Any Musicians Out There?
 

Heyo!

Inspired by the current mammoth of an initially underestimated countdown presented by @Camo, I thought I'd throw this net out. Who of you play musical instruments? I don't care if you're classically trained or just plucking a tuning fork to relieve headaches. I would like to know who you are and what you do.

I was a high school band geek playing alto saxophone. That was 5th grade through 12th, then took two more years in college under a jazz program before changing majors. I did the theory classes in college and loved it, but damn I hated piano. I picked up my uncles old acoustic guitar that was buried in one of my grandparent's forgotten back rooms around age 14 or so. Whenever Blood Sugar Sex Magik was released. I enjoyed the guitar and decided NOT to learn scales or theory or whatever simply because I burned out on the math of it all. I could pluck a string and find a note that I could hum along with and be absolutely happy.

High school was peppered with half-assed attempts at cover bands here and there but nothing lasted. When I moved to college I abandoned the saxophone to not piss off my apartment neighbors. Guitar was about all I could do. I picked up a drum kit back around that time when I found a more secluded place to live, but it was stolen one Christmas break.

Now, I pull out the guitar from time to time to try to write something or to work through emotional baggage or high-anxiety stretches of life. I still can't play a scale to save my life, but I'm content with what I do with it all: crap covers if I get the coordination and my own stuff.

I fantasize of formalizing some of my thumbnails to create some sort of online album one day before I die. One day. Before I die.

Pretty heavily influenced musically and vocally by Chris Cornell and Jeff Buckley (helluva hybrid, I know!). If I only had Cornell's range....

...

So what do you play and what got you into it? Do you play locally? With friends? On the toilet (for the acoustics, of course)? Covers? Do you write? Do you not play, but wish you did?

I would really love to know who does what out there. We're all anonymous for the most part anyway, so lay it on me!


(gah, I hope I've not already posted this question before)

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Hi.

I play stuff. I do most instruments, more recently adding in trumpet and cello. I have a couple tunes IA am currently working on and trying to get proper. I'll post them below. :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ua-OYVDA60

This one is an adaption of Bill Wyman's score for the 1981 film opening - Green Ice..still not done but it may be a sizzler
https://drooble.com/joel.booska/music

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

@Joel
Thanks for sharing. I love the song in the first video link. Still having troubles registering at your second link to view it tho. Sent you PM.

So is that you singing? REALLY dig the voice and song. How long have you been playing everything?

FWIW: I enjoy your posts and Shout Box ramblings. Not sure why I've not directed more posts your way. Maybe just timing? Because of you, I patched my thumb avatar's eye. So you do have a silent fan out here in the intertube wasteland.


;)

I was a musician, but I haven't done anything musically (save for some dabbling for old-times sake) since mid-January of this year. I think I got burnt out or something.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Hey man thanks!
Ive been playing on and off since 2000, recoring anyway. The youtube tune is all me yes. I wrote a 3 act film in 30 mins that runs about 3 mins. My first ever tune with vocals that I whipped out a few months ago. Thanks for the compliments!

The drooblevthing is the only online source i have. I can try uploading it to youtube when im done? Its totally different. Its an adaption of a cue by Bill Wyman, back when he was green scoring films after the rolling stones big albums :)

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

My first DAW. :D

https://i.imgur.com/YXgQ2te.png

Well I cant stress enough how much I enjoyed the vocals. For whatever reason I've always been particular about voices.

I'll try to register again tomorrow from work. I feel like it as probably my phone creating the issue. You should record more vocals.

Hm. Are you the guy that does video work for bands?

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Thanks bro! Ive always been scared if my voice so ur comment has me reconsidering lol. If u check my experimental thread, i did a live improv i filmed/cut. I do music vids for bands but am just starting to do them for myself. I figured out a way to light em like suspiria on the cheap! Lol

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

You have a good voice Joel. I think the main thing people who want to or try to sing have to get over is just the fear. There are a lot of bad singers out there who get by because they own it and are vocally confident. Honestly, if you sing powerfully, you don't have to be that great. So the fact that you can hold a note is already to your advantage.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Ha! I know that player well ;) matter of fact I was JUST on my old dusty Windows NT pc looking for an image.

Mind me asking what instrument you played? Style?

Thanks for the replies :)

P.S. I wrote you a letter in yesterday's shout box. It was in response to your mail joke in the 'is MOFO dying thread'. Felt more appropriate to drop into shout given how mail gets lost too. Yeah. Doesn't take much to make me laugh and the run down tangents.

I started playing guitar when I was 12, and it became kind of a light hobby in my teens (I was using Audacity then). Got back into it late 2014, which is when I picked up Ableton and was obsessed with making music. I also personally consider the computer, in this day and age, an instrument. You can do a lot with just a computer.

I dabbled in piano but never had the discipline to get really good at that.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Oh! And I saw your shout. I would have repped it if I could, it made me laugh. :D

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Totally agree with Swan on your voice. And on how so many singers get by on confidence without really hearing how good (or not so good) they actually are. You definitely need to sing more.

Please tell me you listen to the bassist from soundgarden Ben Shepherd's voice? Or even maybe Morphine?

