A Private Function on Capital City Club Patio Holds the Billy Batts Ensemble at the Bay Window

Always great to be back with the cats in the Batts - Brian, Mark, and Walter.  Real good souls who sincerely want to play and seem to like what I do without any grief.  It's supposed to be fun, and it always is with this lineup.  We have been proactively upping the ante on bringing in new tunes to have in our book.  This time out, we had agreed on 3 more: Cause We've Ended As Lovers (from Jeff Beck's Blow By Blow, a Stevie Wonder composition that was originally sung by Stevie's first wife and longtime collaborator Syreeta Wright on this 1974 release - that was one I had always wondered about back in the day), I Want You (She's So Heavy) (the Lennon minor blues with pre-King Crimson dirge-prog grunge-stomp tailspin from Abbey Road, natch, not the cool, funky Marvin Gaye ditty), and finally, Radiohead's Paranoid Android (quite the magnum opus of modern alt-rock, proclaimed by an elite few to be the Bohemian Rhapsody of the '90's).  Turns out that PA was the only new one we got around to playing.  The manager on duty really enjoyed it.  I learned that crazy bass line in 7 and somehow memorized the whole form after listening to it over and over.  It's not as bad as I thought it would be.  I guess I'm very late to the Radiohead party.  They are fun to watch via concert clips such as this one, or a decade later on this one, particulary Jonny with his guitar noises and then his keyboard pads.

We also ran through Dear Prudence, Unchain My Heart, Just Friends, In Memory of Elizabeth Reed, and, by request of more Allman Brothers Band, a rather faithful rendition of Midnight Rider, with Walt's vocal sounding eerily spot on to the Idlewild South track.  Good for me to remember the G minor in the chorus and the B flat during the solo section - I used to always black out during those critical changes back in the day.  It's like, "How well do you really know the song?"  That's what you have to ask yourself.  Can you talk somebody through it without your instrument in front of you?  Classic and southern rock are generally not the subject of this kind of discussion.  I always drift back in my head to playing Comfortably Numb and absent-mindedly (yet panic-stricken since it was a last-minute impulse move) jumping to the verse changes of Bm during the first guitar solo - of course, that solo is over the chorus changes starting on D.  Always best to be thinking ahead as to what's coming next.

When It's Last Call Early in the Afternoon: A Benefit for Breast Cancer Research at Meehan's in Sandy Springs

Last Call, North Georgia's Jangle-Rock & One-Hit Wonder combo, gave their time and energy to this recent deluxe performance in honor of Lisa Smith, a good friend of the band who had recently lost her life.  Really sad to learn of somebody your friend knows who just succumbed like that.  We knocked around a few dates and settled on a Sunday afternoon.  It turned out to be Cinco de Mayo.  It also turned out to be the site of an area bicycle race!  Getting there is half the fun, so they say.

Decent weather, but with storms the day before and then threatening later in the evening, we were teased by the sun and banished to the corner stage near the bar inside of Meehan's at Sandy Springs.  The band, with David Falkenstein (guitar, vocals, front of house and monitor engineer), Ira Kramer (drums, vocals), and Karl Rosenblum (violin, percussion), along with my usual shenanigans, welcomed a promising, young chanteuse in Farrel Anne.  Farrel joined us to sing on a few songs she was familiar with and had worked up. This girl has some amazing pipes and and is very impressive.  I'm always impressed with somebody that young who understands what it means to really sing.  She is on pitch with great projection, but almost more importantly, she knows how to entertain.  Actually, being on pitch is more important!  She was spot on!  Farrel sang Gimme Shelter, giving us another great rocking Stones number to breeze through, and the Joan Osborne staple One of Us, among others.  She was clearly a major highlight of the day, returning to the stage to grant her fans another chance to bask in her triumph.  We could all feel the energy lift when she was singing.  Quite a marvel.  Now here's where I can insert something that I probably shouldn't, but will anyway, for the time being.  I knew she was young, but seeing her birthday on facebook took me back;  I met my wife Sabina the year Farrel was born - 2 months prior to be more specific!  How's that for aging myself?  Music has the power to make us all feel young again.  Maybe that has a lot to do with its allure.  We're all kids up there chanting "It's just a shot away!  It's just a shot away!"

