Spiritual, Complex, Humble

My band did a gig Friday night - the usual rough and tumble affair! - and, oddly enough, didn't work the rest of the weekend. Of course, this made me very itchy, so on Sunday, I drove to a jazz club to check out an old friend of mine - a keyboardist who played with me in a band in the mid 90s. I hadn't seen this particular guy for about 13 years (!), but had very fond memories of him as a person AND a superior musician.

Wow. What an unbelievable way to spend three hours. I heard some amazing and exciting jazz and fusion music, performed by players who were skilled AND gifted - now THAT'S a scary combination. Through it all my friend smiled and sang, while the band performed complex, challenging music with no rules or restraints.

The band was comprised of heavy hitters, guys with VERY fat resumes. Trust me when I say you'd be BLOWN AWAY if I told you who these cats had played with. My keyboardist friend gave me the lowdown on each guy, and I knew I was in for a great night of music. However, if you walked up to them and talked to them you'd never know who they played with or what they've done. The best guys - the cream of the crop - are humble and reserved. They don't tell you about their lives, which top 40 hit maker they played with, how many times they've toured the earth. Instead, they sit back and let their music do ALL the talking. Spend any time with great musicians and you learn one very true thing: the best musicians in the world are the ones who just lay it down. They don't need to talk about it.

When I spoke with these guys on break they were humble and unassuming, more interested in my time playing with my friend then in telling me about their lives. There's another telltale sign you're in the presence of greatness. These guys take more interest in the other person - they want to know about YOU. They don't brag about gear, or endorsements, or hits or any BS. Let me put it this way: when some dude tells you he's spent $8,000 on his bass - before you hear him play one note - run away, quickly.

Anyway, I told each of them that listening to what they were creating was more than moving - it was spiritual, in the way that great music IS. Each one of them said "thanks" in such a humble way, I'm convinced that they KNOW how powerful their playing is, but they feel equally as blessed as the listener by it.

I know I was. Thanks guys.

Can a Cover Musician Communicate His Politics?

I'm a political person and I love my country. I'm also a liberal, and have been as long as I've been voting (and before I COULD vote, too). So, it should come as no surprise that I've been pretty miserable for the past seven plus years as I've seen the country I love and cherish almost capsize under the weight of a soulless, power-mad and murderous administration. For over seven years our leaders - in particular our stupid and vindictive (and how's THAT for a dangerous combination?) president and his Antichrist vice president - have made a mockery of our nation. Our reputation, here and abroad, is in shambles, while their words have spiraled into a cacophony of lies, hate, scandal and arrogance. It's appalling.

Here's the very, very, very, very tippiest tip of the iceberg:

• Walter Reed patient treatment
• Firing of US attorneys for political reasons
• The outing of covert CIA agent Valeria Plame
• The "war" in Iraq (WMDs? WTF?)
• Halliburton's no-bid contracts/cronyism
• And where IS Osama Bin Laden?
• Blackwater - "private security contractors," AKA mercenaries with no accountability
• The Military Commissions Act: torture, indefinite detention and the end of habeas corpus
• Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the destruction of New Orleans, the complete disregard for the black and poor, FEMA, "Heck of a job Brownie," "So many of the people in this arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this is working very well for them"
• Warrantless NSA wiretapping
• Homeland security: using fear to keep America in line and question free
• Abu Ghraib torture
• Tom Delay indicted for conspiracy to violate campaign laws
• Mark Foley, chairman of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children sending sexually explicit messages to pages
• Larry Craig "going to the bathroom"
  
• Global warming? What global warming?
• Tax cuts for the wealthiest, for corporations and on capital gains
• Astronomical deficit, vastly increased national debt
• Immigration issues
• Healthcare?
• A growing poor and upper class and a shrinking middle class

I'm disgusted.

Now, you may or may not agree with my views, but we can all agree that here - in this blog - I'm free to state my opinions. Ah, but therein lies the rub: can I state my opinions while performing with my cover band?

Remember, a cover band ain't great art, nor does it perform original music. A cover band's purpose is to entertain, to excite and thrill and to take the audience on a walk through happy memories. So, as a singer who's also involved in the political landscape of our nation, I constantly walk that tightrope of keeping it light but expressing myself about the country, and world, around us. For, although I'm paid to entertain, I'm also a functioning human being who looks at the world and strains to deal with the emotions modern times brings.

