Twist my arm...

Bernie Dropped by tonight... they guy who's CD I played on and who I played on Breakfast Television with..

Anyway.. . long story short... We're gonna but together a small band to promote the cd... and take a few select gigs ..

Won't be too much, and shouldnt interfere with work and home stuff.. and I have to give priority to any Full Circle gigs. (fair is fair, I've been with them a while now and they been real good to me also so I'll be sticking with them!) but could be some A-List Venue's and A-List Coin... so that's not to shabby!

its kind of cool just to be asked by these folks really... its taken a while, but I'm prety happy with how things are going musically speaking... .. some managable gigs.. the Studios coming along, and some decent progress and exposure for the Documentary project

anyway..... in other news.... Just spent the last hour getting Quicken all set up.. man.. a great program, but freaking details will kill ya!! Still aint done my taxes, but its getting there..

Blind determination

Well, we never got the house.. the inital offer held... So, not one to give up, we made an offer to buy the contract from the people who bought the house..

Its just a modest salt box.. not elaborate.. but its EXACTLY all the things we are looking for, in exactly the area, with... well.. its just "THE" house for us.... plain and simple, and everything else pails in comparison...

We still might not get it.. depends on how passionate the existing buy is about it.. but I think we made it reasonably worth their while that if they arn't as enamoured with the place as we are.. they just might walk away and let us have it...

And if not, then I'll know that i at least gave it my best shot...

In other news.. My dad goes back home to NFLD tomorrow.. its been good having him around lately.. My daughters definately taken a liking to him...

its also good to talk "shop" (aka music) although with work, and spring cleanning, seems theres always something else needs doing before i can get to play any music..
I also just got a really good opportunity to get some good cash gigs with another band... Im tempted, but I'm torn... theres only so many hours in a day, days in a week, etc... I might take it on as a "temp" spot, but doubt I could manage much more then that... and in the short term, I have some new tunes to learn for the First band before I could even consider another project...

sigh... now i have to get out the lap top and put in a solid hour of 'Work"...

no rest for the wicked...

Long Eventful week

Lots of drama, lots of work, lots of highs and lows, lots of fun, lots of music, lots of stress, lots of family.... My Cup runeth over...

Well, first there was all the confusion over CBC calling dad... We, erroneouly, assumed they were scooping my documentary idea... Well... I was wrong... Boy was i wrong.. But ya know what they say about "assume" ... dont worry, thats too old to repeat here...

Anyway.. Gregg Dodd and Suzanne Woolridge of CBC radio St. Johns were SUPER nice, and were working on a related piece, and were very keen to learn about, and shed some light on my idea... So to Greg and Suzanne.. My Appologies for my initial paranioa, and THANKS for the Free P.R.

They interviewed dad and I about the Ducats, and my youtube stuff, and also about my documentary..

their peice will air on CBC radio St. johns, early am Monday.. Click here to listen 8 and 8:30 Nfld time on monday..

And not to make my head swell too much, while I was being interviewed by CBC, I was watching myself playing bass on BT Not bad for a family guy with a full time day job...

then there was band practice thursday nite, plus a bunch of other stuff going on... at the end of the week, I think burning the candle at both ends caught up to me and I was wicked sick today.. only now feeling somewhat better... I usualy never get sick, but this year seems like I'm catching every bug going... oh well..

It was really cool that not only did My daughter remember granpa, but she took to him like flies on sh_t....

So much so that when Trena brought her home tonight, it wasn't "hello daddy" it was "Where's Granpa"

Anyway... Im beat.. the other news is that house of our dreams that we had a "back-up" offer on... the first offerers deal closed, so were shit out of luck.. Pisses me off cause after all this time looking, this was not only the perfect house, on the perfect lot, in the perfect location for us, But we called about it well in advance but I dont think our realtor really took us seriously, and delayed getting us into see it... .. We been looking for a while, and were not fussy, we just know what we want... but oh well, long story short... We missed out on this house, but we got hooked up with a new realtor and I think this one has a better sense of what we are looking for and how we 'operate', so.. onward we go i guess..

Got a lot to do this weekend now.. Hope to finally finish, or at least get close to finishing my taxes... Practice again on Sunday.. and I got some other odds and sods to do...

No rest for the wicked eh!

Come out and Support Jon at the Battle of the Bands

Saturday Nite, 9pm at Your fathers Mustache!! Were gonna try to be there, pending sitter.. should be fun!

Breakfast Television Clip..

in case ya missed it...

CBC Interview Us about Ducats and the Rockumentary Project!!

As luck should have it, Dad arrived for a visit last nite, so they were able to get both of us on the line for a telephone interview...

In hindsight, I should have asked them to call last night, (instead of this am) after I had a few rum's into dad... as he's not often too chatty about some of the lesser known details about the Ducats, but it was ok...

What many don't know is that in the USA, their agent changed the name of the band to the Orange Marmelade Referendum... Theres more to that story, but I can't tip all my hand, or there'd be no reason to watch the show once its all done.. ha ha..

Anyway.. Thank you CBC for shining some light on my project. I hope you call back to talk again.. And if you or any other network, or indpendant producer our there is interested in jumping on board.. By all means.. ask me.. Im just a little guy with a home studio and an idea.. But I firmly believe that many hands make light work, and it'd be great to have a partner(s) and/or sponsors on this project.. I'm working on getting some factor money and/or other funding, but with a day job and a family its hard to find the time.. so it could take a while..

