Great Player #2 etc.

Robben Ford is one of my current favorite players. He's able to blend elements of jazz and blues in a very smooth way. Adding in jazz runs without taking the listener out of the blues feel. His phrasing and note choice while soloing is spectacular. One thing i really enjoy about Robben Ford's playing is his ability to play interesting chord voicings and rhythmic parts while comping. This is something that you don't hear with too many blues guitarists, and is a result of Ford's interest in jazz. I'm not sure why this guy isn't more popular among guitarists. Here's some video evidence...

I love how he transitions from the fingerstyle to the pick. I think being able to play without the pick is very important.

In this second video Robben demonstrates a great use of one of my favorite techniques, the volume swell. It is not a difficult technique to use, but it can really spice up your sound when soloing or rhythm. I prefer to do this with my pinky on the volume knob when playing my strat. But i do have a volume pedal that makes it easier for me to pull this off when playing chords. maybe i'll post a video showing that technique.

In other news, i've been experimenting with a new technique for writing and i'm really close to getting some stuff out there. More to follow on that subject.

Thanks for reading,

-MD

Great Player

I'm going to show a few videos of one of my favorite musicians. Cameroon born bassist Richard Bona. With his playing he brings back the sounds of Jaco Pastorius, funky, jazzy and everything in between. Bona is a very talented composer, improviser, and multi-instrumentalist. Performing as a solo artist and sideman with the Pat Metheny group, and other groups, he's found a way to take the electric bass to new heights.

Richard Bona is seen here playing "Bright size life" with Pat Metheny and Antonio Sanchez. Note how Bona pays tribute to Pastorius with his playing, but puts his own melodic touch on the phrases.

Here's an improvisation with Bobby Mcferrin. Extremely creative playing.

Another bit that shows his ability to be musical without playing bass. Looping vocals and percussion to get a one-man-band effect. Amazing.

Shout out to a teacher i had for lessons a few semesters ago, Sheryl Bailey who takes the guitar solo on this video. She's a great player.

Great Performance

Since i just figured out how to put a video on here, i'll be putting up some of my favorite videos.

This great performance from the Crossroads 2007 guitar festival. Featuring Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Derek Trucks, Steve Jordan, and more.

New Post

Long time since my last post. I've been getting pretty busy with school and work lately. So, since my last post i've gotten some more music gear, a few gigs, a lot of practice, and tons of great new music.

Some good CD's i've gotten since my last post, in no particular order.

1. Keith Jarrett- "Shostakovich-24 Preludes & Fugues"

I actually just picked this up today. With this recording Jarrett shows that he is more than capable of playing in a more traditional solo piano style, and not just the great jazz playing he is so well known for. Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) was a composer who paid tribute to Bach with these 24 preludes & fugues. Studying counterpoint and conducting at school has given me a new interest in more traditional music and classical styles. Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSbX6o3Z6xs&feature=related

2. Allan Holdsworth-"Against The Clock"

This is Holdsworth's greatest album. Featuring some of my favorites. Especially the first track, called "Tokyo Dream". Apparently this song was only released in Japan, i could find it anywhere here. I just watched this youtube video of a performance of it so many times. So i was excited to finally get a copy of this tune and try to learn it. It has a great melodic solo, where his tone is almost perfect. Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9xOomYyLI8

3. George Harrison-"Concert for Bangladesh"

Featuring an all-star cast of musicians; George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Billy Preston, Bob Dylan, Ravi Shankar, and Ringo Starr played an incredible charity concert at Madison Square Garden in 1971. The highlight of this great concert is the performance of "That's the Way God Planned It" where Billy Preston shines. Here's a link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYxzPdv67yA

4. Phish- "Live Phish 20: 12/29/1994 Providence Civic Center"

What would any list of mine be without Phish? This show represents Phish at a time when their improvisation could take them anywhere on any night. The fall of '94 is where they really hit their creative peak in my opinion. This show features an absolutely epic second set version of "David Bowie" that clocks in at 35:41. Listening to this jam in its entirety was one of the most powerful Phish experiences for me in a long time. Especially from around 25 minutes on, where it takes an extremely psychedelic turn.

More to follow...

-MD

Update

First entry in a while, I've been really busy at school doing lots of work. I'm learning a lot this semester and growing as a musician. For most of this semester, my focus has been on jazz. I'm not really a jazz player yet, but i think studying it has improved my ear and technique. I've improved my "rig" as well. I finally have a job so i can make money and get some things i need to put a good setup together. That was one of my main goals this semester. So i'll talk about my new setup just a bit. 

1. Ernie Ball VP junior Volume Pedal-Ever since i started listening to Jimmy Herring i've always wanted to be able to do some volume swell technique. Playing a strat, i was able to get the volume swell down with my pinky pretty well. It works well for single notes and longer, sustained chords. But i always wanted a way that i could be more articulate with the volume control and play some more complicated things in a swell. Well, the answer to that problem was a volume pedal. Now i can do some really interesting swell technique combining the use of my pinky and the pedal. 

2. MXR Carbon Copy analog delay pedal- This is a great and subtle effect for playing some chords or lead. The actual delay effect of this pedal is excellent because it doesnt change the tone of my guitar at all. I can get anything from slap-back echo to the U2 like delay that they are so famous for. I've also had a bit of fun trying to do the Pink Floyd delay settings from the song "Run Like Hell". There is also Modulation switch. This switch is the reason why i gravitated toward the Carbon Copy. It can emulate the old "tape echo" sound that i'm really into. Its this swirling effect where you hear the note move around a bit after you play it. Again, this is a subtle effect, but can be really effective. 

3. Boss TU-2 Tuner Pedal- this probably isnt the most interesting pedal, but it has really helped me out. I can use the pedal to tune my guitar or bass quickly in a live situation. I had a gig a few weeks ago, and having this pedal made me feel very confident about staying in tune the whole time. For some reason, when i play live, i usually think that i'm constantly horribly out of tune. Even though that's usually not the case. So having this pedal on my board can help me relax on stage. 

4. Maxon OD-9 Overdrive- I've had this pedal for a long time and i love the tone i get from it. Its a great lead tone that really screams. For a long time this was my only pedal. I'm happy with it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a traditional overdrive sound. 

So, that's my current setup. Its fairly simple and gets the job done. I've only got the chance to use it live once, but i was very satisfied with my sound. I'm also happy with how easy it is to use all my pedals. Of course these pedals are used in combination with my Fender Stevie Ray Vaughan strat that is my only guitar. Ive been looking to add another guitar to my setup as well. Something that offers a different option. I've thought about so many different guitars, that if i wrote them all i think this blog would be 50 pages long. I change my mind every day about what guitar i want next, so its good to know that i still love my No. 1. 

I'll be writing another entry very soon...

Thanks for reading,

-MD