At a gig a few weeks ago there were two soldiers, on leave, in the club. These guys were kids - KIDS, I'm telling you - no more than 20 years old. Yet, they were two weeks away from going back to Iraq to fight a war our president and his cronies orchestrated to solidify their hold as the first true American monarchy, to satiate their blood and oil lust and feed money into the coffers of those smart enough to hitch a ride on their wagon (war reparations, my friends, is a great business). This is a war we never should've started and certainly shouldn't be participating in now, yet we continue to sacrifice our young to this beast with no remorse nor recompense.

So - yes, on mic I spoke up about these two, stating that whether the crowd was against or for the war they NEED to be for these soldiers - these KIDS - and we NEED to get them home to their country, their families and their lives.

I wanted to say more, but good sense took hold and I simply told the two they were heroes to me. Shortly after that the band kicked into "Pink Houses," and I interjected the word "war" into the line "It's the simple man that pays the bills, the thrills, the WAR that kills." (ASIDE: if you think "Pink Houses" is a good ol' tune about great ol' America, read the lyrics a bit more closely. Neither it, nor Springsteen's "Born in the USA" are glowing reviews of the country's machinations and what it's become, though many people think they're both fist pumping "America! F&$k Yeah!" anthems. Newsflash: they ain't.)

And so? Am I any closer to figuring out if I have the right to communicate politics while performing with a cover band? I think the two examples above are as far as I SHOULD push it, and I have my original music to best make my point without pissing off the people who write the checks to pay for quality entertainment.

Still...I often wonder if, considering the circumstances, our lives in this world, the future of our children and our planet...

...I wonder if, sometimes, pushing the boundaries and shaking people out of the fog is worth having the boss shove a finger into my face.

Amazed, Proud, Cocky and Thankful

I'm not sure if I believe in epiphanies. As a temporary game changer, maybe, but as a permanent, life-changing experience? Not so much. After all, human beings are creatures of habit.

(Extremely) general example: let's say you have a near miss, a 502 meant for you. You slip through - even though you've been pounding Scotch all night long and your blood level equals Otis and Foster Brooks combined. You may temporarily quit drinking well before driving, but as a professional musician I've seen the old habits creep back to those blessed with a divine mulligan.

Or maybe you committed to a diet because your favorite pair of jeans are SO tight people can read the date on the quarter in your back pocket. So you start the diet, build some momentum, but eventually your friends start putting the plate of nachos too close to your fork hand, and...

Why am I blabbing about this? Because I might've had something approaching an epiphany, but maybe it was more of a "you've been drinking $200 wine out of a golden chalice and you're CHUGGING, dude!" If you've read any of my stuff here you know my band is pretty good. Solid. Dependable. We don't always get along, but by and large I knew I'd put together a tight, professional group that, thanks to our variety and skill, was able to get some good work along the way.

However - and I mean this honestly - I saw how really, really good, how versatile and amazing this band was last Saturday night. Now, keep in mind, when something's great over an extended period of time, it's easy to take it for granted (if you've ever had a relationship with a smokin' hot, generous and kind person you know exactly what I mean. John Lennon always said "Be Here Now," and as a grown musician and man I'm starting to GET IT.). Sometimes, efficiency equals complacency, and when a band keeps humming along you forget exactly WHAT it is you're accomplishing night in and out.

Seriously - being a part of something really good is almost dangerous. Slipping into the malaise of efficiency and dependability blinds you to the sparks and the fire of the creation itself.

So, here I am last Saturday, playing to a packed house in Sunset Beach. We're seconds away from downbeat, the band and the crowd's really up, the vibe is good - and I take a glance at the set list I'd put together earlier in the day.

The first fifteen minutes of music include:

Moon Dance (at about 150 BPM to make the thing swing HARD)
All My Loving
Every Little Thing
50 Ways to Leave Your Lover
The Way You Look Tonight
Signed Sealed Delivered

Seriously - that's absolutely nuts. A three piece with voice slipping from Jazz to 60s pop to 80s pop to Jazz/pop to Sinatra/big band to Motown?!

And this is just a small piece of the night. My Girl? Pour Some Sugar on Me? Le Freak? Love Shack? I Want You Back? American Pie? Everlasting Love? Slide? Come and Get Your Love? Spectrum, meet the other side of the spectrum.

So, there I was, right before Rob clicked in time for the first song, and it hit me: we're not just a good cover band - we're a DAMN good cover band, one that adapts and creates and plays whatever's necessary to make the gig happen. And not only do we play the stuff - we NAIL it, right to the wall, and then show it to the crowd like showing neighbors vacation pictures. It's crazy, and it's wonderful, and it's something many other bands just CAN'T do.

