I decided today that this would be a good time to give a bit of a background, indirectly about me, via my parents. I think it will help you somewhat in understanding me and my music just a little better.
I also realize that it may be fairly lengthy, so I may tell this story in a few parts. It's not a complicated story, but some depth is required to convey it and the relationship to my music.
I truly hope that it is as enjoyable for everyone, as it is cathartic for me...
At another point I plan to write about my Sisters, and their role in my musical life...
OK, so here goes...
My father was James Maxwell Tuitt (aka Big Jim, and/or Nicky). He was born on November 17th, 1921, in Harlem. Dad was by all accounts a very positive person ALWAYS. He was just one of those rare people that come along who truly had the courage of their conviction, and I've been told that he was gorgeous in his younger days (he was to me all my life).
Dad was a Navy vet serving in World War II. When he returned home after his service he became a Firefighter with the greatest Fire Dept in the world, New York City. where he remained for 32 years retiring as a Deputy Commissioner.
During that time he also had second profession: he worked as a councelor at the Boy's and Girls' Club of Mount Vernon, NY until he became the director.
Mr.Tuitt loved music, and everything about it. He loved all kinds of music, but he especially loved the cultural aspects of it and how it affected everyone.
I watched my Dad have get togethers and set a mood with music that would make James Bond envious, and he just seemed to know the right thing to say to keep the vibe mellow. In short he could read people really well and get them energized through his choice of music. He was also an accomplished photographer.
My mother was Carmen Loretta Charles. Her birthday was September 12th,1921. She was also born in Harlem (she in fact grew up directly next door to the world famous Cotton Club, at that time located on 142nd Street and Lenox Ave.).
By every account, my mother I'm told was a brilliant woman, she graduated from Julia Richmann High School at 16, unheard of for a Black woman in those days.
Ma too was into music, in her case though more as a listener than participant but she knew style. Carmen had legs to die for and she could dance her butt off. She was heavy but that didn't stop the fellas from trying to latch on to her (a childhood boyfriend of hers once told me that "she just oozed sexiness.")
At some point in their young lives, they felt the need to return to school to take some courses (it was actually night school) and the enevitable happened, they met fell in love and in short order they married.
Now here's the slightly tricky part; my mother's father, a strict West Indian from Antigua did not initially think that it was good idea for Ma to see Daddy much less entertain the notion of being his wife: "men from Monserrat (my Dad's ancestry) don't work, their women do,"was the lament of my grandfather, but the redeeming quality here was music. Not only did my father work, but he shared his earnings with my Grandfather and his family. On Fridays when Daddy got paid he treated my Mom and her family to ice cream and an occasional Friday night dance held someplace in Harlem. This began to breakdown the barriers that my grandfather put up, and years later was a valid point in my life about how to deal with people.
When my parents divorced in my seventh year, for all intents and purposes I could have become a disengaged child, but that never happened for me because although my parents split apart, somehow the bond of their friendship remained and grew stronger. I mean yes they were on the outs as husband and wife but as two friends if you never knew that they had been married you'd think 'at any time these two are gonna get hitched.' You see the reserve tank of friendship kept their machine running for life. It's the one thing that from all of the harsh realities of them divorcing that made it palatable...they stayed friends, and even forgave.
My Mother was employed at The Bronx District Attorney's Office, and for 16 of 32 years she was the adminstrative assistant to the Bronx DA. and the first African American woman to hold the job, a first for New York City
My parents were at once loving, caring, strong and visionary. They were the kind of people that you didn't ever want to make mad because they were eloquent enough to cut you down like a tree, but plant you and watch you grow all with words.
When I decided in my life that I wanted to be a musician, without any hesitation at all they got behind me and encouraged me. Lessons, recitals, gigs, saxophonist sideman, vocalist, they went through it all with me always pointing out things that needed work or things that were great about what I was doing.
Disappointments were many in my young musician days, tears flowed freely and often, and through it all the Tuitt family used style and grace to help shore me up.
One of the things that I am most grateful for was the exposure to all kinds of people and music.
My Mom never understood opera but she took me to see it because I thought that it would be good for me. My Dad took me to jazz concerts around the city, at one point I even got to spend my entire Summer playing with the Count Basie band and was a featured young saxophone soloist, and I got paid to boot (not bad for a kid from The Bronx, huh!?).
There is so much that I owe to my parents that this post could never hold it all so I'm gonna end this part here.
If you want to keep up with these particular posts they will be numbered after this along with the same title. I hope that you enjoy them.
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Monday, May 16, 2005
I'm Happy to be Here
During the course of writing these blog posts I'm sure that I may come across as a person who sees the world through rose colored glasses, or that I want something so desperately that I've sacrificed alot of things to make it come about, or even worse as a pompous annoying a**hole ( at least that's my take on it !).
I want to say right here and now that this is not my intention, nor is it my desire to annoy anyone. It is my desire to create dialogue among people, but dialogue that is meaningful to all involved.
When my band signed with a record company a few years ago, we were to say the least very hopeful of the outcome...to release our third CD. Like it or not, believe it or not everybody who is trying to make their life's work in music has this same struggle. If you were to look into the career paths of anyone that you like in the music business you'll find that it was filled with struggles; and some far greater than not having their music released to the public.
