I’m a musician, writer, and comic artist. Welcome to my website.
All in Music
In 1954 rock and roll was in its infancy. Bill Haley & His Comets had gone into the studio to record a new song (Thirteen Women) their record label, Decca, wanted them to record as a single. This was before multi-track recording so the band all played together and did take after take until they got a good one.
When Van Halen’s first album came out in 1978 most guitar players I knew (me included) were stunned by the instrumental guitar solo “Eruption", wondering how Eddie Van Halen could play so crazy fast. Later, thanks to guitar magazines (there was no YouTube back then to learn licks off of), we found out that he was “tapping.” He wasn’t the first to use this technique (I won’t jump into that argument of who was) but he certainly popularized it.
After extensive repeated listening I have determined that the song is about a girl named Sue Sussudio or possibly Sue Sue Sudio. (If she had married Phil she would have become Sue Sue Collins — not nearly as cool.)
This song started a Bossa Nova craze in the U.S. in 1962 and in turn brought considerable latin influence to American music, especially jazz. It was also the last dying gasp of “jazz” as popular music before The Beatles changed what popular music meant.
I have posted a bunch of older music I have recorded over the years. Most of it I recorded myself playing all the instruments, but there are also two songs from my old band Big Truth.
You can listen to them on the Media page. I hope you like them.
Sometimes there are just a few words difference between a flop and a hit record. For example change only two words and these hit record lyrics aren’t quite as appealing.
“Sunshine, on my shoulders makes me sunburned. Sunshine, in my eyes can make me blind.”
Otis Redding started writing this song while living on a rented houseboat in California. He finished the song with the help of STAX producer and guitar player Steve Cropper in Memphis just days before his death in an airplane crash in 1967. Cropper’s unique, soulful style of playing makes this song a masterclass in how to use riffs/fills (hammer-ons, double stops, slides, etc.)
If you ever go through the desert on A Horse With No Name there might be some Dust In The Wind.
This Paul McCartney written song flies up and down the guitar neck like a bird, making it a fingerstyle classic perfect for solo performing. Paul McCartney has said it was inspired by J.S. Bach's Bourrée in E minor, a well known lute piece that he and George Harrison tried to learn as teenagers.
I miss the good old days, so I am currently converting all the music files on my computer to 8-Track tape.
I am beginning to think we have gotten it backwards when it comes to music. We've become a nation of music listeners instead of music makers. In times past people gathered around the family piano, or a guitar on the porch, and sang together for fun. People sang while they worked (have you done that lately?)
“When you hear the scratch of the guitars scratchin', then you'll know that rhythm carries all the action. Woah. Turn the beat around..." - Professor Vicki Sue Robinson
This 1964 classic Motown hit was The Temptations’ first #1 single. It was written by Smokey Robinson and Ronald White. The instantly recognizable signature ascending guitar riff is simply a C major Pentatonic scale followed by an F major Pentatonic Scale. But scales rarely sound this good. It is also a clever way to outline chord changes without actually playing chords.
“Alright Friedrich, a drop of golden sun probably would melt through your hand. But you’re missing the point.” - Maria ( Julie Andrews )
A little known musical quote from the Starlin Book of Little Known Musical Quotes.
I have completed and posted the latest jazz song from my upcoming album My Kind of Jazz. You can listen to it on the Media page. I hope you like it. Let me know what you think.
The song was written in 1963 by popular latin jazz musician Tito Puente, but when Santana covered it replacing the flute and horn parts with overdriven rock guitar it became a huge hit for the young latin rock group. The rhythmic Am7 to D9 chords and latin percussion provide the perfect bed for the single note rock guitar of Carlos Santana playing the melody.
For 30 years I thought Gordon Lightfoot was singing “every highway.” Today I learned it was “carefree highway.” I don’t like the song now.
"Chopping" the treble strings of a chord on beats 2 and 4 is a staple of Motown and 60's R&B music. This song also adds a simple guitar riff in the chorus. It is good practice to play songs where you don’t play the 1 beat. (Reggae is another example of music where the guitar often doesn’t play the 1 beat.)
I found a copy of Moby Dick in a field Over The Hills And Far Away. In the back of it was an advertisement for a Stairway To Heaven that people could buy. I was a little Dazed And Confused, but I figured it was just a scam, so I decided I would be better off Going To California and seeing The Ocean. Unfortunately a Black Dog blocked my path and gave No Quarter. I thought Hey, Hey What Can I Do? Then I remembered that I had picked up Four Sticks for firewood and I threw them. The dog chased them and I ran like a Fool In The Rain. It was In The Evening so I knew it would be a Night Flight. When I finally made it Down By The Seaside it was a real Celebration Day.
