The Songwriter Forum - songwriting reviews, tips and chat
Songwriter Forum => The Bar => Topic started by: delb0y on January 13, 2016, 11:49:30 PM
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I've mentioned in the three Finished Song posts that I've made so far that my intention with these tunes is to play them at Open Mics with a view to seeing what works and what doesn't, polish them, get the keys and tempos and feels right, etc etc with a view to ultimately including them in some proper acoustic gigs. Anyway, I started the 2016 campaign this evening at an OM - played four songs, of which three went down really well. The fourth was okay, but I need to work on it a little more. But "I Learned To Walk" which I've posted here went down a storm - I was really happy with the performance and the song just flies. I think I've really lucked into a good one there. Already have a promise of a proper paid acoustic gig too, rather than an OM. So the campaign is off to a good start :-)
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Nice one db. Your songs are great so keep feeding the public :)
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Good for you. And there is nothing lucky about Learned to Walk - it's a cracking song and deserves the plaudits.
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Had chance to do a solo set at an acoustic night, last night. Not an Open Mic, but a three act evening, of which I was the middle one. I decided to include three of my originals, two of which I've shared here, and they went down really well. Excellent comments about the songs and the set, so I'm delighted with progress so far this year. Even got requests for my card from a couple of people, one whom puts gigs on... Made me decide that I must get some cards printed up! Luckily I had a non-music related card that I could give out. Clearly my marketing needs as much attention as my song-writing!
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I'm not in the least surprised...you're great at this.
Writing really good, engaging songs and performing them brilliantly, in a warm, fun and friendly fashion.
It's a great way of presenting songs too.
I dug up some of my really old songs yesterday and recorded them live with just acoustic guitar and vocals...and they seemed to have a life of their own, without the constraints of a band playing them, or a metronome dictating the tempo...I really loved doing it.
The downside for me was that my performance was a bit ropey...you're miles ahead of me in that department...and I need to work on it a bit :)
Well done, Derek...and thanks for the inspiration!
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Another OM this evening. Did six songs (two groups of three as there weren't that many acts so we got to go round twice).
My intention this evening, thinking I was only going to play three songs, was to test out two new tunes. They both went well / okay-ish - but there was a huge difference with song # 3, which I've played live maybe a dozen times. It just goes to show that one can practice and practice at home, but playing live is a different thing altogether and there's just no substitute for it.
For the second three I tried another original which I'd only played once before, but it was an easier song - no fingerpicking! - and thus I was able to relax into it. I then played a John Prine song, and finished with I Learned To Walk, which always goes down well.
Had a chat with a fellow afterwards who's opinion I respect and he made a couple of suggestions about keys and tempos, but said he loves what I do. Some other positive comments, too.
So the intent was met - I got to try out a couple of originals in a safe environment, learned a few things, and took some advice home with me.
Tomorrow night I'm meeting up with a fellow player who I met at the last gig. Not sure where it's going to lead, hopefully a good contact that can help find some acoustic gigs.
Another step on the long trail.
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Next step is next Friday. Got a duo gig, possibly a trio, but have managed to negotiate a 20 minute solo section to try a few of the songs I've been working up here. Nice to now have the problem of choosing which songs to cut to get the solo set down to 20 minutes :-)
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Well that was another step along the trail - a great gig, including 20 minutes of me playing my solo fingerpicking stuff. I did a few Mississippi John Hurt covers - although the way I play them they're a little more in-yer-face and less laid back and subtle than the originals - a John Prine, and a couple of mine: my standard finishing song "I Learned To Walk" and a blues "The Women Get You Every Time". I was really pleased with both these - particular the latter as I tried it at an Open Mic a couple of weeks ago and didn't quite nail it. This evening it was almost spot on - and all the better for having a guest harp player blowing some sweet solos in it. When I do a version of it for this site, I might get said harp-player to add his magic to the recording.
Had a couple more dates come into the diary today, too. Not for the solo stuff which is what I've been sharing here, but all gigs are gigs! One if a band gig at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival (the fringe element) and another is a gig for my party duo at a hotel in Herefordshire.
Onwards and upwards!
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You've been having some great experiences! I mostly sit at home, do some writing, and I'm getting a little into recording, but I'm a long way from being any good at that.
I've thought about talking to a local establishment about having an open mic night where I would, of course, try out something of mine. My problem is, I no longer care to go out in the evening. I've gotten to be such a fuddy-duddy.
I'm glad these events are going so well for you, and I suspect they will just keep getting better and better.
Vicki
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Thanks Vicki. I've played gigs since I was 15 (and before that I played in the school orchestra) so actually being on stage in front of people isn't new or daunting (in fact I love it). The new bit is doing it standing there alone, performing my own songs, and trying to entertain, keep an audience's attention and all that. It's a whole different world to banging out rock'n'roll that a roomful of people can jive to, or performing singalong songs that everyone knows at a party. (Both of which I do also)
Each gig I'm learning something new. On Friday I took the volume down quite low on a couple of occasions to see if what Victor Wootton wrote about in The Music Lesson (*) would really work. It did. As I went quiet people stopped talking and turned to listen...
(*) A great, if strange, book about music. Highly recommended if one plays an instrument.
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It is great following your journey
Standing up there alone with your own songs is definitely the pinnacle of "singer / songwriting" and I admire you for doing it
I know our very own JAMES NIGHTHAWK has been doing the same for a while so I hope he returns soon with an update on how he is getting on
It is interesting you mention Victor Wotten - I was just talking about him on Wednesday this week
He is playing in London soon and the bass player in my band and I were wondering if a whole night of "solo bass guitar" would hold our interest
He is incredible though!
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Thanks Boydie.
I've not seen Victor Wotten live, but I'm sure it would be awesome. His two DVD bass instructional pack is the best instruction about being a musician I've ever watched. I don't play bass, but I've got so much from Victor.
Now that I think about it I must try and get to see him sometime, too :-)
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Nice one Del. There is nothing like standing up in front of an audience and banging out Your own tunes. Especially solo. It can be terrifying. Keep it up mate. The general public deserve to be educated
Cheers
John
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Not an original song, but another aspect of what I'm taking along this path with me.
https://youtu.be/regr4QXBIzQ (https://youtu.be/regr4QXBIzQ)
A ragtime exercise that goes by the name of "Boogaloo Down La Rue" and was written by a feller called Richard Saslow. My tune "Let The Lyrics Take The Strain" which I posted here was heavily influenced by this chord sequence - but hopefully sounds an awful lot different. That was the intent anyway.
In other news also managed to get to another Open Mic tonight and play four songs. No substitute for miles, a famous cyclist once said. Similar with this solo playing - just trying to get as much time behind the mic and in front of people as possible. It went well. Was quite quiet, but some very good comments.
Hey ho.
Cheers!
Derek
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I really enjoyed that rag time tune and can imagine it going down a storm live
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That's thoroughly charming, Derek :)
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yo del,i'm diggin. 8)
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Thanks guys! :)
This thread has turned into a bit of a Del's Diary thing. So, writing some thoughts down for me rather than for anyone else, here's some more rambling.
Firstly, I did a gig with my boogie-woogie / swing / rock'n'roll band last night. It went down a storm. The band is so good (even if I say so myself) mainly because all the players are red hot. Only trouble is, it acts like a massive magnet that I can feel pulling me away from the solo finger-picking singer/songwriter stuff that I'm trying to develop. Nothing wrong with that per se. The plan for the acoustic stuff is to get it to a position of readiness for when I'm 60 and (hopefully!) retire, so there's no rush. At 60 I won't be wanting to cart electric guitars and big amps around and scream out rock'n'roll tunes - so some sedate finger-picking blues/ragtime/country will be in order. When I turned 50 I made a 10 year plan to get this acoustic stuff to a state where I could play / sing / write / perform / market / record / entertain to a reasonable local level. I'm less than three years into that plan so time is still on my side but I don't want to lose focus. But damn, that band is so good, and going out with the boys is so much fun, and when the whole room is bopping it's something to behold.