The concern that I have is more along the lines of frustration that for all the people that we've worked with or for that matter all the people that we know, why is it that no one has picked us up yet. There is really a twofold answer to that question: 1, is that we're in a market that makes it fairly difficult in which to get noticed , and 2, there are still things that we need to do to make ourselves more marketable; but believe me it's not like we aren't trying.
In the meantime, I need for you to know that for me personally, I am very happy to be here. I really am in situations that are meaningful and worthwhile to me. Working for the greatest library system in the state of West Virginia, having a second family in my co-workers, having a caring boss ( and former bosses) who constantly challenge and inspire you to be your best, and to awaken everyday and know that the work that I do matters to people is more gratifying and more satisfying than you can imagine...as much as playing music. In fact it's my alternative music.
There are alot of people in the world with all kinds of dreams...I'm just one of them, but I also am as realistic as possible, I know that for some people it may not be in the cards, although I'm optomistic and hopeful.
I found out today that more people are reading this than I thought, and that too is gratifying for me. As I said, my aim is to get people talking about the music industry and to share success stories as well as not so successful stories. By creating this dialogue maybe, just maybe those of us who are striving in it will have some clear cut ideas or thoughts on how not be standing in the shadows of music.
I want to say right here and now that this is not my intention, nor is it my desire to annoy anyone. It is my desire to create dialogue among people, but dialogue that is meaningful to all involved.
When my band signed with a record company a few years ago, we were to say the least very hopeful of the outcome...to release our third CD. Like it or not, believe it or not everybody who is trying to make their life's work in music has this same struggle. If you were to look into the career paths of anyone that you like in the music business you'll find that it was filled with struggles; and some far greater than not having their music released to the public.
The concern that I have is more along the lines of frustration that for all the people that we've worked with or for that matter all the people that we know, why is it that no one has picked us up yet. There is really a twofold answer to that question: 1, is that we're in a market that makes it fairly difficult in which to get noticed , and 2, there are still things that we need to do to make ourselves more marketable; but believe me it's not like we aren't trying.
In the meantime, I need for you to know that for me personally, I am very happy to be here. I really am in situations that are meaningful and worthwhile to me. Working for the greatest library system in the state of West Virginia, having a second family in my co-workers, having a caring boss ( and former bosses) who constantly challenge and inspire you to be your best, and to awaken everyday and know that the work that I do matters to people is more gratifying and more satisfying than you can imagine...as much as playing music. In fact it's my alternative music.
There are alot of people in the world with all kinds of dreams...I'm just one of them, but I also am as realistic as possible, I know that for some people it may not be in the cards, although I'm optomistic and hopeful.
I found out today that more people are reading this than I thought, and that too is gratifying for me. As I said, my aim is to get people talking about the music industry and to share success stories as well as not so successful stories. By creating this dialogue maybe, just maybe those of us who are striving in it will have some clear cut ideas or thoughts on how not be standing in the shadows of music.
Sunday, May 15, 2005
A Wild and Crazy Farewell
If you are a fan of Rockabilly music, then at some point you may have heard the name of Hasil Adkins. The Haze, or the Wildman of Boone County as he was called was a dynamo in every sense of the word. He could get drunk with the best of 'em, and completely tear down a joint with some of the most outrageous music this side of Punk Rock.
There are any number of crazy stories floating around the universe about Hasil.
Unfortunately a few weeks ago the world lost a true ecclectic genius, as Hasil died of an apparent heart attack.
I'm not certain of the details of his personal finances, but for one reason or another tonight there was a benefit concert show dedicated to him. It was held at the Empty Glass, and when I tell you that it was as unorganized as anything could possibly get that's offering a true glimpse into the world that was Hasil.
The event started off with me not knowing any details in terms of the time that the Carpenter Ants were scheduled to play, then finding out that we were to play at 10:50 pm (we were there at 8 pm). First problem for us is that Michael wasn't in town ( He's in Phoenix Arizona, playing with our good friend Joe Rathbone), then our backup guitarist was a no show even for his own part of the show.
Prior to the event a woman walked up to me and asked if I were in the Carpenter Ants? When I informed her that I was indeed, she told me that we were playing her wedding. Well right now we are in the midst of a serious schedule problem. We have a fairly important gig on the day that I thought was her wedding, so I tell her that I was trying to locate her to see if something else can't be done. All of this only to find I was talking to the wrong woman...whew!!! Scared the daylights out of both of us. Poor Joanna almost went into convulsions.
Back to the show...there was one crazy thing after another then we went on with a guitar player named Jamie Adkins who had never played with us before but did a great job on short notice.
Jennifer Lilly, the young lady who was thrust into putting this event together normally is very organized, but this was a bit much even for her, but as I thought about it I thought, wait a minute, Hasil was the most unorthodox, unorganized person I'd ever met... this was perfect !!! The mix of people there was as ecclectic as he was, and I was really taken by just how much people were affected by his passing.
People show their respects in some crazy ways but this tribute to me spoke volumes of how much Hasil was really liked and how much in his own way he gave us all something.