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Very cool. Thanks for the added details. I guess my first real DAW was a bootleg of one of the early Cakewalk apps. Now I'm trying to relearn with Studio One. Recorded tons of ideas over the years, but never developed anything. Short attention some. Mostly lazy. I'm trying to get back into piano, hoping it will guide me into some formal structure again.

Light hobby. That's sums me up perfectly. Trying to learn more discipline now that I'm getting older. We'll see I guess.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I mostly play guitar. Have been in a few bands. I have a Gibson 335 and a Fender telecaster. More recently I released a single (just to tick it off my bucket list) and put it on Spotify. It's a minimalist instrumental tune recorded and constructed solely on a qwerty keyboard.

You can hear it here:

https://open.spotify.com/track/6O7V66kVBMAATYFvUs9bX8

^ That is mightily impressive.

Sounds kinda like the opening scene to an epic Western. Channeling Moriconne with bits of Jay Munly in. Great job.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Singer.

Also bad guitar and penny whistle player.

Going to guest on an album to be recorded in otober/November.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Guitar. I only play for fun and very little. I also sing a tiny little bit, but I'm bad. I sent some of my singing to @Swan and he said it's cool, but I don't believe this cygnet!

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I have played music on and off since childhood. My mother bought me a drum set when I was five years old, and also taught me some chords on acoustic guitar. I stuck with the drums up through high school, playing in crappy cover bands and as well as on the drum line in marching band. After high school I moved across the country, and was unable to continue with drums due to noise and space restrictions. I bought an old Kramer electric guitar and started taking lessons locally. As I became more focused on guitar, I started a band and upgraded all my gear and started gigging around the Boston area.

Sometime around the mid-90s, I sort of fell off from the whole band/guitar thing and started spinning trance in the Boston rave scene. The crew I worked with (Changmian Productions/Sonic Beating) threw events for several years up until about 2004, after which the long nights/weekends/parties/drugs wore me out and I discontinued raving. I still have my turntables set up and I still mix now and then, but I am mostly back into rock/metal at this point, so it's few and far between these days.

As time wore on I bought a couple more guitars, and around 2015 or so, decided to start taking lessons again in an effort to expand my knowledge and improve my technique a bit more. I landed an opportunity to take lessons from Angel Vivaldi:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFWoIyqSjlA

I took lessons from Angel for about 1.5 years, which was a complete blast. An increasingly busy schedule for Angel and life changes on my end made it difficult to continue taking lessons, so eventually I had to stop. I don't play anywhere near as much as I did a couple of years ago, but I still grab the guitar and jam out from time to time, usually jamming over backing tracks or playing along with tunes that I like.

I sing, play piano, and trombone. I have a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Musical theater.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Love you all for posting. The world is not as big as it was yesterday, and I am really enjoying reading your backgrounds. Thanks all.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I used to play drums in junior school and truant in senior school :)

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I played the guitar when I was in high school and in college. But never had the discipline to become good at it.

I hope you’ll get the itch again eventually bro. Your music is too good.:D


I mess with synthesizers mostly. I’m super self-conscious of anything I produce though. Dabbled for a few years, but for the past couple of years or so, I’ve been voraciously learning and practicing. I've always been very enthusiastic about it, and feel I find more fulfillment out of making music than anything else at the moment. I work as often as I can pretty much every day, but ear problems are starting to prohibit me. Most of my music is odd but softer on the ears.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I was tricked into playing piano as child so I could play guitar. Never happened. Piano is a great instrument, but I believe a good "teacher" will find music that inspires a pupil. It doesn't do any good to teach the classics if the person doesn't play them.


I noodle on guitar. I have some pretty good technique, but I can't really play anything, definitely no songs besides 7 Bridges Road and some Tool stuff and the intro to Top Jimmy and Stranglehold and...yeah, just noodles. I play a custom Martin step-through that I have a soap bar pickup to get fuzzy on that I love to play with a tire gauge.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I have been plucking my guitar for a year. Learnt a little bit of keyboard a longgg time ago (when I was still another person). Like listening to heavy metal but also like singing cheesy pop ballads. At the moment, since no one at work want to talk with me, I brought my acoustic guitar to the company cafeteria and pluck it when nobody is around. Sometimes even sing in the cafeteria when nobody is around, otherwise I would forget how my voice sounds.

@Joel: your song is beautiful :)

I've heard Swan's stuff, too. He's good, and has a lot of really cool atmopshere happening.

Re93animator...I just found your music...and it's killer! Dark and interesting. Not sure who you're comparing it to but your production chops are right there for that vibe. What is it you'd like to be better at?

I've been mixing my own stuff for a long time and it still sounds amateur....very frustrating..and then I bring to a producer and they just never ever "get it"! Ha!

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

So where are all you Kats posting at? What communities? I'd love to hear stuff.

@Joel thanks for the link. Got it working finally! Interesting site. Now I know how to better stalk you. >=P

Thank you! I'm most intent on learning theory and composition atm, but I also think my production could use quite a bit of work. I just try to hide my shortcomings. I do feel like I've grown a ton since putting up the bandcamp/soundcloud page, but I doubt I'll ever lose my desire for improvement.

