Guitar Noise

Greetings,

Welcome to Volume 3, Issue #26 of Guitar Noise News!

In This Issue:

• News and Announcements
• Guitar Noise Staff Picks
• Exploring Music With Darrin Koltow
• Buried Treasure Of The Internet
• Event Horizon
• Reviews
• Off Site Sightings and Works In Progress
• International Song Writing Competition
• Random Thoughts

News And Announcements

Whether you’re in the middle of summer or the middle of winter, we warmly welcome you to the July 15, 2006 edition of Guitar Noise News.

Sometimes it’s hard to remember that there’s a whole world out there beyond one’s computer screen. Sometimes, though, the physical world gets very physical, as witnessed by the various weather catastrophes and natural disasters of the past few years.

Dan Lasley, one of the “old guard” here at Guitar Noise, recently spent time in New Orleans’ Carrollton neighborhood, taking part in the restoration of two schools there. He and more than seventy other volunteers did a great job cleaning up the Johnson Elementary School and Priestly High School. You can find out more about his trip here.

And while not everyone may be able to give this much time and energy to assist in times of need, there is almost always something that can be done. You can often help others right in your own back yard, simply by being aware of the various efforts being made in your community. Even the “little things,” such as donations of non-perishable food or clothing or books to the proper charity can often make a difference to people in need.

I know that it’s more the norm to wait until the winter holidays to start talking about this sort of thing, but every day is a good day to be helpful.

Guitar Noise Staff Picks

When I moved from Chicago to Massachusetts, some two-and-a-half years ago now, I left much of my CD collection with my brother. We shared appreciation of many artists and I know that he listens to them more than I get the chance to do nowadays. But every now and then I get a hankering for a song or band or performer that I’ve not heard in a good while.

So I was very pleased that the last time I was in our local music shop to see Reintarnation, a compilation of songs from the first three albums of k. d. lang. It’s been a joy to rediscover her country past and also cool to hear the early seeds of the torch song direction she moved to shortly afterward. If you never heard her deceptively powerful voice, this is a great place to start.

Exploring Music With Darrin Koltow

The dom 7 sharp 9

Have you heard this sound before ?

|------|
|-6----|
|-5----|
|-4----|
|-5----|
|------|

You probably have if you’ve done any listening to rock or blues. It’s the dom 7 #9. Consider it a kind of sister chord to the dangerous dom 7 b9 we covered in recent issues. All “sister” means here is that this is another alteration to the natural nine of the dom 9 chord. The natural nine for the D7 chord is the note E.

Both flat nine (b9) and sharp nine (#9) are often found in the scales that we find the dom 7 #9 in. That does NOT mean we HAVE to put both b9 and #9 in the chord.

So what’s the big deal about the dom 7 #9? If you have a recording of Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Haze, have a listen to the intro. It’s a distinctive, pungent sound, which can work great for hardcore blues. Also, think of using it as a replacement for a simple minor chord:

Let’s try it in a wee little progression. First, try the progression without the dom 7 #9. Use your non-fretting fingers to grab the strings.

|-5-----------|------|------------|------------|
|-6-----------|-6-3--|------3--4--|-5--3--1----|
|-5--7--5--7--|-5-5--|-3--5-3-----|-3-----3----|
|-7--6--5-----|-7-4--|-3----3-----|-5-----2----|
|-8--8--7-----|-5----|------------|-3-----3----|
|----6--5-----|---4--|-3----3-----|------------|

Now play it with the dom 7#9

|-5-----------|------|------------|------------|
|-6-----------|-6-3--|------3--4--|-5--3--1----|
|-5--7--5--7--|-5-5--|-3--5-3-----|-3-----3----|
|-7--6--5-----|-4-4--|-3----3-----|-5-----2----|
|-8--8--7-----|-5----|------------|-3-----3----|
|----6--5-----|---4--|-3----3-----|------------|

The only change here is in the second measure. Pretty subtle. Maybe as a listener you wouldn’t notice the change, but you might feel something. As a player, though, you can hear a real change.

We’ll close out with another pattern dom 7 #9 pattern. It’s the one we just covered, but bumped up to put the melody note on string 1.

|-6----|
|-6----|
|-4----|
|-5----|
|------|
|------|

Thanks for reading.