Haze, wherever you are I truly hope that you are resting in peace. This was a wild and crazy farewell and we will miss you...goodnight brother.
There are any number of crazy stories floating around the universe about Hasil.
Unfortunately a few weeks ago the world lost a true ecclectic genius, as Hasil died of an apparent heart attack.
I'm not certain of the details of his personal finances, but for one reason or another tonight there was a benefit concert show dedicated to him. It was held at the Empty Glass, and when I tell you that it was as unorganized as anything could possibly get that's offering a true glimpse into the world that was Hasil.
The event started off with me not knowing any details in terms of the time that the Carpenter Ants were scheduled to play, then finding out that we were to play at 10:50 pm (we were there at 8 pm). First problem for us is that Michael wasn't in town ( He's in Phoenix Arizona, playing with our good friend Joe Rathbone), then our backup guitarist was a no show even for his own part of the show.
Prior to the event a woman walked up to me and asked if I were in the Carpenter Ants? When I informed her that I was indeed, she told me that we were playing her wedding. Well right now we are in the midst of a serious schedule problem. We have a fairly important gig on the day that I thought was her wedding, so I tell her that I was trying to locate her to see if something else can't be done. All of this only to find I was talking to the wrong woman...whew!!! Scared the daylights out of both of us. Poor Joanna almost went into convulsions.
Back to the show...there was one crazy thing after another then we went on with a guitar player named Jamie Adkins who had never played with us before but did a great job on short notice.
Jennifer Lilly, the young lady who was thrust into putting this event together normally is very organized, but this was a bit much even for her, but as I thought about it I thought, wait a minute, Hasil was the most unorthodox, unorganized person I'd ever met... this was perfect !!! The mix of people there was as ecclectic as he was, and I was really taken by just how much people were affected by his passing.
People show their respects in some crazy ways but this tribute to me spoke volumes of how much Hasil was really liked and how much in his own way he gave us all something.
Haze, wherever you are I truly hope that you are resting in peace. This was a wild and crazy farewell and we will miss you...goodnight brother.
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Lucky 13
The scene: Friday night, the Vandalia Lounge, Charleston WV, the newest happening in the city. This is Charleston's answer to Cafe Society; all the hip , stylish, suave ( or would be suave) perfectly coiffed, slick back, high heeled and pseudo riche' were in attendance.
Another pretentious night in the city? Oh no, not by a long shot...
Much to the credit of the establishers of the Vandalia Lounge they've raised the bar on entertainment, class and fun. Not only have the Carpenter Ants done well there, but also, we've met some pretty fascinating folks and as they used to say back in the day some "beautiful people."
Over the years that I've been in this band we've made several forays to clubs in the downtown area of Charleston ( now mind you Charleston is not some sprawling metropolis... in other words, it ain't New York), all with the hopes of getting accepted in our hometown dashed by people who just didn't get the point of what we do.
Here's an example: once, we played in the now defunct (thank goodness) club called Mulligans, and a woman there and I got into a heated argument because she was angry that we would have the "audacity to play gospel music in a bar, that we would disgrace the Lord by even eluding to references of HIM in a place where people were having drinks and letting their hair down." Follow me closely here... 3 months later, I was asked to come to Mulligans to be a guest speaker about my religion, Islam; at a series that the club was starting on Tuesdays at the time aimed at bringing the church to all people, everywhere, even in the pub. Well much to my amazement, in attendance that night was the very woman who argued me down when we played there. She completely forgot that just a few weeks before she wanted to kill me for doing what we did, in the same place ( is that not ironic).
It seemed that almost anytime we played anywhere outside of the Empty Glass this is the resistence we'd meet.
If you have a copy of our CD "Picnic With the Lord, " Michael wrote in the liner notes something that has truly stuck with me lo these many years and it's something that anyone who listens openly to music should know, and accept: "Often there is far less distance between the saints and sinners then the sanctimonious would have you believe. Our aim is touch hearts and souls whether they be in the tavern or the church." A very well said line indeed.
Which brings me back to the Vandalia Lounge; these people get it, and I mean they get it on all levels. They have the correct balance we need to be playing music in a situation like this...THEY ARE OPEN MINDED. Yes there are unbeliveably beautiful women there, yes there are ultra successful business people there, yes the bar staff and waitstaff wear uniforms, yes the clientele mostly are dressed to the nines, and yes to some degree it's a meet market, but that's why you have bands like us there; to help it all along. Nothing I know will win a woman's heart more than if you make her feel special and worthwhile. If you're asking your lady to be your wife, don't you want the world to know how much you love her? You tell me, what says it better than music?
Although all of what I said is true, you still have to be in the frame of mind to have some fun and really let your hair down, and that is what you'll find in spades at the Vandalia.
On a day like Friday the 13th, a seemingly unlucky day, by the accounts of the naysayers, it is truly a good feeling for me and for my bandmates to know that we smoked the place, burned down and blurred the barriers holding people's minds, and helped to loosen the shackles of their week.
For this Black cat, lucky 13 is the number, and I won it at the Vandalia Lounge.
