We hit our doorstep at midnight last night, after a week-long cruise from Seattle to Alaska and back. It was the first time I'd been on a cruise ship as a guest (I played on one, down in the Bahamas, years ago), and it was truly a pure vacation. Although, for me, even a vacation doesn't seem right without one of my guitars. I was happy as a clam playing guitar on the balcony of our stateroom, or late at night in the ship's library. I saw some fine musicians, as well, including the Chroma String Trio: three very talented gals who had a really fine and very eclectic repertoire. They were kind enough to chat with me about their experiences playing on a cruise ship, and I think this may be something for me to pursue again, sometime in the next year or so. Our arrival back home was met with an extremely happy puppy who was consequently far too excited to go to sleep when we were more than ready for bed (two words: tongue bath). Ah, but it is good to be back home. This next week, I'll be wrapping up things on the upcoming album. We should begin mixing and mastering for the next week or so, looking to get everything off to the pressing plant by the 1st of July. Meanwhile, the tour plans are falling nicely into place, too. The trip was exactly the moment of rest and recreation it was meant to be, but now (rested, refreshed, yes) it's time to hit the ground running.
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Spent a long session at Hooker Street Studios laying down a few last tracks for the new upcoming album. It will be sort of a double album, in effect, or two albums sold concurrently, as it were. Called Collage and Collidoscope, the Collage album is a collection of guitar instrumentals. The "Collidoscope" volume (and yes, that word is deliberately given an 'alternate' spelling) is a new set of singer/songwriter tunes. There's still a bit of tweaking to be done, here and there, before we start on final mix and mastering. To that end, Bob Matros (the engineer) gave me rough mixes to listen to over the next ten days or so. My mother-in-law is visiting us from Australia, and taking an Alaskan cruise has sort of been an item on her bucket list. So we are looking to do that thing over the next week or so, during which I look forward to listening to these rough mixes to get some ideas as to where we'll go from here. It helps that I've surrounded myself with good and talented friends: Bob Matros (who has acted as co-producer as well as engineer), Ernie Martinez, Julia Hays, Hanna and Aaron Walker, and many others (I will look to give full credit to everyone in the weeks to come). I will be doing a concert at Victor Guitars, on South Broadway, on the 14th of July, when I will be showing off a lot of these new tunes. I hope some of you will think about coming out for that one.
Reply
I was game to try playing out on the patio at Gabriel's last night. It started out reasonably warm and sunny and all. But the wind kicked up something fierce, which proved too much to handle. I ended up moving into the main dining room after the first set, at which point everything went much better. And a shout out to my new fans, Rob and Fran, who first saw me the last time I played at Gabriel's . Back then, they bought four CD's (a set for them and an extra copy of "Bula Learns To Dance" for a friend of theirs). They were waiting for me as I arrived to play last night and bought another copy of "Bula" for another friend of theirs. Rob asked me to do my version of "Little Wing", which I was glad to do. Then one of the trains (notorious for passing through Sedalia) came roaring through. It didn't stop Rob, though; he just pulled a chair up close, the better to listen. I want another 1000 fans like Rob and Fran (seriously!!).
Reply
It was a fun day of watching violinist Julia Hays and concertina player Jacques Delaguerre add their talents to some of the songs of my new album-in-progress. Every part of making an album has its fun aspects, but there is something particularly fascinating and pleasurable for me in watching other musicians bring their talents and perspectives to bear in the process. Julia is featured on "Bumblebee Wages" and "King of Oysters", while Jacques is also found on "King of Oysters" and on "Le Soleil se Coucher En Paris" (with a nod to luthier, Edward Dick, who upon hearing that latter piece insisted that it needed a touch of the concertina to give it a more "french" feel). I have one more day of classes at Arapahoe College. I will be administering final exams on Monday, then cleaning out my books and other articles in the teaching studio I have known there for the last 12 years. That's when I think some of the sense of the big changes coming will start to be felt. On the other side of the coin, however, the end of the semester will afford me at least a little more time for composing, arranging, recording, rehearsing, booking (locally, and the tour), and the dozen or more other things demanding attention these days. Busy, yes, but happily so.
