TapperMike

America - Simon and Garfunkel

Kings - Steely Dan

Back in the early 80's jazz all but disappeared of the west coast. And shriveled up everywhere including New York. Unless there was some big jazz festival which usually featured fusion artists not bebop/post modern. Legends of jazz were lucky to play clubs with 20 or so people in them stateside. Jazz lives on solely by the love of the form by it's members. People who love jazz by jazz records are usually jazz musicians themselves. Rock has dried up because the medium is overused just as jazz has. If you want kids to listen to rock you'd better raise them on it early and hope that they spread it around to their friends. There are plenty of jazz songs yet to be written as there are plenty of rock songs to be written however they'll never sound "fresh" because it's an oversaturated market.

There was a time I was soooo obsessed with tone I couldn't play. I used to work about 20 hrs a week as a studio musician for this fairly busy, small studio in Ft Meyers. And I'd also cook for my main job just to have something to fall back on. The studio job would feed my guitar buying addiction and give buying guitars justification. I always needed more guitars, more amps, more stomp boxes. My Bedroom became my guitar room and I'd sleep in the living room. On the weekend when I'd just want to play for myself I'd walk in. Think of a song I'd want to play. Find the guitar that best matched it. hook up my pedal boards select and amp. And then spend about a half an our trying to dial in the exact right tone. Then play the song. As soon as that song was done I'd want to play something entirely different. find different guitar use different amp figure out different pedals, tweak, tweak, tweak. Play the song. Get frustrated if it wasn't right on the money. I used to think "Rock Stars have it so easy: they only have to play their own songs. I could never go out on stage at that time because I was too obsessed with tone and setting things up. The more effects I used the less of the guitars character came through. One day I let it all go. I walked in and decided I'm going to play one guitar with one amp and no effects aside from a little reverb. Plugged my Strat into my Traynor. I decided if I wanted to play jazz I'd play my strat with my traynor and let all my jazz boxes collect dust. If I was going to play acoustic stuff I'd just play it on my strat thru the traynor. Any song I was going to play that was going to be the method. I relearned a valuable lesson that day. Style isn't as much about what you play (instrument/setup) as it is how you play it.

On the road again - Canned Heat

A lot of emo is not nonsense. We as humans have a wide variety of emotions and some are often supressed. Music give voice to our thoughts and feelings that we may not be able to express otherwise. How you deliver the message is just as important as the message itself. Listen to Pink Floyd there is a lot of turbulence and despair.

Oddly I'm not concerned with the future of rock and roll. I used to be but I think for several reasons John pointed out it's withering. Just as swing and bebop have. On the otherhand I'm always encouraged by what I see on youtube. People of all ages still making music. So while video games and social networks seem to be talking a good portion of todays youth there are still people playing music. People of all ages. When I was a kid there was this saying that was going out of style.... Don't trust anyone over 30. Granted it was a phrase from the mid 60's and I was living "Worlds away" in the 70's. Today that stigma is gone. Kids who want to learn rock and roll will ask a teacher to learn "Johnny B Goode" Today I see kids and young adults on youtube doing covers from the 30's thru the double OO's So maybe not everyone is into video games or simply into their own pop culture as we'd like to think. Granted it has diminished a bit more over for lack of venues for young to perform at. In the summer I'll bring my guitar to a park and just play. I've been doing it since ...oh the 70's and it used to be that I'd encounter a fellow musician and work out a jam. Exchange some ideas. Then they might go off to study in someone's basement. Not anymore. No one shows up for a causal jam in a park. There are less generational jams as well. (Parent playing with their kids)

It takes a lot of moxey to be a band manager. You have to knock down doors hard. I've always hated trying to get gigs I just can't cold call. Fortunately for me there were always a few buddies I could rely on to go out and make things happen for me.

Most of that is run through publishing companies. But you will have to do your own legwork as well. If you are interested in TV, and Film then I would suggest Taxi. Taxi doesn't work as well as being an insider in the industry. To be an insider you'll have to cultivate yourself as a session player. And an arranger. There is a lot of competition in these fields and you are going to need to be great going in. Hence the popularity of music schools that cater to the industry. Everyone else who walks into a studio to record or composes a piece is at the top of their game. If you aren't they'll let you know most probably in an unfriendly way.

