HI Friends, Well I made it through my first week of unemployment. With it came all the usual discomforts, but also a gentle easing of the uptempo life I've been living since we arrived here last August...a welcome respite...well at least until I'm awakened by my troubled mind with the 3 am blues. Played out at an open mic in Puyallup last Tuesday night...the first time I've played out since early last summer. It was great fun, and I plan to do it again this week. I started moving stuff into my workspace this weekend, and in a few days should have everything wired up and ready to get into some recording again. You can only bang your head on the job search for so many hours a day, without going crazy. I've got a backlog of songs to record from the last few years. I wrote a new song on Saturday night..."Just Call Me Moon". The chorus has been rolling around in my head for months...when I stuck it together with a guitar lick I've been playing around with for a little while, there it was. It feels great to have created a new song again. I started reading an autobiography of Buck Owens last night "Buck Em" ...amazing parallels, he lived all around AZ, Bakersfield CA, then up to WA...Puyallup..imagine that; kinda like some car you like, and suddenly you notice them everywhere. Brought back a memory of a long time ago...I was a rocker kid then, with my Gibson guitar, who played lead a little like Frank Zappa...One night in the old neighborhood I was living in there In Phoenix, I met Marty Robbins son....we talked that hot summer night...I was so sure then that Country Music just wasn't that interesting...."I'm older than that now"...wish I could re-do that one. Keepin' on now.
Reply
Hi friends. As life is wont to do, here's yet another bend in the road. At the day job last week, "that" email made it's way round..."As you know we've been experiencing some financial difficulties"...As is customary, late Friday afternoon the axe came down and a half dozen good men were culled from the herd. I am among that number. So back to the "fools journey". I have to chuckle at life sometimes...just as some level beyond simple, "bare life" existence is achieved, fate yanks the rug out from beneath my feet. All castles are built on sand it seems. I know it rains on everyone, so off we trundle down the road to the next...whatever it will be. I managed with the help of my beautiful mother to procure a work space, and with a little luck perhaps I'll be able to hold it for a time. Anyhow, between sending out resumes, I'll be getting back to my music which has been languishing all this time. "This Dancing Dream" is the last song I wrote, and I'll get that one recorded and posted. I have a lot of songs yet unheard, and I'm hoping to get as many of them recorded as I can...So, down the road I go. See you next week.
Reply
I may have found a place to work...Just whisper ok?...it's not a done deal yet, and I don't want to scare the spirits away. It's just south of us in Auburn Wa..about 15- 20 minutes or so...in an Industrial Park kind of building. The upstairs rooms are all held by musicians. The space is larger than my previous office in New Mexico. The fellow only wants his rent on time. He's my age, and seems to like the idea of having me there. He doesn't care about credit reports etc...just feels people. I like this man. We will be friends I think. There is one space there held by a medical doctor, who's a musician too...he's been there over 10 years. So the place seems stable enough. It's possible that soon, soon, I can get back to work and be posting my songs again. And, who knows what kind of community I'll find among these musical folks already in residence? In the meantime..I continue working up 5 or 6 songs for recording...things are moving along nicely. Stay tuned...shhhh not too loud now..I'll let you know next week how this goes. Thanks for following along!
Reply
Hi friends..another 2 weeks. I met with my friend Jordan last weekend, we worked on some of my songs and began to imagine what they might become. There is a plan afoot. So in 6 weeks or so, Ill be booking 3 hours at Empty Sea Studio... and the thing will begin. I'm good for about three hours before I lose my focus and my voice. We'll just get at it incrementally, and see where things go. It's driving me crazy all this inactivity. Likely there's some reason for it all in the grand scheme of things, something that's not yet revealed. So, the rate's reasonable, and the money situation might just allow it for a time. In the meantime still living at the Golden Kent Motel...not so bad really, but feels a bit like purgatory. Looking forward to having a place to work. So the weeks go by, working and wondering when life will begin in this town. Good news is that thanks to my friend James, and me being very careful, my arm is healing up and I can play much more regularly than before. I'm polishing up the first 3 tunes for the studio. Not much for bread and circus..glad the game is settled and done. It's going to be a morose bunch of guys in the office tomorrow!