This blog post is dedicated to the staff, management and patrons of the Vandalia Lounge, congratulations, you got it right...continued success.
Another pretentious night in the city? Oh no, not by a long shot...
Much to the credit of the establishers of the Vandalia Lounge they've raised the bar on entertainment, class and fun. Not only have the Carpenter Ants done well there, but also, we've met some pretty fascinating folks and as they used to say back in the day some "beautiful people."
Over the years that I've been in this band we've made several forays to clubs in the downtown area of Charleston ( now mind you Charleston is not some sprawling metropolis... in other words, it ain't New York), all with the hopes of getting accepted in our hometown dashed by people who just didn't get the point of what we do.
Here's an example: once, we played in the now defunct (thank goodness) club called Mulligans, and a woman there and I got into a heated argument because she was angry that we would have the "audacity to play gospel music in a bar, that we would disgrace the Lord by even eluding to references of HIM in a place where people were having drinks and letting their hair down." Follow me closely here... 3 months later, I was asked to come to Mulligans to be a guest speaker about my religion, Islam; at a series that the club was starting on Tuesdays at the time aimed at bringing the church to all people, everywhere, even in the pub. Well much to my amazement, in attendance that night was the very woman who argued me down when we played there. She completely forgot that just a few weeks before she wanted to kill me for doing what we did, in the same place ( is that not ironic).
It seemed that almost anytime we played anywhere outside of the Empty Glass this is the resistence we'd meet.
If you have a copy of our CD "Picnic With the Lord, " Michael wrote in the liner notes something that has truly stuck with me lo these many years and it's something that anyone who listens openly to music should know, and accept: "Often there is far less distance between the saints and sinners then the sanctimonious would have you believe. Our aim is touch hearts and souls whether they be in the tavern or the church." A very well said line indeed.
Which brings me back to the Vandalia Lounge; these people get it, and I mean they get it on all levels. They have the correct balance we need to be playing music in a situation like this...THEY ARE OPEN MINDED. Yes there are unbeliveably beautiful women there, yes there are ultra successful business people there, yes the bar staff and waitstaff wear uniforms, yes the clientele mostly are dressed to the nines, and yes to some degree it's a meet market, but that's why you have bands like us there; to help it all along. Nothing I know will win a woman's heart more than if you make her feel special and worthwhile. If you're asking your lady to be your wife, don't you want the world to know how much you love her? You tell me, what says it better than music?
Although all of what I said is true, you still have to be in the frame of mind to have some fun and really let your hair down, and that is what you'll find in spades at the Vandalia.
On a day like Friday the 13th, a seemingly unlucky day, by the accounts of the naysayers, it is truly a good feeling for me and for my bandmates to know that we smoked the place, burned down and blurred the barriers holding people's minds, and helped to loosen the shackles of their week.
For this Black cat, lucky 13 is the number, and I won it at the Vandalia Lounge.
This blog post is dedicated to the staff, management and patrons of the Vandalia Lounge, congratulations, you got it right...continued success.
Friday, May 13, 2005
Sometimes The Bear Gets You...
Wednesday turned out to be one of those blah, blase' days. For some reason we were just petered out...no energy anywhere, although it wasn't as bad as this post might make it seem.
Days like this make me realize how well we have it, because there are times when we play sooo much that I feel like the man who meets himself in the door of his home on the way in; he becomes a split personality.
Knowing my bandmates like I do I know that in the back of their minds they worry a bit because it seems as though things at the Empty Glass are just fizzling out, hardly anyone comes out for the Wednesday show anymore.
Michael was saying that he thinks it's just the time of year...it's not quite Summer, yet it's not quite Spring either. I think it's just a sign of the economy, people have to hold on to their money a little tighter right now, and in West Virginia the economy is far behind the rest of the country. Everybody's belt has to be tightened right now so entertainment/ recreation is far down the list of must haves unless of course your name is Trump/ Hilton/ Schwartzenidiot or one of those names other than mine.
There's an old saying that comes to mind here, and I think this may sum up the evening pretty well...sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you. The reason I think this might fit is that when things are going great and everything is working in your favor it's easy to forget that people everywhere are doing the best that they can with little, so even if you can take their minds off their troubles for a short while you're ahead of the game, and I do know that we as a group do that.
The music industry might not necessarily be forthright in checking us out but a whole lot of people have and it's just a matter of time before things in the country will turn around and the world will get to hear us. Until then, we can can hold on... we're patient like that.
Days like this make me realize how well we have it, because there are times when we play sooo much that I feel like the man who meets himself in the door of his home on the way in; he becomes a split personality.
Knowing my bandmates like I do I know that in the back of their minds they worry a bit because it seems as though things at the Empty Glass are just fizzling out, hardly anyone comes out for the Wednesday show anymore.
Michael was saying that he thinks it's just the time of year...it's not quite Summer, yet it's not quite Spring either. I think it's just a sign of the economy, people have to hold on to their money a little tighter right now, and in West Virginia the economy is far behind the rest of the country. Everybody's belt has to be tightened right now so entertainment/ recreation is far down the list of must haves unless of course your name is Trump/ Hilton/ Schwartzenidiot or one of those names other than mine.