Reply
My friend, Stacia, is a Sufi dancer. In case there is a reader out there not familiar with the term, Sufi's are one of the more contemplative/meditative/mystical branches of Islam. Sufi dancers are often called "whirling dervishes", because they spin about in a sort of dancing form of meditation. The goal is to achieve a form of enlightenment, or bliss, while spinning. Sometime ago, my friend suffered an accident that left her with a badly broken foot. She was in a cast and had wheeled, metal apparatus that kept her foot elevated and more or less allowed her to get about as needed. But suffice to say, it was all rather frustrating. I promised her that I would have a guitar piece ready for her, when she was healed and ready to spin again. It took a month or two, but I put something together that I am rather pleased with (and hope she will be pleased, as well). One of the harder parts of the process was filming a video to post on YouTube (because I am still more adept at playing guitar than playing with a computer, for the most part). Still, it seems that it is up on YouTube. At least I have been able to access it (although not every time I've tried, and it is still not included with a group of other videos I have posted, for reasons I cannot fathom). Maybe it's just because the video is still new to YouTube. At any rate, I plan to include the piece on the upcoming album, and invite anyone interested to check out the video for a sneak preview.
Reply
This morning, as I was taking out the trash, the various objects in the trash bag conspired to create the smell of baloney (for the record, we don't really have any baloney in the house; well, save for what I am occasionally accused of creating verbally, that is). Anyway, the next thing I knew, I was transported into memories of childhood, and baloney and cheese sandwiches on wonder bread (not that this is an experience unique to growing up Iowa, but it was pretty common in Iowa). All of this leads to a frequent source of conjecture for me of late, and that is the inner world of my dog. Over the last year or so, I have read a few books on dogs, and they all make a great to do about a dog's sense of scent. It is claimed that scent is as important for a dog as eyesight is for humans. And lately they have even demonstrated that a dog's sense of smell is precise enough to detect cancer under some circumstances. I find myself wondering what it must be like to experience the world in that way. How very foreign to the way we interact with the world. And I wonder if smells conjure up memories for dogs in any way comparable to our own experience. Or is it even more vivid, more visceral? I chat about this on occasion with various folk, and those who know me as a songwriter suggest that maybe there is a song in there somewhere. Maybe there is. I can't see it just yet. But then, maybe that's the problem. If there is a song in this line of thought, maybe I have to sniff it out.
Reply
I read an article/interview of Willie Nelson where he described that a lot of his songs come to him while he's driving his truck. He went on to say that if he couldn't remember the song by the time he got wherever he was going, it wasn't worth keeping. I can related to a degree: I've had some good songs come to me while driving, and it's one of the reasons I occasionally make a deliberate choice to leave the radio off and dwell in silence. The silence is relative. There can often be all manner of thoughts bouncing about in my head, and some of them very creative, if I only pay attention to them. Swimming is another such outlet for me. I have friends who think that swimming laps must be terribly boring, but often while I am swimming, I am going through melodies, lyric ideas, or plots for stories, or even just the next class lecture or test I have to design for my students (to be fair, the melodies and lyric ideas are usually more interesting and where my mind is more wont to go). But the most consistent source of ideas these days is walking around Lake Arbor with Rufus. Rufus is my personal trainer and my muse. Yesterday, while walking around the lake, I was singing some of the more recent songs I'd written (came up with a new verse for one, which will likely entail re-recording the guitar and vocal tracks I laid down over the last couple of weeks), when I suddenly and spontaneously started singing something altogether new. By the time we got home, I had the chorus for a new song worked out. Earlier today, Rufus and I were once again walking around the lake, and this time I came up with what I believe will be the first verse. At this rate, it may take a few more days of walking around the lake to get the rest of the song, but I am willing to work with the process. Of course, now I am getting ready to head to the gym and swim some laps, so who knows? I suppose the bottom line for me is that the best cure for any supposed writer's block is giving yourself the chance to just be alone with your thoughts. Cut the outer distractions down to a minimum and see what emerges. Oh, and I think it helps to get a dog (preferably a mutt from a rescue shelter, based on personal experience).
Reply
My first time playing at Gabriel's, in Sedalia, was pure fun! I sold a bunch of CD's, some old friends and fans came out and I had the chance to meet some new fans. It was an appreciative audience that was game for just about anything. In addition to originals (including several new tunes that I've started to record), I played the gamut from J.S. Bach to Alvin and the Chipmunks (yeah, it was that kind of a night). I drove home on my favorite natural high: the euphoria of a totally fun gig. My next time at Gabriel's is scheduled for May 23rd, and I am looking forward to some additional dates as the summer starts to rev up. Oh, and by the way, the food and the wine there are fantastic.