Secondly, I can feel myself weakening in this place too. In fact it's already happened and I realised it snuck on me, blindsided me, if you like. My intention was / is to learn how to write better songs - more specifically with that focus on singer-songwriter solo finger-picking stuff that I can take out and perform on my tod. That's where I started. But you guys are so great at the whole big arrangements thing. There's such inspiring stuff here that it has become as seductive as those night out with the band. I realise that my last three shared songs have all seen me moving to bigger arrangements, and I've also noticed myself looking on line at loops and samples and... whoah! Hold on there tiger. Back to basics, son.
Thirdly, I'm picking up gigs with other ensembles, too. Couple of duos, and an Americana band. All of which are great fun, and it feels like gigs are coming in weekly. Which is brilliant and I've no intention of stopping them. But again, I find that there's a slight discordant vibration buzzing somewhere inside, that warns me whilst this stuff is great for the here and now, I need to be careful that it doesn't over-power the plan and the good intentions.
That's it. Just a couple of thoughts from me to me on a Saturday morning before I start the chores. As with everything, it's all about balance. It's good to get these thoughts down on 'paper' because it lends them a little clarity. I can see that musically I'm in a good place, have a whole bunch of great musical friends, and audiences and pub/hotel landlords seem to like these various ensembles - which is wonderful. Just need to ensure that I keep enough time back for the ten year plan (and for chores, and family, and the dog!). Plus of course, it's scary, that one day I could back off from all of these other things only to discover that the solo stuff doesn't fly. Ah well, there's always eBay. Then fishing. Hey ho...
Cheers
Derek
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Del's diary is a really interesting read. Keep us up to date Derek. It's really interesting to see all of the angles that people are coming from.
Cheers
John
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Cheers John.
Today's diary entry would be this:
Saturday - spent several hours working on solo fingerpicking guitar
Sunday - mowed the lawn, walked the dog, and spent several hours working up arrangements of Irish songs ready for a gig next Thursday (St Patrick's).
It's been a very guitar orientated weekend :)
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I learned a lost from this week's gigs.
Some of it is pure GAS - with me now gassing for a rather expensive acoustic guitar amplifier (I do have an acoustic guitar amp. I don't need another one, especially an expensive one, but...).
I was really pleased with my singing - starting to get a bit of confidence around the vocals now. The work I'm doing in the car on my commute is paying off - but it's still only the first step on a journey of a thousand miles (a bit like my commute).
I'm yet to do a full solo gig (i.e. me, on my own, my own gear, all night, on my own, me...) but I've now done a solo set many times and the confidence is growing that my fingers will do what they're meant to. It's a world away from the first few times I stood up to try solo finger-picking stuff when I figured I couldn't pluck a guitar string to save my life. With that confidence comes the space and time to focus on other things - like engaging with the audience, and improvising, and having a laugh. To get to this stage is, I think, a real milestone.
It's interesting watching other performers, watching the audience watching the performers, figuring out what works, and what doesn't, what I need to add / change / remove. Some of it is venue dependant - whether people are watching / paying attention / talking etc. What works on night # 1 mightn't work on night # 2. But definitely opened my eyes to what I need to do with some of the songs. Which leads me to...
From a song-writing perspective I think I need to write a few more happy songs, some more singalong (or at least less lyrically dependant songs), some songs that just stomp along rather than needing all that clever thumb-picking stuff. I actually have a few of these - at Thursday's night gig, which being St Patrick's night, and in the middle of race week was pretty crazy - we did one of my songs called "I Like To Drink". I guess the title says it all. We have a big piece of card featuring the chorus lyrics and we get someone in the audience to hold it up and everyone (hopefully) sings along (I'll post the song here one of these months). It's basic stuff but probably goes down better than any other of my songs, so a big lesson to learn there.
Hey ho. There it is. Nothing next weekend - I've kept Easter free so as to have a rest. But you never know, if I come up with a singalong song I might sneak out to an Open Mic...
Cheers
Derek
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I don't plan ever to do a solo gig, but I'm working on a solo show (or maybe two) for "some day". :) I like reading what you're doing, so I hope you keep posting in this "diary" for awhile.
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No gigs this weekend - although I turned one down. I wanted to keep the Easter weekend free to spend with the family. Did take the opportunity to record this little piece. It's all part of the plan - need to get the playing up together as well as the singing and writing and performing. Still a way off were I want to be, but it is edging forward, and this was a fun exercise to work on.
https://youtu.be/4Y8aOrkQ9NU (https://youtu.be/4Y8aOrkQ9NU)
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Played a little gig up in the Cotswolds last night, lovely little country pub and an excellent night. Great fun, lots of laughs, and I managed to sneak in a few solo pieces amongst the general mayhem of other folks tuning up and getting cramp.
Original song-wise, I played Drag You Back live for the first time and it went down very well - I'm hoping that the folks in the audience swaying gently with their eyes closed were listening intently to the lyrics and following their own memories back in time, rather than falling asleep... Also sang a motorcycle song that I'm yet to post here (again, first time out live for that song), but there were a few riders there so it seemed apt, and I also did my old standard I Learned To Walk.
What's most pleasing of all is that somewhere in the last few months I've gone beyond the point of reticence and nervousness about playing solo and now I just love the opportunity. Still a way to go before I do a whole night of it on my own - but there's no rush (and no PA system either) and I'm currently having a blast being out with the boys.
Still, the plan feels like it's very well on track!
Keep on picking!
Derek
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Played a little gig up in the Cotswolds last night, lovely little country pub and an excellent night. Great fun, lots of laughs, and I managed to sneak in a few solo pieces amongst the general mayhem of other folks tuning up and getting cramp.
Original song-wise, I played Drag You Back live for the first time and it went down very well - I'm hoping that the folks in the audience swaying gently with their eyes closed were listening intently to the lyrics and following their own memories back in time, rather than falling asleep... Also sang a motorcycle song that I'm yet to post here (again, first time out live for that song), but there were a few riders there so it seemed apt, and I also did my old standard I Learned To Walk.
What's most pleasing of all is that somewhere in the last few months I've gone beyond the point of reticence and nervousness about playing solo and now I just love the opportunity. Still a way to go before I do a whole night of it on my own - but there's no rush (and no PA system either) and I'm currently having a blast being out with the boys.
Still, the plan feels like it's very well on track!
Keep on picking!
Derek
Go del. 8)
What's the biker choon,Richard Thompson,Black Lightning,by any chance?
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One of my own, Skub - a cheerful little ditty called Roulette In The Rain. I'll post it up here oen of these days...
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Cool.
Sounds like any of the bikes in the 70s I rode,that were the first to get disc brakes. They suffered horrible brake lag in any sort of rain! :D :D
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I currently ride a ZRX1200 which looks like a bike from the seventies but has brakes and suspension from the nineties. My dad still goes out on his Velocette 350 once in a while. He tells me he has to start braking today if he wants to slow down for a roundabout tomorrow!
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I currently ride a ZRX1200 which looks like a bike from the seventies but has brakes and suspension from the nineties. My dad still goes out on his Velocette 350 once in a while. He tells me he has to start braking today if he wants to slow down for a roundabout tomorrow!
I love my Kawasakis. My first big bike was a 900 Z1 back in 75,I've been through loads of stuff since then,GPZ900r,ZZR1100,ZX9R and currently the one below,an 04 ZX10r. All my money went on bikes and music and her indoors took care of the rest! :D
(http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f399/phastasfuk/IMG_1735.jpg) (http://s51.photobucket.com/user/phastasfuk/media/IMG_1735.jpg.html)
We need a bike thread!
