Song For School

Okay, so it's not ROCK, but here's the little song I wrote for class. The brief was to pick a key, use the 'magic decoder ring' method for getting the chords, strum a simple rhythm and then add a melody over the top. On this version I also noodled in the middle for hell of it.

Rockschool Week 4

First week back after half term. Only five people there this time. Everyone else sick, it seems!

Okay, so 'the syllabus' took an interesting turn! Rather than shoot for Grade 3 as we were previously told, we've now been informed that we can actually study for and take any exam we want to! How does that work in group sessions, where everybody'll be aiming for different levels? No clue! The main difference off the bat is that WAES will order each of us the appropriate study guide. I'm guessing that we'll effectively become self-starters and refer any queries to teach. All very odd.

I'm thinking I'm going to shoot for Grade 5... maybe 4. Depends on what Teach thinks. I'm going to email him in a bit to ask for his opinion. When I've chosen I guess I'll post the study guide here.

Last night's lesson was primarily a show-and-tell of the 'simple songs' we wrote over half term. We paired up, learned each other's rhythm part then played lead over our own compositions. It seems that the concept of 'simple' was somewhat lost on one of our more talented students, but damn, did it sound good with Teach backing him up!

With just minutes to spare at the end of the two hour session Teach threw in some new (to me) arpeggios, the blues scale (been there, done that) and a rethink of the extended pentatonic. His approach is to split the guitar into three sets of two strings, then to use the same octave (so five notes) pattern on each set.

In tab, that'd look like this for the A minor pentatonic (note that you don't start on the root note):

e ---------------------------------------8-10/12--
B ---------------------------------8-10-----------
G ----------------------5-7/9---------------------
D -----------------5-7----------------------------
A ------3-5/7-------------------------------------
E --3-5-------------------------------------------

So, same exact fingering and same notes means that the same lick with work for each position, an octave apart. That says to me that he's hinting that the first four notes make a useful box, with the fifth being just a bend or slide away.

On top of that, for homework we have to record and learn our jam partner's song... PLUS...

P-L-U-S...

...now that we've learned the notes on the E and A-strings, we have to learn the other strings, too... in a week... STRETCH TARGET OR WHAT?!?!?

Oh well, at least tonight I get the night off from work, school and so on. I'm off to see my band's lead singer play with her 'other band', Toxic Slut! Punk in Islington! Whatever next?

Exciting Times!

Okay, so Obama has won the 2008 US Presidential election with a landslide. Doesn't need a recount. No point in complaining that it was too close to call. He even won in FLORIDA! All done and dusted, time to get on with it.

The world turns. It's another day.

All the election hype rather overshadowed the other major event of yesterday, though. What was it? I shall tell you!

Maybe I won't...

Maybe I will...

Oh, alright. I will. The Derek Trucks Band released their first single from their hotly anticipated (by me) new album, "Already Free", which is due out in the new year. It's on digital download (probably a smart marketing move, though a little too techie for me).

From the band's website:

The new DTB single "Down in the Flood" will be available through iTunes and all major digital music providers Nov. 4, a little taste for those of you eagerly awaiting the new dTb studio album Already Free (due in stores Jan '09).

Already Free was self-produced by Derek at his new home studio in Jacksonville. In addition to the core members of the dTb, the album offers collaborations with a close circle of family and friends including Doyle Bramhall II, Oteil Burbridge, Susan Tedeschi, Duane Trucks and more. The album came to life organically in Derek's backyard as friends stopped by to write and rehearse in the new studio. Derek explained in a recent interview: "When we went in the studio originally it was just to write and kind of get comfortable in the space. It wasn't to do a record, so there was no pressure. There were some times when everybody would go out to dinner and I would stay behind. If I got an idea, I would run into the control room, hit 'play,' then run out into the recording room and set up a mic. You'd hear this thing banging around and then this guitar part comes in. A lot of the album was completely done by the seat of our pants, and a lot of the sounds we got, it was just so in the moment."

Original material makes up a major part of this record, largely due to a luxury Derek isn't used to: time off. His hectic schedule finally opened a window for Derek to write at home with band mates and friends. "Everyday I would get up, and me or Susan would drive our two kids to school," Derek says. "I'd come back, have some coffee and then head to the studio and start messing around with a guitar and hope a song idea appeared. Somehow without fail, there was at least a song written every day, or some great cover idea that came to us and we recorded it. So there was a good three or four-week period where every day we were writing and recording a song. That was different for me." In addition to the wealth of original material on Already Free there are some choice cover songs interpreted and revived as only the dTb can do, including the single being released in November. "Down in the Flood," from Bob Dylan and the Band's Basement Tapes, is a tune that may have more portent now than when Dylan wrote it in 1967. "That was one that was kind of an afterthought," admits Derek. "We just went in and tracked it. I think it really turned out to be one of the most powerful songs on the album. Lyrically, it's pretty timely. Crash on the levee, down in the flood, are significant post-Katrina. They are good metaphors, as there are in most Dylan tunes."