Reply
A Dark and Stormy weekend here up in WA State. First, Happy Birthday to my younger son 21 years old today! Also my dear friend Harry in Albuquerque, Happy birthday to you too. Ok then, yes it's been a 10 day stretch, we're just getting back into our lives here at the Golden Kent Motel enjoying a bit of quiet time. It's just been about work by and large and healing. My left arm is continuing to get better, still being careful to listen when it tells me to take a night off of guitar playing. But, I'm regaining my strength, and my playing is coming back strong as ever. I've got ideas for new songs, but am still searching for a place to record. In a possible move to make that all better, we've found a fellow with a commercial building willing to rent to us without going all silly over a credit report. It's an apartment on the upper floor, possibly 3 bedrooms at 1,700 sq ft. we're going to meet this fellow this evening and have a look at the place. It would double my commute, but it would give us a place to be, and maybe give me a recording space as well. That might make it worthwhile, and the fellow we're dealing with seems to have a reasonable take on life and what's important and not. I've been talking here with some of the local musicians around the area attempting as always to find and build some kind of community of musical folks to play with. I'm like Casper The Friendly Ghost...I'm just trying to make friends and it seems to scare people. Although a few have responded favorably. I'll never understand. The search for a steel guitar player continues, my recording engineer friend thinks he's found someone and he likes his playing. Hopefully this will turn out, but Ive also spoken with a few others who are not local but willing to add parts to recorded work, and one pro whose had enough of bro country who'll be moving here in a few months time....could be good. OK then, more later. Thanks for following along!
Reply
Hi friends, OK then ran down a few possibilities during this last long weekend of the Holidays. My arm is continuing to gain strength and I'm well into reviving my songbook. I still must take care with the intensity that I play, the pain is diminishing ever so slowly. A big thanks to my fellow songwriter and friend James at Pattern Release Energetics. Please find him on Facebook, he's a terrific healer and has been a huge help with this injury and previous one as well. So, I checked a place with "band practice" rooms in Tacoma, they also had a location a bit closer, one half hour a way in Puyallup WA. The room there was great...perfect size with some sound treatments on the walls...secure, heated etc. but there is too much bleed through of sound from the other bands in residence for recording. Oh well on to the next. I'm looking into the possibility of working with a local home studio situation where I can at least record some demos for not too much more than I'd spend monthly on my own space. We'll see I suppose. Looking forward to working again with my musical friend Jordan. Other goods...the family all got home ok. Mom and Sister safely back to AZ. My youngest returned to San Diego, and the eldest off to Las Vegas NV. We've got the place to ourselves again...peaceful. Always bittersweet...goodbyes. Back into the work scene tomorrow...but planted a few good seeds this weekend. Thanks for following along.
Reply
It's been a Christmas Dream this year. My dear mom, and sister arrived to spend Christmas with us. My eldest son has been staying with us over the last 6 weeks or so, and my youngest son whom I've not seen in 3+ years arrived after midnight on Christmas eve. It's been so wonderful. We all visited, ate and slept, had long talks and went exploring. Home is where the heart is as the saying goes. And for just a few brief days I've felt "home" again. It didn't feel like I was in Washington state, thousands of miles from all that I've known in the past. It's been a special holiday, and I'm so thankful. So thanks to my mother for making the journey, thanks to my sons mother for the purchase of his ticket up here too! Mom and sister are winging their way back to Phoenix AZ as I'm writing this, my younger son departs for San Diego Tuesday Morning, and on January 1rst, my elder son departs for Las Vegas Nevada, to be reunited with his new lady. What a dream it's been. Time moves so fast, and as I get older, it's moving faster. Oh so fine to see my family again. slowly my arm is recovering. It's that time of year when the machine finally stops for just a moment so as the wheels get to turning again, I hope to be ready to move along...I've still got songs to write. Sweet dreams everyone.