By the way, I'm not disparaging other bands - far from it. What I'm saying is my band's become so good at doing what it is we do it's become routine, and the spectacular and impossible's become commonplace to me.

But not after Saturday. Thanks, guys.

My Muse: The Kinda Good Friend Doesn't Know When to Leave

When I'm not playing music with my cover band, I'm writing and recording for my first completely solo album. Writing and recording while balancing a day AND night gig is difficult, at best. When inspiration hits it's crucial to record it someway, some how, before it leaves.

Most times my inspiration, and the results of it, are - if not controllable, at least predictable. Outside of a lightning bolt here and there, my inspiration is the result of working an idea over and over and over again - almost like stirring a bowl of frozen ice cream until it's more like a shake.

Which brings me to an interesting point about creating music: lately, my muse has arrived AFTER I've worked myself to death and just about given up on creating anything remotely interesting. But now that she's here, WILL NOT LEAVE.

Case in point: over the past week I've made more progress on four songs than I have in the month prior. Worked out arrangements, instrument structure, melodies and harmonies and reasonably strong first mixes. I don't really write and record like this - it's generally a lengthy process, taken one small step at a time.

Now, it's almost like something switched on in my head and WON'T shut off. My muse is like the girl who comes over for a visit (and you're happy to see her), but she just doesn't know when it's time to leave your house. The creative process and the possibilities of what the songs are, what they can be and what new songs are on the horizon is RELENTLESS. I simply cannot shut down the gears.

Now the process is picking up speed - I'm playing the stuff over and over in my brain during my DAY gig. Figuring out changes. Refining hooks. Changing chords. It's great, but maddening at the same time - kind of like hitting a geyser and watching the stuff explode 100 feet into the air with no way to control it, catch it or shut if off!

The good news? Suddenly, I can say - as unemotionally and business-like as possible - I can see the finish line for my record.

Believe me when I say I'm not complaining, but there are times I'd like/need to turn the muse off - even if only for a day. Sometimes, my brains needs a break. Processing information non-stop is fatiguing, and one thing I DON'T want is to get sick of my own work before it's finished.

But, as noted above, I normally don't work this way, so brothers and sisters, I'm riding this mother of a wave until it crashes on the rocks.

(End of April for the record? Looks like.)

Hungover w/o Drinking a Drop (Alternate Title: Your Shoes and Socks Don't Match)

My band and I finished up '07 with a New Year's gig in Newport. Both the drummer and I were sick as dogs - he had some kind of stomach bug, while I got clobbered with an upper respiratory infection that clogged my sinuses, throat, lungs and windpipe with gunk (GREAT news for a singer). Still, going into the gig I was pretty excited about the venue and performing on New Year's Eve. It's always a good gig.

'07? Hm. Not so much.

I'll start off by saying the venue itself, the owner and the support staff were top notch. Every person working there was very cool. And, although load in was kind of tough (upstairs with no elevator), the band pulled together and we got the gear in and out in a reasonable manner (again considering no elevator). The band members and the music were both in good spirits.

The kinda sorta issue was the crowd. I have to say, in all my years of performing, I had no answer for the crowd. The average age was early 50s through crypt-keeper, and though we threw every swing and older-ish song at them we knew, I still got criticized for "not playing enough cha-chas!"

Verbatim, by the way.

Now, I have absolutely nothing against cha chas, classic west coast swing, the Charleston or boogie woogie. In fact, we have a few of those in our musical bag of tricks. However, the set list I put together encompassed swing, faux jazz and then soul, R&B and pop from the 60s through the 90s. I mean, we were to open with "Slide" and crank out "Rock and Roll All Night" at midnight for God's sake! So, there I was, tearing through an old "complete" and "updated" song list (which wasn't either), trying to figure out what could work with this crowd.

Ultimately, we resigned ourselves to slow-burn music and accepted the multiple crickets that greeted us at the end of many songs with a sense of humor born from playing countless gigs like this through the years. Uncomfortable? Yes. Unexpected? Definitely. Unparalleled? No way. Unprofessional? Never - we pulled together and pulled it off like a solid cover band does.

Now, a few of the tables there were definitely very nice, friendly and high energy, and that allowed us to bust out some old-school disco and other kind of non-threatening dance music. Still, the room and the night didn't move the way I wanted it to, and that was a bit frustrating and, ultimately, had me shaking my head and thinking of mismatched socks.

