This past weekend, I invited my band mates and their families over to my house for a barbeque. After we had all eaten our share of the feast, those who brought their guitars got them out, and we all sat around my patio table playing songs and jamming. We played for an hour and a half straight, going through a couple of gig books. At the end, I commented, “You know, you can tell we’ve been playing together for a long time because we all play off each other. There’s no egos, just an incredible comfort with playing together.” Smiles and nods of agreement followed. The memory of this past Saturday afternoon got me to thinking about what makes jammin’ with your buds so special.
As I said to the guys, there’s no ego when you’re jamming. You play songs, do solos, sing harmonies, etc., spontaneously.
There are no rules when you’re jammin’. You do what you do, and it’s all right.
You also learn riffs that you didn’t know before. For instance, my bassist is not only a great bassist, but also an accomplished acoustic guitarist, and he taught me some riffs to songs that I never knew, and vice-versa.
Those are just a few things that make jammin’ special. But there’s one thing that I took away from that and that is during our jam session, I took the route of comping against what the other guys were playing. That was incredibly valuable to me because it allowed me to play with different chord shapes up and down the neck; taking a minimalistic approach – perhaps playing a simple triad or adding an 11th or 13th where appropriate. It was VERY cool.
So next time you get the chance to jam with your buds, try to comp and see where it takes you.
Not many people know of Elliot Smith, and will never know more than what’s already known because he sadly passed away from an apparent suicide in 2003. I actually didn’t know about him until a couple of years ago when my eldest son, who’s into indie music, was playing one of Elliot’s songs on the computer. I knew of his music though because two of his songs were in two movies that I love: “Good Will Hunting” and “Keeping the Faith.” Elliot’s song “Miss Misery” was featured in “Good Will Hunting,” and that’s the song I wanted to share with you.
Through his life, Elliot Smith suffered from depression and drug abuse. His music both musically and lyrically reflect an inner turmoil that spoke volumes of the depth of his personal horror. In interviews, he’s withdrawn and quiet, and he looks as if he’s about to burst. It’s tragic that such a talent had to go through so much personal struggle. Anyway, back to the song…
I was listening to the “Good Will Hunting” version of “Miss Misery” on my iPod the other day, and I thought that it would be a good idea to learn the song. So I did a search for Miss Misery chords and lyrics and found some. Being on a new computer that didn’t have my iPod library, I decided to do a search on iTunes to download the song so I’d have it handy while I plunked out the chords on my guitar. I only found one version of the song and it was an early version that was purely acoustic guitar with no backing instruments. Since I would be performing the song on my acoustic, I downloaded the song to my computer.
Once the download completed, I was surprised that the key was completely different than what was recorded for the movie, and the lyrics were some of the darkest lyrics I had ever heard. Where the “Good Will Hunting” version’s lyrics leaned towards a guy trying to figure out his relationship, the early version, which I suspect was the original version bordered on suicidal. But they were so much more powerful than the movie version, and revealed a very dark side of Elliot Smith. Here are the lyrics to the movie version first:
Ill fake it through the day
With some help from johnny walker red
Send the poison rain down the drain
To put bad thoughts in my head
Two tickets torn in half
And a lot of nothing to do
Do you miss me, miss misery
Like you say you do?
A man in the park
Read the lines in my hand
Told me Im strong
Hardly ever wrong I said man you mean
You had plans for both of us
That involved a trip out of town
To a place Ive seen in a magazine
That you left lying around
I dont have you with me but
I keep a good attitude
Do you miss me, miss misery
Like you say you do?
I know youd rather see me gone
Than to see me the way that I am
But I am in the life anyway
Next door the tvs flashing
Blue frames on the wall
Its a comedy of errors, you see
Its about taking a fall
To vanish into oblivion
Is easy to do
And I try to be but you know me
I come back when you want me to
Do you miss me miss misery
Like you say you do?