Reply
It is the darkest longest night of winter...the Winter Solstice now. Things are going to get get brighter. I was contacted by one Pedal Steel guy, but he didn't relate to my songs...oh well the search continues. My friend Jordan will put the word out after the holidays. I trust that someone will manifest in the coming weeks. Right now it's time for the "long winters nap". These will be short weeks coming up, and up here in Seattle, the days are especially short...it's dark here at 4 pm or so. I relish the few quiet days off for the the holidays. I am so fortunate, my wonderful mom and my sister are flying up to spend Christmas with us. I cherish these times. Time gets more important as things move along. I've been nursing another injury..this time my left arm...it's basically "Tennis Elbow" comes from bad positioning on the computer at work, and intense guitar playing. I've had to reduce my playing time to 2 or 3 nights a week to give my arm a chance to heal. At work they've been kind enough to provide me with some ergonomic equipment and my condition is slowly getting better...been working with this for a few months now. It's likely a blessing that I don't have a bunch of dates to play with this injury. On our walk today we talked about Ego. Ego is on my mind today..Ego plays a role. You have a to have a healthy share of it to move things forward, too believe in yourself, but not to go so far as to discount other spirits in your life. I am driven by a desire to leave some mark here on this place, to hopefully not be too quickly forgotten. In my 60's now, I feel a sense of urgency to get my songs written, and out there. Yes there's ego involved, but nothing unhealthy. I am told that I have tremendous gifts in my abilities as a guitarist, and as a songwriter. Life is more and more a spirit walk as I get older, and my music is what I feel best represents my voice and manifests my spirit. It is what I have to share with everyone. I suppose it's just a part of the turning of the big wheel to be here at this age, hoping to leave a mark. I remember being in old Indian ruins on the Verde River in Arizona...there were petroglyphs on the stones, hands of white forever embellished...hands that say, I was here...I put my hand there..more than once...I felt it was a fitting answer to the hand once there. To touch the mark of another spirit so far gone in time. I am trusting that I'll have time to mark the stone in my way, and hopefully be blessed by the company of others willing to work with me. In the meantime...I feel as a outlaw in my own country, no account..no credit. It is so hard to find a place to do my work, when the keys are held by those who judge life by the credit report. I have turned my back on that system forever. So a gypsy I will be.
Reply
Hi Friends, here's the latest. My son's arrival as it works out is going to be temporary..seems there's now a woman in the picture. I'm joyful and hopeful for both he and she. So, he's working his way back to her, and will likely be gone before you know it. I've sure enjoyed having him nearby for a time. It's been 3 years, and maybe that again going forward, so I'm thankful for the time together. My mom and sister are going to come up and spend Christmas with us! I'm excited! The two of them are all that remain of my nuclear family... it will be a wonderful holiday! I've decided that with my unrelenting work schedule, it's useless to make any attempts at playing any open mics around town, I just cant' afford to be out late. So.... it's going to be weekend house concerts, at least for starters. I met with my recording engineer friend again last Sunday, and he's willing to be part of the effort which I'm thrilled about. I've put up an ad now, and I'm casting around for a Pedal Steel player...it may take some time, but I'm looking to assemble a willing group of folks, and get into rehearsals. I've contacted 2 of the local house concert promoters, and Jordan my engineer friend knows a few others so hopefully we'll get something going and get out there as the daylight hours increase again in this part of the world. In the meantime, I'm still searching for a space to work in..found an office building nearby actively seeking tenants, but they're not interested in any music "type" businesses. Seems to be a constant thread here so far. This is Rock Band country up here and the word is out I guess. There are some other spots to try yet, largely band rehearsal halls, which to my way of thinking might not be too good for recording...but, I'll make the calls this week and see what's what. Likely just as well, as the holidays are here which means short paychecks. As soon as I can accomplish this, I will...I need to get back to my recording. Life remains an adventure. Things though slow in coming as they seem, are moving along. If anybody knows a Pedal Steel Guitarist around here...get back to me! As always, thanks for following along...More to Come!