Once we had the sound dialed in, via the earbuds and David's magically clean mixing prowess, we were on our way.  A bump in level for the violin, perhaps a tad less bass (how could it be?), sounding better already.  It must be time time for some more Tom Petty music!  This was a chance to once again charge through our extensive repertoire and give the people what they want.  I had spent a few nights prior going over some of these songs I hadn't worked up as well already.  I made some charts and transposed my keys dutifully.  One caveat I have since come to grips with is that a chart isn't really a chart unless it's printed or available to be viewed.  That's a roundabout way of saying that I had forgot to print and /or bring said charts.  I had my book; it just wasn't as complete as I had hoped.  Many of the songs are indeed memorized.  Some are not.  Many of them use the same chords.  Really, if I went through our list and counted up all of the G, D, Bm, Em, C, and A chords - 4 chords per verse, 3 per chorus, 5 per bridge, 1 extra during the solo, it would just make me run!  Sure, the songs are easy, but it can all turn into one long series of chord juggling if I don't have a little reference.  I think for the most part we really nailed it.  David's guitar work was stellar.  The combination of his Rickenbacker with his Vox pedalboard gave us an appealing shimmer for my to flank with the deep bass tone of the NS/Stick.  That NS is a serious bass instrument.  Like the guy who traded it to me explained, it's made me a more careful bassist.  It's very responsive and even across the frequency spectrum.  I still find myself goosing up the lows on the active eq, only to back them down later in the set.

My pedals always take a long minute to rearrange, as I end up employing a second board dedicated to the guitar-half of the instrument and then consequently mixing in with the Boss LS-2.  It's worth the effect to have split tones on the one instrument for this band.  One tune I had been looking forward to getting to was Badfinger's No Matter What.  I worked up the solo, a fairly easy George Harrison-inspired melodic slide riff.  I make use of a large carabiner for the slide, a nifty trick courtesy of the great if not infamous Don Schiff.  He explains his technique with the carabiner here, while it's mentioned in everybody's favorite reference wikipedia here.  There, credit where credit is due.  Don is certainly a guy I'd like to sit down and talk shop with, over a donut or two, naturally!  His blog has multiple references to his enjoyment of donuts, a staple of green rooms in the Vegas area for the gigs he commands.  I had practiced it at home and the carabiner is really interesting.  With the NS/Stick, or perhaps any Stick, the strings are so responsive (even more so with the compression and a bit of tube drive I tend to favor), that all is needed is to lightly touch the string with the metal, not pressing down to the fret wire, and slide away!  It's an unusual sensation to be tapping with one hand and sliding with the other; different amounts of pressure, moving in different directions, different tones, straight groove on the left, familiar melodic statement with nuanced vibrato on the right.  At any rate, I had forgotten to pack my carabiner as well, so I had to play the solo without.  Oh phooey!  I still came out rather nice - one painful half-step accident, but saved with grace and a soaring finish to the high A and we were back to the bridge.  My first solo in the band!  Must make it a regular occurrence!  Other noteworthy stuff: I successfully lost my voice during the coarse of being hoarse.  My sinus affliction during the week had taken it's toll, with more than one night of waking to coughing spells.  I think it was just an unfortunate timing of events.  The dreck was going around at work and sooner or later one's luck runs out.  It didn't seem to hang around as long but while it was here it sure gave a good effort.  So I couldn't speak the following day, or really the next.  I started to fret a bit as I was to sing the first dance and a Cheap Trick ditty the following Saturday.  I got through it, with a little help from a friend.