If I ever get discouraged, I rekindle my appreciation for early Residents albums, and their prideful lack of musical ability.:)

Well, I have this page, but I'm a little reluctant to share it. Just take it easy por favor.:)

I've only listened to two tracks but I love what I've heard so far. Will stream it all tomorrow from work. Great texture and layers. Thank you for sharing!

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

So I've learned two sites so far that I never knew about. Do you who post on such sites have a circle of friends there to ping ideas off of or to encourage or motivate each other?

Thank you! I really appreciate that.

I typically just share stuff with a small handful of friends through bandcamp and soundcloud. I mainly uploaded that stuff a while ago to give it a resting place beyond my hard drives.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I'm a musician. I started on drums at 11, and moved on to piano, guitar, bass, etc., using random footage from traveling to be able to upload.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNr0...ature=youtu.be


a song from my 4th CD

https://youtu.be/9BPV8g7RzhU



Drumming in San Francisco, CA
https://youtu.be/g_OmNe-_hwk

Ha! Great stuff, thank you for sharing.

My uncle maybe 10 years my senior played drums in his high school marching band.He had a kit the same blue as yours that he played in church and at his house when he moved out. Always was an inspiration and that was my initial drive to learn something musical.

Beginner band started for us in 5th grade, so the director called an assembly each year to demonstrate for any kid that wanted to join up. I told him I wanted to play drums like my uncle! I was a small kid btw. So he leaned down, placed his arm around my should and whispered, "In two years when you join the marching band, you're gonna be carrying that thing around..." and pointed to the largest of four marching bass drums. "You sure you want to do that?"

I picked saxophone.

I did pick up a kit and took some lessons around college but always wondered what I would have done had a stuck with it for fundamentals. Now I'm too uncoordinated and self conscious to play enough to get it back up.

4th CD, huh? Cool and grats!

That's very cool. I get the metal/pop divide ;) I love playing soundgarden but sing (try to) jeff buckley from time to time. Still pretty bashful and RARELY share myself, so the fact that you can bring a guitar to work? My respect to you.

Thank you for posting :)

"Noodle on guitar."
That's a great phrase. Love that and totally right there with you. That's a tough break on the piano bridge to guitar. I never really cared for piano myself so avoided it for as long as I could. Second year into music theory my professor was like "Hey. Have you not done a recital?" I responded "No. Am I supposed to?" He freaked and said, "As a music major, you're supposed to have a piano recital every term."

Go figure.

I told him that I had never played piano and wouldn't even know where to begin. So he started me on Marry Had a Little Lamb and I was pissed. We compromised I guess. I figured if I had to learn technique for something then I would rather it be worth the effort. So he put in front of me four pages of Moonlight Sonata. I've only ever read single note sheet music so that blew my mind. We spent the entire quarter on that damn piece, my last term at the Jr. college.

Btw, I switched majors partly as a matter of principle in that I so hated piano.

I had issues as a kid I guess. Still do. Mostly.

:D

Playing truant, eh. lol

Do you ever pick up the sticks now? Drums were always the coolest to me. I hope to try again here soon with them.

Ha, not for many a moon and I'm too old and decrepit now sadly.
Only thing I play now is the fool :D

I hope you manage to find the time and opportunity to get reacquainted with a set in the near future.

Trombone is great. My buddy played that in high school. Now that I think about it, one of my music directors primary was trombone. He was retired army band and was a secret weapon for some of us in prep for state competitions. The man was a musical genius. He would help us with sight-reading, classical, jazz, whatever we wanted. And he ran a local repair shop so he was always replacing pads in our woodwind instruments or hammering out dings we'd get from not paying attention to where we placed our instruments the previous Friday night football game.

I never could comprehend a sliding instrument and keeping in tune. Seemed an impossible task to me and hearing someone play it always put me in awe. And it just so happens to be Will Rikar's instrument of choice, so bonus points from me!

That's very cool on the degree choice. After jumping ship from jazz studies, I ended up finishing in Fine Arts: Studio Painting. That got me into graphic design and illustration some through electives which has been helpful. I wish that I had more time and space to paint now though =\

@ynwtf 's post has me curious...about woodwinds, but actually brass. In a trumpet for instance....3 valves. Is it true that breath pressure...and....lips shape helps get those notes out the way you want them?

I have theory personally...but I have to know...can I find those notes I seek by just "blowing" with the right intention...like whistling? With whistling you kind of wing it. 3 valves are not a lot of valves....not tons and tons of combinations....and the whole tuning thing...does that require good oil and keeping the spit valves clean?

With a trombone, I'd imagine it's like a theramin...very measured movements in veryu, very small intervals...very close movements...no long strides as you see in the movies, or episodes of Columbo, or at marching band parades......

Very cool; especially interesting on how things got started, etc... I remember as a little kid using pens, and drumming them onto a Fisher Price stethoscope. I worked all summer when I was 14 to get that set, which I still have 22 years later, but the problem with drums is that I couldn't play them during my travels, and always had to rely on someone else'.


You never know - you could play again, or something else? It's good exercise for the body and the brain - having to execute correctly, memorization, coordination. As well as any enjoyment from coming up with something, or playing along with something you like.