Time for a break? Well you've achieved your goal. I remember an interview with GE Smith just after he joined Hall and Oates They would go out and watch him play in his cover band.when they weren't touring. He''d be able to play for weeks without repeating a single song. Being in a cover band means always updating your material. I'm sure you know that one well. Some of my favorite cover bands I stopped seeing because they played the same songs every show in the exact same order and same way for years. I realize your busy with school and it will be awhile before the band gets back together. Still I'd suggest trying to fit in a solo gig even if it's in the cafeteria between lessons.

Me and you and a dog named Boo - Lobo

Ode to Billy Joe - Bobby Gentry. We should attach youtube videos when available.

So hopefully you've spent some time working on your phrasing /rhythmic motets. The next thing to consider is the rhythms especially the rhythm guitar/accompaniment piano that supports your melody line. How you surround your melody can define if it sits into the groove. The same things that apply to drum and bass "Playing in the pocket" apply to rhythm accompaniment and melody. A lot of times when we are working with one instrument and voice. The instrument tries to fill as much space as possible. If you think about leaving gaps or holes in your rhythm work you can fill then so they stand out more when a melodic line or short phrase fills them. It's a lot easier to do in a band situation where aces in there places applies. Each musician acknowledging how they fit into the groove rather then everyone trying to march in on everyone else s game. So finally lets define melody. A melody is not a solo while solos can use parts of a melody to fulfill the spot that they reside in solo's have less constraints then a melody. A melody is something memorable, Meaning something easy to remember. In order to accomplish that a melody has to have repetition and variation within the repetition. One of the hardest things for a musician especially one who may be an extremely talented and versatile soloist to do is repeat what they started with slight variation over the melody. You don't want your second verse to be identical to the first but you do want it to carry the same "shell" or concept. Just as in lyrics you want to give something that is easy to follow along by rhyming and repetition with a slight variation to the original "Theme" Note range is very very important when constructing a melody. For the average or even the above average man on the street it's really really hard to sing two or more octaves. As a rule of thumb you don't want to go past one and a half octaves while devising your melody. Usually stick with in an octave per phrase. When you write a melody you have the entire chromatic scale available to you. Pushing the boundaries of creativity within the chromatic scale may be fun or exciting but it's skating on thin ice if you believe that someone could sing the song or that it would be a memorable experience. A melody is something that is singable/hum-able If you can't sing it then there is little chance that anyone one else would either. So show some constraint in your note selection. Chromatic scales are not easy to sing. Neither are whole tone scales or half - whole scales. The easiest thing to sing are arpeggios followed by pentatonic scales and then diatonic modes. Remember we are talking about melodic lines. Melodic lines, motives are the songs we get stuck in our heads. Most people block out whatever is supporting the melody. and remember the melody because it's something they can sing unlike trying to sing something that has more then one voice like a chord. ....More to come.

Hideaway - Eric Clapton/ Bluesbreakers / Freddie King

I like those clip on ones that you clip onto your headstock. I had a combo metronome and tuner for years and years. I don't know where it is now. My pandora mini has one internally with various drum patterns as well as 14 different effects that can be run 7 at a time. But still it drives me nuts with band in a box. For some reason even though biab is alledgedly tuned to a 440 when ever I match it with a guitar I've tuned externally the guitar sounds out of tune. As a result I use biab's internal tuner when jamming with biab. The funny thing about singing and playing to me is....When I'm really enjoying and singing along and playing the guitar. The guitar is usually slightly detuned. It's an inside joke I have. I can't sing this well there is something wrong with the guitar. For a long time I didn't have a tuner and would try to tune by memory. A jam buddy had the gift of perfect pitch. I'd play something and he'd say. That sounds really good but what would be really great is if you could tune up just a little so we can play it together. The guitar would be in tune with itself but not at A440

Hey Hey, My My - Neil Young.