Reply
Years ago, I remember reading an interview of jazz guitarist and session musician, Howard Roberts, where he described one time driving along the highway, listening to a tune on the car radio, and he realized that he could "see" in his head just how he would play that tune on the guitar. He said that was the point when he felt he was well and truly a guitarist. I had my first such experience about twenty years or so ago (also driving in the car, as it were), and I was reminded of it again the other morning, when I gradually woke with a guitar piece in my head that I've been putting together for a friend of mine (my friend is a Sufi dancer who recently injured her foot, and I wanted to compose a piece for her when she is able to celebrate dancing again). I could hear various parts of the piece, could consider variations on the main theme and such, and I could visualize it all in my head as notes on the fret board. It was a very pleasant way to wake up. Guitarist Ricardo Iznaola has said that he gets some great practicing done in his head while flying to a concert. Although it will never replace the physical sensuality of having the instrument under fingers and vibrating against your body, it is a .... well... (dare I say it?)... a "heady" experience, indeed.
Reply
So there I am, lecturing my Music Business and Law class.
Me: "The Business Manager should take care of your books, advise you on your taxes, help you with investments, keep track of money coming in and money going out, and advise you that doing stupid things like tossing TV's out of hotel room windows costs you."
Student: "Wait! Somebody did that?!? Tossed a TV out of a hotel room window?!?"
Me: "Yes, I think more than one rock musician has done that sort of thing."
Another Student: "Cool!!"
Me: "No that's not cool. You get charged for the TV and maybe a broken window by the hotel, maybe get banned from staying there in the future....
Another Student: "I so look forward to doing that on tour someday!"
Me: "I don't think you guys are getting the right message out of this lecture."
Reply
Michael Engberg / Blog
Happy Puppy!
We hit our doorstep at midnight last night, after a week-long cruise from Seattle to Alaska and back. It was the first time I'd been on a cruise ship as a guest (I played on one, down in the Bahamas, years ago), and it was truly a pure vacation. Although, for me, even a vacation doesn't seem right without one of my guitars. I was happy as a clam playing guitar on the balcony of our stateroom, or late at night in the ship's library. I saw some fine musicians, as well, including the Chroma String Trio: three very talented gals who had a really fine and very eclectic repertoire. They were kind enough to chat with me about their experiences playing on a cruise ship, and I think this may be something for me to pursue again, sometime in the next year or so. Our arrival back home was met with an extremely happy puppy who was consequently far too excited to go to sleep when we were more than ready for bed (two words: tongue bath). Ah, but it is good to be back home. This next week, I'll be wrapping up things on the upcoming album. We should begin mixing and mastering for the next week or so, looking to get everything off to the pressing plant by the 1st of July. Meanwhile, the tour plans are falling nicely into place, too. The trip was exactly the moment of rest and recreation it was meant to be, but now (rested, refreshed, yes) it's time to hit the ground running.
Reply
Rough Trax and a Northwest Passage
Spent a long session at Hooker Street Studios laying down a few last tracks for the new upcoming album. It will be sort of a double album, in effect, or two albums sold concurrently, as it were. Called Collage and Collidoscope, the Collage album is a collection of guitar instrumentals. The "Collidoscope" volume (and yes, that word is deliberately given an 'alternate' spelling) is a new set of singer/songwriter tunes. There's still a bit of tweaking to be done, here and there, before we start on final mix and mastering. To that end, Bob Matros (the engineer) gave me rough mixes to listen to over the next ten days or so. My mother-in-law is visiting us from Australia, and taking an Alaskan cruise has sort of been an item on her bucket list. So we are looking to do that thing over the next week or so, during which I look forward to listening to these rough mixes to get some ideas as to where we'll go from here. It helps that I've surrounded myself with good and talented friends: Bob Matros (who has acted as co-producer as well as engineer), Ernie Martinez, Julia Hays, Hanna and Aaron Walker, and many others (I will look to give full credit to everyone in the weeks to come). I will be doing a concert at Victor Guitars, on South Broadway, on the 14th of July, when I will be showing off a lot of these new tunes. I hope some of you will think about coming out for that one.