In the "dream" I'd have enough funding to jump into this full time and take the show on the road, as they say... I think it'd come together quickly and would be a lot of fun.. I also believe I'd rather have a share of something then ALL of nothing, so I'm open to partners and/or some other arrangement like that..

For now I have about 5 hours of interviews, 20 hours of misc footage, countless pics, and documents, and more and more getting done all the time.

In addition to some of the great bands I'll be profilling, some of the personally collected footage I've accumulated of Better known names I'll be able to tie into the project include Ron Hynes, Bruce Dixon, Derek Sivers, Bob Ezrin and soon to come, Sam Moon, and hopefully Matt Minglewood.

Given the increased exposure youtube and CBC has provided, maybe I should pay closer attention to Gramer and Spelling... ...well... we'll see... But in the meantime.. its sure been a lot of fun..

As I was talking to CBC on the phone, I was watching myself on ATV Breakfast Television.. You'd think I did this full time eh?? anyway.. interesting story.. the Sound Tech in the ATV Studio is a bass player, played in some cool bands, and knows the guys from the Black Cats... out of North Sydney.. another great band to profile... it never ceases to amaze me how much talent is out there.. this has been a LOT of fun so far, and I think Im just scratching the tip of the ice berg...

More to come..

be sure to read the whole pitch on the other site... and click on some of the links...

Feel free to email me with questions and comments..
bongwatermusic@eastlink.ca

and keep an eye out for my Web site, I hope to have running soon...
www.bongwatermusicproductions.com and www.thestoryofgoodoldrockandroll.com

theres nothing there yet, but will be soon.... I hope at least, so if anyone want to help me build/park it, let me know

The CBC is cool By Me!!!

Ok.. I was just being paranoid..

the CBC is doing a bit of a documentary on their own, but our concepts, and approach are varied enough that we are able to help each other out, and are not in competition, so to speak, so I couldnt be happier about that..

They are gonna interview me tomorrow morning.. Im not sure if it will be Live, or taped, but they are calling me 8am NS time..

I'll keep you posted as I know more..

BT Appearance

My bad...

The Breakfast Television spot will be THURSDAY morning.. And not today.. as I suggested.

Sorry..

Dont Forget to Watch BT

keep an eye out for the goofy looking fellow on the left hand side!!!

Airs Wednesday am

More stuff happening, but too tired to type..
Cheers for now.

Back online

I figure whats done is done... and Unwind the clock...

So were back online.. (mostly) I've left out some of my harder to get research this time (old pics, contracts, etc) will save that for later..

in the meantime..

Check it out at: Http://storyofgoodoldrockandroll.blogspot.com

I hope to have a real website running soon, but thats on back burner for now... until this new house thing is resolved..
Actually.. EVERYTHING could be on backburner for a while..

So If you dont hear from us till June.. thats why...

One step closer...

Made an offer on a house... Sort of...

We didnt get to see it in time, and there is already an accepted offer on the house.. So we submited whats called a "backup" offer.. Which means if the existing deal falls through for any reason, the house is ours..

Its a long shot, but worth it.. we been looking for a long time, and while we've been accused of being "fussy" and "tire-kicking" its just a matter of knowing what we like when we see it... and what we don't..

anyway... we'll know come friday where we stand..

In other news.. I finally got my cable snake.. hopefully will get some work soon recording live acts..

Its friday already?

Well, not yet, but it might as well be...

Ive been on a bit of a high all week with all this recent Music stuff on my plate... The Bernie Doucette Project (hey that has a ring to it? .. But Im guessing Allan Parsons has it copywritted) and the Full Circle Studio Stuff... Plus, Ive kind of been on a roll at work lately... Had a good week last week, and this week I've been cleaning up a bunch of admin stuff like its been on fire... Which is all well and good... And Im not saying I dont like my weekends.. I LOVE them... but sometimes when you on a bit of a role, you dont want it to stop... cause come monday it can take a while to get the momentum going again....

ah.... but come tomorrow and that first Double Appleton reserve and a steak... and I'll change my tune pretty quick im sure... then after breakfast..... (HA! had ya there for a second didnt I!!)

I should be more careful what I say... I guess more people read this then I thought.. as Ive got some feedback recently, some good, and some constructive critisms... ..

One of my friends said I really should spell check... and he's right... a 5th grader probably has better grammer.. but in my defense... i'm not getting paid to do this... so I just dont care... this is fun, so what the heck right? having to go back over it, checking for spelling errors, and syntax..... well.. thats too much like work... although if I did get paid for it I don't think I'd mind all that much... but for now.. Its hard enuff to find the time...
While the original intent was to keep it somewhat Music oreiented, somewhere along the way i veered way off that track on to this "Hodge Podge" it is now..

Some of the time the posts are just random brain farts... I think if I had to go back and read it again i'd possibly bore myself to tears.. or critisize my own spelling.. lol.. But at the end of the day.. I think I do so much of it as it has a way of de-stressing a pretty stressfull pace...

So I'll probably keep it going, and when I get my actual Web site up and running, I'll spell check that.. and keep this place loosey goosey as always..

anyway.. enuff about that..

Some of Important dates to remember..

1) this coming tuesday... i'll be on BT with the Bernie Doucette Project.. (hey, that does have a ring to it)

2) April 7th.. 4-7pm Ill be playing with Full Circle at Montee's Bar and grill..

3) April 19th, 20th and 21st Full Circle will be at the Casino (not sure on times yet)

4) July 20th.. My birthday... click here for a list of suitable gifts.. HA!!!! just kidding..

Oh, and here's a pic of the early release of Bernie's CD.. the cover art and insert hasnt been completed yet..


when it comes out, I encourage you all to buy a copy, and support your local artists...