Matt, I really dig you raw style. You definitely throw caution to the wind, and I can tell you have Bonzo in your heart. I hear it, and I be lovin' dat shlt yo.

If a producer recorded you on the drums and some piano...just to glue it better fidelity-wise, it'd be righteous..also, I like when you add melodies on top..you did so with "sick in Athens"...but you only went there for a qwik second. More of that, please next time

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

GUYS I GOT MY 2 CHANNEL WORKING TONIGHT.








no clue what I'm going to do with it.

2 channel what?....ballsy set-up...2 channels of live strummin and sangin or?....

So how you set your mouth (embouchure) totally affects the pitch of the instrument. Like playing taps on a bugle? No valve. No slide. All the notes come from how tight or loose you set your lips. Like you described whistling, how changing the pitch by creating more or less space in your mouth or the position of your lips, it's kind of the same concept. For brass you create the buzz in your lips. Adjusting the tightness gives you higher or lower tones. Thing is, like with the bugle, the instrument body only has a set length for sound waves to travel. So in that case you can only really create harmonic intervals just by the mouth alone.

I played sax, so it's a bit different. With a wooden reed creating the initial vibration I can clinch or looses my grip on the mouthpiece to force harmonic tones, but the real control is the manipulating the openings along the body of the sax, shortening or lengthening the body. Like a slide whistle sort of. Minor tuning adjustments are made by shortening or extending a dedicated valve in brass, or with woodwinds, by moving the mouthpiece slightly in or out of the neck. You could probably adjust +/- half a step with that alone.

Vibrato works of the mouth too. Pinch and relax the lips and breath.

Ok, I'm rambling.

Yes, you can control it with the mouth only. Just you're pretty limited in the tones that you can produce. A trumpet only has 3 valves, but each combination of valve opening or shutting all change the length of the trumpet's body by adding a half inch or 2-3 inches. That in combination with lip control give the rest of the tones that a bugle cannot produce.

Trombones are a whole other beast and as I may have understated in an earlier post, borderline on witchcraft to me. lol. So you're on your own there ;)

say wut?
is that like half a 4chan?

>=P

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/...20110604211203


<3<3<3

So for brass, and maybe woodwinds, too ...mouth shape, breath pressure, and hitting different combos of valves/holes will eventually produce results you seek...but time must not be an issue. If you want the notes, pitch, vibrato, etc...you have to find it ...I'll tell you one thing...paying some odd dollars an hour or even ever 30 mins to an instructor at some run down local stink shop isn't my idea of a good time so....when time permits...it's back to figuring it all out myself, and maybe that's the ticket, or maybe it's just thinking big, but whatever it is ....shut up Joel..and that's something that is not debatable!

Trumpets, flutes, clarinets, and sometimes a decent sax are always lining the walls at pawn shops! Find one cheap, have a buddy handle it to make sure it's not broken, and offer half of what they're asking. Good way to get a foot in is just to test it out. Or just buy a cheap plastic recorder off amazon. Works just like a clarinet mostly and is much easier to figure the mouth part out as it's all plastic. Feel that out then you'd have more practical experience jumping to a sax or whatever.

To me, patterns are patterns. Typing on a keyboard, dinging a piano, or pressing keys on a sax, they're all related in a way. I mean to say that once you realize the pattern of it, that part never changes. Forever. I would think the hard part for most would be the mouth control. That would be difficult to figure out alone without some guidance to see the right way, then learn to mimic it. Like playing a sax? You literally roll the fatty tissue of your bottom lip over your bottom teeth. New players a lot of times just try to bite the reed and it sounds like they're killing geese during sex. I mean killing a goose while it is in the act of having sex. Please don't try to make it with a goose.

I think with brass, you can't really do much unless you get the buzz right. Trial and error will eventually clue you in. Would still help to have a nudge from a friend though, to get started. Not sure you would need a formal instructor. You could just go to your local music store and buy a beginner band instrument book for whatever. Most of those have entire sections dedicated to initial mouth position and guidance. At least for as much as it can be translated into text. Same with all the individual note fingering combinations. As an adult, especially one already into music and sound, picking that up and running with it wouldn't be a problem. With or without someone coaching. But then there's youtube now, so....

Woodwinds all work pretty much the same way too. I mean, a finger pattern for one is pretty close to another. Learning clarinet is an easy jump to flute or sax. Learning trumpet is an easier jump to other valve brass. Kinda like learning guitar you're pretty much good for bass too.

Thank you so much @ynwtf, that was helpful and encouraging!

The past few weekends I've been taking in some John Helliwell from Supertramp..what a space that band left him in the middle of all of those great songs,...to just play some tasteful melodies and solos. He's not the only one I've been clinging to...throughout years..it's always been a curiosity, but....yeah..brass is probably my bag for right now, and your text tutelage has inspired me to just try and get on with it...lots of bad sounds to make before I land a nice solo section in a song :)

Trumpet fingering chart:
http://www.monsteroil.net/product_im...rt-for-web.jpg

Start top left to right. notice a pattern? The fingering repeats every 8 notes. So really, there's only like 7 total fingering combos to worry about. Each section you just tighten the lip buzz to step up, while using the same finger patterns as before.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Or you can ignore the valves and still treat it like a bugle for taps and vibrato. Actually good practice that, too.