Karl's violin filled in so much more this time around.  I can tell he's really getting more comfortable (as we all are) with the material.  It's really nice to have his sound in the group.  Electric violin is a marvelous voice, one that doesn't get mentioned in this city of horns and samples.  He gave Run by Atlanta's own Collective Soul a good bit of authenticity.  Great to hear him on Bowie's "Heroes" as well, emulating the Frippian infinite sustain.  Ira was so solid - we found that inner pocket to fall into.  Really, his tempo is unwavering - a real sense of pace that doesn't drag in a long show like this one. As I think back, his playing reminds me a bit of Bill Berry from R.E.M.  We played Sitting Still and Radio Free Europe, and yes, he is perfect for that driving back beat.  Later we met the guitarist/vocalist from a local area R.E.M. tribute band The REMakes, Geoff Melkonian.  Nice chap - if he heard us play either of those, he didn't say.  Thought we pulled 'em off rather well.  Had some folks dancing, with the beautiful Ruth, Julie, and Rebecca leading the way on the floor (a rather fantabulous visual image, wouldn't you agree?) - well, who wouldn't want to join them?  We were fortunate to enjoy a cold beer or two on a sunny Sunday afternoon, although the rain came back strong and the temps fell just in time for our load out.  Most importantly, we raised  a few thousand dollars for cancer research in honor of Lisa and her family.  Thanks to David, Ira, Karl, and Farrel for all of your hard work and your love of the music.

If you read this far, then you deserve to see some more pics.  These are courtesy of Farrel's father Chuck Meiers.  Thank you Chuck for sharing these shots that provide a favorable glimpse into our mindset as we are up on the sacred stage and becoming one with the music.  It is interesting to see how we handle our collective moments in the spotlight.  Farrel is just so natural and at ease; uncanny how she never appears to be out of her element.  These are revelatory for that point alone.

~ In loving memory of Lisa Smith ~

Platinum at Capital City Club: The Night My Amp Went Out

Played in the ballroom on the 3rd floor this past Saturday at the downtown Capital City Club.  Traveled rather light, with only the Stingray 5 and my (actually Jack's) trusty Fender acoustic/electric guitar (for I'll Be).  I plugged in everything (including the XLR to the DI jack in the back of the head), pressed the power switch, and poof!  Not a good sound.  Not at all, and no luck getting it to power up.  No accessible fuse in the back to check.  First had to make it through soundcheck, playing direct and having a monitor mix.  Went over a bit of Thrift Shop with Glen singing Superstition over the rap sections.  Then had to run home and get my Genz-Benz combo.  It works great in that it operates normally in a bridged-mono configuration as a 200W combo driving a 12" and a horn.  It also has the capability to move the internal speaker to another speaker out and plug in an external cabinet into a third jack, thus delivering 100W to each cabinet.  Not tremendous power but it delivers a good amount of sound. Very nice indeed.  I made it back just in time, as the band was assembling on the stage and waiting to start the lead in jazz tune.  A true challenge if you have any clue what our rainfall has been over this past weekend - over 4 inches.  We started into Lonnie's Lament, a funky Marcus Miller-inspired groove that showcases a memorable (and dare I say hummable) Coltrane melody.  Lots of good vibes from the crowd as they entered the room.  One of the photographers was very complimentary, as he is a young bassist who confided that he is now driven to improve after checking us out.  Made me feel good, at any rate.  I'll Be was nice,even if I didn't feel it as being as liberating as it has felt in the past.  Kevin really enjoys it, and I do too.  Glen always plays some cool lines in it - another great bassist!  Funny to switch instruments - wish we did it more.

Got a humorous text from Judy - she was playing on the 2nd level and popped in to see us for a minute.  She told me to "keep it down!"  Very funny, Judy!  Made me smile at that.  It was a good night in spite of my equipment failure.  My head may still be under warranty.  The fuse is internal, so the downside is I cannot open it up without voiding the warranty.  Gotta take 'er in, after I find the receipt.  Stay tuned.

Pics coming soon..........

A Spring Party at Heritage Sandy Plains With Crazy Marty

Here's a posting from a few weeks ago.  I've fallen behind on my writings.  Partly not inspired to recount whatever interesting newsworthy items I may have.  Partly just too tied up with keeping this life thing together.  A lot going on lately, certainly with Spencer's 5th birthday and our wedding anniversary taking precedence.

I haven't had much contact with The MartaY (yes, stylized as The MartaY) much lately.  At this point, he's a solo artist and a very departmentalized vocalist/guitarist who knows a plethora of classic American Songbooks.  He is the man to have along for a campfire singalong, or more lucratively, for a gathering of folks representing our increasingly large elderly population.  He knows a lot of oldies but goodies, indeed.  Once in a great while, he asks me to join up with him to provide a small band vibe at one of his private concerts.  I am happy to oblige.

