artists, and Mr. Keillor is the heart and soul of the show. And of course, he does his monologue each week, toward the end of the show. The Rolling Stones were loading into the stadium next door to the Adams Center, where our show was, so at one point in the show, Garrison got the crowd to do a sing-along to a couple of Rolling Stones songs. I guess you would have had to be there, or be listening, but it was pretty damn funny.....

At first glance, some might dismiss A Priaire Home Companion as a corny and old fashioned show. Well, it is both of those things, but there is something about it that can reach right into your heart and sould and touch you. It's quite and experience. And if you listen close enough, you'll hear some great satire about our government "leaders" and their policies.

I'd noticed Garrison's digs at the state of our nation though his shows, but one day earlier this year, I happened to come across an Op-Ed piece he wrote for the New York Times that laid it all out - about what a mess this President and his cronies have created on every level of everything they have touched since they have been in office. I read that, a little stunned - but elated that Garrison Keillor, of all respected people, would have written something so truthful and strong, in a time where very few people were speaking out. Reading that only increased my admiration for him and his work.

Thank God for people like him, and John Stewart, and Bill Mahr, and even David Letterman for speaking for so many of us who have very little platform to address the public from.

Well, that was a bit of a ramble, eh?

So I've been busy the last couple of weeks. Bidding the shows, juggling equipment lists, assigning personnel, arrainging trucking, hotels, bugets, interfacing with the clients, and more. And that doesn't even get into the home repair and family matters. School issues, inter-family member issues, family pet issues, school issues..... and the list goes on..... whew! But ultimately, it's all good and very much worth it. I'm blessed, truly.

But one thing - part of our house dilemma has been having to do a semi-major water-damage repair on a part of the house we had added about 6 years ago. We used a company out of Park City Utah (don't ask why). This company is called SJR Construction and is owned by a guy named Scott Rogers. All I can say is if you ever run across this company, RUN AWAY as fast as you can. Sloppy, sloppy work. Faked window flashing. Outside wall paper put up backwards, so the water runs in instead of out. I could go on - and might at a later date.

Jackass grade construction. SJR Construction. Those are words that go together well - unfortunately......

So, despite all of this, I'll be in the studio very soon. It's all giving me some great song ideas......

MoveOn.org Petition

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 22:53:41 GMT

The following was written by MoveOn.org and it is something that is very important not only to all of us here in the U.S., but the rest of the world, as well. I urge all U.S. citizens to go to this website, or write or call your Senators and Congressmen to let them know how you feel:

----------------------------

This week, the Senate is planning to quietly hold a vote that would pardon President Bush for breaking the law by illegally wiretapping innocent Americans.

The bill would let the adminstration off the hook for breaking the law and make it legal to wiretap Americans, in secret, without any oversight, whenever they want to.

Democrats and some Republicans are holding strong against it, and if enough of us speak up we can stop it. Can you sign the petition opposing the Republican move to pardon President Bush for breaking the law?

http://pol.moveon.org/dontpardon/

Thanks!

Another great time

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 02:08:35 GMT

The Friday night gig went quite well- we had a reasonable time for set up and sound check and the band was in good spirits and relaxed about the whole thing. Tim Harding mixed for us again and we heard nothing but rave reviews about the sound of the band. And this time we also had my friend, Aaron Fisher who mixed monitors for us. Thanks a butt load to Tim and Aaron!

We've played that room a couple of times before this gig, but this was the largest and most enthusatic crowd we've played for there. There were about 900-1000 people in the audience, I'm told.A great crowd reaction from the onset. It's a little surreal, on stage, to gauge the reaction at the end of each song, because I'm busy tuning, remembering which song is next, what key it's in, listening for Alan's count in - and hoping I have my shit together before we get to the end of the count it! But I still hear the crowd, and during the songs, get a chance to look out and see if they're with us - and they definitely were. You know, I've never done this for the money - it's always been about the joy of playing and sharing it with whomever is around. And it's a great feeling to feel it back from the audience. It happened there, for sure.

We were there for Robin's sound check. Man, that guy can play! Great band. Great crew. One of them said they wished we were doing their entire west coast shows. A good match of bands for the audience, really. If you get a chance to go to one of his shows, I highly recommend it. If you like a solid rock band, great - make that excellent guitar work - go. You won't be disappointed.

We met many new faces Friday night. Looking forward to seeing all of them again soon.

Good to go

Thu, 14 Sep 2006 17:56:26 GMT

Had a run-through last evening - went quite well, actually - everyone remembered just about everything. Had one or two things to stop and work on, so it wasn't a perfect rehearsal set - so to me, that was perfect. You see, I'm not generally a superstitious person, but I do have this thing about rehearsals before a show. If the last rehearsal before a gig is too good, or you have too much fun, then the gig usually sucks. I've seen this happen many times- so that's why I like it when the rehearsal is mostly good, but not perfect...... and that's what we had. Whew!