Now here are the lyrics to the original version of the song:
I’ll fake it through the day
with some help from Johnny Walker Red
and the cold pain behind my eyes that shoots
that through my head
(note: He might be saying “death” instead of “that”, it was a bit garbled)
Two tickets torn in half
and a lot of nothin’ to do
but it’s all right
some enchanted night
I’ll be with you
Tarot cards and the lines in my hand
tell me I’m wrong but they’re untrue
I got plans for both of us
that involve a trip out of town
to a place I’d seen in a magazine
that you left lyin’ around
I can’t hold my hold my liquor
but I keep a good attitude
’cause it’s all right
some enchanted night
I’ll be with you
I know you’d rather see me gone
than to see the, come the day I’ll be waiting for you anyway
Next door the TV’s flashing
blue frames on the wall
It’s a comedy from the seventies
with a lead no one recalls
To vanish into oblivion
it’s easy to do
and cry to sleep when you talked to me
the day you said we were through
but it’s all right
some enchanted night
I’ll be with you
As I mentioned, these lyrics are so much darker and raw than the movie version. I was so moved by these lyrics that I wept. This is the version I’ll be performing as a tribute to a guy who couldn’t take life but had so much to offer. Here’s a real good memorial video that features “Miss Misery.”
…that makes you sound good. It helps to have great gear, but it’s the player that counts. Don’t believe me? Check this out…
I saw this street musician playing in San Francisco a couple of weeks ago playing a crappy Fender Squire Telecaster, and a beat up amp that also doubled as his vocal PA. Guess what? He sounded amazing! The tiny amp was really tinny sounding, and his voice wasn’t always on key, but his guitar technique was nothing short of incredible. How could I tell this? Not just by watching, but by listening to how he squeezed out every bit of sustain from each note he played; how he transferred his passion from his heart into his guitar. The raw emotion in his playing was almost palpable. That got me thinking about my own playing…
Several months ago, I wrote an article called, “I’ve got GAS and I’ve got it bad!” At the time, I was on a buying binge, getting a new guitar, some effect pedals… just gearing up in general. Then a couple of months ago, I just up and stopped using more than half the pedals I bought. I attributed a lot of this to my Hot Rod Deluxe finally breaking in, but when I saw that guy playing on the street, it got me to thinking that it might’ve been something more; something inside of me that stopped me from buying more gear, and hooking up a bunch of pedals to my rig.
Now, I think that what happened was that I returned to a place that I forgot about: My heart. When I first made the move from primarily acoustic to primarily electric guitar, I was a bit uncomfortable playing. There was a lot more to think about in shaping my tone than before, and I was admittedly self-conscious about my technique. But I eventually reached a level of comfort. That’s when the seas parted, the skies opened, and a voice from Heaven burst forth proclaiming, “Now go forth and PLAY your guitar!”
There’s a big difference between just playing chords and notes, and playing with your heart. It’s not just how you approach your instrument, it’s how you FEEL your instrument and adjust to the subtle nuances within a song. It’s the difference between simply being musically mechanical and being truly musical. I forgot that, or rather, I was distracted from that for awhile, and the thing is, to be truly musical, you don’t need effects or great gear. Yes, that stuff provides added enhancement, but no one or no thing can give you musicality. That comes from you.
I’ve returned to that place where I can really feel what I’m playing, and I’m really loving what I’m hearing – and a bit surprised that I’m actually pleased with how I’m sounding now. And though I’ll most probably buy more gear in the future, it will be with the intent of enhancing my music. I’ll take a much more utilitarian approach and not get trapped into having a piece of equipment because it’s considered by others to be top-of-the-line. I fell into that trap once. I won’t do it again.
So you don’t have to spend a lot of money to sound good. Just look at that guy on the street. He knocked my socks off. But to bring even more legitimacy to this argument, let’s look at some great players who took average or less than average gear and did incredible things with them:
There are two guys I think about immediately: Willie Nelson and Eric Clapton. Willie played this old classical guitar that had an “extra hole” in it that his “Daddy bought me.” Clapton bought three second-hand Strats for $100 each, mixed and matched necks and bodies and produced “Blackie,” his signature guitar that sold for over $1 Million at auction. In each case, these guys took marginal equipment and built careers on them. So tell me it’s not the player… 🙂
After reading my friend Ig’s latest entry, “Innovation: Coated or plain guitar strings,” I thought about funny things I’ve heard myself and other guitarists say in the past, or things that a guitarist should never say in mixed company. Here’s the list:
10. My G-string keeps coming loose…
9. You shoulda seen his axe cut through the crowd…
8. I’ve got a small f-hole…
7. Looks like I have to give that head a good lube job…
6. That guy’s got great licks…
5. That G-string gets gross with grime pretty quickly…
4. I rub it down with a towel after I’m done playing with it…
3. Yeah, he really jerks that thing around…
2. He lowers his G-string to C…
1. When I don’t have anyone to play with, I play with myself…
Most of these are real… bonus points if you can guess which ones aren’t. 🙂
I have been a youth minister and occasional inspirational speaker for several years. A few years ago, I did a series of talks and workshops based upon Q.U.E.S.T., an acronym that I came up with to help people focus in their learning processes. This morning on the way to work, it dawned on me that I could easily apply it to learning guitar, and that I have been unwittingly using the QUEST process the past few years to become a better guitarist/musician. So here’s QUEST in a nutshell.