Reply
Winds, trains, and the best fans
I was game to try playing out on the patio at Gabriel's last night. It started out reasonably warm and sunny and all. But the wind kicked up something fierce, which proved too much to handle. I ended up moving into the main dining room after the first set, at which point everything went much better. And a shout out to my new fans, Rob and Fran, who first saw me the last time I played at Gabriel's . Back then, they bought four CD's (a set for them and an extra copy of "Bula Learns To Dance" for a friend of theirs). They were waiting for me as I arrived to play last night and bought another copy of "Bula" for another friend of theirs. Rob asked me to do my version of "Little Wing", which I was glad to do. Then one of the trains (notorious for passing through Sedalia) came roaring through. It didn't stop Rob, though; he just pulled a chair up close, the better to listen. I want another 1000 fans like Rob and Fran (seriously!!).
Reply
Thank you, Julia and Jacques!
It was a fun day of watching violinist Julia Hays and concertina player Jacques Delaguerre add their talents to some of the songs of my new album-in-progress. Every part of making an album has its fun aspects, but there is something particularly fascinating and pleasurable for me in watching other musicians bring their talents and perspectives to bear in the process. Julia is featured on "Bumblebee Wages" and "King of Oysters", while Jacques is also found on "King of Oysters" and on "Le Soleil se Coucher En Paris" (with a nod to luthier, Edward Dick, who upon hearing that latter piece insisted that it needed a touch of the concertina to give it a more "french" feel). I have one more day of classes at Arapahoe College. I will be administering final exams on Monday, then cleaning out my books and other articles in the teaching studio I have known there for the last 12 years. That's when I think some of the sense of the big changes coming will start to be felt. On the other side of the coin, however, the end of the semester will afford me at least a little more time for composing, arranging, recording, rehearsing, booking (locally, and the tour), and the dozen or more other things demanding attention these days. Busy, yes, but happily so.
Reply
Spinning On A Blue Planet
My friend, Stacia, is a Sufi dancer. In case there is a reader out there not familiar with the term, Sufi's are one of the more contemplative/meditative/mystical branches of Islam. Sufi dancers are often called "whirling dervishes", because they spin about in a sort of dancing form of meditation. The goal is to achieve a form of enlightenment, or bliss, while spinning. Sometime ago, my friend suffered an accident that left her with a badly broken foot. She was in a cast and had wheeled, metal apparatus that kept her foot elevated and more or less allowed her to get about as needed. But suffice to say, it was all rather frustrating. I promised her that I would have a guitar piece ready for her, when she was healed and ready to spin again. It took a month or two, but I put something together that I am rather pleased with (and hope she will be pleased, as well). One of the harder parts of the process was filming a video to post on YouTube (because I am still more adept at playing guitar than playing with a computer, for the most part). Still, it seems that it is up on YouTube. At least I have been able to access it (although not every time I've tried, and it is still not included with a group of other videos I have posted, for reasons I cannot fathom). Maybe it's just because the video is still new to YouTube. At any rate, I plan to include the piece on the upcoming album, and invite anyone interested to check out the video for a sneak preview.
Reply
Scents and sensibility
This morning, as I was taking out the trash, the various objects in the trash bag conspired to create the smell of baloney (for the record, we don't really have any baloney in the house; well, save for what I am occasionally accused of creating verbally, that is). Anyway, the next thing I knew, I was transported into memories of childhood, and baloney and cheese sandwiches on wonder bread (not that this is an experience unique to growing up Iowa, but it was pretty common in Iowa). All of this leads to a frequent source of conjecture for me of late, and that is the inner world of my dog. Over the last year or so, I have read a few books on dogs, and they all make a great to do about a dog's sense of scent. It is claimed that scent is as important for a dog as eyesight is for humans. And lately they have even demonstrated that a dog's sense of smell is precise enough to detect cancer under some circumstances. I find myself wondering what it must be like to experience the world in that way. How very foreign to the way we interact with the world. And I wonder if smells conjure up memories for dogs in any way comparable to our own experience. Or is it even more vivid, more visceral? I chat about this on occasion with various folk, and those who know me as a songwriter suggest that maybe there is a song in there somewhere. Maybe there is. I can't see it just yet. But then, maybe that's the problem. If there is a song in this line of thought, maybe I have to sniff it out.