Our friend Michael Frampton contacted me and said he couldn't find out info about the show. I directed him to http://www.fenixunderground.com. Although it has no info on White being on the bill (and we will be), it has the general info about the show. Looking forward to seeing you, Michael! Any anyone else who can make it........

Trower and more news

Wed, 13 Sep 2006 17:38:00 GMT

So it's all working out - Mark is available, after doing a little scrambling to cover another gig he was booked for Friday. We'll rehearse tonight. Should come together quickly. This will be an opportunity to play for a new crowd, work with the new owner of the venue, and work with a promoter that we've not worked with before. And sell some CD's. Better than staying in and watching a movie, eh?

On another front, I'm told the album is being released in Europe, early October. Haven't heard a specific date or other details yet, but still, good news. Alan will be doing a number of interviews and perhaps an in-store appearance while he is in Europe in Oct. And there is still talk of live dates in November, and now January and February. It would be good to get out and play.....

Studio and Trower

Tue, 12 Sep 2006 18:56:21 GMT

Spent the weekend in the studio - not recording anything yet, but took it completely apart, cleaned everything- and I mean EVERYTHING, took out some old furniture, put in some new, and began repatching everything to the patchbay. Hadn't spent a lot of time in the control room lately. The time we'd been in there lately had been to rehearse. So, getting the itch to put it back to use again. Certainly feels like the time is approaching. Still have a couple of outdoor projects on the house, but the weather will turn wet next month and it will be perfect for staying in and working in the studio...... can't wait, really.

On the band front, we just got word today we'll be opening for Robin Trower this coming Friday at the old Premier Club, where we've played a number of times. It was sold last month to some folks who own another club or two in downtown Seattle. They may have changed the name to The Fenix - actually, I think they have. Alan told me he spoke to some of the people there and they say they've done some work on the room acoustics. That would be great - it was kind of a loud room before. It would be nice if they were able to tame some of the sound bouncing around in there.

Robin Trower. Cool. I didn't ever really follow his career, but have always thought he was an awesome player. Looking forward to it! This will be the first gig of their fall American tour. I checked out his website and saw they had played during the summer, seemed to take August off - a very European thing to do - and now they are headed out for, it seems, a couple of months or so. I think the bands will be a good match, musically.

The band is meeting this evening- we had planned to do this already- but we'll have this to plan and arrange, now. We haven't played for a few weeks now, but with a rehearsal tomorrow night, we should have our opening set together again without too much stress.... I haven't talked to Mark Cardinas since the last gig. Hope he's available on such short notice - because if he's not, it will most likely sink the gig for us. I don't see us working a different keyboard player in with only two days available, max, to rehearse. I guess we'll find out soon, eh?

One Thing or Another

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 21:59:18 GMT

In the past week, I've read about and had some discussions about the sound mix of the show. I've talked to a numer of people who were there and have to conclude that all in all, and considering the circumstances, it was really pretty good. Tim, who mixed the show, gave me a CD of it, recorded from a stereo mic set up at the board. Does it sound like the record? Of course not - could the keys have been a bit hotter at the top of the show? Sure. But as a soundman myself, I know how easy or not it can be, and given the time we had to set up and sound check, I'm quite happy with what I hear on this CD. Am going to check with the gang, but I'd like to post it for download. I mean, what the hell.... why not? The sound isn't perfect, but it's pretty good - and we certainly aren't perfect, but pretty good......

Our sound company just did a string of dates (no pun intended) with The String Cheese Incident. These guys not only let people record their shows, they record the shows themselves and post them on their website for free download. Certainly these guys are not the first to do it, and won't be the last - but it seems to really help develop a stronger bond between them and their audience. And I would imagine that those who are into downloading shows are also into buying the studio albums - seems like a win-win to me......

So on to new recordings and getting out on the road. At first it seemed like we'd start at the end of September, but due some someone's commitments to things other than this band, scheduling for October went out the window. So maybe we'll be out in November and part of December. Hope so. But knowing how things seem to go with this band, I won't be holding my breath. I still value my life too much......

We've cut a new track with Wayo, out of the older song catalog. It's called To Kill The Pain. I need to get over this week and sing my harmony part. I guess Karl has one more guitar part to put on and, supposedly, it will be ready to mix. This won't be released as a White song - although all of us except Geoff played on it. Not sure what it will be called yet.

And time to do some rearranging in my studio to get ready for more songs there. No big upgrades yet, but some new funiture, patchbays, and wiring. Make it a little easy to do things quickly. It's always easier on the workflow if we don't have to stop for longer than a few minutes to do a new set up. Having to figure out technical puzzles can slow down a mood of creativity. Gotta keep momentum going. God knows what it takes to get everyone on the same page and moving forward.....

On another note, we've just passed the one year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans is still a mess. The people there still need our help and support. I just received an email from MoveOn.org telling about their new book "It Takes A Nation: How Strangers Became Family". Quoting their email: "(This book) tells the stories of the families involved. Its a beautiful book, featuring first-person interviews with Katrina evacuees and the donors who took them in, and evocative photos aof the folks involved and the aftermath of the flood. Senator Barack Obama wrote the forward..."