One tune he did that I hadn't played before was Lee Greenwood's God Bless the U.S.A. (he kept calling it I'm Proud To Be An American, which is a great Bill Spooner ditty from Tubes' Young and Rich - I knew it wan't that one).  He changed the key to C and sang it strong, holding that last note like the Chairman of the Board holding that final New York!  Good one to have up your sleeve in these troubled times of major events, in this case days after the bombings at the Boston Marathon.  Who needs foreign terrorists when we're so adept at handling it ourselves?  School shootings, and now, as I'm sending this out for review, a Mothers' Day parade shooting in New Orleans.  Hard to stay positive.

We were set up in the back yard on the sidewalk that wraps around the garden.  It was decent weather, but our location was not user friendly.  Really not much to report.  Spoke with MartaY at length as we packed up and ate our cold burgers and dogs.  I think I needed to catch up with him and clear the air, although we didn't discuss what I'd been up to in detail.  I know he stays busy and gigs probably about as much as any musician really wants to.  He's got some real strengths.

The Annual Carrollton Tent Event for Tanner Medical

Panoramic view inside the tent - it's a big tent, to say the least - from my spot on the stage.

Stepping back into this massive structure is surreal.  Has it been a year since I wearily drove home from the last time we played here?  Does it always rain on these types of events?  Not always, but it did tonight.  It was good to see Gyro tending to the audio needs.  I have his number but haven't made the time to venture over to his fine studio in Marietta.  Platinum brought their musical prowess to deliver some special requests and some old favorites.  A special dance kicked off the first set with the nearly century-old Tin Pan Alley chestnut Let Me Call You Sweetheart.  I have been playing it for some time now with MartaY.  I got a copy of a version by Connie Francis, so I suppose I'll always associate it with her.  Also have the duet with Pat and Shirley Boone.  They are similar in that neither includes the verse.  Songs used to have a verse that apparently wasn't entirely necessary.  Only folks like Tony Bennett still choose to sing verses of old standards.  We ended up playing it in the key of G, which was the key of the sheet music I had.  How convenient!  It sounded good.  I missed (we all did) the fact that we didn't play the customary jazz/dinner set - it seemed like forever until our time came along...

Speaking of being a year...  this tent-like structure is so massive.  I take for granted that it is set up solely for this annual function.  When I come here, I feel as though nothing has changed.  The tent looks the same.  The stage looks like the same one and is in the same place.  The fiberboard backdrop seems to be from the same warehouse.  Everything.  Even Gyro, our spot-on audio tech, the best in the biz, hasn't aged.  I've known Gyro since working some MMS/ASL shows out at the Ritz at Lake Oconee - we all but closed down the bar one year (another torrid story with a grey goose as the central character - nobody got too hurt.  Hey, rehearsal was at 8 a.m., so how much could you party, especially on the $35 per diem)...  The point was that  I used to believe that this incredible structure stayed out - it's just too big to move - so naive...

I hadn't played my NS/WAV in a while, so I brought it along for the first set. I used the Frame Strap System attachment along with my wireless for nice mobility.  One thing I adjusted was the angle of the bass, effectively tilting the neck towards my field of vision for a better shot at intonation - I need all of the help I can get on this!  Why hadn't I explored that before?  It may not be as hip as playing it without looking at the dots, but it sounds right.  One more thing to do for next time would be to lower the height (ie loosen the strap a bit more) so that the nut is closer to eye level.  I have been playing it a bit higher to facilitate thumb position.  Otherwise, it gets hard to see what's going on in that upper octave.  The truth is, I don't play much in that area.  Better to make it more comfortable for the money notes.  Another fine point here is to put the contraption on (likewise with the Stick and such) before the jacket, thus effectively hiding the strap.  Ah, it seems to just float in front of my torso.  I alone think it's cool.  I guess that's all that matters sometimes.

The long second set was handled well with my Precision, albeit with bridge position pickup engaged for added clarity.

We had Bogey filling in for Kevin.  He did a great job fronting the band and giving us some good energy.  We needed that, as it was a long wait from soundcheck to the first set.  No jazz set in between.  It was almost a 3-hour wait.  Good dinner, with chicken alfredo, asparagus  salad, cupcakes, ice cream, juices, anything we wanted...