Background
First, life is a process and to go through life, whether you buy into it or not, you are the central figure in the process of your life. Many people spend their entire lives letting outside influences rule the direction they take, instead of taking the reins and taking charge of their destinies. QUEST is a way to focus on your process. The very word lends itself to seeking out and discovering; something no one can do for you. But unlike the quests of old, there’s no prize, and really there’s no end, as this QUEST is a continuous process itself. So let’s go over the QUEST process:
Q – Question
The first step to growth – of any kind – is to question the foundations of your beliefs. This doesn’t equate to doubt; rather, it pertains more to examining where you’re at, what you’re doing, then posing questions like: Am I doing enough? Have I considered other directions? With respect to playing guitar, a lot of times we become fixed on certain styles or methods of playing. By questioning the things on which we are fixed, we open ourselves to new and different possibilities.
U – Understand
This really means “understand yourself.” Another “U” word that could be used in its place is “Uncover.” Growth demands an innate understanding of what our motivations are. Especially with musicianship, learning or doing something “just because” is not good enough. If you want to get better, you need to uncover and understand your motivations to become better; in other words, understand yourself.
E – Explore
This is really the active phase of the QUEST process, where you actively seek out possibilities and break new ground. It’s also the funnest part of the process because you come across all sorts of new things or new ways of playing. While the other steps in the process are much more subtle and cerebral in nature, this step is where you actually experiment with the things you discover. It’s the really exciting part of the process.
S – Surrender
I can’t stress enough of the importance of surrendering. Surrendering simply means to not get in your own way. During any growth process, it’s inevitable that our old, established patterns of thinking come creaping up, and can possibly sabotage the growth we’ve recently experienced. Surrendering to your growth process maintains your open state of mind. As an example, I recently wanted to understand what appeals to my older kids’ love of hard-core rock. So I sat down at their computer, opened up iTunes and started listening. Being a musician whose foundation in music has been built on a more melodic approach, I found that my instinctive negativity towards this style of music kept surfacing while I listened. So I had to check myself and essentially surrender to what I was listening, so I could give myself a chance to “get it.” The net result is that I learned alot about that style of music: Super-fast guitar licks, trip-hammer-double-bass-drums; in other words, high-powered energy. I still don’t like the music, but I now understand the appeal.
T – Trust
Sometimes, change is very subtle, so you have to trust in your process of learning; trust that your going in a direction that will ultimately improve your abilities down the line. Like surrender, this another checks and balances step that’s important in the process because by trusting, you won’t give up your quest to become better.
I realize that this isn’t a specific technique to become a better player. It’s more background. But to me, it’s important background. Personally, if I had not gone through this process, I wouldn’t have evolved as a musician. I literally spent 30 years playing nothing but acoustic guitar, and I’d gone about as far as I could go. Then a few years ago, I “pulled the rug from under” myself and incorporated electric guitar into my playing. I still play acoustic guitar – and a lot of it, I might say – but I now have a much broader musical canvas with which to work – and learn.
Like many guitarists, I have fantasies of playing guitar with a big name, like Sting for instance. I also have dreams of having technique like Hendrix, Satch, SRV, Eric Johnson, or Vai. But the reality is that I’ll probably never achieve their level of technique. So short of that, the best I can do is learn as much technique as possible, but incorporate that technique into my overall sound.
Notice the word “my” in the sentence above. That’s something that I stress to a lot of young guitarists, especially my own son. In a recent conversation, where we were discussing chords and intervals, I stopped and said, “Son, while it’s important to learn all this music and guitar theory, remember that your ultimate goal is to create your own sound. You say you want to play as fast as Henry Li or Yngwie Malmstein. That’s great – but just remember one thing: Learn the technique to play as fast as those guys, but make the sound your own. If you want to be a more than just a ‘good’ guitarist, you’ll want to sound like yourself, and not like somebody else.” The glazed expression the he returned prompted me to say, “I know you don’t get what I’m saying right now, but give it a few years, and you’ll know what I’m talking about.”