Thanks Joel, I appreciate the kind words, I especially liked listening to your harmony (with the reverb, kinda in the background). Vibrato, falsetto always gets me, too.

It's funny, I was thinking about you a few weeks ago. I was on my Tascam, knowing I had too much material than I had space for, and remembered talking about music, and I purposely burnt a CD-RW with only the drum track. I thought of PMing you, but if someone else wants to add something - great... I decided not to set up a website selling beats after all the things I've heard, as well as my banking issues. It takes quite long to make a YouTube video, but I see everyone is using soundcloud to upload stuff, but if you all know something better, let me know.. I can't seem to find that (I have too many files entitled SONGxxx), but I did find something I was working on that has a tiny bit of acoustic.. I'll leave it there (my laptop is almost kaput) and come back after restarting.


P.S. - Supertramp is SO awesome.. I recommend anyone to check out their non-hits especially!

Rudy is one of my faves, as well as From Now On. @matt72582

Matt, I'm broke as a joke as much as I'd like to pay for royalty tracks. I do like your playing a lot...so..if you ever wanna send me a track, just to see what happens...please feel free...if you have a gmail acct, you can safely send one without breaking the upload limit..you just hit the paperclip icon and upload the track from your desktop to the email...my email is [email protected]

send away..I think it could be something marvelous, or at the least, something goofy and worth listening to...my trick would be to let your drums breathe, rather than smother them with a shltload of overdubs.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

https://soundcloud.com/user-38640231...africa/s-veRIw
If anyone uses it, I'd love to hear what you added, and by all means, feel free to share it on this thread.



Here's something I made a week ago or so - I like taking a movie I like, mixing it in, and just seeing how it turns out
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtqohehsHaM


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDZhY0sGxE4&t=9s

Rudy is one of my favorites, too.. I love "From Now On" although I think the end drags too bit, "guess I'll always have to be (guess i'll always have to be)" I also love
-Crime of the Century
-Words Unspoken
-School
-Just a Normal Day
-Don't Leave Me Now
-Another Man's Woman
-Breakfast in America
-Fool's Overture
-Know Who You Are
-The Meaning
-The Logical Song and many more

The whole Hodgson/Davies battle is heartbreaking. Davies is dying of cancer, and Hodgson is toting himself as the "voice of Supertramp". It sucks bad.

I personally lean more towards Davies compositions like Rudy, Crime of the Century, From Now On, Gone Hollywood ...I like Roger Hodgson, too..but his stuff, to me, anyway, is kind of like saccharine compared to the sweet and sour blend that Davies puts out ...just like The Beatles. I mean, almost exactly, except not as renowned.

Yes, it's very sad. Rick is one of my favorite piano players ever. Supertramp is my 2nd favorite band, I still remember when I first listened to them when I was 15... John's solo on "Breakfast in America" was so beautiful (The Meaning, too) I love the dramatic music he made, but after Hodgson left, the only tracks that got to me were the title-track of BWYB, and "Better Days" (despite the production, which both were guilty of)...
Outside of Waters/Gilmour, I think they were the most complementary. I saw Hodgson 3x, one of my favorite shows. If I took my favorites, I notice them pretty even divided, but overall, I might say Roger had a few less duds. I would have loved to see what Roger Waters would do - write a song and give it to David to sing, or whoever it fit best...
Speaking of my favorite bands, I noticed there were some trivial similarities.
-Both Rogers wrote most of the hits.
-Both Ricks played piano.
-Both Rogers didn't get along with Rick
-Their last albums together were released 5 months apart (83,84)
-Their last albums had similar finale titles (The Final Cut, Famous Last Words)


As for their feud, they had different musical tastes (which was interesting for me) and different philosophies. He gave Rick the name (and it was Sam who gave Rick the million to start) on a handshake agreement that they'd each play their own songs, which Rick honored until they went to South America. I heard both sides saying they bent over backwards on the 40-yr reunion tour... Maybe we'll hear demos with the possible upcoming anniversaries - "Breakfast in America", etc

@matt72582, I hear you, and it's cool you are in the cut with Supertramp. The world is suddenly much less lonely!

I wish Davies, his wife (?) and mgmnt hadn't kept the name...one spin of Cannonball and it's all over for me, lol! Ooof!

I may regret what I said about Roger and saccharine...but it just bugs me because together they were sooo damned good!

I'm praying for a reconciliation between the both of them, and I hope Davies fights off that monkey on his back because even if he continued to do small scale tours with that monstrosisty that is the afterbirth of Supwertramp, at least there would be some sign of life.

BTW, Roger's solo stuff as of late has seemed phenomenal. He really gets all of the sounds pretty much perfect LIVE.

True, not too many fans of theirs. But I haven't met any fans of my hero, Mort Sahl (hooray, he's on every Thursday), and Bill Hicks is dead :(
Saccharine is the perfect word for songs like "Dreamer" and "It's Raining Again" which I don't care for, except 5-10 seconds here or there. I wish they'd reconcile, even if it's just between them, without any public attention. I liked Roger solo's stuff, and I was surprised by how great his band was/is.