Darrin Koltow

For those of you who might like to know more about Darrin, let me direct you to his website, Maximum Musician and also to his page here at Guitar Noise.

Buried Treasure Of The Internet

I know I must have mentioned this at some point this past year, but it certainly bears repeating. We’ve a lot of talented musicians and songwriters among the membership of Guitar Noise. Thanks to many Internet sites such as soundclick and myspace, you can check out music created by your fellow GN associates. A great place to start is Ken “Smokindog” Jarvis’ page dedicated to collaborations and “online jams” that’s he’s put together with other GN Forum members.

This really demonstrates the positive aspects of the online world. Be sure to take a look at the offerings constantly being put online by checking in on the “Hear Here” page of the Forums as well.

Event Horizon

Supporting Guitar Noise and the Guitar Noise community is not always about money or time. Sometimes it’s about being there. Literally. As musicians, it’s always good to support each other simply by being at a gig if it’s at all possible.

One thing we’d really like to do is to help promote your shows, whether it’s in a stadium or at a ten-seat coffee house. Not only is it a great way to help support each other, it’s also a terrific way to meet more musicians!

So please feel free to write me if you’ve got some gigs coming up. Remember that Guitar Noise News is sent out on the first and fifteenth of each month. Usually I will have it ready to be sent out a few days ahead of time, so plan accordingly. For instance, if you’ve got something coming up in the last two weeks of July (that is, after the fifteenth), then let me know by the tenth or the twelfth. If you’ve already got a show in August, let me know, too! It’s never too early to plan for things!

Send your gig dates to me at dhodgeguitar@aol.com and try to put “gig alert” in the subject header.

Hap Hazard, band of Guitar Noise forum member Bish, seems to be playing everywhere in the Quad Cities area these days. They’ll be at the Rock Island County Fair on July 18 and at the Bettendorf (Iowa) JC’s on July 22. On August 1 and 3, they’ll be performing at the Mississippi Valley Fair in Davenport, Iowa.

Dennis Corbind recently (or fairly recently) joined the band Late Calling, which sharing the bill with BooN Band and B.C. on Friday, July 21st at Stage 83, located at 10900 Archer Ave in Lemont, IL (phone: 630-257-9800). The music starts at 9 PM and for more info, go to Stage 83’s website.

The David Ray Band with Bob Bartlett plays every Wednesday at the Rustler’s SteakHouse in Porterville, CA from 6:00-9:30 outside on the deck during the summer.

And I’m pleased to announce that GN’s Vic Lewis will be taking part in the Newton Music Festival on the weekend of July 21, 22 and 23. It’s at Mesnes Park in Newton-le-Willows, Merseyside. Check out the following site for details.

Finally, here’s an “early warning head’s up notice” that GN Forum member “millard” and his band, The Marsh Mellow Stone Band, will be playing at The Blue Cafe in Long Beach, California at 11PM on August 2 and at diPiazzas in Long Beach, California from 7PM-9PM on August 15. They do originals and some covers of late 60s/early 70s songs, sticking to the sort of cosmic and groovy side of things.

If you’re in the neighborhood of any of these shows, drop in and meet some of the people you’ve been chatting with online. And be sure to say that I say hello!

Reviews

Reviews go up almost all the time here at Guitar Noise. But we also know that what we post is, pardon the cliché, the very tip of the iceberg. If you’d like to pass along a review of an album, concert, DVD (tutorial, concert or otherwise), book or even a guitar or guitar/music product, feel free to drop me a line and try to put “proposed review” in the subject.

For those of you who are always thinking about “giving back to the community,” this is certainly a fine way to do so.

In the meantime, here are the latest reviews to be posted on our site:

Jordan Rudess: Prime Cuts
CD Review by Jimmy Caterine

Another wonderful compilation from Magna Carta’s “Prime Cuts” series – this CD spotlights the talent of keyboardist Jordan Rudess, known to many for his groundbreaking work with Dream Theater.

Off Site Sightings And Works In Progress

The “Fall 2006″ issue of Play Guitar! Magazine hits the newsstands this week and you’ll find lessons by Tom Serb (Solo Flight – a step-by-step guide to get you started creating your own solos) and myself (Raise The Barre – a beginner’s tutorial on barre chords) among the many cool articles in this quarterly magazine. If you can’t find it at your local bookstore or music shop, visit their website and read the lessons online at Play Guitar Magazine.