And In case your wondering, No, I'm not getting paid for this project.. at least I dont think I am.. I didnt ask to be... Not that it matters.. I've made some new friends in the process, all Musicians, and more importantly, I just enjoy playing, so its not like it was hard work, it was fun... and besides, stuff like that is like karma, it comes back on ya eventually.. sometimes when you least expect it..

And in as much as its cool to be on any recording, I was equally, if not more excited to be able to say I was on the same recording as Roger Howse!!! The guys incredible...

Hope to someday get to jam with him Live.

SUPERSTACK is Coming to HALIFAX

I hope at least..

I've been talking with Singer/guitar player Scott Donnelly via email...

their hoping to get down here sometime in may-ish.. and when they come, if you like rock and roll... (and who doesn't) YOU HAVE TO GO..

this is not the first time I've mentioned them, and likely not the last.. But trust me on this one, these guys will not dissappoint..

This band is F__king AWESOME.

I like country, I like Celtic, I like a lot of music, but my heart and soul has always been pure Rock and Roll...

I've had the good luck to do some travel, and I've seen a LOT of bands.. Big and small... I’ve heard a lot of new music, some stuff I like, some stuff is ok, but this is truly the best Rock and Roll Band I’ve heard in a LONG LONG time… and I can’t say that enough… Every one of their tunes could be a hit single.. It’s a true ALBUM of Rock Gold…

In my opinion, they are what’s missing from Rock and Roll these days, pure talent, great songwriting, and great showmanship. No B.S., No fluff.. just Great Rock and Roll..

I’d best describe them as a blend of Alman Bros, Lynrd Skynrd, with a touch of Black Crows and just a hint of Chilly Peppers.. I really believe they should be the next BIG thing to come out of Canada, and that this is our chance to say we knew them when…..



Click HERE and Check out there demos on Myspace.. (linked from their website)

let me know what you think.. maybe we can start a petition to get a bar down here to book them or something...

The Lighter side of Picking up Dog Poo...

nope... there is no lighter side...

one of the things that happens when you have children, is you loose all sense of other priorities... Plain and simple, your child comes first..
-before television, before music, before food, before sleep, before everything...

gradually, i think, or would like to think, you gain some balance/perspective over time and get back into a groove. To a large extent, i thought we'd done that.. until this recent thaw...

i look in the back yard, now largley cleared of all snow... and quickly realized that I'd not picked up after my 75 pound golden retriever for a long, long time...

faced with a predicted 4 days of rain, it was now, or never..

Not a fun task, but it needed to be done.... and as I was late getting home from work, i had to do it before supper, or face doing it in the dark...

yeah... (sigh) Youd think it'd kill the appetite, but to be honest, once you've gotten to the point when you can check a diaper by poking your finger down there, and then looking to see if anythings on the top of it? nothing really phases you anymore...... a hefty bag and a double layer of rubber gloves and I was good to go...

Shitty work, but someones got to do it...

which reminded me of another story from 2002 when Abbey (the dog) at 80 bucks cash...
But thats another story...

funny how silly little things can make your day..

Im doing bass on the upcoming Full Circle CD..

To their credit, they have access to better bass players the moi, but they're sticking with me.. So i'm pretty happy bout that..

anyway.. its being recorded at Sonic Temple But its hard for me to get time from work/family to get in there..

But yet.. I have a HOME studio Its not nearly as elaborate as Sonics.. Nor would I ever suggest I have even aa fraction of their knowledge, Im just a novice.. But I was very please to find out that My gear is completely compatible with theirs..

Im getting a DVD today that I can upload on my machine.. I'll then record my bass parts at my leisure in my own home, put them back on dvd and hand them back to the studio for final mix down...

Makes me feel pretty cool actually... Granted, for other stuff that would require Mic's, pre-amps, or more complicated processing.. my gear is good, but "lesser then" (i.e, I bought 2 speakers for 39.99... they have a set of reference monitors there that cost 6,000 per speaker) Im at least pleased that theres a lot I can do that is technically on par with these bigger boys..
and for the stuff that Im not, well... for what Im doing, shag it, its good enuff... it at least beats my old cassette four track!!!


incidentaly, not sure if you noticed, but when i can i embedd links to other sites..
I do it a lot actually... when I have time, and/or know of the links to send ya too..

Just click on Sonic and / or =Full circle here or above, and check out their sites...

Music rush...

As much as I occasional whine about not being able to work in the music biz, I really shouldnt complain at all, cause on the whole, I think I'm pretty lucky.. then again, my dad said that you make luck by working hard.... at least i think he said that once...

regardless.. today was a great day..

i had the day pegged as "paperwork" day.. In my line of work you have to do that on occassion, just to get caught up.. No meetings, just a day to "get stuff done"

so im looking at the iron, looking at the jeans... look at the iron again... and think to myself "work from home day"

and it was awesome... free coffee, no distractions, comfy chair, no suit and tie... around noonish, took some stuff out of the freezer for supper, back to work.... got a lot done, no feeding the parking meter... Life is good..

then, after supper I get to go out and play some music with some new friends...



it was the first rehersal with Bernie Doucette tonight..

All these guys played on the album, but its the 1st time we'd actually all been in the same room together..

Roger Howse also played on the album, but I gues was unavailable for the promo..
but that makes sense, a player of that calibre would have some serious demand for his time..

anyway..
were playing 2 songs on BT on tuesday... and the 4 of us have a pretty acurate representation live of the recording.. so it should be cool..