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Went to almost the perfect gig last week. Wizz Jones - one of the original sixties blues / folk acoustic guitar players, from the Bert Jansch / John Renbourne / Davey Graham world. An influence on many of the blues players that came later (Clapton, Keith Richards and others cite him as an influence) Wizz was there right at the beginning when even hearing those old blues records was a task in itself.
The gig was in a little studio room - maybe fifty or sixty people. Me, and the boys in my acoustic trio, were all in the front row (despite staying in the bar until the last moment - Wizz was still in the bar, too, so we knew we didn't have to rush) and I could have reached out and touched his guitar. Wizz played his 1964 Epiphone through an AER Compact 60 (I want one!) but the room was small enough that he could have played and sung acoustically. I love these little gigs - I went to one in Bristol last year to watch Jeffrey Foucault and he actually did sing acoustically at one point.
Wizz plays a finger-style thumb-picking folk blues style. Charming, a great story-teller, a brilliant picker and a fine singer. Lovely songs, too.
But there was a surprise, too. Wizz had been recording a CD with Pete Berryman in London and Pete was on his way back to Cornwall - so he stopped by to play a few tunes, both solo and with Wizz. I have a number of Pete Berryman CDs so it was a lovely addition to the gig.
I got to speak to both performers after, and shake their hands - just on the off-chance some of the magic rubs off!
As an aside, at half-time someone sought me and the boys out to tell us how much he enjoyed our gig at a wine bar a few weeks back. So we have a fanbase of one, thus far :) He did say that he understood why I was there - he said "Wizz is clearly your boss." He's not wrong.
Next week it's back to performing again. Three gigs - one on Saturday and two on Sunday. Looking forward to it. Must go and learn some songs...
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I just went back and read through most of this thread again. It's kind of motivating. I really like that you're taking us with you on this journey.
Thanks so much for taking the time to keep us informed.
Vicki
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Quite an inspiring thread to read. I haven´t played live in about 18 years apart from a one-off set about 10 years ago. I´ve ony ever done a gig once as a singer as well, when I was young and handsome, which may be the reason I got an encore.
Wasn´t there another open mic thread for us to put up a video show on here? Maybe a good place to start.
Anyway, Derek keep us informed. It´s a great read.
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Just arrived home after today's two gigs at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival. Great fun. One with a duo and one with a band. Lots of mobile phones being pointed our way - if I can track down some footage I'll share it. Yesterday was a trio gig at a beer festival up in Worcestershire. On the back of that one it looks there'll be a few more gigs, possible a couple from today, too. Also got home to find a booking for another of my duos. So the momentum continues. Not much opportunity to do any of my stuff at this weekend's gigs, though I did sing a few yesterday and snuck in "I Don't Believe In Lies" and managed to hog the stage for a solo finger-picking rag, and there's been some minor networking, but I think I need to get a lot better at this networking lark if ever I want to get some proper solo gigs.
Hey ho, looking forward to a well deserved Bank Holiday tomorrow with nothing to do. I've even mowed the lawns already so it's a chillin' day!
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Life is a bit of a rush at the moment - been away with work, then took a couple of days off to immerse myself in the world of the Beatles up in Liverpool. Had to race back to do a gig and then it was work again and the lawn keeps growing and the dog wants walking and then the car blew a tyre and my commute is about to be extended by ten miles - but that could equate to an extra hour - and I must confess I've been a bit lax with reviews here. Can't promise to catch up, but hopefully I can get back in the groove soon. Haven't even had chance to post a song in ages - though I have loads. Hopefully get something up soon.
Meanwhile here's a Liverpool time machine:
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7214/26929433422_b839958e7d.jpg)
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Love the photo. I was never in Liverpool (or anywhere on any continent other than North America for that matter), but it takes me back to my school days, making gum wrapper chains, and pining away in an adolescent fashion for Paul McCartney....
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It was an amazing and inspiring few days, Vicki. I won't bore you with loads of photos but as this is a song-writers' site this one might be of interest. Apparently John Lennon's auntie wasn't overly keen on him playing music in the house, so around the corner at Paul's childhood home was where many of the songs were written. I call this "I Saw Them Standing There".
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7212/27056911935_3fa0ec62a6.jpg)
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Sounds like you're having fun Derek,keep 'er lit man. 8)
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Brings back loads of memories about how hectic life is when you´re constantly gigging...keep the stories coming. Someone should start a funny gig stories thread...
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Been a bit quiet the last month, but the gigs ramp up again over the next few weeks. I have a couple of solo gigs tucked away amongst the duos, trios and bands and I'm looking forward to giving "Dig" and "You've Been The One" a bit of a go. Out of all the new songs I think those are the ones that fit best with my finger-picking style.
Meanwhile, what goes round comes around. I'm slowly working my way through various finger-picking ragtime books. A while back I nicked one of the chord sequences to use for "Let The Lyrics Take The Strain". Felt a bit guilty...but only for a few minutes. Then, last night, I was playing another of these ragtime tunes to a friend and he started singing along - turns out the chords are exactly the same as those used in George Hamilton IV's "Abilene".
Not one to turn up the chance of adding a song to my repertoire with minimal work, I learned the words, and now have a slow ragtime version of this old country favourite ready to go when the time is right:
http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=13392528 (http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=13392528)
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Had chance to do a half an hour solo set today at a charity event for Oxfam. I worked up a fingerpicking set that featured three of my originals.
Arrived in time to see the two preceding acts - both duo's with a fellow playing the guitar and a girl singing. And both playing all well known cover versions. The act after me was a chap singing to backing tracks - also all well known popular hits. Lovely guy, and talking to him earlier on I knew what he was going to be doing in advance.
Must confess in the light of the above I was tempted to adopt a last minute change of set list and play a few more well known covers... But I resisted the urge and stuck to my guns. Aside from helping to raise some money for Oxfam my intention was to practice my solo stuff in front of an audience, and try out a few originals. So I stuck with plan A.
It went well. Quite a few folks there despite the typical June weather. A few people filming bits of it in iPads and phones and few folks keen to talk afterwards. The fellow on after me took my card as he reckons he can get me some gigs, too. We shall see. Overall, not sure it was the ideal audience for my brand of music but I played and sang as well as I have at any of my solo gigs (each time I feel like I learn a little and improve a little), wasn't nervous at all ( a world of difference to my first few solo outings), and my originals (esp. "You've Been The One") were well received. Definitely getting better at this thumb-picking, albeit slowly.
Later this month I have another solo half hour gig to do. But that one is part of Blues Festival week and I think my material will find a better aligned audience. In fact, I can't wait. I reckon that one could be a good one.
Cheers
Derek
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Not been on here much this week - time seems to have got away from me what with one thing and another. I'm trying to wean myself off spending too much time in the virtual world and find a way back to the real one, but... here I am.
Great gig last night. A duo gig - acoustic guitar and cajon - we play all the old rock'n'roll favourites, Stones and CCR and Status Quo and Bob Seger and the Who and Kinks and all that. It was in the garden of a hotel and we were meant to finish at 10:00 but folks kept calling for more and we kept playing until just before 11:00; finishing with a storming version of Hey Joe and when Chris played the cajon like Mitch Mitchell did the drums on the "riff" section people stood up and applauded. Alas, there's now a big hole in his cajon - maybe it was more Keith Moon than Mitch Mitchell.
Doing it all again this evening at a wedding in Oxford. Luckily it's with the band. My fingers and throat are raw this morning. I'd be rubbish in a touring situation.
