A little more testing with the solar powered lighting shows that this source of energy has a long ways to go before it is considered reliable. Getting anything to work with it is largely a strategy of overkill. Plan on three times the voltage, current, equipment and money you originally calculated to wind up with something that will supply what you need. I have no choice, the motorcycle cannot, without modification, supply enough electricity to operate the lighting on the wagon.
I ran the batbike for an hour today for exercise. It will need a tuneup soon. The price of gas is dropping to where $13.50 will tank up. In eight road hours, the batbike averages three tanks, so that is around $40, well within my daily price range. Let’s look forward to the highway test run with the wagon. Ah, but the thrill, every trip on the batbike is an adventure. When I stopped to buy a paper, this gorgeous lady opened her car window and said, “I wanna go.” I’d have said hop in if not for her husband. Well-preserved, she was.
My place is now wired for big bass sound and I’ve been doing some serious thinking about what Ray-B says is needed to play a solo guitar act. As a refresher, when we met at a coffeehouse some six years ago, he was just starting out to do solos and has often said he still thinks he sounds rough on the guitar. One reason I know he is on the level is he often says how he has to practice every day. As with the bass, I know this to be true if you are a serious musician. Mind you, Ray-B has talent, which I do not. Don’t get cute on this issue because I know how hard I have to sit down and practice and memorize every note of every song that I play.
Ray-B also says without reasons to exaggerate that I am already good enough for some venues. I’ve taken stock of what I can do and one area that I can compete is that drum box. Most guitarists hate them but I actually like the sound under the right conditions. The comparison stops at this point for reasons I’ll cover in the addendum today.
Here’s a dumb law. Or is it so dumb? Think about it. Where I was born (in Texas) if you publicly introduce someone as your spouse three or more times, you are legally married. Not so dumb when you consider the motives and type of persons who would lie about such things.
ADDENDUM
Time for a closer look at drum boxes on stage. Over the years I’ve mentioned the correct operation of these devices and why they are rarely used properly. They are difficult to work with and are best programmed by an intermediate level drummer or better and preferably with considerable experience arranging music with non-percussive instruments. This is a tall order.
When asked for a reason [they don’t like drum boxes], the rank and file guitarist will say it is because it is “like playing to a metronome”. I chuckle, because I find nothing wrong with playing that way and it also tells me the guy’s strumming will probably lack structure. That’s a nice way of saying he does things like drop chords, Eddie. My viewpoint says music should have a rigid beat unless there is a deliberate change of tempo.
Where is this leading? I am reconsidering my lousy guitar playing as it might be coupled with a drum box. How could I pull that off? First, I don’t play to the drum box, that is the mistake said guitarists are making. Rather, my music is integrated to the point where I am “playing” the drum box itself as somewhat of an additional instrument. I’d like to point out this “somewhat” is far beyond anything I’ve ever seen anybody else do around here This is not a prerecorded drum track, rather I am controlling the operation.
Add to that my ability to program the thing. I learned early to program two or four measure passages. This differs considerably from the repeated one measure phrases most of us associate with a drum box. That’s a big part of the “ticky-bop” effect we can all agree gets annoying in no time flat. My drum playing does not sound like that.
How can I put all this to my advantage? This is what Ray-B has me thinking. From my bass show, I’ve got plenty of experience running the drum box discretely. Where others tend to obviously tromp on the thing, as you know my controller is wired up beneath my shirt and operated by my left elbow. I’ve often talked about using a couple of these techniques but I would now like to try them in full combination. Using the drum box as my backup band but presented in a more subtle manner that isn’t obvious to the audience.
For the record, I thought of this twenty years ago, but back then I did not sing. I thought in terms of myself forming the bass and rhythm section for a guitarist singer. I’d kept my bass techniques separate from what little I can do on the guitar. My bass style is “disjointed”. I purposely do several things at once so it looks like I’m not paying attention and about to miss the next note. Can I unite these elements well enough to get away with my guitar strumming?
I’ll give myself two weeks to see where it goes.
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