I have to tape it, as I'll actually be at work when it airs... (they pre-record bands now) but if your up early.. we'll be on tueday morning.

Should be fun..
heres a quick cam video of some of the rehersal.



I'm wired now, all hyper from playing and talking about music all night, and could type or talk form hours, but 6am comes early.. and I NEED a good nite sleep...

Cheers for now

Finally...

All the tunes from the Jam Party are now mixed and available online.

You can go to
http://stevefurey.com/Jamparty/

and listen and/or download...

Bear in mind..
-we didnt have a sound guy
-lots of distortions coming into the board
-it was a jam (i.e not rehearsed, some people had never met, let alone played together before
-and I rushed the mix.. didnt spend a whole lot of time on it at all..

that said.. its not half bad..

It was a great party, and were already looking forward to next year..

I've got a sound guy and PA (with lights) already booked..

Actually... its this system here..





anyway, Hope you enjoy the tunes.. and let me know if you want to play or just come to the next one (dec 29, 2007.. its a saturday nite)


Special thanks to Steve furey for hosting the files...

P.S. scroll down to the Full Circle video post, Ive added to more videos

P.S. Kudos to Paula D. for getting "festus" right... (I dont have nuff time to embed a link in this post, so youll have to go back and read the coments if you want the full story)


cheers..

Marty Stuart wants to Add me as a friend?????

Not sure if anyone reading this has seen it, but I have a small "Myspace" site

its at http://www.myspace.com/bongwatermusic

theres a little bio, some pics.. and you can "add friends"

I started out adding real buddies.. then I saw one of my buddies had a "famous buddy" and thought, thats cool.... so I clicked their profile, and clicked "add as friend" and they accepted...

turns out.... its just a decent marketing scheme... So artists, and even politicians actually hire people to create, promote and maintain their "my space" profiles

anyway.. tonight I come home and I get a message that Marty Stuart wants to add me to his friends list..

Now, to put things in perspective... I have a whoping total of "80" friends on myspace..(81 now that I can include Marty) Mr Stuart has 11,831 So the odds of him surfing the net, stumbling around my site, and thinking? "hey, that guy seems cool" are pretty f--king slim. But i'll admit.. the dreamer in me who still hopes for hope of a career even somewhat related in the music biz thought.. "maybe" but who am I kidding...

So I thought about it... and thought about it... and then I had a Eureka Moment worthy of a Veronic Mars episode.... here goes:

My best guess is that a lot of these people might use the same "professional" my space marketing firms... Not long after seeing Willie Nelson in concert, I found his page and clicked "add" Now, I went on Martys site, and low and behold, one of the first names on Marty's list of 11,831 is Willie... so My little CSI investigation lead me to the conclusion that maybe Willies people and Marty's people are either the same people, or they sold Marty his list, with the intent to maybe increase his fan base....

While I wish that were not the case, its the only answer that makes sense... I mean really?? oh well.. either way.. I accepted the add... come on, its Marty F--king Stuart? am I really gonna say no??? he's also listed in my list of "People I'd like to meet" so what-a-ya gonna do???

anyway.. just to be sure.. I emailed him via myspace...
I'll interpret a "no response" as affirmation of my little detective work...
but if he actually does reply... I'll likely shit my pants.....

oh shit... I just thought of something, we covered one of his tunes back in the early 90's on the Jack Harbour Lookout Cassette... We gave full credit on that to the writers/publishers in so far as Radio is concerned, but we never asked for the publishers permission or paid that 7.7 cents per cassette your spose to pay.. Maybe hes looking for the 77 bucks we owe him (we only had 1,000 made, sold mostly door to door... hey, it was Newfoundland in the late 80's and early 90's thats how it got done)

Marty, if your reading this.. Sorry Man.. I'll gladly pay the 77 bucks man... just give me your address, and I'll deliver it in person.!

My Little Engineer???

My little darling helping daddy out in the studio... "is this the off button"


besides, there's lots of shiny things is here with buttons to press!!! What kid wouldnt want to play in here.. I know I do!!


its significantly over crowded in here.. with Stuff on all the walls, ledges, guitars, cables, files, receipts, tax stuff, a little corner where I plug in my work laptop to catch up on stuff... but in spite of the clutter, and that i can't always crank the volume as much as I'd like, its still my favorite room in the house..

It is an addicition... but it sure is fun...

I can come down here and spend hours, days, weeks.. and not get bore, not watch tv, not eat..... and time just melts away..



Next on the radar is this bad-boy... or reasonable fascimile there-of..... for Live sound..

its not the "if I won the loto" version.. that would have motorized faders and all that jazz, but for the money, I think this is the best bang for the buck.. Bout 520US on ebay.. Not bad at all... gonna try to squirrel that away for my birthday... we'll see how the spring goes...

If Im lucky, my daughter will get into this stuff so I'll have an added reason to keep it growing.. Far better then a Nintendo, at least thats my opinion

The Full Circle Sets at the Palace for the ECMA's

not the best sound, coming off the vid-cam, but not too shabby..

That's me on the left!



part 2



Part 3

My First Appearance on Q104 (sort of)

well... Im not even sure if my name will be mentioned or not... But I did contribute to the content at least on a small level..

I played keys for Bernie Doucette's new album... and its getting some airplay tonight...

as I set my "tape deck" up to record from the radio, I had a flash back to junior high when thats how ya made a mixed tape!!! My how things have changed...

Minglewood Rocked the Marquee Club!

What can I say.... Matt is 60 and the phrase "still got it" just doesnt do him justice..

i think he just gets better every year man.... Wow..

