Category: Uncategorized
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One of the aspects of the documentary, Amy, the story of Amy Winehouse that struck me immediately was what a solid guitar player she was. Why is this notable? Because I had never heard anything about her musicianship. Outside of her songs themselves, what so many of us saw was her bad girl image, as exemplified…
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Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year to all of my friends, students, family and fellow musicians. It’s been a great year in many ways. There have been some ups and downs, but in the end I’m really looking forward to 2016 and enjoying the final days of 2015. I love Christmas and…
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Earlier in the year, I decided to make a study of T-Bone Walker’s guitar style, and “I Walked Away” was the first tune that I attempted to transcribe. When I got to the nitty gritty of it though, namely the second and third bar of solo proper, I was having trouble hearing it so I…
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I’ve always felt that the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving is a great night to go out, and this past Wednesday evening proved me right when I went to the Wild Horse Tavern Blues Jam. There was a really good crowd on hand with plenty of great players to create a spirited and highly entertaining…
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A hot summer night in Los Angeles, 1951. Ike Turner had recently waxed “Rocket 88,” in Memphis and Fats Domino’s “Blueberry Hill” was still five years off. With the birth of rock and roll at hand, T-Bone Walker probably figured he could experiment a little. And so, he recorded this eighth note boogie, married to…
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“My blues is not screaming blues or howling blues but kind of sweet blues,” said T-Bone Walker. You could add the term ‘riffing blues,’ as well and you can see the evidence in the turnaround lick that is transcribed below. T-Bone Walker was one of the first guitarists to go electric and by 1950 he…
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This past Sunday I had two gigs, a happy occurrence. It was a bit of a trial, because I was fighting bronchitis and had to sing lead and harmony at the first one and lead at the second one. Definitely an experience. The first one was with my friend Ron at HiFi with our new…
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October 31, 2015 – On Halloween night, I sat in with my friend T.J. Hogarty’s combo at Cassidy’s, a friendly Irish Pub on 55th Street in Midtown. In contrast to the hijinks that take place in New York City during this spooky and celebratory holiday, the scene was casual, with a small but supportive crowd…
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A friend of mine who is a terrific bass player, all around musician and Harley rider told me he was learning pedal steel. Ron “King Bee” Raymond then asked me, ‘would I like to form a band?’ I thought, ‘Well, I have exactly one country number in my repertoire.’ It was “Dark End of…
On Practicing Guitar 