Reply
My Four-legged Muse
I read an article/interview of Willie Nelson where he described that a lot of his songs come to him while he's driving his truck. He went on to say that if he couldn't remember the song by the time he got wherever he was going, it wasn't worth keeping. I can related to a degree: I've had some good songs come to me while driving, and it's one of the reasons I occasionally make a deliberate choice to leave the radio off and dwell in silence. The silence is relative. There can often be all manner of thoughts bouncing about in my head, and some of them very creative, if I only pay attention to them. Swimming is another such outlet for me. I have friends who think that swimming laps must be terribly boring, but often while I am swimming, I am going through melodies, lyric ideas, or plots for stories, or even just the next class lecture or test I have to design for my students (to be fair, the melodies and lyric ideas are usually more interesting and where my mind is more wont to go). But the most consistent source of ideas these days is walking around Lake Arbor with Rufus. Rufus is my personal trainer and my muse. Yesterday, while walking around the lake, I was singing some of the more recent songs I'd written (came up with a new verse for one, which will likely entail re-recording the guitar and vocal tracks I laid down over the last couple of weeks), when I suddenly and spontaneously started singing something altogether new. By the time we got home, I had the chorus for a new song worked out. Earlier today, Rufus and I were once again walking around the lake, and this time I came up with what I believe will be the first verse. At this rate, it may take a few more days of walking around the lake to get the rest of the song, but I am willing to work with the process. Of course, now I am getting ready to head to the gym and swim some laps, so who knows? I suppose the bottom line for me is that the best cure for any supposed writer's block is giving yourself the chance to just be alone with your thoughts. Cut the outer distractions down to a minimum and see what emerges. Oh, and I think it helps to get a dog (preferably a mutt from a rescue shelter, based on personal experience).
Reply
1st Night At Gabriel's
My first time playing at Gabriel's, in Sedalia, was pure fun! I sold a bunch of CD's, some old friends and fans came out and I had the chance to meet some new fans. It was an appreciative audience that was game for just about anything. In addition to originals (including several new tunes that I've started to record), I played the gamut from J.S. Bach to Alvin and the Chipmunks (yeah, it was that kind of a night). I drove home on my favorite natural high: the euphoria of a totally fun gig. My next time at Gabriel's is scheduled for May 23rd, and I am looking forward to some additional dates as the summer starts to rev up. Oh, and by the way, the food and the wine there are fantastic.
Reply
Guitar Head
Years ago, I remember reading an interview of jazz guitarist and session musician, Howard Roberts, where he described one time driving along the highway, listening to a tune on the car radio, and he realized that he could "see" in his head just how he would play that tune on the guitar. He said that was the point when he felt he was well and truly a guitarist. I had my first such experience about twenty years or so ago (also driving in the car, as it were), and I was reminded of it again the other morning, when I gradually woke with a guitar piece in my head that I've been putting together for a friend of mine (my friend is a Sufi dancer who recently injured her foot, and I wanted to compose a piece for her when she is able to celebrate dancing again). I could hear various parts of the piece, could consider variations on the main theme and such, and I could visualize it all in my head as notes on the fret board. It was a very pleasant way to wake up. Guitarist Ricardo Iznaola has said that he gets some great practicing done in his head while flying to a concert. Although it will never replace the physical sensuality of having the instrument under fingers and vibrating against your body, it is a .... well... (dare I say it?)... a "heady" experience, indeed.
Reply
Lessons Learned
So there I am, lecturing my Music Business and Law class. Me: "The Business Manager should take care of your books, advise you on your taxes, help you with investments, keep track of money coming in and money going out, and advise you that doing stupid things like tossing TV's out of hotel room windows costs you." Student: "Wait! Somebody did that?!? Tossed a TV out of a hotel room window?!?" Me: "Yes, I think more than one rock musician has done that sort of thing." Another Student: "Cool!!" Me: "No that's not cool. You get charged for the TV and maybe a broken window by the hotel, maybe get banned from staying there in the future.... Another Student: "I so look forward to doing that on tour someday!" Me: "I don't think you guys are getting the right message out of this lecture."
Reply