Reply
Hi friends, I'm still here...I know I missed a week. Last week was a busy one, my eldest son joined us here, so it was all about collecting him at the airport and getting settled in. He found a job in just 4 days! Last weekend, thanks to my friend Dan, we went to EMP museum here in Seattle, my son is also a musical guy, guitarist drummer, and songwriter and this place is all about music. As you may know Jimi Hendrix, Curt Cobain, Sound Garden etc. all hail from here, and the EMP museum has dedicated areas for all of these folks. It was great fun to see pieces of Hendrix's smashed guitars in glass cases, as well as Cobain's Mosrite Guitar and all the other cool grunge stuff. The building is a Frank Gehry concoction...so that was fun for me too. They have little studio rooms with guitars and Drum sets where you can play for 10 minutes....so we, my son and I, did and it was fun...I'm not an electric player, but I was transported back to my teen years with a Stratocaster and a Marshal stack. It was fun to play with my son in his drummer mode . The Space Needle is just next door...so we went and perused the gift shop. The line was too long to go up in the thing, and they wanted near 20 bucks a head to do so, so we passed on it. It's a funny thing for me...I was 8 years old when the Space Needle was built, and I remember all the hype and hoopla regarding the Seattle Worlds Fair in 1962. All the great ideas, the lovely Jetson's architecture, the monorail, and all the progress we were to see in the 21rst century. Recently, I heard the comedian Lewis Black speak of this as well; he said the 21rst Century so far is just the 20th century all over again...sad but true. The shining ideals, the progress of mankind, the advances of science, all lost to the robber barons once again, and now we repeat the struggles of labor, the crusades, and fight once again the bankers who steal it all and send progress of our country up the chimney to the 1 percent. Yawn, pretty sad business. That sparkling monorail car from 1962 , looks like a sad and withered sci-fi prop nowadays. I miss the hopeful joy and innocent thoughts of how far along we'd be as a country in the 21rst century, where's Daffy Duck, aka "Duck Dodgers" when you need him? In the meantime I'm nursing my playing arm...too much computer work , and as always, I'm a mad man on the guitar...I love it too much. See you next week, gotta call my Mom now. Thanks for following along!
Reply
Bob Quinn, Songmaker / Blog
2.7_The 3am Blues
HI Friends, Well I made it through my first week of unemployment. With it came all the usual discomforts, but also a gentle easing of the uptempo life I've been living since we arrived here last August...a welcome respite...well at least until I'm awakened by my troubled mind with the 3 am blues. Played out at an open mic in Puyallup last Tuesday night...the first time I've played out since early last summer. It was great fun, and I plan to do it again this week. I started moving stuff into my workspace this weekend, and in a few days should have everything wired up and ready to get into some recording again. You can only bang your head on the job search for so many hours a day, without going crazy. I've got a backlog of songs to record from the last few years. I wrote a new song on Saturday night..."Just Call Me Moon". The chorus has been rolling around in my head for months...when I stuck it together with a guitar lick I've been playing around with for a little while, there it was. It feels great to have created a new song again. I started reading an autobiography of Buck Owens last night "Buck Em" ...amazing parallels, he lived all around AZ, Bakersfield CA, then up to WA...Puyallup..imagine that; kinda like some car you like, and suddenly you notice them everywhere. Brought back a memory of a long time ago...I was a rocker kid then, with my Gibson guitar, who played lead a little like Frank Zappa...One night in the old neighborhood I was living in there In Phoenix, I met Marty Robbins son....we talked that hot summer night...I was so sure then that Country Music just wasn't that interesting...."I'm older than that now"...wish I could re-do that one. Keepin' on now.
Reply
2.6_The Axe Falls
Hi friends. As life is wont to do, here's yet another bend in the road. At the day job last week, "that" email made it's way round..."As you know we've been experiencing some financial difficulties"...As is customary, late Friday afternoon the axe came down and a half dozen good men were culled from the herd. I am among that number. So back to the "fools journey". I have to chuckle at life sometimes...just as some level beyond simple, "bare life" existence is achieved, fate yanks the rug out from beneath my feet. All castles are built on sand it seems. I know it rains on everyone, so off we trundle down the road to the next...whatever it will be. I managed with the help of my beautiful mother to procure a work space, and with a little luck perhaps I'll be able to hold it for a time. Anyhow, between sending out resumes, I'll be getting back to my music which has been languishing all this time. "This Dancing Dream" is the last song I wrote, and I'll get that one recorded and posted. I have a lot of songs yet unheard, and I'm hoping to get as many of them recorded as I can...So, down the road I go. See you next week.
Reply
...I know you don't need somebody elses advice.
Be cool stick to your music school. It will make for a brighter day!
2.5_Just Whisper
I may have found a place to work...Just whisper ok?...it's not a done deal yet, and I don't want to scare the spirits away. It's just south of us in Auburn Wa..about 15- 20 minutes or so...in an Industrial Park kind of building. The upstairs rooms are all held by musicians. The space is larger than my previous office in New Mexico. The fellow only wants his rent on time. He's my age, and seems to like the idea of having me there. He doesn't care about credit reports etc...just feels people. I like this man. We will be friends I think. There is one space there held by a medical doctor, who's a musician too...he's been there over 10 years. So the place seems stable enough. It's possible that soon, soon, I can get back to work and be posting my songs again. And, who knows what kind of community I'll find among these musical folks already in residence? In the meantime..I continue working up 5 or 6 songs for recording...things are moving along nicely. Stay tuned...shhhh not too loud now..I'll let you know next week how this goes. Thanks for following along!
