July 2, 2019

Yesteryear
One year ago today: July 2, 2018, things electronic.
Five years ago today: July 2, 2014, remember ‘sweetwater’?
Nine years ago today: July 2, 2010, more like disorientation meeting.
Random years ago today: July 2, 2012, a hundred million unemployed.

           Poof! The Thrift out near Pierceville is gone. I drove out this morning in the market for a couple of rugs and found the place vacant. I kind of wondered how they stayed open selling used stuff in a neighborhood where that really amounts to recycling. Sigh, there’s the Taurus parked in front of the remnants on the sidewalk. There is a general trend toward higher prices at every Thrift in the area so we’ll likely see different business model emerging. No rug, no carpet, I’ll have to make do.

           The coffee place is having lots of trouble with their server. Amazing how those things aren’t foolproof yet, but these hipsters have other priorities. Yeah, like trying to cover their asses from all that scary stuff about themselves they thought was smart to put on Facebook. It’s been a year that since I’ve been in the fancy library on the south side. And I picked up a ton of audio books for $3.50, plus some of those corny English plays by Acorn. They are more like plays about plays, that is, the plot often consists of the title character going to a play. It’s a clever maneuver so the producers can get away with substandard footage.

Picture of the day.
Talluride luxury condo.
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           I worked another six hours on the yard and rooms. That means some progress. For relaxation, I tried a few more of the Bletchley puzzles, but some are too far English for me. For example, I don’t know what a dawson is and I didn’t spot cape as an article of clothing. I found a couple hours to go over some of the music. It could be suggested one of the facets at which the Internet reaches the purest form of information dispersal is the availability of music tabs. A somewhat wider scope would include cheat sheets, chord charts, and lyrics. These present a strong argument against copyright, because the obvious intention is learning.

           Myself, I resort to any source that gives me any advantage in music. I just praised the Internet for that, but I’m obligated to point out the results can be spotty. Many tabs are written by particularly poor musicians and guitarists, but I repeat myself. I’ve called it the Johnny B. Goode Syndrome. That’s where they take the stupid-but-talented schtick a little too personally and a whole lot too far. There are a minority of talented types, but the rest are hacks. Good performance entails a certain intensity of attention to detail, and that is not usually found in people who, for instance, cannot be bothered to learn how to spell. At the performance level, here’s the Reb & I. Like it was y’day.

           Note the codicil, I said good performance, not good music. (Mind you, a lot of it applies.) I’ve little opinion on people who only listen to music or whistle the odd tune. Same for casual strummers. Those all operate on a scale I don’t really know too much about. It’s the morons who think owning a guitar gives them an automatic right to never read and write so well, or that their personalities are reflected in their personal choice of favorites. The surest tip-off you’ll get is any guitarist who worships Hendrix or Clapton. In musical circles, these people are notorious for grandstanding. That is, insisting the other band members play simplistic parts only. I go through a lot of such pickers.
           This newest venture, the Nashville band, has a proportion of such music on the list. But it is tempered by the two high-energy front people. That’s the keyboardist and the singer lady. There’s been time for me to go over their material and find nobody has paid much attention to the bass parts at all. That’s normal. But it is a gold mine for me if given a free hand, and I’ve pretty much been told so. Their on-line posts show every previous bassist was at best adequate, all were background musicians with background personalities (which in itself is not bad), and they practice skimming.

           What’s that? It’s a bass technique copied from guitar playing that’s better comping, but barely so. That’s where one learns the “fancy” parts that stand out, and sloughs off the rest of the tune. I’m sure we’ve all met the party guitarist who can play the intros and lead breaks but not the rest of the song. Your average guitarist turned bassist usually adopts this style. I skim old Eagles, jazz, swing, ancient rock and most Blues. I stress this is not comping, which plays much the same thing most of the time. Like the electric piano guy who does the old folk’s homes. I only play two tunes alike if they already are.
           I’m going back over the latest list and already picking the titles I will deep learn. I play every bass note that’s in the original so I can always claim I’m just doing my job. I add a few passing notes where the recordings are indistinct, which is difficult to criticize since I never change the flavor of the song. Hey, that’s one line I don’t cross. As for fills, open territory, but again, nothing that alters the character. This leaves a vast open area where many of the studio riffs cannot be duplicated with a smaller orchestra on stage. But my true target is what is played behind the guitarist when he is soloing. More in the addendum.

ADDENDUM
           This section is optional; there will be no quiz on it later. It relates back to my experimentation with musical “voicings”, the technique of making it sound like there is more going on that really is. A big part of it is each musician playing a distinct role that meshes. So, have you noticed how may guitarists want that meshing most when they are soloing? The vocal voicings are missing, so they expect the remaining band members to back them up better. What I do is answer that call, but they don’t always like the results. I can play circles around the guitarist who picks the same leads note-for-note every time.

           The audience has never complained, it was while doing my best in this fashion that I’ve gotten the biggest tips of my career, and more than a few standing ovations. That does not happen if you overdo things, so trust me on that count. What I’ll do is locate as many versions of the study aids as convenient and amalgamate them. On top of that, I’ll read the sheet music for any scores or fills, and that includes reading the guitar tabs. How about I give you an example?

           The tune “Wagon Wheel” by Rucker has a lackluster four-note bass pattern, obviously either a third-rate bass player or guitarist on bass (same thing). The twinkle you hear to the instrumental parts is a studio track, which I take to be notes on some lute or banjo-like implement. Normally bands with a single guitarist would leave all this out. Do you see the opening? Without leaving out any notes, some passing notes can add back that swing feel to the piece. It gives a richer listening experience.
           The recording doubles up the bass notes near the ending, the most amateur technique, since it is based on repetition. I’ve already got the fiddle and banjo scores picked out on piano. And while there is not much of a lead guitar solo in this tune, they are going to get their money’s worth on bass. Hey, I’m just punching up the accompaniment like I’m supposed to.

           The picture? That’s just the doggies on patrol. This doesn’t mean I miss them a lot. And I just might call the Reb up this evening and say so. You know.

Last Laugh