There's an old saying that comes to mind here, and I think this may sum up the evening pretty well...sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you. The reason I think this might fit is that when things are going great and everything is working in your favor it's easy to forget that people everywhere are doing the best that they can with little, so even if you can take their minds off their troubles for a short while you're ahead of the game, and I do know that we as a group do that.
The music industry might not necessarily be forthright in checking us out but a whole lot of people have and it's just a matter of time before things in the country will turn around and the world will get to hear us. Until then, we can can hold on... we're patient like that.
Sunday, May 08, 2005
Ruth, Esther, Carmen and Virginia
I'm in my fifties now, and my Mother has been gone from my life for a few years, but everything about her is in my memory.
My Mom was a very strong woman who loved to laugh and loved life and all of its endless possiblity, first and foremost though she believed strongly in education."Learn something every semester of your life" was her constant battle cry throughout my life.
With the exception of Ted Harrison's Mother, Virginia, I wasn't fortunate enough to get to know Ruth Lipton (Michael's Mother) or Esther Little (Jupiter's Mother) but I can see the type of ladies they were in their sons. I can tell that they were also strong beautiful ladies, who were the biggest fans of their sons.
In Michael's playing I can hear the sensitive nature of his Mom and the dignity that she must have excuded. In Jupie's playing and his constant wit, I know that his Mom must have been hilariously uproarious but on her game all the time, especially when it counted most.
I did get to know and love Virginia Harrison, and I know that she raised one of the finest human beings that God ever created, for everything about Ted reflects that, his strong personality, his very sensitive nature and his absolute decency.
As you listen to our band one of the things that comes across about us is that we genuinely love to be together making music, we're fiercely independent, but we move forward in one body as we weave our way through our tunes. I like to think that pretty much all that we are as artists we owe to our first and biggest fans/ critics...our Moms, and I wanted to take this day, their day, and let the four of them know that we do remember and honor them, and even though that they are not physically with us they will always have front row seats to wherever we are, because without them there would be no music.
The thing that I've learned the most from being my Mother's son was about caring for others.
Thank you for all of our lessons,and thank you for your unconditional love.
To all Mothers everywhere thank you for all that you are to your children...
This blog is dedicated to Mrs. Ruth Lipton, to Mrs. Esther Little, to Mrs.Carmen L. Tuitt, and to Mrs.Virginia Harrison...
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY
My Mom was a very strong woman who loved to laugh and loved life and all of its endless possiblity, first and foremost though she believed strongly in education."Learn something every semester of your life" was her constant battle cry throughout my life.
With the exception of Ted Harrison's Mother, Virginia, I wasn't fortunate enough to get to know Ruth Lipton (Michael's Mother) or Esther Little (Jupiter's Mother) but I can see the type of ladies they were in their sons. I can tell that they were also strong beautiful ladies, who were the biggest fans of their sons.
In Michael's playing I can hear the sensitive nature of his Mom and the dignity that she must have excuded. In Jupie's playing and his constant wit, I know that his Mom must have been hilariously uproarious but on her game all the time, especially when it counted most.
I did get to know and love Virginia Harrison, and I know that she raised one of the finest human beings that God ever created, for everything about Ted reflects that, his strong personality, his very sensitive nature and his absolute decency.
As you listen to our band one of the things that comes across about us is that we genuinely love to be together making music, we're fiercely independent, but we move forward in one body as we weave our way through our tunes. I like to think that pretty much all that we are as artists we owe to our first and biggest fans/ critics...our Moms, and I wanted to take this day, their day, and let the four of them know that we do remember and honor them, and even though that they are not physically with us they will always have front row seats to wherever we are, because without them there would be no music.
The thing that I've learned the most from being my Mother's son was about caring for others.
Thank you for all of our lessons,and thank you for your unconditional love.
To all Mothers everywhere thank you for all that you are to your children...
This blog is dedicated to Mrs. Ruth Lipton, to Mrs. Esther Little, to Mrs.Carmen L. Tuitt, and to Mrs.Virginia Harrison...
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY
Saturday, May 07, 2005
Do the Right Thing (Parkersburg)
Here's a first...
Friday night in Parkersburg turned out to be one of the most negative evenings we've had in years.
I have to say though, it all started innocently, the night was like any other road trip for us; loads of laughs, a nice relaxing ride with great friends, dinner at a fine restaurant with superb food. That (seemingly) may have been the end of it all, because after we got to the club (The Front Row) things took a little turn south. First, during our sound check I noticed that the main speaker system shorted out and cut off a few times...no problem, a few adjustments and we're back in business, right !! We start playing, and it's going along pretty well, I come off the stage and down front to sing to the audience which is usually my custom to get them into the vibe of the night and to help them to relax and have fun...it's really going well. I tease a gentleman in the audience who seemed out of place but even he now is having fun telling me " how can I feel bad, I'm surrounded by all these beautiful women," and that he was.
Then the second disaster, the main speakers go out again during a crucial point in one of our songs , and the people can only see mouths moving, no sound at all; so we stop, take a break while the crew is trying to work out all the kinks. We go back, and it happens again, then again so now the evening is slowly sliding away from us, people are leaving (thankfully though, not in anger or disgust), the bartenders and waitstaff seemed a bit on edge, because their evening is shot as well, but we're all trying to make the best of it.