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Wow. Another mighty gig - two hours straight, no break. Was a sixty mile drive and I found myself going over a toll-bridge in Oxford. Visions of the Severn Bridge as I approached (£6.60) but the cost for this ancient bridge across the Thames (I think) was just 5p. I thought there'd be an honesty bucket, but nope, there was a guy in a little booth collecting the money (dealing with traffic in both directions). What a way to spend Saturday night - collecting 5ps.
The gig was great - the bride was fantastically happy with the band, as was her dad, and I think pretty much everyone who was there. A great evening in a very beautiful setting (Radley College, Oxford). But I realise I'd be rubbish at touring. Two nights on the trot and my voice is shot and I've worn away my finger nail right down on my plectrum finger. I'm definitely more physically suited to gentle finger-picking and acoustic songs these days. But it is nice to rock out!
Anyway, here we are.
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8812/28214890075_9527601e80_c.jpg)
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The scenery looks and sounds familiar,Derek. :D
Looks like a good night was had by all.
Regarding your fingernails,quite a while ago I started using acrylic paint on jobbies and it finally allowed me to play the way I wanted. They are a bit of a bollox for everyday life (I find myself doing a lot of stuff left handed to save the nails) but for playing they are the best thing ever for me. I never use a plectrum now.
Be careful with your voice man and take professional advice on how to use and conserve your pipes.
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I have had many a gig sponsored by "VocalZone" throat lozenges (especially after a few in a row)
If you have a sore throat I really recommend lemonade + hot water + honey
Instant relief and very soothing!!!!!!
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I can second on the vocalzone. Got me through a few gigs before.
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Not been around too much recently - it's part of my dedicated attempt to practice the guitar more and surf the web less! Loads of songs to catch up on, but I'm not sure how many I'll manage or when. Meanwhile, I'll be really self-indulgent and post another thread about myself :-)
Did the latest in a short line of solo acoustic finger-picking gigs last night and it was great ;D I only had to do 35 mins (later on I did another 35 with a band) so I could choose all my best stuff. The audience reaction was brilliant - loads of people there, and they were there for the right reason (i.e. they knew what sort of music they were getting), and the were attentive, supportive, and even gave me an encore. Loads of positive comments, including one lady who said she loved my voice - always happy to get positive comments about that as I know my guitar playing is okay, but the voice... A couple of people commented nicely on my songs, too, especially I Learned To Walk which always goes well.
It was part of the Gloucester Rhythm and Blues week so I tried to keep it bluesy but I'm a country boy at heart so I mixed up the Mississippi John Hurt stuff with some John Prine and some Kris Kristofferson!
It feels like it's starting to coalesce. I need a few more songs, well, a whole second set, and I need to do a lot more networking. And I need my fingers to harden up - I've been waiting 40 years for calluses to form but... this morning I have blisters and broken skin on my finger tips and I'm doing it all again tomorrow with a trio. But, yes, all heading in the right direction and I even managed three originals the set last night "Dig", "You've Been The One", and "I Learned To Walk".
Pretty happy this morning.
(http://derekrutherford.co.uk/images/guitars/Gloucester28_07_16.jpg)
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Great stuff, Derek...pleased you're getting the recognition you deserve...you have lovely warm, friendly and humorous persona - and a great bunch of songs too.
Takes a lot of nerve to get up there and do it solo...and it takes a lot more than nerve to be successful at it 😀
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Respect Del :)
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Great to see someone doing the work and it paying off. Hope you keep moving forward.
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I hope you're putting The Happy Song in your set! Any excuse to say hard-on in public.
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I feel pretty lucky. If I was, say, an Adele fan (I mean, I am. I think she's great and I listen to her second album a lot. But I don't love her music like I do the guys below) it would cost me hundreds of pounds to go and see her at a stadium where she is a dot on a distant stage.
Two of my favourite singer-songwriters in the world at the moment are Jeffrey Foucault and Jim Crawford.
Jeffrey comes from the Midwest USA, but I saw him recently at a gig in Bristol so small that at one point he stood amongst us and sang acoustically. People were talking to him afterwards - he was just standing there, amongst us. But I was a little too star-struck to approach him. I mean, this was Jeffrey Foucault for goodness sake. One of the best there is.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3czmNZbCGA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3czmNZbCGA)
Jim Crawford lives a little closer to home. He's down in Devon, but last week he played in Gloucester. Not only did I get to listen to his amazing music, I got to buy him a drink, him buy me one, and we sat for an hour and talked about fishing - a passion we discovered we both share.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T279xSJ5-CI (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T279xSJ5-CI)
Times are good for fans of acoustic music.
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Two gigs today! First up was the boogie woogie band doing a late afternoon/ early evening charity gig to help raise money for a local hospice, them it was tear down the gear and head on over to do a duo set at a friend's wedding. Great fun, both gigs. Sleep now!
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Great job DELBOY
It is great that you managed to get so close to your favourites, and I know what you mean about being star struck
I played in support bands for Eric Clapton a few times and found it hilarious that I was trying to be a "contemporary" back stage, when all I wanted to do was be a "fan boy"
The finger calluses will come but you will still get the occasional blister for no apparent reason!
It is awesome you are getting good feedback on your songs and performances - onwards and upwards...
...and keep us posted, it is great following your "story"
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I've been taking a well earned break from even thinking about writing songs. June, July, and August were full on gigging - and all of a sudden it's gone quiet. It's lovely. Nice just to kick back and do some fishing, take a few photos, and let the fingers rest (all in between working, of course). Today I thought 'd catch up here - and I see a few of my favourites have been posting songs. Can't wait to hear them, alas my broadband appears to be playing up and I can't stream anything at the moment. Maybe tomorrow!
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So, following my September break we had a very intense rehearsal for last Saturday's gig. Then the gig itself, which though just an average gig, was pretty hard work on the fingers. And lo and behold this week I've had a bad pain in my wrist whenever I open a door, lift a kettle, change gears in the car, or... play a guitar. Been taking it easy and wearing one of those wrist support bandages and today I've been playing a few simple tunes. Reckon I just over did it.
Anyway, here's a quick video of us last Saturday. I'm just playing a bit of back-up rhythm and lead here. It's one of Sid's songs.
https://youtu.be/_JdOOdLfTRo (https://youtu.be/_JdOOdLfTRo)
Cheers
Derek
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So sorry about your wrist, delb0y! That happened to me when I was playing a lot in the 1980s. I ended up going to the doctor who said it was tendonitis (which I think might be another way to say "carpal tunnel") caused by bending my wrist around the neck of the guitar. I clearly remember the pain, so I am definitely sympathetic. I had to take it easy for awhile, but it got better. Hope yours clears up fast.
Vicki
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Hand appears to be on the mend. Wore my support bandage all week and avoided the guitar (give or take ten minutes here and there). Hopefully be playing again properly from tomorrow...
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Hand appears to be on the mend. Wore my support bandage all week and avoided the guitar (give or take ten minutes here and there). Hopefully be playing again properly from tomorrow...
That's good news! Glad to hear it.
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This is great Del. Loved the vid. Great to see you knocking out your stuff live. Looks like it was well appreciated :)
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just a quick line to say how much i enjoy reading this thread, Derek...i enjoyed the video too
keep us posted, please :)
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Had a really nice evening tonight jamming with my God son. He's fifteen and is developing into a very good guitar player. Fine taste, too. We were playing Lynyrd Skynyrd and Allman Brothers and Jerry Reed and Scotty More stuff. He plays all the solos note perfect - better than I have ever done in my life. I'm glad I'm a finger-picker if that's the standard of young lead players coming through! Give it a year or two and I think he's going have a great band. I'm already looking forward to it.
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I learned something this evening... we were rehearsing in a theatre and my electric guitar had awful feedback even at very low volume. It was mighty strange. Couldn't figure it at all until we realised the hearing aid loop was on :o
Never come across that one before.