I can’t stress enough how important getting your own sound is. And I’ll say this: For some, like myself, it has taken a lifetime to achieve, and I’m still tweaking my sound! But keep at it, and eventually you’ll get to a space where your sound is distinctly you.
After a few years of listening to my boys blast their death metal, new punk and “alternative” rock, I’ve finally hit a breaking point. I just can’t stand that shit! Kudos to those artists who’ve been able to get recording contracts, but I’m sorry, it’s just not for me; especially that vomit screaming bullshit that somehow passes for singing. I first heard that type of voicing when I was riding in a friend’s car. He was always into pretty heavy stuff, but this was way over the top, all growl, no melody, filled with tons of low-end power chords. And now, that style of “singing” has moved into the more mainstream metal areas. I’m not sure I call it an evolution.
Call me old-fashioned or old-skool, but I need a much more melodic approach to music. Don’t get me wrong, I like metal, but I’ll qualify that with I like metal where the musicians have a very definite, discernible level of skill – especially in the guitar department. They don’t necessarily have to be fast, but they really have to feel what they’re playing. In a lot of the music I’ve heard my kids play, I can’t tell one guitarist from another – they all play the same fuckin’ licks! On the other hand, take a pretty high-powered, heavy, thrash metal band like Metallica, and just listen to Kirk Hammett play. The guy’s technique is incredible! Or let’s get even heavier with Pantera. Phil Anselmo may growl a lot, but there is a recognizable melody in what he sings. As far as guitar playing is concerned, does “Dimebag” Darrell ring a bell?
Perhaps I’d be a bit more tolerant of my kids’ music if I could detect a uniqueness in their bands’ musicality, but I can’t. As I said before, it’s as if they all play the same licks. But even though I admire these bands for getting recording contracts, it’s amazing that at least to the younger set, this shit passes for music. So maybe as a seasoned musician who can play more than power chords, plus a trained vocalist, I should learn how to vomit scream and play two chord songs. I just might get a recording contract – NOT!
Bonnie Raitt said it best when she was quoted as saying, “There was simply no one like him,” when speaking about Michael Hedges. That pretty much sums it up about the man who, back in the early 80’s completely revolutionized how the acoustic guitar can be played, and inspired thousands of guitarists the world over to rethink how they approached the acoustic guitar. Seeing Michael Hedges play, you couldn’t help but think, “I didn’t know you could do that with an acoustic guitar.” It was if a veil had been lifted from the collective minds of guitarists the world over. It was absolutely uncanny. The video below is of Michael playing “Rickover’s Dream.” This was the first song where he introduced using hammer-ons and pull-offs not just as a part of a phrase, but as a foundation for the entire song. Hammer-ons and pull-offs weren’t anything new, but this type of application of them had not been done like this by anyone up to that point.
The next video of Michael is a medley of three songs from his Taproot album. These show yet another side of his composition and style.
I’m writing this entry because now and then, I run across something that sparks my memory about Michael. You see, he died tragically in a car accident in 1997. Of all the people I’ve encountered in my life who’ve had a huge influence on me musically, Michael Hedges played a huge role; not from just a technical perspective, but also from the perspective of extension – moving past old paradigms and exploring new territory. He inspired me to look beyond my own perceived limitations as a musician to discover things I never thought possible. I’ve never stopped missing him.
Today, what sparked the memory was seeing Kaki King play on a YouTube video. Personally, I’m not really a fan of Kaki King – her music is just a bit too abstract for me. Compositionally, I just can’t “get” her music, because unlike Michael Hedges, there doesn’t seem to be message or thought to convey. To me (and remember, this is strictly an opinion), it’s as if she cobbles together a string of experiments – okay, I can do this, then add this, then add this, and return here. Good. That’s a song. Add to the fact that her technique is also only okay (again, IMO), and I just can’t get out my head that she pales in comparison to someone of Michaels technical and compositional genius.
If you’re interested finding more about this incredible musician, the best place to start in on the Wikipedia entry for him.
No, I’m not talking about the gastrointestinal waste product, I’m talking about Guitar Acquisition Syndrome. It’s an affliction that plagues guitar players the world over, forcing them to buy more and more equipment so they can achieve the perfect tone. Wonder why guitar players are always broke? Look no further. It’s because they’ve sunk all their money into their gear.