Hudson Grille with MartaY: A Chance to Bask in John "Mighty" McKnight's Deep Pocket

MartaY & The PartaY at Hudson Grille on Peachtree

Last Friday I returned to the scene where my car was towed last year.  Good times, right?  Now I certainly know where to not park, at least.  This time, cutting it close as I dined with the family before they all went to Temple, I lucked out and found a spot in the lot behind the big complex of Brookhaven hot spots.  The PartaY was playing for a birthday party - what a perfect location with perfect weather!  Killer patio setting on a spring Friday night.  Joining the MartaY and myself were John "Mighty" McKnight on drums and vocals and Sheri Hofherr on vocals.  John is a consummate musician and singer.  He was very solid and generated a lot of energy from his side of the stage.  I was on the opposite side of this admittingly small stage, but our line of sight was rather challenged with a support beam, the backline "riser", and the heads of our ensemble.  I could hear him, just couldn't see him.  It worked out okay.  Sheri sounded really good as well.  She sang a song (that I didn';t know but the whole sure did) by Grace and the Nocturnals - brought the house down!  It was certainly the most well-received hit of the evening.  Mighty sang One Way Out and most definitely laid claim as one of the greatest blues vocalists in Atlanta.  It's no wonder that he is always working.  I just don't know how he was even available for this night with us.

My cabinet was elevated with some well placed chairs and the said riser.  That always helps me in terms of hearing what I want to hear.  Many times the bass is just too loud for it's own good.  I'd rather hear it well, as long as I have to watch the volume anyways.  We ended up going on late, more like 9:30 as opposed to 9, or even 8 as was mentioned before.  That suited me fine.  As a result, we opted for a very long set.  I think it was 2 1/2 hours, or 180 minutes, but who's counting?  It went by fast, but at the end I was ready to pack it up and head home.  The next morning was T-ball with Spencer and then a trip to Carrollton for the evening.  Always great to rock with MartaY!

Maybe This Isn't As Cool As I Had Hoped It Would Be

Had a nice rehearsal dinner gig on Friday.  It became an eye opening experience.  So many songs I really wasn't ready for.  Finding charts in time on a gig of this scope can be tough.  Organization.  Also learned that I shouldn't be a music critic and a musician.  I'm not here to point out how the night could have been better.  I will try to focus on perspectives that the bass can draw from.  I will try to leave out names a bit more.  Perhaps I can keep a log for my own reference.  I apologize to all those who look for their names.  Maybe they found them and were disappointed in what they read.  Who am I to think I know as well as anybody else?

"New Kid In Town" Highlights Video

Here's a promo that Brent has meticulously crafted from footage shot at the debut performance of New Kid In Town in Toccoa, GA this past April. You can see my Fender headstock and perhaps a glimpse of me if you don't blink. It was great fun. I could only think that we would make the show more substantial with a few more deep cuts and another keyboard-based tune or two. Great job on the video, Brent!

A Night at the High Museum with The Class Act Band

The stars aligned once again, allowing me the opportunity to join up with Judy Boehm's multi-faceted Class Act band.  We played at the High Museum of Art for an awards dinner.  Judy has more music running through her head than many musicians I run with.  She is always working, through gigs, teaching, logistics, practicing.  When I speak with her on the phone, she comments through riffing on a keyboard she just happens to have handy.  She ably leads, along with her husband, multi-instrumentalist/audio engineer/videographer/logistics coordinator Jim, an 8-piece group that gives a virtual non-stop performance with all tunes segued together.  No breaks in the action means no dead spots and a sense that we're well rehearsed.  I don't really even know all of the musicians I played with, but with a little help, I can piece together the details of the guilty parties.