We make one last attempt, go back on stage and in short order the sound is gone, so that was that...the end of an uphill battle.
Although the night was shot we still hung around for awhile and chit chatted with some of the patrons who hung in there and refused to be thwarted by it all ( that's a nice feeling).
So it's really late now and we started to load our equipment in the van not even suspecting that there was real trouble right in front of us. We start to load the last pieces into the van when Michael noticed that his personal CD's were missing...that's right, someone broke into his vehicle and stole all his CD's. What's worse is that he had just gotten them and didn't know all that he had.
In an age of having a place "where eveybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came," it's a definite blow to have something like this happen.
Bill Poole who owns and manages the Front Row, is a really really nice and hard working man trying to give some nice to the city of Parkersburg that they might not have otherwise.
It's a slap in the face to him and his staff to have something like that tarnish the good reputation that they have created.
This is the kind of thing that can create a completely bad vibe for a place. I know that I would be very leary of someplace if I feel that while I'm busy inside entertaining them, these same people are outside ripping me off.
Parkersburg, do the right thing; you're a really nice town, don't let the actions of a few idiots ruin it for everyone. Return Michael's things to him.
For all those who read my blog, if you get nothing else out of this, know that it's hard enough to do what we do, we work our butts off for a mere pittance, don't steal from us, we're the very ones on your side, when you rob us you only rob yourself.
Friday night in Parkersburg turned out to be one of the most negative evenings we've had in years.
I have to say though, it all started innocently, the night was like any other road trip for us; loads of laughs, a nice relaxing ride with great friends, dinner at a fine restaurant with superb food. That (seemingly) may have been the end of it all, because after we got to the club (The Front Row) things took a little turn south. First, during our sound check I noticed that the main speaker system shorted out and cut off a few times...no problem, a few adjustments and we're back in business, right !! We start playing, and it's going along pretty well, I come off the stage and down front to sing to the audience which is usually my custom to get them into the vibe of the night and to help them to relax and have fun...it's really going well. I tease a gentleman in the audience who seemed out of place but even he now is having fun telling me " how can I feel bad, I'm surrounded by all these beautiful women," and that he was.
Then the second disaster, the main speakers go out again during a crucial point in one of our songs , and the people can only see mouths moving, no sound at all; so we stop, take a break while the crew is trying to work out all the kinks. We go back, and it happens again, then again so now the evening is slowly sliding away from us, people are leaving (thankfully though, not in anger or disgust), the bartenders and waitstaff seemed a bit on edge, because their evening is shot as well, but we're all trying to make the best of it.
We make one last attempt, go back on stage and in short order the sound is gone, so that was that...the end of an uphill battle.
Although the night was shot we still hung around for awhile and chit chatted with some of the patrons who hung in there and refused to be thwarted by it all ( that's a nice feeling).
So it's really late now and we started to load our equipment in the van not even suspecting that there was real trouble right in front of us. We start to load the last pieces into the van when Michael noticed that his personal CD's were missing...that's right, someone broke into his vehicle and stole all his CD's. What's worse is that he had just gotten them and didn't know all that he had.
In an age of having a place "where eveybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came," it's a definite blow to have something like this happen.
Bill Poole who owns and manages the Front Row, is a really really nice and hard working man trying to give some nice to the city of Parkersburg that they might not have otherwise.
It's a slap in the face to him and his staff to have something like that tarnish the good reputation that they have created.
This is the kind of thing that can create a completely bad vibe for a place. I know that I would be very leary of someplace if I feel that while I'm busy inside entertaining them, these same people are outside ripping me off.
Parkersburg, do the right thing; you're a really nice town, don't let the actions of a few idiots ruin it for everyone. Return Michael's things to him.
For all those who read my blog, if you get nothing else out of this, know that it's hard enough to do what we do, we work our butts off for a mere pittance, don't steal from us, we're the very ones on your side, when you rob us you only rob yourself.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
Health and Music
I can say this with definite surety...
If you don't take some measure of control of your health, not only will you not be around to play music, but also it's a safe bet that you won't even get to listen to it either. It's important to know this and to hear it from someone who knows first hand.
I'm sad to say that I once lived a drug filled life, in that I became a user (although I'm not going to futher damage myself by telling you what drugs I did) . Suffice it to say that living that exsistence did not increase my sensitivity to being a musician as I was told, but it did make for some weird forays into some strange lands ( trust me, it wasn't good...).
Today, I'm proud to say that I've been drug free for going on 30 years and during that time I've learned alot about me, and what I will and won't do for love or music or anything.
I've come to realize that nothing is more important than me living as abundant a life that I can.
Now, my biggest battle is with Diabetes which I found out I had a few years ago; but the fight is still the same... to be healthy and strong. This can be tough because I love food so I'm having to learn control and to use insulin correctly and wisely.
So many of us with dreams do crazy things in the hope that something will get us where we want to go; but as Stevie Wonder pointed out "if you believe in things that you don't understand then you suffer... superstition ain't the way."