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That is a good one
I have been regularly gigging for 25 years and never come across that one - although have had the "Spinal Tap" moment of radio coming through the amp!
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My trousers fell down on stage once. That was a good one as well.
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My trousers fell down on stage once. That was a good one as well.
:o
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I figured I'd post some footage of me playing a local last year since this thread is called Open Mic. I think this might have been a gig but it felt like an open mic to me...lots of people talking in the background ahaha. Mobile phone footage of some originals. I believe this was filmed by my Nan who cuts randomly to avoid any naughty words in the lyrics, bless her.
luckily my trousers stay on
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Good work, Jack. For me playing live is what it's all about. You're not too far from me. One day, when work is a distant memory and I have time on my hands I shall venture down to Bristol and try and find a few OM's and gigs at which to ply my trade.
Here's a clip of yet another of my live ensembles - this is the duo: Delboy and Dave. We just go out and play party songs and have a whole lot of fun. This is from last Sunday.
https://youtu.be/zoBAeS0aTpk (https://youtu.be/zoBAeS0aTpk)
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That does look great fun!
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Well as we're putting up videos of ourselves, this is my band in Cardiff in 1998. I had long hair and looked young.
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Brilliant stuff, Martyn. ;D Is your hair not like that any more?
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;D Its a number one Im afraid DelBoy
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So, for those of you still reading this here thread, here's something that won't last. At the aforementioned theatre (aforementioned in a couple of posts up) we set up some cameras to try and make a video of the band. Never done this before and we now realise that videography is as complicated in it's own right as anything else. We had the cameras settings wrong (different settings in cameras), we tried a Go-pro on one angle (horrible horrible thing , that Go-Pro), we didn't have enough light on stage, we didn't give the roving cameraman any clues as to what was to happen when musically, and a massive load of other issues - including having to crop in very close on some shots to avoid showing that roving camera man. Basically, we should have got the pro's in.
But we had a blast :-)
This video is likely to be consigned to the bin, but I'd thought I'd share it with you guys to show what I do when I'm not finger-picking an acoustic and singing songs about dead people.
https://youtu.be/vcIVRUgaJMQ (https://youtu.be/vcIVRUgaJMQ)
Cheers
Derek
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This video is likely to be consigned to the bin, but I'd thought I'd share it with you guys to show what I do when I'm not finger-picking an acoustic and singing songs about dead people.
https://youtu.be/vcIVRUgaJMQ (https://youtu.be/vcIVRUgaJMQ)
Don't throw it away! I really enjoyed that one.
The only music videos I'm in are really amateurish ones, mainly shot in the recording studio. Here's a nice short one of our male voice quartet. (I'm the one at the back of the shot looking nervously over at the others.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnSeORlWLlM (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnSeORlWLlM)
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Great thread Del really enjoying especially the videos, very inspiring, thanks guys for sharing really cool 8) and no Del dont throw that video away.
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Beens we're all sharing here's the only video of me playing (and I had to put some gimmick around it before doing the actual song, whichs starts around 55 seconds in), and the only one I've shared where friends and family can find, luckily this forum and my soundcloud remains hidden for the forum's enjoyment only.
This was the first song I shown anyone (other than rapping), and was actually some 'bars' I wrote about a year earlier and could never find the right instrumental to record on - one of the reasons I bought a guitar in the first place as the lyrics mean a lot to me. Still don't quite work as they don't have the 'song' structure, maybe I'll revisit later on.
https://www.facebook.com/297436651700/videos/10153727210766701/
Never performed in front of more than 1 person at a time, and even then I feel crap afterwards because I know the nerves make it sound awful in comparison to when I play for myself. How did you guys muster up the courage and composure?
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Never performed in front of more than 1 person at a time, and even then I feel crap afterwards because I know the nerves make it sound awful in comparison to when I play for myself. How did you guys muster up the courage and composure?
Speaking only for myself, of course...I worked into it gradually, starting when I was 16. Got a guitar and started teaching myself to play chords. Got with a small group of people who liked to sing and we would just jam together. And then take turns doing stuff. Before long I was relaxed when it was informal like that.
More formal...it's hard to remember, but first I probably was song leader at church in college. On campus they had guitar Mass at the Catholic church and guitar-accompanied music also for the campus Lutheran services. Anyway, when everyone is singing along with you, it's less nerve-wracking.
Then I forced myself to perform at events, still at college. That was nerve-wracking, but also exhilarating. And while in college, I also went to clubs that had live music, whenever I got a chance, and I often asked if I could sing something with them (pretty much always "House of the Rising Sun"). I don't know why, but that was usually easy on the nerves. I felt kind of "lost in the crowd" on stage.
Interestingly, although my major was vocal music, I could never get comfortable with performing in classes or for recitals in the music department. I did that only when absolutely essential, and I swear I nearly died from nerves each time.
These days, what works best for me is singing in public regularly and often. When I'm not in the habit, it's more scary on the rare occasions I do perform.
If I'm going to be singing a song or two at some event, it helps to imagine singing well and feeling relaxed. And saying to myself, "I can do this! It's going to go well!"
I hope something here might be helpful for you.
Vicki
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Never performed in front of more than 1 person at a time, and even then I feel crap afterwards because I know the nerves make it sound awful in comparison to when I play for myself. How did you guys muster up the courage and composure?
Generally I find that the bigger the audience is, the less scary it is, so don't let performing for a single dude and feeling like you want the world to swallow you up deter you from pursuing performance. The most nervous I can remember being are 1) showing new songs to my old writing partner from an old band, when it was just me and him, and 2) performing in a bookshop to some other local songwriters at a fucking awkward acoustic gig. Both times the crowds were tiny, and it was scary because I could see everyone's reactions perfectly.
I'm in a Bee Gees Tribute show and we play theatres around England, and in those dark rooms in front of hundreds of people I am much more composed than when I play open mic nights.
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I'm in a Bee Gees Tribute show and we play theatres around England, and in those dark rooms in front of hundreds of people I am much more composed than when I play open mic nights.
Any videos?
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I'm in a Bee Gees Tribute show and we play theatres around England, and in those dark rooms in front of hundreds of people I am much more composed than when I play open mic nights.
Any videos?
Yeah, sure. I'm Robin, so here's me doing I Started a Joke at the Alhambra in Dunfermline
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Damn, just posted a really long response and lost it when the page timed out. That'll learn me for not being concise.
I said: Guy, I loved that quartet stuff. My secret desire would be to sing in a street corner doo-wop style. But t'aint going to happen in this world.
Jack that BG's band looks really impressive - sounds great, too, but I can't tell how accurate a representation it is as I'm unfamiliar with the Brothers.
Scott - you should do more videos / songs. Definitely have the talent. But lose all that messing about before the song starts. In this day and age of short attention spans a lot of people - including myself under normal circumstances - would have quit long before the song itself started.
Here's my latest thing. I'm not one for technology or software - hence my lack of progress with the DAW. But last week I invested in some cheap video editing software with the intention of making some better videos of the band. it's a steep learning curve, so this evening I recorded some acoustic guitar with a view to trying out multiple camera work. Alas, I think my methodology was wholly incorrect (should've read the manual...except there wasn't one).
It's less than a minute long:
https://youtu.be/i1Q7VbnEvWo (https://youtu.be/i1Q7VbnEvWo)
Cheers
Derek
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Hey Derek,
Cheers, I think I will do more! Messing around is distance myself a little from the song, but no-one shot me for that video so next time a bit more professional ;)
I like the video, I think the payoff to production on these things is quite high, and even a few well-timed changes can make for a much more engaging video.
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I said: Guy, I loved that quartet stuff. My secret desire would be to sing in a street corner doo-wop style. But t'aint going to happen in this world.