An added treat, Mat Anderson Opened, and Dorris Mason and Wayne Nicholson also took the stage with Mat..

Im at a loss for words.. so just watch the video




Thank you Cindy for baby sitting...

Steve Furey ROCKS!!

not only is he a wicked guitarplayer, but a web "go-to" guy also

he's graciously offered to host the MP3's of the Jam party until I can get my own website up and running..

if you want to download some tunes, go to..

http://stevefurey.com/Jamparty/

one request, is that you preserve the file names and clip info.. takes a long time to key all that crap in, so please don't alter it...

I've listed them in the order that they were played live.. (01,02,.... 19, 29, etc)


NOTE: while certainly listenable, the mix is not, well, my best work..
a couple of tracks were too loud coming into the board... price you pay for not having a sound guy I guess, but once that distortion is there, you can't get rid of it.. I processed those tracks as much as I could, but its easier to boost a low signal, then scale back one thats too hot..

Also... Given the Mass amount of tunes, and the distortion, I really didnt spend a whole lot of time on the mix... pretty much just got it "ok" in the headphones and let it run, notching stuff up or down here and there.... so there will be some stuff occasionally too loud or too low, but oh well... this is just for fun, so I didnt stress too much over it...

Also... a lot of these musicians had never played together before.. and/or were playing tunes they miht not of known.... that said.. there are mistakes, but theres still some Great Stuff here well worth listening to.. for me, the mistakes are part of the fun of live music.. and learning on the fly..


There's only be a few tuenes there at the moment, but more will appear over time so keep checking back...

thanks again steve, and thanks to all the musicians who played.. We've allready booked the hall, pa and sound guy for next year so mark Dec 29th on your calender.

Portable Studio For Hire...

Ok.. Im up and running now 100% so please pass the word..

Here, in short, is my business plan....

Most musicians I've met have a "copy" of Cubase, Cakewalk, Pro-tools etc. to play with.. What few have, however, is the ability to get more then one track at a time on there.. this is where I come in..

For a fee, (i.e. 250) I will come to your gig or rehersal space, record up to 14 tracks of audio digitally,up to 40-50 tunes... or whoever many you'd play at a gig..

Thats about 6 bucks per tune when you break it down// pretty Cheap I think... But Im doing this for the love of music, not to get rich.. BUT, at 250 for a nite of fun, it will help me pay for some of this gear....

Then... I'll provide you with a data disk or DVD with each song in its own directory, and each instrument on its own track, that you can easliy load onto your recording software... Once there.. you can edit, add effects, fix mistakes, and master it down for your Demo or CD..



IF you want me to master it, I'd have to charge a little more.. simply because of the amount of time it takes, but given my relative "rookie" status at the mastering part of the process, Im not actively promoting that portion yet...

I've got compressors, effects, pre-amps, and a 100ft cable snake, and XLR and 1/4 inch splitter, and other stuff to make it real clean and simple...

Pass the word around...

Thanks

Wise Guys

man.... I get so envious when I hear a good band...

Meet the "Wise guys"



Rob Francis, who plays for the band Hawco
Brian Zinc, who plays in barnacle
and Jon Matheson...
Note for note.. these guys can play circles around me... But god bless em, they got me up to jam for 3 tunes... and that is always a ton of fun...


I kind of flubbed my way through 867-5309, but redeemed my self with Blow at High Dough, and Paint it Black...

the only one I really knew was the Hip, the other 2 I tried to learn tonight, between supper, and heading out the door.. didnt help that I learned the Tommy Tutone tune in the wrong key.. but oh well..

It was a light, but appreciative crowd.. I got to talking with Sound guy, Donny... another hell of a nice guy... he was there back when I played the Penny with Full Circle...

Anyway.. they are still there now.. but 6am comes fast.... opps... its how late???

All hyper now, want to practice, but should sleep..

Nite all...

Oh and to my big sister, THANK YOU for baby sitting this coming Saturday.. I got a hot date with my wife to check out Matt Anderson and Matt Minglewood!!!

should be a blast..
Oh... one last thing....


Live From PEGGYS COVE!

I can't say any more then that.. but just remember you saw it here first ok!! I may have more details in the future.. but for now, be content with that teaser..

Also.. I might be on BT in a week or two with Bernie fo Fuller Terrace (I played keys on his new CD) Roger Howse payed guitar on some of it also.. While Bernies got a great Cd there.. i was just as excited to be able to say that I played on a CD with Roger Howse... but with technology these days... I never actually met any of the other musicians (except bernie, and Dennis, the producer, and well, actually Brian Zinc also did some tracks, and I just met him tonight)

outside of Atlantic Canada, many might not know Roger Howse. but to me, it was just as cool as jamming with Eric Clapton (I haven't but im just comparing, putting Roger in that league.. He's that good..) So its looking like now not only can i say im on a CD with Roger, I might also get to jam with him LIVE on tv...

Will keep you posted when I learn more..

Cheers..

Jam Party Almost Completely Mixed down...

I have been fustrated with the lack of time I've had to put into this lately...
and to add to my fustration, the time I seem to have coincides with when my 2 year old is sleeping, and my studio, unfortunately, is beneath her room...

So, I haven't been able to give this my Best effort.. but like I said early..

I eventually said 'F-it" i'll just do it..

So I got a tolerable base mix, put the headphones on, and let it run..

Some stuff is too loud, some stuff is not load enuff.. some stuff is distorted, etc... but it was not a paying gig anyway, just for fun.. so what the hell...

So if you were there.. and want a copy.. email me... I'll hook you up....