A melody can come from anywhere and there are several ways of approaching writing a melody to a chord progression. The greater part of writing a great melody has to do with rhythm. First you have to get it out of your head that the thing must absolutely have a wide variance to stand out. and that Standing out is what you want it to do. But I'll save that for another time. Lets start with rhythmic modes. All the parts of a song will have different rhythmic feels even though existing in the same tempo/meter. This is part and parcel of syncopation. A place for everything and everything in it's place. What are rhythmic modes? Stop right after he gives the example of rhythmic motet's. Then try it for yourself. As you are trying out these ideas think of common every day expressions like someone speaking to you. Get the rhythmic pulse in your brain. Work out a few. When you are away from your instrument think about them for later and think about them in reflection. More will come if you give it a chance. Next work out your expression. Expression is more then just how hard or soft you play the notes but that's a good starting point. Think about how you can accent the notes. Try to get inbetween soft and medium attacks and inbetween medium and hard attacks. It will help you develop a sense of nuance in your playing. Many a famous guitarist and quite a few not famous guitarists study a role model. They try to wrap their own playing identity around a specific artist. It's not a bad idea to single out someone you enjoy listening to and try to capture the nuances and flavors that they bring. It will help to shape the character of your "own style" Work out legato/staccato approaches to the same rhythmic motet. Get inside the rhythm of the phrase. Don't concentrate on harmony. Try to get the simplest rhythmic device you can like a metronome (not a drum pattern) Better still set the metronome on 2 and 4. When you have as little background sounds as possible it helps to build your own self awareness about your rhythmic strength and helps to build it. Time is fluid it's not digital. Same with timing.If you slave yourself to a drum machine you run the risk of sounding less then human when trying to lay down a melody. It can be very effective if you want to play heavy metal but other styles embrace a more natural/organic feel to them. Remember the heart of Rock and Roll is the Beat. The heart of your melody is the beat/energy you give it. Do you want your melody to sound like a stamping machine? Clinical and dry? Do you want your melody to sound more like an extension of your persona or the idea you are trying to carry across? There is a concept in classical music which is called Rubato. Literally it means to rob or steal time. Sometimes it is simply stated as "Freely" in some fake books. Rubato is an extreme example of taking things out of time and it takes awhile to get used to. https://www.youtube....h?v=KlXbapB3y0E It can be really hard to pull off rubato against a big arrangement. Essentially everyone or everything in the band needs to be able to sway with you. But you can use it a little here or there to break the timing chain and help the melody stand out. Just don't over indulge if everyone or everything else is playing strict time. So now we move on to "The Bounce" and the precision art of playing consistently ahead or behind the beat. Drummers have the best bounce. It's in the nature of the instrument. The stick hits the drum head and the head bounces the stick back up. Not as elastic as say jumping on a trampoline but the effect is the same. The bounce propels you. This next experiment requires you walk away from your computer. Don't just read about it get up walk away and do it. Then apply that feeling to your instrument. Be it guitar, keyboard or whatever. Try jumping some rope. Or dribbling a basketball. Don't try em both at the same time. If you have neither simply stand in place and skip as you would if you had a jump rope. Feel the sensation of landing and lifing off to land again and lift off again or the sensation of trying to control the basketball. You don't slam the ball first you allow the ball to enter your hand slow it's return and then bounce it again. Now think like that as you play think about the spongy elastic quality of time. For you guitarists eric johnson has a very bouncy style and he explains the concept of the bounce here - The bounce as a concept can actually be applied to almost all styles of music. With my guitar playing I have a tendency to take it to extremes making what ever I do sound well,,,,cheesy. How you use it will determine more over how your melodies will sound. But once you are used to thinking / imagining the bounce in your melodies the more organic they will feel. Just as with tuning/intonation there are qualities about playing in time and being slightly ahead or behind the beat. It's an art form unto itself like rubato where you force the notes slightly ahead or behind the beat. Behind the beat. Playing slightly behind some beats while on others gives a "swagger". Listen to some of Keith Richards work (especially exile on mainstreet and thereafter) He plays so far behind the beat he's almost on top of the next one. It's not really rubato because it's always a focused deliberate and consistent approach. You can use this in your melodic lines as well to imply arrogance or tipsy emotive qualities. Ahead of the beat. When you are playing ahead of the beat. It can imply energy even in a slow or medium tempo song. It can also imply nervousness. I've met many gifted performers and many studied performers. A gifted performer maintains and expands the gift by study and practice while a studied performer develops their gifts through hard work and dedication. I've known more then a few gifted yet inexperienced musicians who could tackle one or two of the above approaches but not more unless they dedicated themselves to the study of it. Developing the ability to play behind or ahead of the beat is work. It takes time. It takes setting the metronome on a slow tempo and working out hitting the note just ahead or behind the beat. It's also important to listen to music regularly that utilizes these approaches. The One The One refers to the first beat of the measure. A lot of people gravitate putting everything starting in on the one. You don't need to start your melodic line on the one. Hard on the one means when everything falls hard on the one beat as an accent. It's something that is often a carry over from classical studies as metronomes usually put emphasis on "the one" so you know where it is.. The One is not limited to classical music. It also shows up in early funk ala James Brown James Brown likes to end lands his phrases on "The One" So this is your exorcize Take one of your rhythmic motet motif. riff, phrase and make it land on {b}The One. It doesn't have to land "hard on the one" it just has to land on the first beat of a measure.. Landing on the one is not just reserved for funk/soul. It happens in pop/rock, country and other styles as well. The Lead In A lead in is one or more notes that preceed "The One" Generally speaking a lead in should start after "The Three" or third beat of the prior measure. You don't have to start on "The One" and make it a full measure when starting a line. A lead in leads one into the measure. and the melodic line can continue there after. So try this develop a melodic idea that starts on the and of "The Four" Such as and | One and Two and Three and Four and | etc you don't have to fill all the holes and you may wish to leave some open. Then move it back so you start on the four. Four and [ One and Two and Three and And then the and of three. and Four and | One and Two and Three The pause (also known as the Two) Let a chord or something ring out on the one and start your melody on "The Two" The pause has a hesitation feel. It's a means of making them wait a little bit so they can absorb things and gives them some sense of expectation.It's more common in country honky tonk and country rock As a musician, performer you are an actor. delivering a line. You dance along the notes. The delivery of the performance is in your hands but it comes from a different place. It's a head game like acting and sometimes it requires faking it till you make it. If you take only one example above and try it out only once then there is no point in even doing it. You want the concepts to be in hand, in conscious and in sub conscious. If you try these ideas out try them out for a good month. And when you listen to others see if you can spot them doing one of the above methods. While deciding on which notes to play against a harmony to form an effective melody is important. The heart of rock and roll (as well as other popular song forms) is the ......____ And it's often not what you say but how you say it. there are several approaches to choosing how to work over chord progressions but I'll save them for another time. Working out your rhythmic ideas is a great time killer and skill developer until then.