Another thing that gives me concern is all of the abuse that people endure at the hands of other people. I'm talking about bullying, harassment, and verbal abuse. It seems to me that more so than physical health issues we are suffering grave mental health issues.
It's almost impossible any more to turn on the TV and not hear of someone, celebrity or just a regular joe who hasn't been abused, molested or just plainly treated bad.
It scares me to think that abuse is the new drug of choice for Americans, and we're scoffing it up at alarming rates, it's a bigger epidemic than crack cocaine could ever hope to be, and what's worse is that as a result it's wiping out people in untold numbers ( think about the Columbine shootings and you'll get the direction I'm going).
If ever I'm fortunate enough to become a celebrity, the things that I would like to address the most are issues of learning to be more tolerant and respectful of each other.
Yes, I'm a Black man, but don't kill me for it, I'm Muslim, but don't think me a terrorist, I'm married to a White woman, but don't think I dislike Black women, I'm fat but don't think I can't do what a thin person does.
If we learn to accept and respect, what we'll gain is the same perspective that allows us to appreciate music...people listen to music for what it suggests to their mind. The elements that make for great music are rhythm and harmony and as with anything worthwhile the way to fully comprehend is to be healthy enough to digest it...one note at a time.
If you don't take some measure of control of your health, not only will you not be around to play music, but also it's a safe bet that you won't even get to listen to it either. It's important to know this and to hear it from someone who knows first hand.
I'm sad to say that I once lived a drug filled life, in that I became a user (although I'm not going to futher damage myself by telling you what drugs I did) . Suffice it to say that living that exsistence did not increase my sensitivity to being a musician as I was told, but it did make for some weird forays into some strange lands ( trust me, it wasn't good...).
Today, I'm proud to say that I've been drug free for going on 30 years and during that time I've learned alot about me, and what I will and won't do for love or music or anything.
I've come to realize that nothing is more important than me living as abundant a life that I can.
Now, my biggest battle is with Diabetes which I found out I had a few years ago; but the fight is still the same... to be healthy and strong. This can be tough because I love food so I'm having to learn control and to use insulin correctly and wisely.
So many of us with dreams do crazy things in the hope that something will get us where we want to go; but as Stevie Wonder pointed out "if you believe in things that you don't understand then you suffer... superstition ain't the way."
Another thing that gives me concern is all of the abuse that people endure at the hands of other people. I'm talking about bullying, harassment, and verbal abuse. It seems to me that more so than physical health issues we are suffering grave mental health issues.
It's almost impossible any more to turn on the TV and not hear of someone, celebrity or just a regular joe who hasn't been abused, molested or just plainly treated bad.
It scares me to think that abuse is the new drug of choice for Americans, and we're scoffing it up at alarming rates, it's a bigger epidemic than crack cocaine could ever hope to be, and what's worse is that as a result it's wiping out people in untold numbers ( think about the Columbine shootings and you'll get the direction I'm going).
If ever I'm fortunate enough to become a celebrity, the things that I would like to address the most are issues of learning to be more tolerant and respectful of each other.
Yes, I'm a Black man, but don't kill me for it, I'm Muslim, but don't think me a terrorist, I'm married to a White woman, but don't think I dislike Black women, I'm fat but don't think I can't do what a thin person does.
If we learn to accept and respect, what we'll gain is the same perspective that allows us to appreciate music...people listen to music for what it suggests to their mind. The elements that make for great music are rhythm and harmony and as with anything worthwhile the way to fully comprehend is to be healthy enough to digest it...one note at a time.
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Holding Up My Mirror
Playing music in West Virginia can be a bit tricky at times. Not that there is anything wrong with the state per se' but the opportunities here for those of us in music can be few and far between. Most bands like this one generally need to venture beyond the borders to stay afloat, so that's what we do...we travel quite a bit.
For the most part we play every Wednesday at the Empty Glass, Thursday through Saturday is open for us to go to other areas, and Sunday, if there is a Mountain Stage it finds us back at the Glass that night after the show.
I don't necessarily see this as a whirlwind, but our schedule at times can be really hectic, plus the fact that we all have fairly regular jobs that we have to report to daily.
Then there are times when we don't have gigs and there isn't a soul out at the club. It's those nights that can be just as much fun as when we're playing music, because we get to just hang out and let our hair down. We don't get to be just the fellas too often, so it's kinda nice when we can kick back and chill.
Last night was like that, there weren't many people out so although we did play a little we mostly just hung out and laughed alot.
I really truly love my brothers, and it has been a life changing experience for me to be around them. I've had great friends around me all of my life, and I've been in some nice situations musically but being in the Carpenter Ants has afforded me a say so in my own destiny musically.
Over the years I was a sideman in bands, a singer, etc., but with this group I have been given an equal voice, something that's hard to do when you're just the hired help.
Another thing that has been great about this is that we've clicked as people. I mean I can hang out with any of them one on one, or we can hang out as a group.
Many bands often forget how they started out and become solo conglomerates in their own bands, with their own agents, managers, hangers on etc.
I really hope that we never lose sight of the fact that we have been in this experience together and we've set our sights on the heights, and are striving toward our goals together.