@matt72582, are you saying that Roger was in on the 40th annivesary? Because I heard that Roger tried but Rick denied.

Damn, to have them both doing tastefully chosen shows would be immense. I'd die happy..even if I lived another 50 yrs.

"Dreamer"..I really dig Doug's bassline...esp in the boom buh boom" section..you know what I mean..all progressive and shlt. Woodblocks and the like...


But the verses are kind of cringing....I cannot deny Roger's pop sensibilities at the time, they really have legs...but then again, Rick's stuff have legs, too. His prog leanings may not appeal to some summer school teacher who likes to bang 25 yr old exchange students, but for the rest of us, it's still solid blues.

Besides the two I mentioned, I think Roger's pop was quite unique - "Breakfast in America" - he had that eastern influence, and folk, and amazing melodies. I didn't like Rick's "Your Poppa Don't Dance" or "Remember" too much, I can't say I'm a fan of his voice. I do find it fascinating that his biggest hit with the band "Goodbye Stranger" sounds like he's doing Roger. Even my closest Supertamp friend could barely believe it wasn't Roger.


What I heard from Roger was that he wanted in, but Rick did release a quote saying something about too much time had passed for "harmony".. Bob said that Rick bent over backwards and made negotiations difficult.

I still get chills listening to the opening piano riff of "Gone Hollywood". What a cool and dissonant cluster of notes.

That's too bad that Rick shut Roger out. It sucks that the bitterness took its hold on the chance of a reunion. That really makes me sad.

I found one that better describes this... Forgot this was up (I have as many drum videos as songs).


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlhRNDvXDXU

Crazy excited for you punk! Looks like the Audio Box 96??? Love that brand, and their reviews are always pretty high. Looking (hearing?) forward to seeing (hearing???) what you're gonna make *cough* for us all! *cough*

;P

Just saying...you, @Swan, @Joel...and whoever else might be interested...what about we swap files and DO something...?

Like... actually?

You never know...?

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

thought about that too.

o.O



er. @cat_sidhe cuz I forgot to quote.

OK then!

Time to show and tell! Who has what skills? Even if it's ambient, show up! Texture counts.

Could try adding to this if you want? Whomever wants to...chop it up, add some drums, some electro beats, get nuts....https://soundcloud.com/the-dbk-b-sid...-and-barbeques

or


https://soundcloud.com/the-dbk-b-sides/walking-home



or




https://soundcloud.com/the-dbk-b-sid...-mixdown-final

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

If it counts, I have a keyboard I bought because I was so certain I would be able to jam out with it, that has since spent the last year and a half collecting dust.

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

https://youtu.be/cNHF5VAnEsY


TOTALLY counts!! Half my gear collects dust. Time. Job. Procrastination. Reasons abound!

I may go raiding. And do awful things to it, and present it to you again.

I have no shame.

Wait. I have plenty shame.

@cat_sidhe, do it up!

I'll be waiting...hehhhhhh

NO PRESURE :shifty:

None at all. But here's an idea. Go grab the screen record with audio, convert to a dirty mp3, chop it, slice it, dice it, trash it up as qwikly as you can for everything, and, in the end, maybe something cool will happen? If not, who cares, do it anyway! :p

<3

And hopefully it isn't a spawn of satan. :lol:

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Still waiting...
:D

Also, just started back into drums this weekend. Totally suck, but not as bad as I figured I would. But still pretty bad. It's been well over a decade since I've played and even then I was still pretty bad. I'm having fun again though which is a damn rare thing anymore.

It may take a few days. Still on beats, and, well, lots of gesticulating. Trying not to noise out, but it appears to be my default. :lol: I need a moment to get over that.

Wow. I forgot how much I enjoy drums! I got the kit setup this past weekend and spent time trying to get settled into all. Now that I'm sort of over my timidness, I'm finding that I can actually keep a basic beat and very low-level fills. I'm shocked! I work 8-10 hours for the job on average, but I've managed to get at least an hour in each evening which is surprising considering my history of starting things and VERY quickly dropping them to the side. Just look at my movie list that I started back in January and abandoned in February. lol. *cries*

So yeah! I'm feeling excited about music again and that's a good feeling. Usually my music adventures start and end with bouts of depression for inspiration. I noodle around on the guitar, hum a melody, improvise some lyrics and record it to my phone to be archived and forgotten until my next heartache. That's a horrible way to create, I'm afraid, as I've associated creation with misery. As a result, I seem to only be able to write in seasons or when life factors start to weigh down pretty heavily. I do not like that dependence. Strange dynamic.

Goofing on drums again has introduced another, older, level of inspiration. I'm chasing technique and minor theory again which takes me back to my high school/college years reading sheet music and practicing sections over and over and over. That's something I deliberately gave up on guitar to avoid theory completely. Sitting behind a kit has thrown doubt into the face of my philosophies and that is good.