The saxophonist, Ed Blake, was quite together, bringing an impressive arsenal of horns and flute.  He also ripped on a well-thought-out EWI set-up that may rival that of Dave Freeman's; I detected wireless MIDI from my vantage point, but after that, his rack shadowed everything else.  Dave's MacBook Pro certainly streamlines the setup for patches, not to mention presenting up-to-date photos of his boy Jack (our sons are both named Jack - here's to having more in common with DBF in the years to come).  The trumpet player stood in awe during many of the sax solos.  I felt a bit for him.  He had a warm tone on his flugelhorn that helped the jazz set substantially.  Brent Whiten needs no introduction to faithful readers here, but just in case you are new to this water cooler chat area, he plays the drums and trumpet, sometimes at the same time, and sings like Sting, Steve Perry, and Louis Armstrong.  His raspy take during the bridge for What a Wonderful World was completely spot on in nuance and tone; Pops would've been quite proud.  His vocal turn on I Just Called To Say I Love You was easily the scene stealer/show stopper.  I saw people holding their forks in mid-air, seemingly lost in their bite of salad, as they took in Brent's effortless tribute to '80's era Stevie Wonder.  It sounded great and has made me rethink the merit of that tune, never one of my favorites from Stevie's pen but certainly a pop standard that can be very effective when the stars are aligned.  Ed Sanker was his typical professional self - he doesn't mess around.  He excels at that Steve Cropper style of riff-counterpoint that outlines the harmony without simply trudging through another series of barre chords.  Well versed in jazz, Ed played some real Pat Martino inspired lines and certainly copped the George Benson vibe (on Breezin' especially) over the lite jazz we produced.  Nice warm tone, too.  Another thing: the man sings every bit as well as Brent.  He sings these standards and really delivers them.  I think musicians like these may becoming harder to come by.  I mean, I hear the emotion that is being brought forth and I know these guys are digging deep into the song.  It's really quite something to be a part of when it's going down.  Ed, I don't think you'll ever know how honored I am to be supporting you on events such as this one.  I say that as an aside from something I'd written here earlier and since modified, but also as a vocalist who aspires to project as clearly as these lads do.  I've sang Summer Wind and The Way You Look Tonight and it's something I continue to work on.  We had three other fine vocalists rounding out the front line, with Verna Law and Kirk being the names I am able to reconstitute at this point.  They had a lot of fun cutting up and dancing, giving us some extra personality.

We began with jazz and mellow pop.  A lengthy list of easy listening for a black-tie cocktail moment and sit-down supper:  The Girl From Ipanema;  Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?;  Satin Doll (does anybody play the same changes over that one?);  It's Only a Paper Moon;  L-O-V-E;  The Summer Wind;  Come Away With Me;  All of Me (in the key of G - how well do I really know it? - see below for the background on this thought);  The Way You Look Tonight;  Coming Home;  Breezin';  This Masquerade;  The Nearness of You;  When You Say Nothing At All;  The Boy From New York City;  Route 66;  Unforgettable; plus Kenny G's semi-recent black-tie Spyro-lite workout Sax-a-Loco.  It's a lot to keep track of, to be honest with you.  Glad I grabbed the fretless for all of that mellow stuff.  The Stingray was the right tool for the party set: Ain't No Mountain High Enough;  My Girl;  Function at the Junction;  Mardi Gras Mambo;  Hey Pocky Way;  Mustang Sally --> Shotgun (Medley);  Bad Girls;  My Guy (yeah, I flubbed that III7 chord, or is it really a V of vi ie V/vi?  BTW, James Jamerson played upright bass on this song.  Bass players know this already, but seriously, listen to his ridiculous runs near the end as the song vamps out.  It's transcribed in the Standing In The Shadows of Motown book).

When the Saints Go Marching In was performed with all of playing on the dance floor, with Brent on trumpet and Judy on accordion.  We didn't all abandon the stage: Verna kept the beat behind Brent's kit!  What a memorable number that I really wanted to be in (he he)!

The Green Room after the show.

Here's that cute little infraction sheet that I referred to earlier regarding All of Me.  In the key of C, it has enough tricky changes to confuse the wanna-be jazzer.  I suppose it was my own shortcoming, so to speak.  It was hard to remember the E7, Em7, A7, Am7 - for some reason, committing Stella By Starlight or Misty to memory was much easier.  That and the fact that it is almost always played in the key of C.  I've sang it before in C so the key must decent enough for guys to sing in.  Well, Verna sang it and we played it in G.  It was time to think fast!  I made it through rather well.  Think in terms of Nashville numbers and it all works out.