Thanks! We did think about going out busking at one stage, but unfortunately we had to disband the quartet a couple of months ago because one of our members moved away. I'm currently trying to recruit a replacement but it's hard to find people who are that confident with unaccompanied close-harmony singing.
Really liked the "Careless Love" video, by the way - both musically and visually.
I'm now in a much more professional-looking video, which was filmed during the recording of our annual Christmas CD. Unfortunately I'm by far the worst thing in it because it came at the end of a long day during which I'd consumed far too much red wine! Enjoy the video and try to ignore that idiot trying to improvise a harmony line and getting it slightly wrong.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg6Rer2Qcv3w3CdvfBTma2Q (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg6Rer2Qcv3w3CdvfBTma2Q)
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Well, it's been a very quiet autumn and it's shaping up to be a quiet winter. Talking to a few other artists, it seems to be quiet all round. Plenty of open-mics and plenty of discos but not a lot of paid-for band activity. That said, starting to get a few gigs for January - go figure! It's not actually a bad thing. I've made a bit of pact with myself to head off to the woodshed for an extended time. I need to up my country finger-picking skills and each step takes quite some time, so a quiet period isn't bad. Also pondering on getting a nylon stringed acoustic like some of my heroes. But we shall see. Meanwhile, I have a week off soon for Christmas. Yee-ha!!
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I need to up my country finger-picking skills and each step takes quite some time, so a quiet period isn't bad. Also pondering on getting a nylon stringed acoustic like some of my heroes.
Go for the nylon my friend, they're wonderful!
And you'll have to share if you're doing some cool finger-picking, I can only do 2 patterns and they're pretty basic. :)
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Cheers Scott. I'll have to sell a guitar in order to buy one, but we'll see. I think you're probably one finger-picking pattern ahead of me, if you know two patterns!
Here's a bit of electric guitar work that I did with the band yesterday. The T-Bone Shuffle :-)
https://youtu.be/mHSDZbEk0cw (https://youtu.be/mHSDZbEk0cw)
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Hadn't done any open mics until earlier this year when another singer friend of mine got me out and I was hooked.
Myself and Gaby had been writing and recording on a PC for a while but we both got fed up with being slave to the machine, so switched it off and reworked some of the songs with just vocals and guitar. We had been planning a full band but so far haven't found any additional band members. So, I convinced G to get onto the open mic circuit with just the 2 of us.
It's been quite enjoyable so far. It highlights just how much I rely on Cubase edits to sound good and I've had to up my game on the guitar. Still nowhere near the level of many of the others that we've seen at the OM nights, but practice, practice, practice. And it all feeds back into the songwriting to make the next song better/different.
Bit nerve wracking as there's no band to hide behind and all my mistakes are laid bare for everyone to hear. Though, as it's our own stuff that's less obvious.
;D
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Hi Tim, good to have you here. I hope you're enjoying the show so far!
I have a love-hate relationship with OMs. In my geographical area they are very abundant and appear to have taken over as the live-music entertainment in many places - possibly an easy way to fill a pub on a quiet night without needing to pay anyone. That said, many of the pubs in question do also put on bands at the weekend so it's possible I do them a disservice with the comment above.
Also, there's quite an incestuous relationship with a lot of the muso's - the same ones appearing night after night, week after week, playing the same songs. Some are very good, some aren't, and every now and then a new comer arrives which is nice. I guess one way to look at it is it's a night out with your mates with a short interlude to play some songs.
I tend to do OM's rarely and usually only to practice / work-up new songs. All my songs are written with the intent of me playing them live. I see no point in writing a song that I'm not going to gig, and OMs are a great way to try out keys / tempos / lyrics etc and get some good feedback. But actually, because I go rarely I usually enjoy it because I catch up with a lot of friends. So there's the love bit.
Also, they're a good way to get out and practice stage-craft. A friend of mine did over 100 performances last year at OMs and you can't help but get better at being on-stage in front of people if you do that many. So more love :-)
Anyway, stay cool, keep warm, and enjoy the festive period!
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The latest update in a very infrequent series.
I might have mentioned my new amp before, but I don't recall. Anyway, sometime at the tail end of last year I sold my cheap Cort acoustic amp and treated myself to an AER Compact 60. It was an eBay deal that was just too good to turn down. An AER c60 was on my list of things to buy one day when and if my boat ever came in. Well, to hell with it. I bought one now :-)
And wow! I knew what they sounded like because a buddy in our trio has one, and when I went to see Wizz Jones he used one, and one of my all time fav's - Pete Huttlinger - used one, and I'm not sure if Tommy Emmanuel doesn't, too.
Anyway it's just so cool on a number of fronts.
First off it sounds gorgeous. I've been sat here this evening with the guitar plugged in one channel and a mic in the other just running quietly through a few songs and it's addictive :-)
Secondly it's so small and light. I've done two gigs with it so far and literally was able to park the car a fair distance from the venue and walk with a bag over one shoulder, this amp in its little padded bag over the other, and my guitar in one hand. And a pair of white shoes in my other hand...
We were fortunate to have a professional sound engineer on hand at last Saturday's gig - and he couldn't speak highly enough of the amp either. Must confess, last Saturday was all about banging chords out (the I Like A Drink duo) so I didn't do the little AER that much justice. But I think it's going to be a keeper. It makes the Tanglewood sound luvverly!
That's all. Off to walk the dog now.
D
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So, still here, albeit not writing many songs at the mo' (although I do have the first verse of a new one...). Like I said a while back, I need to get in the acoustic woodshed this year. I'm trying to get my fingerpicking up to speed ready for when I retire (it's a ten year plan!!).
Meanwhile, did a couple of gigs this week. The first one was the party duo ("I Like A Drink" and all that) at a small hotel. It was a riot! The evening that new year's eve should have been. Really really good and loads of very nice comments - including some about my vocals which shows how drunk some people were. Then Saturday was an acoustic (albeit amplified) trio gig at a local bowls club. Another riot! For an evening of 90% original material it was a crazy success. We were mostly doing my buddy Sid's wonderful songs. I did get to play a few of mine with interesting reactions; "You Ain't Sticking That Thing In Me" went down a storm. "Drag You Back", too - in fact one woman came up to me and told me how much she loved it, and how much the lyrics hit home. Then my own personal favourite "I Like To Walk"... someone came up and told me they hate that song (they'd heard it before and didn't lie it then either). Can't win 'em all.
Anyway, next gig is a theatre gig with my rock'n'roll band - all covers. And we've sold out the place! :-)
So it's all going well. Meanwhile this is the tune I've been working on so far this year - Cannonball Rag. Excuse the soft focus video. (A) I can't work the Nikon and (B) I look far better out of focus!
https://youtu.be/J_6M0vcBWt4 (https://youtu.be/J_6M0vcBWt4)
Keep on keeping on!
Derek
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So it's all going well. Meanwhile this is the tune I've been working on so far this year - Cannonball Rag. Excuse the soft focus video. (A) I can't work the Nikon and (B) I look far better out of focus!
Gorgeous - I really enjoyed that
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Don't know why I read your post Derek, it's a thin line between being inspired and just damn jealous.
Sounds like you're having tons and tons of fun!
I'm still early so hopefully plenty of time to embed myself into the gigging scene and find some cool musicians to jam with.
That guitar though is a different story, so so cool and fantastic talent! Would love to learn something like this, shure I'll learn buckets giving it ago!
All the best,
Scott
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Maybe if I practice hard for those same ten years I'll be able to play Cannonball Rag like that???
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Cool rag Derek.