Currently I've been learning "The Vampyre of Time and Memory" by QotSA. I can NOT handle the fills to save my life, but I've been so excited that I ordered sheet music for it for the first time since Soundgarden's Superunknown. I've never read drum sheet music so that is a challenge, to say the least. Staff C = Snare? wtf!? But the challenge is exciting me and that's something I've not felt in some time that hasn't been directly linked to depression or painful life events. It's strange to have spent 20+ years under a shadow, thinking I am bound to the whims of mood for anything creative to grow from, to now realize that maybe I was wrong? Climbing the mathematical logic wall and stepping over to finally let go, settling into a groove is simultaneously maddeningly complicated and spiritually cathartic.

Again, my skills absolutely suck. But I do like to romanticize. Hopefully my text translates far more than my playing. At the moment...

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

You've got to be doing better than me and Drumkit From Hell. :D

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

Keep going, man. Drums can be a meditation. Too. Look at Stephen Morris

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

BUMP! I finally found this thread lol. UGH.

Picking up where I left off, I did eventually learn the drum part to QotSA's The Vampyre of Time and Memory last year. Then I just kind stopped. For months. There were reasons at least. I've picked back up though, mid May'ish? I've started recording and have a rough working comp now of the drums, piano, bass, and vocals. Trying to learn the guitar bits now. I don't think I've stopped for more than a day or two since starting, so that's encouraging. I mean, I rarely finish anything as noted earlier in the thread. Yeah, I'm not done yet but things look promising so far considering I've passed the point where I normally bail out or get distracted by other shiny things. It looks like I need another few weekends and I might actually have a demo quality cover.

So far so good.

YAY!

I enjoyed reading about your efforts and the excitement with practicing, composing and recording.

I played percussion professionally for many years, and I do miss it, but not enough to actually set up all the equipment and starting to work out again. I do have an electric piano which I doodle around on, and have written a few songs-- none of which I'm satisfied with. But truthfully the urge isn't there enough to sustain an effort to actually get anything accomplished. I enjoy playing pool more!..:D

Keep up the good work, my friend!

~Doc
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Tripp

Pretending to ignore for the moment my post comment until confirmation :D

Thank you for the reply. Means a lot actually. And I can totally relate to sustained motivation. It comes in waves for me. 2-3 months it's music, then 2-3 for writing, followed by another random 2-3 for whatever else pops up. I seriously lack discipline. I hate that. I get so obsessively into something----for a moment. Then I'm kind of exhausted of it all until the urge hits again. I've found at least half the time it's out of spite! Weird motivator, that, but I guess whatever turns the ignition.

Man, I'd love to hear/read stories of your life and experiences, and even some doodles if you got anything posted somewhere!

There's a ton of stuff online, for good or for bad..:) YouTube has lots of clips with Zappa, Beefheart, and even my senior recital at the Cincinnati Conservatory from 1966!

E.g. here's a link to part 1 of a 15 part interview by Prism Films on Zappa/Mothers:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4WtWZaG--U

I am trying not to gush here, but I just llllllooooovvvveeeeddddd this set of interviews. Thank you @ynwtf for asking and thank you @GulfportDoc for answering..I watched every single video on you tube ( yes I know they're all from one interview session ) and I was absolutely fascinated by it all.


Well Doc I feel I know you now. ( btw I won't go into detail but you remind me of someone I knew a number of years ago, Same genteel and articulate way of speaking, and same understated playful manner. He was a handsome devil too ) . So I felt right at home listening to you.

Some highlights of these conversations for me included:

- I liked hearing that what you loved most in playing in Frank's band was when you had the freedom to just solo off the top of your head- going to wherever the Muse led you. I do soundly believe that freedom is the ultimate goal of and( the universe's) gift to an artist - in any medium. Or to paraphrase you- just taking an idea to its end.

- I've known a fair number of musicians in my time and I have to concur that , even at a small potatoes local level, the 'manager' of these talented people always seems to be having a hand in the cookie jar. It's a cliche to be sure, but like a used car salesman, an agent/manager like Herb, despite however skillfully he paved the way for the Mothers, earned his bad rep . And I agree that many people of talent are 'vulnerable' to these predatory businessmen b/c of being focused on the joy of the art.

I' m glad you were ' only in it for the music' though- it's a joy that no amount of money can buy.

-And I love how you always had respect, appreciation and admiration for the ' greats ' you have worked with and/or met- whether it's Beverly Sills ( who you've mentioned in an earlier post ) or the great Duke Ellington. Whew - what a story about Duke, puts chills to your spine. I hope in later years he reaped more of the rewards he so justly deserved.

- And I' m impressed that you've met and played with so many people I've been a fan of - and purchased their music - in particular Lowell George who I didn't even remember being in Frank's band. ( I loved the song Willin' when I first heard it by Little Feat , and I still do)


This is terrific stuff Doc and I wonder, if you don't mind, if you can point us to one or two ' songs' or pieces on YouTube that you're proud of, and we can hear your drum solo., or other percussion. Could be Frank or the Captain. Or for that matter, a link to the Cincinnati orchestra.

Thank you very much for the nice compliments. The feeling is mutual, I'm sure.