Which means? Well, next time I prepare two completely different set lists and the band creates an even BIGGER bag of up tempo dinner music. This type of thing is a challenge, and - once the headache passed - I made up my mind to nail the next "huh? That's the crowd?" gig to the wall.

Peace. Hope. Love.

The holiday gigs are, for the most part, completed. It's a tough month and a half for me and my band. Most of the corporate gigs we do are for people/companies I've known for some time, and though they normally treat us very well, it still becomes a bit exhausting - mentally and physically - playing a large amount of gigs in a short amount of time with four guys in a band who alternate between liking and wanting to kill one another.

My band and I did our last "official" holiday performance last Saturday (we've got a handful of club dates left in the month, followed by a New Year's celebration). After a pretty tough six weeks of corporate gigs, I was looking forward to finishing up the holiday gig checklist and winding down a bit.

This last gig was for my hometown of Laguna Hills, California, and was literally within a one-minute walking time from my house. We performed in the middle of a huge park (part of the reason I bought the house in this particular neighborhood), for an event the City of Laguna Hills puts on every year - their "Holiday Hay Ride." Families from all over town - close to 1,000 people - come to see Santa, play games, sit on haystacks by warm fires, eat a bunch of great food, take in some live music and take a ride in a huge hay cart pulled by two enormous horses.

The band's stage was decorated with Christmas trees, packages, candy, you name it. It was really, really festive. Before we played one note - even when we had a few small problems with the electrical (which the staff fixed and did a terrific job of it) - I had this amazing feeling. What brought it on? Especially at the end of a tough stretch of gigs? It was a combination of playing for the home crowd, seeing so many of my friends and neighbors, taking in all the decorations and doing something really cool for my home town.

When the sun went down, the lights went up - every single tree surrounding the stage was lit with beautiful Christmas lights. That was it for me. Everything that playing so many gigs in such a short time brings - sore knees, raw throat, aches and pains, band tension, fatigue and the prospect of playing the same songs - melted away.

I was, truly, awash in the pure joy and all the wonderful things Christmas brings with it. Community. Unselfishness. A child's sense of wonderment and awe. Peace. Love. I felt this amazing joy, a happiness that just kept building. I could NOT wipe the smile off my face - and frankly, I didn't want to anyway.

We live in cynical times. Our leaders are liars and inept, our world burning down like a candle, things cost too much, we don't trust one another and it seems like there's no end in sight to the sorrow we ourselves have created and encouraged. But on that Saturday night, in and for the City of Laguna Hills, California - for those moments, when I sang and stared out at the trees lit with a million tiny stars - when I looked at my community being together, laughing together, celebrating together - when I watched the children who danced and sang with no preconceived notions about skill level or who they needed to impress...they danced and sang because they just couldn't contain their happiness...

...I was filled with a hope and love more powerful than I can ever describe.

Thank you, Laguna Hills.

Lexicon, Part Deux

And THIS is what I meant to blog today - more lexicon additions:

Who's that?
Bitch or snitch.
How much per minute?
Flatsky and Spubes.
I know all but three.
Vino it up
Rudy the Red D--err, BEAKED Reindeer
You're not a member of the club!

And of course, we're spreading the holiday cheer among one another:

"Did you have a nice Thanksgiving? We didn't, falcon falcon!"

Back Up to See Closer

Like every year, as the holiday season presses on (and why, oh why can't we just have peace on earth and goodwill towards men 365 days a year? Is it THAT big a deal?), I start figuring out my approach for the new year. Normally this means getting the gigs lined up, blocking out the "dibs" section on the calendar for gigs not yet (but will be) booked, reviewing the song list to see what to scratch, what to keep, what to work on and what to add and deciding how to best open up new frontiers. Busy time, considering I'm juggling the day gig, playing the night gigs and somehow squeezing in Christmas shopping and the inevitable (and welcome) socializing the holiday season brings.

This year's a bit different though. As I look to a fresh, new year, I'm pretty jacked up about trying something new. So, in addition to my current cover band I'm putting together a second cover band to play in '08.

It's been eight years since I put a band together from nothing, but back then it was more nerve wracking. I mean, not only did I make the choice to walk away from a financial and musical powerhouse with A-list players (one Grammy-nominated, one currently touring with Carly Simon and who'd recorded with Rod Stewart), but I'd made up my mind to start from scratch. I wouldn't use ANYONE I'd played with before, so no one could tell me what MY band needed to be or sound like. No arguments. No preconceived notions. Of course, I also got all the stress and extra work that comes with singlehandedly putting a new band together.