If you donate $20, through MoveOn.org, to help the relief efforts, they will send you this book, which sells for $25. Sound like another win-win situation!

And a Great Time Was Had By All

Sat, 19 Aug 2006 23:37:17 GMT

We came. We saw. We played. Had a great time. Playing an opening slot is not always an easy thing for a band. But everyone treated us well, production took excellent care of us, and the audience response was much warmer and enthusiastic than I had expected or even hoped for.

The Tulalip Amphitheater is a very cool venue - big enough for a good sized crowd, yet small enough that even the people in the back aren't that far away. The weather was pretty much perfect. The Peter Frampton bus was late arriving, so our sound check time was pushed back about a half hour or so. But the crew busted their butts to get us up there and sound checked before doors opened. During the check, the sun was pretty much right in our eyes, so we were a bit concerned that it would be that way for the show- and we'd be blinded for the set. But the sun set right before our set began - thank god. We got a nice introduction from Jeff Aaron - a friend of ours who is a radio personality in the area - and we were off and running.

The crowd had no idea we were going to be there, and I'm sure most of them had never heard of the band - but they certianly knew Alan. I'd look out at the audience during the set, half expecting manyof them to get up and head to the beer garden, because we weren't who they came to see. But they stayed - and were actually quite into the performance. Third song in, I hear Karl's guitar amp start to make the most unusual sounds - kind of a thunder-like distortion - and started to cut out. Nice. During rehearsals, his main amp was making some weird sounds and he said, "oh man, I meant to change this tube - I have them at home, but I just keep forgetting to". So we're playing, and I'm thinking, geez, I hope his amp isn't toast! So we finish the song and Karl starts checking his plugs and changing cables. He tries it again. Still sounds bad. Kevin is bantering with the audience - "Say, there are no slot machines out there, are there? What's the deal with that? I tell ya, if I came to see a show and didn't know the opening band, I'd be headed for the beer garden." (Chuckles from the audience.) "I'd be the designated buyer!". (Big laugh from the audience - and the rest of the band.)

So after a couple of tries, Karl gets it going again - turned out to be a cable - an expensive one at that! Oh well - I think it has a life-time warranty..... So the next song we play is Changes. Great reaction from the audience. Then, as we go into the last set of choruses, my entire bass rig dies. What the hell? I'm singing harmonies and glance around to look at the amps and see there is no power - nada - gone. So I'm singing and trying to decide whether or not to stop singing and try to get it going again, or just keep singing like nothing was wrong. And then I think - ok, my amp might be down, but Tim should still have it in the front of house mix, because we're taking a direct out on the bass. But then I realize that the direct out comes straight out of my amp head - so with no power, no sound. Great. So we finish the song and I go back to see what's going on - or not, in this case. I look over the top of the amps and see that Alan's drum tech, Davey, has been crouched behind my amp for the set. "Davey! You killed my AC!" He starts scrambling, and we get the power back on in a couple of seconds. Oh well...... after it was over, it actually seemed pretty funny - but it wasn't so funny at that particular moment. But still, I had to just laugh about it.....

So we plow through the rest of the set without any more technical difficulties. Very nice audience response. And then it was over. A good friend, Dean Thompson, flew up from LA for the weekend to hang out with Genele and I and see the show - he helped get my gear together and ready for the stage crew to stike the equipment. Thanks Dean! Very much appreciated! And many thanks, also, to Tim Harding, who came out to mix the set for us. Also very much appreciated! All reports I heard was that he nailed the mix. Gotta love that!

The venue did a nice display for us at the merch booth for selling CD's. I was asked to sign the first one pretty much right after coming off the stage. A nice woman who worked at the venue. She told me she doesn't usually do that, but really loved the set. There is a picture of her with Kevin in the Gallery on www.whitemusic.net. So after a short time, we headed over to the merch booth to meet anyone who wanted to come over. Once again, a nice response. We met quite a few people - some who knew us already, and some who hadn't known of us before, but really enjoyed the band's set. And there was one lovely lady, whose name I didn't get, who flew down from Anchorage, Alaska to see the show. Wow. She told me she worked at a radio station in Anchorage and had been doing what she could to spead the word about the band. Wants us to come north and play up there. We said great, we'd love to - will have to see what happens. Playing Alaska is, logistically, a bit of an expensive prospect - but certainly not impossible. Would love to do it - it's beautiful up there, and the audiences are hungry for good entertainment - being so far north, a lot of bands just don't bother to make the trek.

So after about a half hour at the booth, we headed backstage again. Peter was playing and sounded just great. Plays guitar better than ever, and his voice sounds just as good as decades ago. I hung out a little longer, then made a dash out during Peter's encore to beat the traffic and get home to put my feet up. Now THAT felt good.......