Sometimes you're hot, sometimes you're not

Dan

I'll see if Dom can put this on a DVD for me. He has all that stuff. I have an ancient computer. I can't even burn CDs on mine.

If I get it then I'll send the DVD to you.

Thanks.

Wes

Cool wes,

If anyone wants i have software for converting DVD into audio to fit on a cd if that would help.

Minus Human

Wes,

If Dom can do that conversion, then it is likely that he can extract the audio only as well. I'll still host it if you don't want to put it up on soundclick or one of the other upload sites.

Laz

Dan

I'll see Dom tomorrow and see what he can do. Perhaps he can download the video to his computer and zip e-mail it to me. If so, I'll send it to you.

I did upload some songs to D Music I believe a few months ago. Then I tried downloading to see what it would be like for others. It was taking forever to download, so I just kinda gave up on the whole idea. Who wants to wait 10-15 minutes to listen to a 4 minute song? I have cable, so I download fast. It just took too long.

Wes, sorry to hear you had a rough one. I didnt read the others responses so hopefully I wont be to redundent but to us here at GN that read your gig reports you are definately rock stars. You do something I dream I will get the chance to do again some day.

Also, I read your reports religiously cause I know that some day I might face the same situations and maybe your reports will teach me how to solve the problem when I come to it.

My guess is that the cold kept them away and you'll get many more opportunities. Track record means alot here and you guys play alot. That means you definately have something good going on. Never let one bad one spoil it for ya. I know you wont. I just have to say it.

Anyways. Best of luck the next time out. Keep plugging away. You living someone elses dream. Ahh ya.. that would be MINE.

Geoo

geoo

Thank you so much for the very kind words.

I know I am always posting here on GuitarNoise. I worry that people think I am all about myself. I really am not like that at all. I don't post here to brag that I am some kind of great musician (believe me, I'm not). And I hope I don't come across as a know-it-all either. One thing I know.... I don't know much.

I post here for two reasons. One, I have found that I really enjoy writing. I really do. So, it is lots of fun for me to write about almost anything. Writing about our gigs is just an excuse for writing. I could never write a novel or even a short story, but I can write on this forum all day long (and do). :D

And, I like to feel that I can be useful or contribute to society. I remember starting guitar many years ago and how difficult it is. It is not just difficult physically, it does a real number on your head. You wonder if you will ever be good. You struggle and struggle to improve, but it seems you never do. You dream of being a skilled performer. And you even dream of playing in front of people someday. I bet that almost every person here has those dreams. I remember. I still dream.

And one thing I have been trying to get across is that you don't have to be a MASTER guitar player to play in front of people. You really don't. No, you just need to get the basics down.

My father was a baseball coach for many years in Florida, and a great one at that. He won 5 State Championships in Little League and Junior League. OK, that's not like the Major Leagues, but it is still the same thing, because everyone is at the same level. It is just as hard to win a State Championship in Little League Baseball as it is to win the World Series.

So, I am very fortunate to grow up with a great coach. And my Dad always stressed the fundamentals. You do not have to be born with magical super talent to be an excellent baseball player. No, you must just perform all the basic fundamentals well. And this is how he could take little kids who were just beginning to run, throw, and hit, and make a Championship team out of them. I've seen it. He did it year after year.

Don't wait for that magical day when you will be a great player. Just get the basic fundamentals down. Learn to switch chords in time. Learn to play with feeling. Learn your scales and experiment with melodies. You don't have to be Yngwie Malmsteen.

And don't be afraid to get out there. Eventually you have to stand in front of those people. You are gonna be scared. You are gonna be nervous. And you WILL make mistakes.

You have to make it happen. It will not come to you no matter how good you are. You can be the best player in the world, but if you don't take that big risk and chance of embarrasing yourself in front of a crowd, you will stay in your bedroom forever.

So, I have been trying to tell people what it's like. I am just a lowly guitar player/singer in your average bar band. I will never be big, and really, I don't want to be. I truly enjoy just being a small time performer. It's fun. I even make a little (very little) money at it. But it feels good to get paid for playing guitar, something I've always dreamed about.

Geoo, you really touched me with your kind compliments. I can understand your dream of playing in front of others. So I say, get out there, get out there now. You have to start. Look in the paper. Find a local Open Mic. Grab your guitar and a little practice amp and go down. Go in. You will be nervous, everybody is. Take a seat and listen. You may not even play that first time. But come back next week. I promise you, the musicians up there will drag you up there and make you play. You will be nervous and scared, it's natural. But 5 seconds after that 1st song begins, you will be on top of the world. Because you will be having so much fun. And you will realize that it's not that hard. In fact, it's really very easy. You have been good enough all along.

Sorry to sound like a parent. I am just trying to nudge you and others into stepping up on that stage with your guitar. Just do it.

I am not worried about our last gig. I've played in front of small crowds many times. Once, my band played during a blizzard. We did not have one single person come in. Not one. The only person there was the bartender. Know what? We still played and had a blast. Then we went and sat at the bar and talked to the pretty bartender and had a beer. Then we got up and played some more. The snow was coming down, it was beautiful. Around 11 we packed it up and headed home. I will never forget that night driving home with my bass player. It was white-out conditions. You could barely see and snow was deep on the road. It was awesome. That was a great night I will never forget. And he won't either.

Make it happen.