The Pains of a Music Addiction...

any one who is a musician, or the spouse of one, knows full well how friggin expensive this stuff can be... My wife jokes that a drug habit might be cheaper.. (although we both aggree not as much fun)

anyway... I'd been wanting a cable snake for a LONG time now..

its on the "list", but more importantly, its a great tool as an add on for my little side business of "portable studio for hire"

So i'd ordered one before xmas, but had to send it back.. it was defective, but the sellor gave me FULL refund, so no harm, no foul.. but I realy wanted to do my homework before getting the next one..

so... I've been researching, shopping, bugging sales people and techs for Months since.
And I finally made my choice, and my purchase.... I didn't get the Best Quality... So It may not last as long as some of the more Serious versions... BUT for my use, it should be good enuf.. and by the time I destroy it.. with any luck, I'll be in a better position to get a professional series one from a more known firm..


Anyway... all the work it took to find, research, compare, blah blah blah.. was Really really fun... and I hate shopping.. but now that its ordered.. as much as Im glad to finally have it done, it does come with some sadness...

I mean theres a certain level of Anticipation that comes with the whole Waiting, looking, shopping.. but Now that its on its way... and my 2007 Music Budget is OVER, Done, fin-EE-toe, as they say... (aka.. no more music expenses for a long long time) human nature wants to say "ok, what next" but practically speaking, Im done...

Sure, theres more stuff on the dream to do list.. but I'm getting into the bigger ticket arena now.... and that takes a lot more time to build up towards..

oh well... Maybe if the studio for hire actually makes a few bucks I can funnel that toward a PA or mixing board.... untill then.. I'll find contentment somehow... (Boys and their toys eh!!)


in more interesting news..
Jon Matheson, Rob Francis and another guy I've not yet met are fronting JAM NITE at the COPPER PENNY Thursday nite (AKA THIS THURSDAY, TOMORROW NITE, or today depending on when you read this)

im gonna go, and jam. I encourage you to come do the same!!!

Cheers..

Self Emposed Censorship Sucks

Sometimes I'd like it if this was one of those "Anonymous" blogs.. where I could really say what I think with remote, if any, chance of "fall-out" .. but it is'nt.. and I even learned recently that if one were to Google me.. among other sites that I've set up (My Space, MSN, youtube, some work related stuff) it will link you straight to here...

as a result, I often "choose my words" carefully... Very carefully..

Not that this is well read... to my knowledge only 3 people actually tune in regularly... which while not a lot, its still flatering, considering neither of those include my wife or parents.... HA!

but anyway... Just as an example of self imposed censoring, .. something that I'm really excited about happend today.. but I cant mention it...

Nothing bad, nothing vulgar, just something of personal interest I'm really f--king excited about... and also nervous.. but for reasons that would only be clear if I actualy came out and said it... I just can't go there...

Maybe someday I'll reference this and say... this is what I was talking about... but its one thing to say something "looking back"... looking ahead is a.... oh damnit.. never mind..

anyway.. outside of that that i can't really say.. nothing much new..

had a good day at work, blah blah blah, backs been acting up a little more then usual, but that usually coincided with how busy work is.. not that its physically laborous, but hunched over the computer, carrying the laptop, long hours.. just add fuel to the fire.....

House is stil a mess, but were working on it.. and no time left for music again today..

I think we should start a club...

The, "I wont appologize for the mess in the house because we live here and this is just the way it is and if you dont like it theres the door" club....

I think people would join... We could have meetings where we'd just talk about the mess... and make jokes about it, but never actually get around to cleaning it.. argg... .. the intent of the club would be to globally lower acceptable standards for household cleanliness.. (i.e. dust-bunies of dog fur would be encouraged, not frowned upon)

oh well.. thats it.. Im tapped out...

Nope.. spoke too soon, just realized I need to get the old laptop out and do some work stuff... oh well.. life certainly could be a lot worst..

Anyway.. for the 3 regular readers (who I think read this when they are at work Pretending to actually do work) if you have some free time, and theres nothing interesint happending on 95.7, then click on these links below (some randome google results of "moi"

But I caution you.. you could be BOORED to tears.. its really not that interesting..

I may aspire to be "interesting" but reality is that Im really just a boring average joe....



random Links about or refrencing ... ME!
Korg T1 Review
References on Steve Furys site....
NS Classic Rock Guestbook.. (im there somewhere)
SuperStack
(incidentely, they are my pick for "the" band to watch.. these guys are WICKED AWESOME and My style of music...
Demnark Productions
Ron Hynes
Some randome dude's blog

and If you really want to know what I can't say today.. just ask me.. maybe I'll tell you in person..

nite

Best Laid Plans

well.. i fully intended to get some more work done tonight on the taxes, and/or mixing.. but after i got the little one to sleep, I came down, looked at the pile of receipts on the floor, the busting open envelops of receipts still not totaled... and decided no.. not tonight..

instead I messed around with Quicken a bit.. (I committed to using it weekly so next year this nonsense will be easier) stuff the totalled receipts away, and called it a night...

Not that its late... but I need a break... was a long day (seems they all are) and I need to have my "top game" available for tomorrow.. so I think I'll just hit the hay early...

Cheers..

P.S. Bonus points if you know who that dude in the picture is.... (Hint, was my nik name last year of High-school)

Mending Fences...

15 years ago I was in a great little cover band Called "Crossfire"

Good bunch of Guys, and good friends... but, long story short... we were all young, headstrong perhaps.. and when it ended, it didnt end exactly well..