As always, we truly appreciate your support of Guitar Noise staff in their “outside” writing ventures.

International Songwriting Competition

International Songwriting Competition Now Accepting Entries For 2006 Enter Now For Your Chance To Win Up To $150,000 In Cash And Prizes

The International Songwriting Competition is now accepting entries for 2006. Over $150,000 (USD) in cash and merchandise will be awarded to the 2006 winners. ISC’s $25,000 cash Grand Prize is the largest cash Grand Prize in any songwriting competition (in addition to over $20,000 in other prizes awarded to the Grand Prize winner). One of the largest and most prestigious songwriting competitions in the world, ISC offers the perfect opportunity to gain exposure and media attention in the music industry. ISC welcomes original songs from musicians, artists, and songwriters at every level from amateur to professional. You may submit as many songs as desired in each category or enter the same song in more than one category. Enter your songs now to get the ISC Early Bird discount. Go to www.songwritingcompetition.com/entry.htm to enter your songs via mail or online.

ISC is unique because of its judges. Since its inception, ISC has been renowned for having the most prestigious judging panel of any competition in the world. Its judges include high-profile recording artists and respected music executives. In just the past month, ISC has added many new judges to the 2006 panel, including Frank Black (Pixies), Sean Paul, Tiësto (Producer/Remixer/DJ), Mona Scott-Young (President, Violator Records), Jerry Lee Lewis, and Betty Pino (DJ, WAMR Miami/Pioneer of Latin Radio). Stay tuned for announcements on more new judges. Entering ISC offers you the chance to have your music heard by these influential members of the music industry.

The complete 2006 ISC judging panel includes: Tom Waits; Rosanne Cash; Sean Paul; Tiësto (Producer/Remixer/DJ); Frank Black (Pixies); Charlie Walk (President, Epic Records); Monte Lipman (President, Universal Records); Steve Lillywhite (Senior VP of A&R, Columbia Records/Producer – credits include U2, The Rolling Stones, Dave Matthews Band, and Peter Gabriel); Robert Smith (The Cure); John Mayall; John Scofield; Amy Ray (Indigo Girls); Darryl McDaniels (Run DMC); Jerry Lee Lewis; MercyMe; Macy Gray; Charlie Musselwhite; Peter Hook (New Order); Jeff Stinco (Simple Plan); Mona Scott-Young (President, Violator Records); Alexandra Patsavas (Owner, The Chop Shop Music Supervision – credits include The OC, Grey’s Anatomy, Without A Trace, Carnivale, Rescue Me); Barbara Sedun (VP Creative, EMI Music Publishing Canada); Bruce Iglauer (Founder/President, Alligator Records); Cameron Strang (President, New West Records); Betty Pino (DJ, WAMR Miami/Pioneer of Latin Radio); Cory Robbins (Founder/President, Robbins Entertainment); Dan Storper (President, Putumayo World Music); Thomas Brooman (Co-Founder/Artistic Director, WOMAD); Danny Epstein (Music Supervisor, Sesame Street/Sesame Workshop); Tara Griggs-Magee (Executive VP of Gospel/Urban Music, Sony Records); Emily Wittmann (Vice-President, Nick Records); Leib Ostrow (CEO, Music For Little People); and more to be added…

Enter any of ISC’s 18 categories: Pop/Top 40, AAA (Adult Album Alternative), Rock, Country, Americana, R&B/Hip-Hop, Blues, Folk/Singer-Songwriter, Jazz, Gospel/Christian, Latin Music, Instrumental, Dance/Electronica, World Music, Children’s Music, Lyrics Only, Teen, and Performance Please visit www.songwritingcompetition.com for an entry form or more details.

Random Thoughts

This issue of Guitar Noise News is a little on the short side – a mini-midsummer break, if you will. But next time out we’ll have a bushel of lessons and articles, emails and reviews for you. Plus some evidence that hard work does occasionally produce something besides sweat.

So until we chat again in a little over two weeks, stay safe and play well.

And, as always,

Peace