As for soft focus,keep it man,it suits you! :D :P
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Thanks guys :-)
Scott, I hope it works as inspiration rather than jealousy. Trust me, there's nothing to be jealous about. I'm lucky enough to be blessed with a willingness to practice the same thing over and over (literally a thousand times in the case of one part of that song). I've pretty much played nothing else since New Year and when I went to play some electric guitar in the studio last week I was awful because of that single-minded attention on just one thing. I now have to go in on Thursday and re-do a bunch of guitar solos but I have no confidence they're going to be any better than what I did last week. :-\
As regards the playing out and having fun. Yep ;D It's always been about playing live for me and I'm lucky enough to have done it for forty years and have plenty of contacts who ask me to play. Then, once you're out there you meet more people and so it goes.
cheers
D
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Latest effort from my sojourn in the woodshed - the Dallas Rag. I'm not strictly happy with this - which is why I'm in that shed - but it's edging forward. I'm going to try separating out the melody and bass and learn them in isolation before putting them back together. I hope that will result in a better sounding result. But meanwhile this ain't bad for a country boy.
https://youtu.be/Jr7-oDOVCa0 (https://youtu.be/Jr7-oDOVCa0)
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Lovely stuff Derek.
You have that thumb as regular as a metronome!
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Absolutely b@ll~$5£d this morning. Long time since I felt so poorly :-(
We had a cracking gig last night - full on rock'n'roll band at a theatre, sold out, really really good. But I'd woken up yesterday morning with a temperature and the shivers and a space-out head and a bad throat. The show had to go on, of course, and once there yesterday afternoon - setting up, sound-checking, and during the show itself adrenaline kicked in and aside from my throat being croaky all was very good. But as soon as we finished it was like that virus came back tenfold. Certainly glad I'm not in a touring band. No way could I do it all again this evening!
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For your throat I recommend lemonade + boiling water + teaspoon of honey!
This has saved my throats many a time
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Or you go with lots of whiskey and smokes Tom Waits style.
Just saying...
;D ;D ;D
Get well soon D!
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For your throat I recommend lemonade + boiling water + teaspoon of honey!
This has saved my throats many a time
I need to try this. I caught a fierce cold--first time in years--three weeks ago. Lasted maybe a week, but my throat won't come back. :( If I try to sing with any strength behind it at all, it feels like I might tear something in my throat. And just taking a breath in through my mouth starts me coughing. Very depressing....
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Latest effort from my sojourn in the woodshed - the Dallas Rag. I'm not strictly happy with this - which is why I'm in that shed - but it's edging forward. I'm going to try separating out the melody and bass and learn them in isolation before putting them back together. I hope that will result in a better sounding result. But meanwhile this ain't bad for a country boy.
https://youtu.be/Jr7-oDOVCa0 (https://youtu.be/Jr7-oDOVCa0)
Nice fretwork! If only I could play to such a standard!!
Bought myself a mobile phone tripod a few weeks back and used it to film myself and Gaby - mainly to see just what annoying/embarrassing things we do without realising it when playing and to try to make our performance a little more interesting. Not got anything we'd consider sharing with anyone yet but hopefully just a matter of time....
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Like a few others I'm a bit AWOL at the mo'. In my case I'm not in the shed writing songs or working on recording, I'm just practicing the guitar. Anyway bac k to where this thread started all those years ago... I've done a fair few gigs already this year, but tonight was the first solo gig of 2017 where I got to do some of my own songs. Just a forty minute set, but it went really well (I got an encore!). Probably the best solo gig so far. In between the John Prines and the Kris Kristoffersons I managed to sneak in four of my own - all tunes I've worked up here: You've Been The One, Tail-Lights (complete with new verse "I kissed you on the lips and swallowed all of your lies"), Six-Gun Hero, and Drag You Back. Great fun and I do feel like I'm making progress on various aspects - confidence, speaking, eye-contact, singing, and guitar-picking. Just need to get a few more gigs :-)
Meanwhile, here's me last weekend when out with the band at a theatre show:
(http://derekrutherford.co.uk/images/guitars/Derek_at_Ledbury.jpg)
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Top work Derek. Is that Strat yellow, or just the lights making it seem that colour.
Very nice and it's put me in the mood for a yellow guitar. I may just build one.
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Cheers Skub. It was cream in 1979, but many years of playing smoke filled bars has seen it get a yellow tinge...
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That'll be the colour of yer pipes too!
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Hey Delboy!
Just thought I'd pop my head in and say that I've been listening to some of your music and it's superb....and your guitaring is killer!! Nice work....and fair play on the live performances. Wish I had the balls :P
Thanks
Darren
Edit: I do have a question. How do you manage to record guitar and vocal simultaneously and so clearly? My recording always end up boomy and horrible. Thanks.
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Glad to hear from you again Del. Great stuff - Keep up that live stuff man :)
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Hi Darren
Thanks for the kind words and for listening to my stuff. The answer to your question is... no idea. :-\ I'm afraid to say when it comes to recording I have little knowledge, even less finesse, and a minimum of gear I plug a Samson USB mic into the laptop, open up my DAW (very old free cut-down copy of Sonar Cakewalk), and hit record. I usually do a test to makes sure the guitar and vocals are in balance and that's it. I have found that my big dreadnaught can sound boomy, it's definitely louder than the Martin and/or Tanglewood, so I adjust the microphone position accordingly. But that really is the sum of my knowledge.
Cheers
Derek
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I've really enjoyed
reading through this thread.
I'll come back to this when I've more time.
Many thanks for keeping this up, it's been very entertaining so far!!
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Hi Darren
Thanks for the kind words and for listening to my stuff. The answer to your question is... no idea. :-\ I'm afraid to say when it comes to recording I have little knowledge, even less finesse, and a minimum of gear I plug a Samson USB mic into the laptop, open up my DAW (very old free cut-down copy of Sonar Cakewalk), and hit record. I usually do a test to makes sure the guitar and vocals are in balance and that's it. I have found that my big dreadnaught can sound boomy, it's definitely louder than the Martin and/or Tanglewood, so I adjust the microphone position accordingly. But that really is the sum of my knowledge.
Cheers
Derek
Hey! Thanks Derek for passing on your pearls of wisdom....I think it's great that you can just sit down and record like that and get such great results. Your tracks are so listenable (?? is that even a word) but yeah - I feel like anything I record is grating and hard on the ear. Maybe that's just the inner critic, who knows :P
One day my dream is to have the confidence to perform open mic ;) one day!
Thanks
Darren
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Hey Derek,
Just popping by to say hi :). I bought a mini cajon few days ago - had a friend over last night and was checking out your "I Like a Drink" to see how it's done, such a cool instrument and this mini one sits nicely in your lap but still produces some good sound.
Be sure to give Dave a thanks from me on the inspiration and please share any pro tips if they're up for grabs!
Also we had a listen to your cover of Canonnball Rag whilst on the channel and my mate was just as impressed as me :)
All the best,
Scott
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Hi Scott
Those cajons are indeed fine things! I did an Open Mic not long ago and a fellow brought one along and was sitting in with anyone who gave him the nod. I'm always up for guests on stage to take the heat off me so up he came. His, unlike Dave's (who's really Chris...), wasn't even plugged in but it still filled the room with a nice snap. Dave / Chris does an incredible version of Hey Joe on his - if you recall what Mitch Mitchell does on the drums during the riff section... we often end our set with it and it goes down a storm, although apparently it hurts the hands. ;D
Thanks for the compliment on Cannonball. It's fun to play and mostly a lot easier than it looks!
It's been quiet recently but I do have two gigs this coming Sunday - both at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival. I've been roped in to play some lead guitar for a local song-writer - Gordon Wood. In the early afternoon we're doing some "official busking" on the main site itself (weather permitting - if it rains we still get paid but don't have to play! That's my sort of deal ;D ) and then in the evening we have a gig in town. I'm really looking forward to it - the songs are great, we have an excellent rhythm section, a harp and a sax, and lead guitar, plus Gordon on the main vocals.