Finding someone to play with regularly and/or playing in a band (Whether gigging or not) is one of my desires for this year. Its very hard to find people in my area that want to play. Went by the local music shop and I didnt see a posting board. Doesnt appear to be one at the studio I take lessons at either. I tried the Harmony Central thing but I didnt get a single person from it. BUT, I havent given up hope. I am going to find a way somehow.

My teacher host weekly jam sessions with all his student. Maybe I'll get up the courage to chat with one of them about starting something up.

To be honest, I have gigged before. It was 15 years ago and we werent that great but it was SO much fun. Its memories from that which inspire me to try to get back into that and obviously your gig reports too. Back then we wanted to be BIG but it was mostly talk and very little practice. Now, this older and much more dedicated Geoo just wants to play local bars and such. Dont really care which style (Country, Rock, Christian) I just wanna play. It'll happen for sure. By the end of the year I may be posting my own gig reports. LOL

Thanks for the inspiration and tips Wes.

Geoo

PS.. Didnt mean playing Christian at the bars.. not sure that would go over well. LOL

I worry that people think I am all about myself.

Wes,

Don't worry. Anyone who thinks that way obviously hasn't read many of your posts. There are two things I've observed about you through your musings at GN. The first, you just confirmed - you enjoy writing. You're good at it too. Your posts are well thought out and always have a nice flow to them. Second, you love the guitar and you really enjoy sharing your knowledge and experience with others. Quite the opposite of "being about myself", you give freely of yourself. That's a rare quality in today's world (but found in abundance here at GN!).

I know this post is off topic, but I thought you should know that your contributions are greatly appreciated by me and many others.

Thanks,

Steve

Thanks for the inspiration and tips Wes.Ditto. And what Steve said, too.
So, when can we place orders for the new Twist of Fate DVD? 8)

i agree with steve and doug, i would not trade wes for anyone on any guitar site, he
has helped me tremendously 8)

Thank you Steve, Doug, and Rocker. I really do worry about that sometimes.

Man, did we have a great show last night. Not a big crowd, maybe 60-70 people. The weather has been miserable here lately, down in the low teens with lots of wind. I hate winter. :x There were also two other popular bands playing down the street.

Despite the small crowd, we played the best we have ever played. We were on fire from the first song to the last. The small crowd did get into it and cheered and danced. We were just having so much fun. Everybody was loose and we improvised more than usual, especially our drummer Jeff. He is a real crowd-pleaser... he really smacks them drums. He was just going nuts on some long solos. And Dom played great bass. He has only been playing 4 years, but he is really becoming a great player. He used to be afraid to improvise, he would stick right to the notes and not take chances. But he cut loose last night as well. It was great.

Although the crowd was small the owner was very pleased and said he did very well. He gave us $50 extra and booked us for two weekend shows and a big summer outdoor jam they hold every summer. Now, that is going to be fun. I have attended this summer show and they get great crowds and lots of good food too. So I am really happy about that.

So that's Rock N Roll. One week you play lousy, the next week you are great. Our next show is next Saturday night at a club called Billiards. This will be our 3rd time there. So far we have gotten real good crowds there. I hope we do again.

But what I really hope is that we can keep playing well like we did last night. We are starting to get our act together. :D

Thanks to everyone.

Hey Wes, do you know what the date is for the show in the summer?

Geoo

Geoo

I am not sure, Dom handles all the business for the band. He told me about the gig after the show, but I can't remember if he told me the date. It might be July 4th weekend. When I find out I will post it here.

We have been getting so many gigs lately that I have to go to our website to keep track of them myself. :D

way to go WESSSSS, i told you, you guys would kill"em next time, i have my second gig
next sat, and were booked every sat until after the first, hope we knock there sox of like you guys did, i would call that a "flawless victory" lol

Thanks Rocker

Sounds like your band is doing really well. I remember your set list, you guys play some awesome songs. We need to add more modern songs to our setlist.

It would have been nice to have a big crowd last night, but I was completely thrilled with how well we played. I really care about our music. It has always been my goal and dream to play in a professional manner. And I am fortunate to be in a band where we all care deeply about the quality of our music. No goofs in this band.

I even think I sang pretty well last night, and I owe it all to an old Cream video of White Room that was on another post. This is one of our covers and one of my all-time favorite songs. While we do not copy songs at all, I was singing the song in too rigid a manner. I was trying to get the vocals too perfect. On the live video I saw and heard that Jack Bruce took great liberties with his own vocals. It was almost like his vocals were improvisation just like Cream's music which was always known for improvisation.

I guess what I am saying is that it is not good to try too hard. It is not good to try to be perfect. You may hit all the right notes perfectly, but you lose the emotion and feeling of the songs.

So I really cut loose last night on my vocals as well. I did not worry about hitting the perfect pitch, although I think by relaxing I hit the notes better than ever. It just seemed like all of us got this same revelation at once. Everybody was just going for broke. It was pretty darn great if I do say so myself.

The other guys were just as excited as me. We knew we kicked A-ss last night. :D
So we were all very happy. This is how it's supposed to be.

Rocker- I hope you will give us a detailed report of your gig next week. I really enjoy everyone's reports.

Much success to your band

Here is the video that inspired me so much. It is much different than the recording, especially the vocals on the chorus. This is what I was talking about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfCDrTdgpSI&search=white%20room%20cream