Wow, reads like an impressive collection. Yeah I know exactly what you mean about piezo bridge both having to either have active pickups or a voltage regulator to match outputs. I've read that active pickups have come a long way in improved tone. There is something magical that happens when you blend a piezo with a standard magnetic pickup.

Hey Joe - Jimi Hendrix

I hate myself for loving you - Joan Jett I deserve double points for that one.

Chain Gang - The Pretenders

I love the feel of tele's but they didn't love me back.

Well that was my vocation outside of music. I've done high brow (Ritz Carlton, Embassy Suites) low brow (Denny's) and most in between

Well that is a matter of personal taste. What works for someone else may not work for you. I played a Yamaha motif a few years back. Loved the sounds hated the keybed. The keys were just too wide for me. I also don't like high action. Some keyboard players like a nice distance between when you first touch the keys till the point the key stops. Me I hate it I was never classically trained nor do I have much experience with organs. I've known people who hated a short throw (fast action) Also the value of weighted, semi weighted and synth action. Me I like synth action and I've adapted well to it. (less springy) You, I can't say. If you really want a new keyboard that fits you then it's up to you to try them out before you buy them. This is where deciding what you like not what others like matters. They still have stores where you can go in and play the keys to get a feel for them. That's what you should be doing. Visiting music stores. It doesn't cost anything but maybe the gas to get you there and back to find out what you want before you buy rather then taking advice from people on what they want when it's what you want that matters the most.

I'm with ya Tom, I keep a blog and every time I mention it I think I have to get back to it. I used to be a web designer, then got into writing tutorials on web design and backend and flash. It eventually led to a job working for a multimedia software company. I'm thinking of going back to one of my earlier loves. Cooking.