So, two big memos-to-yourselves on November 4th: 1) Participate in democracy by casting your vote, and 2) check out "Down in the Flood" for some fresh dTb!

For me, the dTb has always been about live performance, so it'll be interesting to see how this new work from Derek's own home studio comes out. I have to say I love the sound of the recording process. I must remember to pop around to his place for dinner sometime. Maybe I'll end up inspriring a song or two on his next (or the one after... or the one after that) album.

You never know...

Super Tuesday...

...is not necessarily so super.

Work. Ugh. I'm not catching a break right now. Haven't had much time for playing guitar, let alone updating this blog.

But!

I'm just gonna force myself to put something down here RIGHT NOW, even if it's a bit unfocused.

Okay, so it's Super Tuesday TODAY! Got an email from the Allman Brothers today about it. Went like this:

"Tuesday we will elect the next President of the United States. The result will have great consequences for the nation.

"This election offers a choice between two men with dramatically different visions of the future. We have strong feelings about this choice. But we feel even more strongly that all Americans, regardless of political preference, have a stake in the outcome and should vote in this critical election.

"This is likely to be a close election. Your vote matters. Please use it and make a difference."

Okay, so it wasn't directly to me, but it was a mailshot from the band. I thought it was kind of cool that they pulled the ol' 'vote for who you want, but make sure you vote' line. I think I know who they're planning on voting for given they just played a benefit concert in support of one of the candidates.

You know, I just hope that this time around there's a clear winner so that the world doesn't have to go through the whole waiting game that we did last time and the time before. Times are stressful enough as it is. Truth be told, I've deliberately stuck my head in the ground (politically) over the last few weeks so as to avoid the inevitable last minute nonsense.

Onto more musical things...

I have to pull my finger out TONIGHT and do my half-term Rockschool homework. I've done some of it, but not all. It's basically in three parts.

1) List 5 songs that use 4 or less chords (so that we can analyse their structure later). I think I've chosen:

"Mr Tambourine Man" by Bob Dylan
"Taylor" by Jack Johnson
"Wild Thing" by the Troggs
"Land of Canaan" by the Indigo Girls
"Strange Brew" by Cream

Pretty random choice, I know.

2) Write a song in a major key using the tools we've been taught. The song should consist of a verse, chorus and bridge, with rhythm (to be demonstrated) and melody (to be tabbed). During class we'll partner up, teach/learn each other's song and then perform together. I have my chords and some melody, but I've not written any of it down in a meaningful format.

3) Revise previous materials for a fun spot test. Yeah, right... we'll see how that one goes on the fly, I guess. I'm going to have my hands full with 2) tonight.

Rockschool's not until Thursday, but tomorrow night looks like a busy one already.

What else? Jammed a bit on electric at the weekend, inbetween trips into the office and catching up on sleep. Started to try and groove "One Way Out" Allmans-stylee for a laugh. The Band (who I've not heard from in a few days...!) aren't likely to buy into doing the song, but I've always liked the intro riff and it's good string-skipping, pulling off and double-note practice. Hey, it's also a three chord song! Hey, maybe I should swap out one of my 5 above...

Hey ho... on Friday I plan on going along to our lead singer's 'other band' gig (she's on guitar/backing vox). Here's the flyer!



The only shag is that I have to be up really early on Saturday, so alcoholic imbibulation will be at a minimum.

Magic Ship @ The Half Moon, Putney

Rocked. Absolutely.

Check out Col's blog for pictures of the gig, here. They had the crowd from the get-go. Grabbed hold and didn't let go.

Tim actually summed up Magic Ship's performance much better than I could. His take on the show was that the band took their own original material and 100% sold every number in a way that was accessable, even to someone who hadn't heard the songs before.

When Col asked me what I thought over an after-show beer I let him know that they really hit it on every song. The only tune that felt like it needed a little more was "LoveTel Motel", the title track from the band's debut album. Funny thing, that, replied Col... somehow he'd managed to turn the volume down on his guitar and he couldn't get it turned back on! Showed the versatility of Sam, lead guitarist and co-singer. He carried the tune and nobody really noticed!

Way to go Magic Ship. Knocked it out of the park!



In celeb news, rubbed shoulders, metaphorically, with Jake Shears of Scissor Sisters on Saturday night. He was special guest at Justin Bond's show, "Lustre" at the Soho theatre and was mingling with Joe Public afterwards. Seemed very down to earth despite being an international recording artist. It's nice to know that celebs are real people, too. No, I didn't talk to him... what would I say, anyway?