All of this, while I was booking gigs for a band that didn't exist. Yikes.

But that's the benefit of looking back at that stressful time. I can now avoid the bumps and pitfalls - this isn't "wing and a prayer" time anymore. Grinding it out eight years ago means I now know exactly what the clients want, what I think is going to work and what the band's temperament should be.

So, in '08, I'll be talking to you a bit more about the new twist on my old theme. It's gonna be a blast.

Decking the Halls w/o Decking One Another

The holiday season is crazy busy for a good cover band. This is the time of year every company, city, club and group of friends throw a holiday celebration, and they're looking for a good cover band to entertain the gang. Luckily for me, my band's pretty good - and I've made such great friends who're also great contacts over the years, and they consistently come to me for entertainment (THANKS everybody!) - that our holiday time is pretty busy.

Of course, the downside to this (and I'm sure it applies to any group- not just a band) is spending TOO MUCH time with the same people for about six weeks. When you factor in added pressure (a cover band has to REALLY be on its game for the holidays) with fatigue (I work 50+ hours a week in addition to running the band) with the sort of contempt that familiarity brings (four guys with four opinions seeing one another more often than any other time of year) you come up with a tasty holiday treat (aka toxic brew) called Band Tension.

And that's the irony of playing gigs at this particular time of year. I mean, the holidays are supposed to invite peace, love, patience and goodwill towards one another, right? Not always - at least not on a bandstand. One player gets pissed at another for playing too slow or too fast. Meanwhile, the slow/fast player is pissed at the complainer because he keeps screwing up the same changes in the same songs over and over. Meanwhile, another guy's pissed at the first guy because the transitions aren't quick enough, and the first guy's pissed at THAT guy because that guy pushes the transitions only when it's convenient for him. Meanwhile, EVERYBODY'S pissed at another guy who's being a bit too spontaneous with changes, and that guy's pissed at everybody else because they sound sloppy or are bitching about random things.

Granted, that last paragraph's chock full of gobbledegook, and is a (mostly) fictional account of a band's holiday dynamic, but believe me when I say those grumblings, gripes and cold-dagger stares are multiplied to the nth degree this time of year. I know I'VE been pissed off, and I'm sure the guys in my band have been pissed at me and with one another (it's like getting little ice slivers shot at my shoulder blades). Anyway, I'm kind of basing this theory on empirical evidence, mind you - just what I see with my eyes, hear with my ears and feel with my body.

So, what to do? Just grind through it, man. Do the work. Be professional. Give the client the best you have, no questions asked. Eventually, it all shakes out anyway - December passes and a new year begins with new challenges, new sounds/flavors and new vibes and personalities. It's all good.

The Worst Blogger in the History of Blog Kind

Yes...I'm THAT bad.

"Gee," you guys mumble at a gig, "why aren't you blogging anymore?"

And it's true - I haven't come near this page for about three months (!). Why? Well, it's the old "the devil you know is worse than the devil you don't" - it's all about the day gig, running my band, working to finish my first completely solo record, writing on the side, etc. Plus, I spend nine hours a day writing - that's what my day gig IS.

In short, it's about TIME - that is, finding time to put my thoughts down in an entertaining and coherent way.

Plus, I guess I'm not your average blogger. Although I have no problem discussing my spin on the comings and goings of running a cover band, or how certain books/movies/songs/etc. can always translate into metaphor about being a musician, I don't want to dig too deep about certain things. It comes across as narcissistic and pathetic, y'know? Besides, some of my REAL bitching and gripes regarding bands, music and musicians are better off NOT being made public. I can be opinionated and assertive, but I'm no fan of public castrations.

(Yes - that means when I'm pissed at someone, or if someone in my band's acting like a primadonna, jackhole, rock star, hypocrite, fake or a combination I won't spill the specifics. Maybe in a general way, but that's as far as I like to go on the internet.)

Which means...what? Well, it means I'll still document what happens in a cover band, what my expectations are and how to keep things moving forward.

I CAN tell you this: beginning in '08 I'm probably going to start a SECOND cover band, and use that one for certain gigs. Why? Well, I need guys who all want to do and play the same type of music without any eye rolling or mumbling "if you say so." Who understand what he or she is supposed to do and embrace that role. Who appreciate the work BEFORE the gig.

OK - so, my promise to get out here a few times a week and give you the blurb. I hope you enjoy it, and if so don't be shy - comment, and let me know what you think.