Alas, haven't been writing any songs - hence my lack of posts here. But I do have a couple of nice lyric ideas that are just waiting for melodic / chordal inspiration...
Cheers
Derek
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So...
...Apparently (it was on Five Live a few weeks ago) there's a whole lot of people who don't like other people starting sentences with "So,". Heh.
Anyway, it's been a very quiet May. No gigs. Not even an OM. But we're out with the band on Saturday :-) and there's a few gigs in various ensembles, including solo, in July and August already. I've also been enjoying getting my rhythm guitar chops up to speed. Well, up to a fairly mediocre speed, that is. But I'm quite enjoying learning some new chords and voicings. I reckon I could quite happily be a rhythm guitar player in a swing band. And today I learn that the latest Western has been accepted for publication. Nowt to do with song-writing, of course, but it is to do with writing and story-telling, which tends to be where my songs are at anyway. It's a crying shame it's not 60 years ago when there was a living to be made writing pulp fiction (which is what my work is).
That's all the news for now.
D
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Derek, I would be deliriously happy to get my guitar chops up to your mediocre level!
And, congratulations on the book!
Vicki
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Been a while so here's the latest in a very infrequent series.
May and June were very quiet and there was me thinking I'd retired from the live music business, so I signed up for a 100k bike ride on a Saturday when I had nothing in the evening except the opportunity to put my feet up and rest, with an equally lazy Sunday to follow. Blow me down with a custom kazoo, no sooner had I paid my money than my cajon bashing buddy called me and said we had a gig come in for the Saturday evening. Thinks I, we both sit down in the duo so I should be okay, despite the long bike ride. Then a day later he calls back this time with a gig for the rock'n'roll band on the Sunday afternoon. Standing up and rocking for three hours...
As it happened, it all went really well. The bike ride was a joy, both gigs were awesome with some very good feedback - excellent feedback actually - and even when I broke the chair half way through our acoustic version of Hey Joe I still didn't actually fall down.
On the back of that more gigs started to roll in. Got a couple at the Gloucester blues festival at the end of this month, and a half dozen for August - two different duos, a trio, and a couple with the band.
Not being much of a radio listener the question often comes up, usually when I'm talking to myself, how do you get to hear new music? Well here's a feller I stumbled across when perusing non-music stuff on You Tube. Luckily I wasn't the only one moved by the music in the video and a quick scan of the comments revealed numerous people asking "Who's the singer?" Well, it turned out to be Willy Tea Taylor. And to say he's right up my street would be akin to saying I'm sat here right now with a wee cup of tea (spookily), feet up, typing on this here computer. In other words, it's the gospel truth, bothers and sisters.
So here we have the greatest new artist I've discovered this year:
http://willyteataylor.com/music/ (http://willyteataylor.com/music/)
Hey ho. Back to work.
Derek
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Good on ya Derek, I absolutely love Willy Tea!
Here's what I do when it comes to finding new music. I use Spotify as my only resource I might add. With Spotify open and lets say you've chosen to listen to Willy Tea Taylor, Spotify will suggest artists similar to Willy Tea that you also may like and that's a huge way to find new and similar artist that you may come to love.
That's one way, the other I use is to just pick a song or artist I like on Spotify, then choose radio based on that song or artist and let Spotify do the work.
I've done this the last 4 years and I can only say it's been a long time since I was this updated on great music, I'm not necessarily talking about "new" music since that's not really my thing, more newly discovered music, but I have to admit it has gotten me back to really appreciate listening to music and finding new artists again. Like in the good old days! :D
I highly recommend it.
All the best,
Peter
Edit: Oh, and if you don't want to go through all the hassle let me know and I'll gladly make a Spotify playlist and post it here with songs and artist you truly must listen to.
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Cheers Skub. Great to find another Willie Tea fan and thanks for the Spotify tips. I will go a-searching!
Meanwhile, here's something of very limited interest. This song caused quite a rumpus when I posted it here a year or so back - but nonetheless I like it. Last night I was doing a bit of playing at the Gloucester Blues Festival and it seemed like a good moment to pull out an old (new) blues:
https://youtu.be/w1Bzrx7Acf4 (https://youtu.be/w1Bzrx7Acf4)
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Nice solid pickin' in the vid
Those days in the shed have paid off ;D
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Schmokin' Del. 8)
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Cheers guys!
I was lucky enough to get two gigs in a week. Following the one mentioned above I was in action with the super talented Damon T on Wednesday. Was quite an experience trying to fit in with his low down Delta blues, lots of drones, and strange tunings on guitar, banjo, and reso'. But the reaction during and comments afterwards were very encouraging.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4291/36219983185_49c4f1a3a3_z.jpg)
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Cracker photo Derek. 8)
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Can't help but wonder if this is all coming to an end. Not the playing, but the bands and the gigs. I'm not sure if the enjoyment factor is high enough to outweigh the hassle factor, any more. I know I'm in the wrong place work-wise / commute-wise / sleep-wise to make any major decisions and I've got gigs booked deep into 2018 so nothing's going to change yet. But I can feel the first inklings deep inside that maybe I'll just have more fun practicing and playing ragtime guitar at home and just wandering down for an occasional open mic. Maybe pop up YT videos once in a while and be done with it.
Don't know. The music I love isn't really loved by many and thus there's no call for it out at gigs. We shall see. It just feels that live music round these parts (at amateur level) has kind of ground down to some lowest common denominator stuff that doesn't float my boat. It's not helped by scores of people being happy to play for nothing. It's as if they value their own stuff at zero. It makes it tough for anyone who does think they're worth at least something, no matter how small.
As I say, I have gigs booked almost a year ahead, but I can definitely feel a change in the distant wind.
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I definitely hear what you are saying about the live gigging scene
It does feel like the venues themselves are trying to pass on the "risk" to the band - especially younger bands - by asking them to play for free with a share of tickets/entrance fees
I think this is a real shame as the venues want a guaranteed drinking crowd without the risk/advertising etc.
I have no problem with "freebie"/reduced price first gig but it seems like the venues are using lots of different bands to get lots of freebie "first gigs"
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It's no easy road Derek.
This November it'll be 2 years since I 'took a break' from playing for money. I do miss some aspects,but I became tired of playing stuff I didn't much like.
It takes a special kind of dogged determination to play what you want and to get venues interested,most places view music as the first corner to be cut.
The advent of technology has allowed people to put on a 'show' often without being able to play very well,sometimes not at all,this has taken away opportunities from bands and musicians who have put in the hours to learn and keep learning their craft.
Unfortunately venue owners don't care as long as the punters keep dancing and buying the drink,plus the dancers don't know or care if it's a karaoke band or not. When the drink is in,they'd dance to a car alarm.
These days I get enough of a kick from battering out shite with a DAW,you've no one to please but yourself,having said that,there is no feeling in this world like playing live and getting the audience on your side.
Do the thing while you still enjoy it Derek,that's all I can say. :)
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Following on from the last few posts, this year's gigs took it out of me. Not physically, but enjoyment-wise. I spent too long learning songs that I had no interest in, and in the process had no time left for the stuff I love. The irony is, next year is already really busy with gigs... it could all happen again :-\
But meanwhile, the last few weeks I stuck my thumb-pick back on and have been revisiting some old songs to try and get back on board the train I want to ride.
This one is an old Merle Travis song. Needs a few more flashy bits, as that's what's expected of this song in the modern world, but for now here's a standard first take, one track, 1+1 version that hopefully I can take to an OM or two sometime soon.
https://www.soundclick.com/html5/v3/player.cfm?type=single&songid=13658811&q=hi&newref=1 (https://www.soundclick.com/html5/v3/player.cfm?type=single&songid=13658811&q=hi&newref=1)
Cheers
Derek