Some people have likened GAS to obsessive compulsive disorder; considering the amount of money some people spend, it could be highly likely that it comes close, but really, it’s not that bad. It’s just that in the quest for attaining the ideal sound, you need to get equipment – and that costs money.
Is there a cure? Not as long as you’re trying to tweak your tone. But it goes away once you get close to your ideal. For instance, I’ve pretty much stopped buying gear since I’ve achieved my ideal – at least for now; and that’s the catch. GAS comes back when you want to change your tone, and the amount of GAS you get is in direct proportion to how big of a change you want to make. For me, last year was a year of complete re-invention. I went from being a primarily acoustic-electric guitar player, to being almost entirely electric, and the equipment I had just didn’t suffice. So, two electric guitars, three amps, and a set of stomp boxes later, not to mention a new PA and recording equipment, I’m pretty much over my GASeous period. I’m pretty satisfied… at least for now… 🙂
Can you control GAS? Actually, yes. I have a very supporting wife who sang for me in a music group before we started dating, so she was pretty familiar with my need for more equipment. Once we got married, we had several debates about me getting equipment, since the money was coming out of our family budget. So after going back and forth, and not getting any resolution, she one day said she’d like to make a deal. Since my regular job provided enough money to support the family and pay the mortgage, I could set up a separate account and deposit all my gig money into it to use as I pleased. But a huge part of the deal was that I couldn’t buy anything on credit or financing. I had to use the cash I had. That was a very fair deal, and it was also a way to curb my GASeous urges.
A lot of tube amp purists seem to think so, and for the most part, I’d have to agree. But on the flip side, solid state amps have their uses. For instance, under some conditions, a solid state amp actually makes more sense to use than a tube amp. When I gig, I bring two amps with me: A re-tubed and modified Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, and a Roland Cube 60. I play my electrics (ES-335 and Strat with Tex Mex pickups) through the Hot Rod, while I play my Ovation Elite acoustic/electric through the Roland Cube. There’s a practical reason for this in addition to a more personal reason. The practical reason is that I have effect boxes that are specifically geared towards shaping my electric guitars’ tones on the Hot Rod. Having to dial in the effects for a third is just too impractical.
On the personal side of things, I found that my Ovation actually sounded better (to my ears) on the clean channel of the Cube. I wasn’t expecting it, but I think the brightness and high touch sensitivity of the Hot Rod actually made my ovation too bright – it’s already a bright-sound guitar unplugged. With the Roland, I could dial back the brightness of the amp to bring out the Ovation’s natural brightness, and with the built-in chorus, add some subtle overtones that was very pleasing to my ears. I also “cheat” a bit by running a Presonus TubePre right before the amp, and that really warms up my signal. And by the way, the Cube 60 is a VERY LOUD amp; so loud, in fact, that I actually use the tube pre-amp as a gain limiter to control the amp’s volume – otherwise, I’d have to play the amp at around 2.
I also own a Line 6 Flextone III Plus that I use extensively in my recording work. Why? With its controllable direct out, I can get a nice even signal coming from my amp and go directly in to my recording unit. Furthermore, because it’s a modeling amp, I can tweak a lot of different things to create a unique patch that I couldn’t achieve without a lot of signal processing (read: effect boxes) on my tube amp. Note however, that the guitar parts that I play through the Flextone III typically play a supporting role in my songs, but even as support, they play a valuable part.
Another important point that I’d like to make is that with a modeling amp, you get a very consistent tone. In a lot of cases that consistency can equate to “boringness,” but for my uses, I can create a background guitar part knowing that I won’t have to do much with it in my recording software. Also with respect to consistency, once I’ve dialed in a tone on my Flextone, it sounds pretty much the same throughout a wide range of volumes. That’s very useful.
The downside of a modeling amp is that, well, your sounds are models. While modeling technology has certainly come a long way, you can get close to a particular tone from a tube amp, but it’s not quite the same. Another thing that I found is that with a full-blown modeling amp like the Flextone III, it actually sounds horrible on stage; especially if you’ve introduced distortion into the patch. There’s a lot to be said about the interplay between pre-amp and power amp tubes in producing a distorted signal. Modeling amps just can’t capture that 100%. But I will say that played clean, it’s tough to distinguish between the two types of amps, especially if you put a tube pre before a modeling amp, like I did with my Cube 60.
So the moral of the story boys and girls is that modeling amps don’t suck. For me, they’re very useful for specific purposes. In all others, I’ll take a tube amp any day.
Guitar Gear 