I wont go into what the argument was about, but at the time, I was convinced quite passionatly that "I was right and they were wrong" or as Cat Stevens wrote "its them, you know, not me"

Anyway.. its funny how time heals all...



as I was cutting the VHS tape of old footage of the band off on DVD and putting some of it on u-tube... I realized that, ok.. while maybe I had a "point" they actually had a damn good one too... and maybe, just maybe, I'd behaved like a 20 year old asshole... (as opposed to the 35 year old asshole I am today.. ha ha ha)











Ok... no maybes about it... I was an asshole... But, in my defence, i was only 20 and 20 year olds are expected to behave like assholes.... arnt they???





regardless... I set out to find them... and see if we couldn't bury the hatchet....


I found the Singer, Dan, about a week ago, and the guitarist, Brad, found me today... all via the internet and email...

God bless technology.... And God Bles Dan and Brad

long story short they all feel the same way and I couldn't be happier to have reconnected, and had a chance to appologize for my part in it... its like a weights been lifted off my chest...

they're each doing well, and I'm looking forward to getting to know them again, and maybe catching up with some beers sometime soon... Im actually embarassed I didnt do this sooner... I've missed out on 15 years of friendship, emails, and so on... But better late then never...

All in all.. this has been a great weekend...

opps... spoke too soon.... As I look around here, cleaning up and stuff, I just realized I got some prep work to do for work tomorrow, and my back's aching (usualy does that this time of day) I'll have to delay taking the ol' pain killers till after the works done, otherwise it'll take me 2 hours to do 15 minutes of work...

oh well.. Work or no work.. its still been a great weekend... Hope it sets the pace for the whole week ahead...

Nite all..

Tunes and Taxes

Im not proud, but I still dont have my 2005 taxes done.. Between being a relatively new parent, the back injury, increased work pressure, my course, it just never seemed to get done.. ANd they owe ME money.... I know.. stupid me... oh well...

anyway... Im biting the bullet and commited to getting 05 and 06 done within the next week...

Another thing I've procrastinated on is Mixing down the Jam party..

its hard work actually...Ok, thats a Lie... I LOVE doing that kind of stuff.. But its hard work making time to get at it....

I typicaly can't get to it AT all while my daughters awake, as she kind requires constant attention.. then I can't realy crank my speakers when she's napping or is in bed, or I'll wake her up... So its been hard to find good quality time to mix it..

Add to that, some of the levels were too Hot coming into the board and caused some mega distorted signals and clipping that CAN"T be fixed, and that it was my first time testing the board with a Full Live band, AND that it was mostly an unrehearsed Jam session, and I didnt have the drums mic'd correctly.. and (ok.. thats enough excuses) its just been hard getting round it it.. and a little fustrating...

but I said "fuck it" it was a fun party... Im not going to take the fun out mixing the recording by getting all stressed out.. im just gonna do it...

I spent a little time getting what I thought was a decent speaker mix before sarah went for her nap, then turned off the speakers.. put Sarah down for her nap, put the monitor on my desk so I could see it (it has LED meter), put the headphones on, and just let it roll... And, to make the most efficient use of time, I keyed in a bunch of receipts (part of the process towards completing my taxes) while I was listening...

i didnt get all caught up on getting the best eq or effect or processor settings for each track.. i just let it roll as I was sorting and recording my receipts.... and every now and then, made an adjustment here and there... its not as good as it could be..given how fast I blew through it, and that I used only head phones, not speakers... . but it'll be good enuff for rock and roll... besides.. some good friends and musicians who came out to play that night have been waiting to hear it.. so I'd like to get it done as a thank you to them also...

anyway... Im almost done the 2nd set now... 18 songs in total done... And I got some good work done towards the tax stuff..... I'd like to do more.. but i need a break.. and I need some sleep....

will have to take a break here now.. and come back at it another day..

in other Music news, I also got the footage of Full circle at the ECMA's on DVD and also got the Bob Ezrin talk on DVD...

I'd promised a copy of the later to new friend and fellow musician Ray Mattie from the band Pogey so he dropped over to pick it up and was kind enough to bring a much appreciated Timmy's coffee on the way...

if your reading this Ray, I rolled up the rim, but I didnt win bud.......

which leads me to a very good question about Rim Rilling protocal...


if someone Buys you a coffee, and its a winner... and not a winner of a free bagel.. I mean the car, or the plasma TV..... how would you handle that? would you tell the person and share the win? or what??

lets consider it an online poll.. click the comments section below here and leave your answer... I'll post the results later...

Cheers for now..

Found my 6 - Shooter

No.. not a gun... a mug... A REALLY cool mug...

ok, maybe not cool, but very usefull...

I had a bunch of these from the COCA convention back in 94 (Canadian Organization of Campus Activities) I'd been there in 92 as a buyer for Grenfell College, so when Halifax hosted it again in 94, I volunteered to work security just to get in...

Anyway.. Me and Purp, (my old roomate) made the Rounds, and when we realized the parties we were spose to "calm down" were way cooler then any security job, we quit, (but I think we forgot to tell our bosses we quit) and joined in... I'd made friends with the bass player from a Metal band called Crimson Jimson, and he made the rounds with us..

there was one room at the hotel, where a comedy troop called "Blood Royal" had completly dissassembled the beds, and neatly packed them against the wall.. In its place, in the middle of the room, was a Dental chair... and here they were, in full medical garb.... their Schtick was you'd recline in the chair, and they'd have a 3 ounce syringe that they'd fill with a mixture of something red (i think just food coloring or fruit juice) and BOOZE and they'd shoot this concoction stright down your throat, and give you a sticker on your arm.. "I got my shot from Blood Royal" with their agents number on it... Brilliant actually, considering most of the people taking the free booze were "campus programers" who could block book these guys from St. Johns to Port Alberni!! anyway... last thing I remember is leaving Fabian James room (of Lambert and james) where all the boys from Great Big Sea were, along with 2 of the Rose Vaughn Trio and a wicked little jam session was going on... We stayed there until someone brought out the bagpipes...

