Picking and grinning

Subject: Picking and grinning
From: 53
Date: 06 Apr 02 - 10:59 PM

I wish that I was able to be out playing on a Saturday night instead of sitting at home, but at least I can watch TV and see people playing guitar. Where did you guys play tonight ? Bob

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Cappuccino
Date: 07 Apr 02 - 04:01 AM

At home, Bob. I spent seven hours on the portable studio working on a solo piece of mock-Klezmer music - you know, the fast Hebrew stuff - for Mudcatter Jeannie, whose string life impresses you so much. I filled up eight tracks and got it sounding OK.

But I would have much preferred playing to human beings than to my digital friend.

- Ian B

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Steve Latimer
Date: 07 Apr 02 - 07:08 AM

In the Kitchen, by myself. I can either pick or grin, working on doing both at the same time.

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 07 Apr 02 - 07:46 AM

Yesterday morning my gospel quartet spent three hours working on our CD. I set up the equipment in a large dining room which is open to our kitchen. It's a beautiful place to record, with glass on three sides and the sun streaming in in the morning. There's plenty of laughter to go with the singing. The guys get up here around 9:30-10:00 and we go downstairs to hear what we did the previous week on a good stereo system, then go back up to the dining room to eat breakfast and just enjoy each other's company. When we're recording, we make every mistake known to mankind and burst out into laughter when we do. We accept that we are people, not machines and the mistakes will come. And boy, do they ever. But, it's a good group of men and no matter how much we have to work to get the song right, we still have a good time. We don't have a separate track for the Spirit, but he sticks with us, no matter how many times we have to do the song over until it all finally comes together. My attitude toward singing is "why settle for being happy when you can be joyful?"

Jerry

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Francy
Date: 07 Apr 02 - 12:00 PM

I played in a local micro brewery and had the normal crowd of early listeners and requests; then as the evening wore on, the brew started hitting home,and it wasn't as much fun....But I had fun, and the first hour and a half was great.......Once a month in a bar is almost too much for me anymore......But I have learned to play what I want to play and play it the way I want to play it....So all in all, I had a good gig....Frank of Toledo

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Ebbie
Date: 07 Apr 02 - 02:44 PM

I spent the afternoon playing at a small museum with a core group and then whoever else showed up. Every year the city museum opens its doors the weekend before our Alaska Folk Festival begins, and it's a lot of fun.

Yesterday, we had a bass, 3 guitars, 3 fiddles, 3 mandolins, a bodhran, a bongo drum (luckily, he didn't insist on participating in each tune!)2 harmonicas and a bones player.

We had a great time.

Ebbie

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: lardingo
Date: 07 Apr 02 - 09:37 PM

I went to a local hootenanny. You know the kind: Singles get three songs and groups get 20 minutes. Most bands are made up on the spot, so I always have to spend way too much time on stage and way too little time out in the parking lot pickin' with my buds. All I took was my banjo, and most folks wanted to do country, so I left early. I can play country on my banjo, but it isn't much fun.

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Barbara Shaw
Date: 08 Apr 02 - 08:32 AM

We went to a spaghetti supper followed by a jam led by Roger Sprung. He does this on the first Saturday of every month in Newtown, CT and it's a lot of fun. The audience has been building for about 15 years, and drop-in musicians are encouraged. Roger is really an amazing banjo player and a good guy.

Then on Sunday night we had band rehearsal for the Lupus benefit performance we're doing on Tuesday night at the high school in Branford.

Subject: RE: Picking and grinning
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 08 Apr 02 - 06:19 PM

Spent most of the evening (as on most evenings) playing for and listening to some fine (and a few not so fine, but interesting) players/singers on Paltalk. Yes, I suppose I'd rather, in the abstract, be performing for an in-person audience, but

A. That has proved difficult for me to arrange
B. Such an in-person audience is not always appreciative of the specialized stuff I can offer, whereas the crowd in the Paltalk rooms I frequent has proved VERY supportive-- and I believe not just out of politeness C. Going along with B, you seldom or never get hecklers, drunken or otherwise, in the Paltalk rooms where I go.

I've been having a BLAST!

Dave Oesterreich (Uncle_DaveO on Paltalk)