There's quite a bit of stuff out there on which I'm playing. Here's a little piece we played frequently on stage called The Little House I Used To Live In, from the Burnt Weenie Sandwich album from either '69 or '70. There's a beautiful piano introduction by Ian Underwood. Then, at about 2'15" the main piece starts. There's some pretty nice drumming, which eventually folds into a little duet with Frank and I. I think this was cut in, as Frank did very often on his recordings. He petered out fairly soon on this particular cut. Sometimes we'd play that portion for several minutes on stage. The excellent violin playing was by Sugar Cane Harris:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XduaWFznN5s

If you'd like to go way back, here's a link to my senior percussion recital from 1966: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgfhhZqq4mk Track 1 has marimba renditions of two Paganini caprices. There were several flubs. It was live, and I was a little amped..;)

Track 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps-87ff0qv8 is of K. Stockhausen's Zyklus for solo percussionist. The performance is a little too slow, but interesting.

Track 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExhzTX1KUVM is a rendition of Saint Saens' Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, played on marimba with piano accompaniment. The piece was written for piano and orchestra, oftentimes played as an encore.

If you're still awake after all that, then there is quite a bit of other stuff from Zappa/MOI, Beefheart, Mallard, Al Stewart, etc. Using my proper name might bring up some stuff.

Cheers,
~Art

I'm loving where this thread has gone. Thank you for sharing so much greatness.

:D

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

LensLady wrote it all better than I could have :) Totally agree.

Hi @GulfportDoc, I wanted to say a few words about the music you generously posted here. Sorry to get back so late, but I wanted to have a stretch of quiet time to just sit and listen - finally found enough time tonight to listen thoroughly to the first piece.

Well I'd say your percussion was truly the centerpiece of The Little House I Used To Live In. And it was more then just the backbone of the piece- the duel or duet between drums and guitar
( unique, to my ears anyway) led to interplay of drums and (superb) piano and then ( unexpectedly to my ears) drums and violin. Different instruments also stepped in and mingled and supplemented the music- very creative . But your 'voice, ' so to speak, was the only one always speaking- even near the end where you played marimba instead of drums. Heady stuff -there was a point about 10 minutes in where I just felt the spirit of Coltrane. So I understand why you had so much fun in this band, and that it was an engaging challenge to be a part of.

I' ll be back again to comment on the other pieces ( if you can still stand it ;) ) which I've only listened to cursorily so far.

But I have a couple of quick comments before I go . First , are you familiar with the Wipeout song by The Ventures ( I recently posterd it on my ill titled thread which SHOULDA read Songs From Woodstock .) I only mention it b/c they had
two ( energetic ) drummers - Not as sophisticated as this opus, but I wonder if you heard it.

Also, I really like the title of this piece - wonder if Frank meant it to be evocative of a place he lived in, or a universal theme. Or perhaps, like Dylan - some titles Frank created had a meaning that may have had relevance to a feeling or idea or thought of the musician; but is now - like the copy of my phone bill that I just laid down somewhere round here; barely a minute ago, yes somewhere on this very desk and in this very room- forever lost.

Thanks for your nice comments. You're very intuitive.

No, I'd never heard The Ventures version of the Surfaris 1963 "Wipe Out". I looked at it on YouTube. Using two drummers made it more interesting to the public as sort of a "battle of the drummers". Other than that, it wasn't remarkable.

The type of drum solo was rather set in stone by the Surfaris drummer, Ron Wilson, from the original single. He basically played all 16th notes (4 notes to the beat in 4/4 meter), and that endured via imitation by drummers from scores of bands who covered the instrumental. That practice is similar to the way many drummers imitated Gene Krupa's original style at the beginning of his drum solo from the Benny Goodman version of "Sing, Sing, Sing".

With MOI we covered "Wipe Out" occasionally, always tongue in cheek. I recall one performance of it at a Shaefer Music Festival in Central Park, NYC. Frank called it up, and off we went. I played chiefly a standard type Rock 'n Roll solo, but I clowned it up with woodblocks, bicycle horns, and other accessories as well. I recall it, because it got a standing O..:)

I never asked Frank which house he had in mind for "Little House...". My guess is that he recalled his meager residence in Cucamonga, CA, where he had his early Studio Z in the earlier '60s. Yeah, that piece was always lots of fun to play.

~Doc

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I used to be a virtuoso guitarist, then I turned into a classical composer, now I'm just a composer of literally anything my subconsciousness feels like writing. Went to University to do contemporary classical for a few years but then had a change of interests (not the music, but things with life in general).
Currently I haven't practiced in years but my archives of complete compositions (fully notated), varying from classical music to jazz, to rock to pop to metal to prog metal to folk to etc etc.
Over the years I could have formed like 50 completely different sounding bands, had symphonies and piano concertos performed. Ah my shame :sick:

But I do indeed very much have a large musical wardrobe.

Good to see you posting, Dr. J. Did you mainly play acoustic guitar, or electric? Which university did you attend? That's great that you were a prolific composer. Do you have a website?

Cheers,
~Doc

Re: Any Musicians Out There?
 

I sing a bit, if that counts. I used to play piano, but I wasn't an expert or anything. Though, I did do an original song long ago in probably the worst form of Japanese that somehow ended up on foreign websites and it probably still getting downloaded.