Anyway.. I'd bumped in to Allan the next moring in South End Halifax... We were both doing the "walk of shame" and stopped to talk...

apparantly the Bad Pipes were the Hotels "Last Straw" and they got kicked out.. Some lady was good enough to take him in... Im still not sure where I ended up... and Im not sure if I want to... but thats a Whole nother story...

Im straying off topic here...

my mug... yes....

Anyway. i had a bunch of these (from the COCA SWAG BAG) and had given a bunch away.. but hung onto this one... I'd lost it at Mikes (neighbor and good friend) some time ago and found it there last week...

I call it my 6-shooter cause its the Perfect size for Six Shots of rum, Ice, Lime and Coke!! A perfect amount for a quick drink accross the street... Which is what i di friday nite, while Trena was getting Sarah ready for bed...

I'd just taken my medication for the old back, and needed a stiff drink to help take the edge off.... What better then to enjoy a drink with Some good friends...

So that was the beging of a great weekend..

Saturday Trena's parents came up... they offerd to take Sarah for the day, so we had an unplanned Free day to piddle-fart around... No agenda, no to-do list, no schedule, no pressure.. it was a lot of fun actually... Some shopping, some browsing, ran in to two good friends we've lost touch with and talked them into having supper with us at the Mic Mac Beverage room.... then it was some moe shopping, and then home...

pretty relaxing... then it was a movie on the couch, and a nice snooze.... Not overly exciting, but sometimes those are the best kinds of weekends... Very relaxing.. just what we needed actually...

Calgon take me away...

Life is hard work...

Work is hard work....

Does it ever get easy???? maybe on tv.... oh well..

I think about back when i was 18-24... seems like I had all the time in the world, and all we did was have fun... made the most of every hour... we were broke, but we were rich in friendship and good times...

Now... seems like you blink, and a fucking year goes by... and you play phone tag and email tag for 3 weeks or MONTHS just to coordinate a coffee with your friends...

its sad really.....

I shouldnt complain, I mean life could be a hell of a lot worst.. but I do miss the simple things... seems we get so caught up in the rat race, that its easy to forget what your racing for...

Case and point, one of my best friends in the world was in town last week staying at another of my best friends place... and I blew it off to SLEEP!!! I was out by 10pm!!! sad really..... pathetic..

anyway... Im rambling.. and just a little jaded perhaps.. but I need to get over that...

its now March, and Im no further ahead mixing the December jam party to cd then I was the week after.... and thats just one example.. but such is life.. only so many hours in a day, days in a week, etc...

When it come to hobbys, and the fun stuff, seems like lately theres a lot of "get ready, get set" but no "go" arrrggg...... but also, theres times I could devote to it that I chose not to, and end up whith my arse in front of the TV instead... But I think thats partialy a defence issue...

problem is, is thats what I could REALLY get passionate about.. I can spend 8 hours mixing or even just learning one song... and it feels like 5 min.. but then when you have to put it down, and step back to reality, its just a little heartbreaking.... if that makes any sense at all.. So sometimes, I just avoid it.. but im getting better at that... trying to get some "balance"

But, that said, I still sometimes think back about the road not taken and wonder what could have happend if?

like the chance to work as a "piss-ant" for Spectacle entertainment brokers (then a division of DKD) back in the day, just as one example... Now, I should clarify so no one calls me a fucking liar, that I never had an official job offer, but I am 110% postive I could have weaseled my way in the front door as a gopher or something... I had done some work with them through the university, and done some freelance work booking a club tour for a band called TOO many Cooks, for them... Even had my name on the DKD letter head (albiet just fax paper with contract riders, etc) but the fact is, is that I had an "IN" as they say, and "piss-ants" are cheap.. So Im sure I could have gotten in, even if it was at the bottom...... And If i'd done that, and worked as hard as i've worked in my current field.. where would I be today?

Who knows...
oh well, hindsight is 20/20..

My current "day job" is actualy a good one in the bigger scheme of things, ... But I think I'm at a point where I lack the "passion" and commitment to truly advance much further... My heart just isnt in it.. oh well... "Suck it up princess" as they say on TV...

teachers have it made.. summers off, the occasional "sabbatical".... man.. what i could do with that amount of spare time... makes me very jealous... Im sure they have stress, otherwise it wouldnt be caled 'work'. but I guess its real easy to point and assume the grass is greener on the other side... . (fuck, can I use any more cliche analogies???)

go to bed rob!! (ok, now Im talking to myself)

oh well.. thats why theres nothing new in my blog sinse ECMA's... sadly, other then go to work, come home, sleep.. .not much has happened since... but thats how it goes sometimes..
"Some days your drinking the wine, some days your picking the grapes"

maybe tomorrow i'll have some "wine" figuratively speeking of course... Im more of a rum man myself (appleton reserve to be exact) But thats just me.. I aint all that cultured... last time I drank a bottle of wine, it was the only booze int he house, I was doing some plumbing the basement, and I killed a bottle of homemade risling with a bag of jube-junes........ Yes sirr... I butt the ASS back in clASS HA!!!!

nite all