Reply
2.4_Polishing Up!
Hi friends..another 2 weeks. I met with my friend Jordan last weekend, we worked on some of my songs and began to imagine what they might become. There is a plan afoot. So in 6 weeks or so, Ill be booking 3 hours at Empty Sea Studio... and the thing will begin. I'm good for about three hours before I lose my focus and my voice. We'll just get at it incrementally, and see where things go. It's driving me crazy all this inactivity. Likely there's some reason for it all in the grand scheme of things, something that's not yet revealed. So, the rate's reasonable, and the money situation might just allow it for a time. In the meantime still living at the Golden Kent Motel...not so bad really, but feels a bit like purgatory. Looking forward to having a place to work. So the weeks go by, working and wondering when life will begin in this town. Good news is that thanks to my friend James, and me being very careful, my arm is healing up and I can play much more regularly than before. I'm polishing up the first 3 tunes for the studio. Not much for bread and circus..glad the game is settled and done. It's going to be a morose bunch of guys in the office tomorrow!
Reply
2.2_Maybe A Place To Live?
A Dark and Stormy weekend here up in WA State. First, Happy Birthday to my younger son 21 years old today! Also my dear friend Harry in Albuquerque, Happy birthday to you too. Ok then, yes it's been a 10 day stretch, we're just getting back into our lives here at the Golden Kent Motel enjoying a bit of quiet time. It's just been about work by and large and healing. My left arm is continuing to get better, still being careful to listen when it tells me to take a night off of guitar playing. But, I'm regaining my strength, and my playing is coming back strong as ever. I've got ideas for new songs, but am still searching for a place to record. In a possible move to make that all better, we've found a fellow with a commercial building willing to rent to us without going all silly over a credit report. It's an apartment on the upper floor, possibly 3 bedrooms at 1,700 sq ft. we're going to meet this fellow this evening and have a look at the place. It would double my commute, but it would give us a place to be, and maybe give me a recording space as well. That might make it worthwhile, and the fellow we're dealing with seems to have a reasonable take on life and what's important and not. I've been talking here with some of the local musicians around the area attempting as always to find and build some kind of community of musical folks to play with. I'm like Casper The Friendly Ghost...I'm just trying to make friends and it seems to scare people. Although a few have responded favorably. I'll never understand. The search for a steel guitar player continues, my recording engineer friend thinks he's found someone and he likes his playing. Hopefully this will turn out, but Ive also spoken with a few others who are not local but willing to add parts to recorded work, and one pro whose had enough of bro country who'll be moving here in a few months time....could be good. OK then, more later. Thanks for following along!
Reply
2.1_Healing
Hi friends, OK then ran down a few possibilities during this last long weekend of the Holidays. My arm is continuing to gain strength and I'm well into reviving my songbook. I still must take care with the intensity that I play, the pain is diminishing ever so slowly. A big thanks to my fellow songwriter and friend James at Pattern Release Energetics. Please find him on Facebook, he's a terrific healer and has been a huge help with this injury and previous one as well. So, I checked a place with "band practice" rooms in Tacoma, they also had a location a bit closer, one half hour a way in Puyallup WA. The room there was great...perfect size with some sound treatments on the walls...secure, heated etc. but there is too much bleed through of sound from the other bands in residence for recording. Oh well on to the next. I'm looking into the possibility of working with a local home studio situation where I can at least record some demos for not too much more than I'd spend monthly on my own space. We'll see I suppose. Looking forward to working again with my musical friend Jordan. Other goods...the family all got home ok. Mom and Sister safely back to AZ. My youngest returned to San Diego, and the eldest off to Las Vegas NV. We've got the place to ourselves again...peaceful. Always bittersweet...goodbyes. Back into the work scene tomorrow...but planted a few good seeds this weekend. Thanks for following along.
