Lunch Report: 12/11/2012 (Blast from the Past 2011 LR)

[willross]

Lunch: Well I got a late start, so I'm still pounding coffee. Lunch will consist of food; preferably edible in nature... Can you eat a guitar? Maybe G&L chocolate guitars - Think about it. No, don't.

I had plans for a big exploration into sound, but then I saw Granny get tazered. Wow. That beats the kid bringing his Boy Scout knife to school. Thanks, Today Show...

Alex Skolnick is my artist of the day. I dig his work; especially his bluesy licks and early Testament leads. He currently uses a Les Paul Classic(me too!) & PRS(nope.). His amp is a Rivera 212 combo(me too!) & no effects except for the wah( hmmm. I'm looking at grabbing a http://www.bbesound.com/products/stomp-boxes/wah.htm ) and sometimes plays a Gibson L5 Hollowbody. I have to get me one of those, but my Peerless is good enough. FYI, in 2006 I was approached by his manager to sit in with the trio. He had heard my finger-style acoustic and reached out. I couldn't do it! I was in the middle of yet another failed attempt to revive Natural Selection... Yeah, I was an idiot. Maybe I'll post a list of my mistakes at the end of the week. Maybe not. And now my day is ruined...

Ok, now post an example of an artist that inspired you. What was it?

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Hideous picture o' the day: Well, two. Just to get them out of the way.



Still the Levi John days, but poorly taken. I love that little place on Captiva Island! I'll be chilling (or not) there for New Years'. It does show a few of my old guitars and one of my slit drums (still have them all...fingers crossed, but not because I'm lying).



Look at that jacket; eighties much? The guy next to me was the sound man. This was a rehearsal shot. Actually, in his band I started on percussion. He is known as the "Father of Caribbean Pop". My musical background contained none of this influence, so I learned quite a bit. FYI, here is a list of my influences at the time: Yes, King Crimson, Steely Dan, Alice Cooper, Edgar Winter, Frank Zappa/The Mothers, Funkadelic, The Grateful Dead, The Cars, Boston, Black Sabbath, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Judas Priest, CSN&Y, T-Rex, Los Lobos, Led Zepplin, The Who, ELP, Badfinger, Massive Attack, Black Flag, Captain Beefheart, Todd Rundgren, Rush, Queen, Bob Marley, Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones, Heart, War, KISS, Lou Reed, Percy Sledge, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, The Eagles, Jethro Tull, Santana, Van Morrison, Patti Smith and Warren Zevon. Maybe not in that order. Working with him really helped me move forward. He's a good guy...

I hope you can get something out of this post. For me it is to try something new.


Cheers,

Will

[willross]

*** This was my LR from June of 2011. Just thought I'd add it due to no report today...


Cheers,

Will

[yowhatsshakin]

Thanks for jumping in Will. Did anything change gear wise? You got that BBE wah in the meantime?

I was still home today although feeling much better than yesterday. For lunch I had half a baked acorn squash. Appropriately seasonal and delectable!

If I wanted to be quick, I could just copy about every act in your list; in every case there is a great guitar player or two defining the sound. But without a doubt, my biggest influences have been Keith Richards and Mick Taylor. The former is certainly not the greatest guitar slinger around, but I have always liked his rhythm playing especially in the period between (and including) 'Beggars Banquet' adn 'Tattoo You'. The latter I have always considered to be a very melodic kind of blues player with my favorite moment his solo on 'Time Waits For No One'. Only later I got more into the Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Brian May, Jimmy Page, David Gilmour, etc. Strangely enough all British players, although I could add Dutchman Jan Akkerman who I've had the privilege of seeing playing many, many times in many, many different settings.

Then I got more into listening to jazz guitar and for that you had to go to the other side of the pond: Wes Montgomery, Jim Hall, John Abercrombie, Mike Stern (especially when he was backing up the sorely missed Bob Berg), Adam Rogers and David Gilmore especially in their Lost Tribe days, and most notably Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell, and John Scofield. Only problem is, I'm not good enough to even come close to those fellows. Not in technique, harmonic invention, comping, you name it. So as far as my playing is concerned, I happily stick to figuring out the rhythm parts of rock songs ...

And not that the US hasn't produced some great guitar rock players as evidenced by many acts in your list. I love Steve Cropper on the old Stax records, and although not my style, you just cannot overlook (Dutch born) Eddie Van Halen.

- Jos

[willross]

Still have all of those guitars. The Ovation is now the carbon weave topped O from a previous post. Ok, here's the new pic:



Still have the wood drum but added a few more since then... Great music influences. I cannot disagree with any of them.


Cheers,

Will

* Hope you feel better soon.

[GDub]

I no longer consider myself "inspired" by the players I liked in my youth, so...

Current inspiration: Irish guitarist, John Doyle

[youtube]sJa2D3hJphI[/youtube]

The "duel" above is with Martin Hayes on fiddle (arguably one of the best Irish fiddlers on the planet).

And if you've ever tried to play Irish diddly on guitar you know just how difficult it is:

[youtube]FX4RuOlDLm0[/youtube]

My kids trashed this no-name nylon string guitar way back in the olden daze:



--GDub

[willross]

GDub, wow that is a technical feat. Irish diddly is just a joy to behold. Nice pic too...


Cheers,

Will

[darwinohm]

Will, I remember this blast from the past. It is cool. Thanks for jumping yesterday.

That is a beautiful Ovation that you have replaced the top on. I never understood why some people hated them so much. I have an Adamas 12 fret which is awesome. I bought it new with loose bracing and sent it back to Ovation for repair. Someone had hit the top and broke the bracing loose. I bought it for next to nothing and paid Ovation to repair it. It came beck perfect and their customer service is unbeatable. That is before Fender owned them. I also gave a 2006 Collector FKOA Ovation to my daughter. I also have a nylon string Ovation and they are all awesome for recording. I really like them and the backs on them don't get scratched-- Darwin

[willross]

Yeah, Fender owns them now... The Custom Shop still has the same people, which is good. I like them for stage and recording, but am also a Goodall fan.

[KenC]

I traded a '65 Fender Mustang to a classmate for a brand new Ovation acoustic back in '86. That Mustang is worth about five times as much as the Ovation now, but I don't regret the trade one bit. The lure of the Ovation for me was stability. I hauled it halfway around the world and back on a ship, and never had stability issues whether I was in the tropic or close to freezing (which could happen over the span of a couple of weeks). I've taken it from the heat and humidity of South Carolina, to San Diego and even Maine without having to adjust the setup once. The sound is a little bright for my current taste, but I will never let this one get away.

Ken

[willross]

KenC: Ovations are great for stage and studio. The stability and consistent tonal quality have me sold...


Cheers,

Will