Reply
Well good morning Bob...seems that you like me have had some challenges...always the best to you. My challenges came is a group of three's and not all bad but the recovery as you say is the hardest to deal with...Good to hear you are staying active...do what you can!!! I know it's all about knowing your limitations...and working with those. We need to meet each other someday. I work in Puyallup and live just 11 miles from work. If you see opportunity and there is time drop me a line and perhaps you might have a few minutes sometime eah? I have a new song in the works...I'll keep y'all posted hopefully to release sometime in the next couple of weeks. A song titled 'A New Song' . I wonder how many times that title has been used over the years aye! Best to you and yours...playin for the soul, you will be fine Peace my friend! Happy New Year!
1_53_A Christmas Dream
It's been a Christmas Dream this year. My dear mom, and sister arrived to spend Christmas with us. My eldest son has been staying with us over the last 6 weeks or so, and my youngest son whom I've not seen in 3+ years arrived after midnight on Christmas eve. It's been so wonderful. We all visited, ate and slept, had long talks and went exploring. Home is where the heart is as the saying goes. And for just a few brief days I've felt "home" again. It didn't feel like I was in Washington state, thousands of miles from all that I've known in the past. It's been a special holiday, and I'm so thankful. So thanks to my mother for making the journey, thanks to my sons mother for the purchase of his ticket up here too! Mom and sister are winging their way back to Phoenix AZ as I'm writing this, my younger son departs for San Diego Tuesday Morning, and on January 1rst, my elder son departs for Las Vegas Nevada, to be reunited with his new lady. What a dream it's been. Time moves so fast, and as I get older, it's moving faster. Oh so fine to see my family again. slowly my arm is recovering. It's that time of year when the machine finally stops for just a moment so as the wheels get to turning again, I hope to be ready to move along...I've still got songs to write. Sweet dreams everyone.
Reply
Well good morning Bob...seems that you like me have had some challenges...always the best to you. My challenges came is a group of three's and not all bad but the recovery as you say is the hardest to deal with...Good to hear you are staying active...do what you can!!! I know it's all about knowing your limitations...and working with those. We need to meet each other someday. I work in Puyallup and live just 11 miles from work. If you see opportunity and there is time drop me a line and perhaps you might have a few minutes sometime eah? I have a new song in the works...I'll keep y'all posted hopefully to release sometime in the next couple of weeks. A song titled 'A New Song' . I wonder how many times that title has been used over the years aye! Best to you and yours...playin for the soul, you will be fine Peace my friend! Happy New Year!
1_52_Winter Gypsy
It is the darkest longest night of winter...the Winter Solstice now. Things are going to get get brighter. I was contacted by one Pedal Steel guy, but he didn't relate to my songs...oh well the search continues. My friend Jordan will put the word out after the holidays. I trust that someone will manifest in the coming weeks. Right now it's time for the "long winters nap". These will be short weeks coming up, and up here in Seattle, the days are especially short...it's dark here at 4 pm or so. I relish the few quiet days off for the the holidays. I am so fortunate, my wonderful mom and my sister are flying up to spend Christmas with us. I cherish these times. Time gets more important as things move along. I've been nursing another injury..this time my left arm...it's basically "Tennis Elbow" comes from bad positioning on the computer at work, and intense guitar playing. I've had to reduce my playing time to 2 or 3 nights a week to give my arm a chance to heal. At work they've been kind enough to provide me with some ergonomic equipment and my condition is slowly getting better...been working with this for a few months now. It's likely a blessing that I don't have a bunch of dates to play with this injury. On our walk today we talked about Ego. Ego is on my mind today..Ego plays a role. You have a to have a healthy share of it to move things forward, too believe in yourself, but not to go so far as to discount other spirits in your life. I am driven by a desire to leave some mark here on this place, to hopefully not be too quickly forgotten. In my 60's now, I feel a sense of urgency to get my songs written, and out there. Yes there's ego involved, but nothing unhealthy. I am told that I have tremendous gifts in my abilities as a guitarist, and as a songwriter. Life is more and more a spirit walk as I get older, and my music is what I feel best represents my voice and manifests my spirit. It is what I have to share with everyone. I suppose it's just a part of the turning of the big wheel to be here at this age, hoping to leave a mark. I remember being in old Indian ruins on the Verde River in Arizona...there were petroglyphs on the stones, hands of white forever embellished...hands that say, I was here...I put my hand there..more than once...I felt it was a fitting answer to the hand once there. To touch the mark of another spirit so far gone in time. I am trusting that I'll have time to mark the stone in my way, and hopefully be blessed by the company of others willing to work with me. In the meantime...I feel as a outlaw in my own country, no account..no credit. It is so hard to find a place to do my work, when the keys are held by those who judge life by the credit report. I have turned my back on that system forever. So a gypsy I will be.
Reply
1_51_Searching for a Pedal Steel Player!
Hi Friends, here's the latest. My son's arrival as it works out is going to be temporary..seems there's now a woman in the picture. I'm joyful and hopeful for both he and she. So, he's working his way back to her, and will likely be gone before you know it. I've sure enjoyed having him nearby for a time. It's been 3 years, and maybe that again going forward, so I'm thankful for the time together. My mom and sister are going to come up and spend Christmas with us! I'm excited! The two of them are all that remain of my nuclear family... it will be a wonderful holiday! I've decided that with my unrelenting work schedule, it's useless to make any attempts at playing any open mics around town, I just cant' afford to be out late. So.... it's going to be weekend house concerts, at least for starters. I met with my recording engineer friend again last Sunday, and he's willing to be part of the effort which I'm thrilled about. I've put up an ad now, and I'm casting around for a Pedal Steel player...it may take some time, but I'm looking to assemble a willing group of folks, and get into rehearsals. I've contacted 2 of the local house concert promoters, and Jordan my engineer friend knows a few others so hopefully we'll get something going and get out there as the daylight hours increase again in this part of the world. In the meantime, I'm still searching for a space to work in..found an office building nearby actively seeking tenants, but they're not interested in any music "type" businesses. Seems to be a constant thread here so far. This is Rock Band country up here and the word is out I guess. There are some other spots to try yet, largely band rehearsal halls, which to my way of thinking might not be too good for recording...but, I'll make the calls this week and see what's what. Likely just as well, as the holidays are here which means short paychecks. As soon as I can accomplish this, I will...I need to get back to my recording. Life remains an adventure. Things though slow in coming as they seem, are moving along. If anybody knows a Pedal Steel Guitarist around here...get back to me! As always, thanks for following along...More to Come!
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1_50 Missing in Action
Hi friends, I'm still here...I know I missed a week. Last week was a busy one, my eldest son joined us here, so it was all about collecting him at the airport and getting settled in. He found a job in just 4 days! Last weekend, thanks to my friend Dan, we went to EMP museum here in Seattle, my son is also a musical guy, guitarist drummer, and songwriter and this place is all about music. As you may know Jimi Hendrix, Curt Cobain, Sound Garden etc. all hail from here, and the EMP museum has dedicated areas for all of these folks. It was great fun to see pieces of Hendrix's smashed guitars in glass cases, as well as Cobain's Mosrite Guitar and all the other cool grunge stuff. The building is a Frank Gehry concoction...so that was fun for me too. They have little studio rooms with guitars and Drum sets where you can play for 10 minutes....so we, my son and I, did and it was fun...I'm not an electric player, but I was transported back to my teen years with a Stratocaster and a Marshal stack. It was fun to play with my son in his drummer mode . The Space Needle is just next door...so we went and perused the gift shop. The line was too long to go up in the thing, and they wanted near 20 bucks a head to do so, so we passed on it. It's a funny thing for me...I was 8 years old when the Space Needle was built, and I remember all the hype and hoopla regarding the Seattle Worlds Fair in 1962. All the great ideas, the lovely Jetson's architecture, the monorail, and all the progress we were to see in the 21rst century. Recently, I heard the comedian Lewis Black speak of this as well; he said the 21rst Century so far is just the 20th century all over again...sad but true. The shining ideals, the progress of mankind, the advances of science, all lost to the robber barons once again, and now we repeat the struggles of labor, the crusades, and fight once again the bankers who steal it all and send progress of our country up the chimney to the 1 percent. Yawn, pretty sad business. That sparkling monorail car from 1962 , looks like a sad and withered sci-fi prop nowadays. I miss the hopeful joy and innocent thoughts of how far along we'd be as a country in the 21rst century, where's Daffy Duck, aka "Duck Dodgers" when you need him? In the meantime I'm nursing my playing arm...too much computer work , and as always, I'm a mad man on the guitar...I love it too much. See you next week, gotta call my Mom now. Thanks for following along!
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