This commonplace person believes...your companions are your mirror and they show you yourself...
I like what I see.
This blog is dedicated to Michael Lipton, Ted Harrison and James "Jupiter" Little...The Carpenter Ants, thank you for 12 of the best years of my life.
This is also dedicated to Larry Groce, and Don Dixon, thank you for believing in us.
For the most part we play every Wednesday at the Empty Glass, Thursday through Saturday is open for us to go to other areas, and Sunday, if there is a Mountain Stage it finds us back at the Glass that night after the show.
I don't necessarily see this as a whirlwind, but our schedule at times can be really hectic, plus the fact that we all have fairly regular jobs that we have to report to daily.
Then there are times when we don't have gigs and there isn't a soul out at the club. It's those nights that can be just as much fun as when we're playing music, because we get to just hang out and let our hair down. We don't get to be just the fellas too often, so it's kinda nice when we can kick back and chill.
Last night was like that, there weren't many people out so although we did play a little we mostly just hung out and laughed alot.
I really truly love my brothers, and it has been a life changing experience for me to be around them. I've had great friends around me all of my life, and I've been in some nice situations musically but being in the Carpenter Ants has afforded me a say so in my own destiny musically.
Over the years I was a sideman in bands, a singer, etc., but with this group I have been given an equal voice, something that's hard to do when you're just the hired help.
Another thing that has been great about this is that we've clicked as people. I mean I can hang out with any of them one on one, or we can hang out as a group.
Many bands often forget how they started out and become solo conglomerates in their own bands, with their own agents, managers, hangers on etc.
I really hope that we never lose sight of the fact that we have been in this experience together and we've set our sights on the heights, and are striving toward our goals together.
This commonplace person believes...your companions are your mirror and they show you yourself...
I like what I see.
This blog is dedicated to Michael Lipton, Ted Harrison and James "Jupiter" Little...The Carpenter Ants, thank you for 12 of the best years of my life.
This is also dedicated to Larry Groce, and Don Dixon, thank you for believing in us.
The High Price of Awakening
At different times in my life I gave up trying to accomplish something with this music because I seemed to be hitting a brick wall. I'm sure that has happened to everyone at one time or another.
Although, I'd done that, something kept drawing me back to music, so I'd gotten the feeling that there is a force greater than me pulling me back. It's really frustrating at times because I really want to make my life's work making music, so I try, and I try, and I shed tears and I try.
Only a fool would be in his mid-life years and still keep trying to do the thing he loves, but I've learned that a fool finds dreams the cheapest road to glory, but the wise man knows the high price of awakening.
I still dream this dream almost every night, and I still wake up and want it more than I want anything. How the hell do I reconcile this feeling? How the in the world can I turn it off? Should I turn it off?
Over the years I'd hear and read stories of people trying to make it in music and they'd have one hardship after another, some even made it then something worse happened and they didn't get to enjoy it (that one really scares me !). All I know is that I live for this music , it's all I ever think about. I have to say that if it weren't for my wife I'd probably go insane because I know that I wouldn't keep my job, I wouldn't have a home, and I'd surely be a bum on the street with my saxophone. THAT IS CRAZY!!!
This is one of the reasons that I don't go to concerts...I can't bring myself to see others lucky enough to do what I want to be doing so badly, although I really try to be big about it and to some degree cavalier.
Sometimes I feel so foolish for feeling the way that I do but I can't help it.
I'm writing this particular blog because I want to stress to everybody that is trying to do this as well to not give up.You really can't worry about the length of time it takes to make a career, but you do need to be prepared as much as you can for it. Network, network, network, the key is to get involved wherever you can and whenever you can.
If you're meeting people who think that you're silly, get away fast from them because they will drain your energy quick, fast and in a hurry.
The other side of this is; try hard to be real, I mean if you have a family, don't sqaunder away your life together just to pursue your art, that would be just as foolish. Be open to learn some things...about your craft and about yourself.
The desire for this career can be a double edged sword, it can find you, but it can also cut you and destroy you. Instead find some happy medium where you can go for your dream, and you can dare to dream it.
The last harsh reality is that music is not for everyone. That includes people who are makng a living at it (my true feeling about American Idol judges). Just remember always what I said: the fool find dreams the cheapest road to glory, but the wise man knows the high price of awakening.
"By concentrating on precision one arrives at technique, but by concentrating on technique one does not arrive at precision."
Although, I'd done that, something kept drawing me back to music, so I'd gotten the feeling that there is a force greater than me pulling me back. It's really frustrating at times because I really want to make my life's work making music, so I try, and I try, and I shed tears and I try.
Only a fool would be in his mid-life years and still keep trying to do the thing he loves, but I've learned that a fool finds dreams the cheapest road to glory, but the wise man knows the high price of awakening.
I still dream this dream almost every night, and I still wake up and want it more than I want anything. How the hell do I reconcile this feeling? How the in the world can I turn it off? Should I turn it off?
Over the years I'd hear and read stories of people trying to make it in music and they'd have one hardship after another, some even made it then something worse happened and they didn't get to enjoy it (that one really scares me !). All I know is that I live for this music , it's all I ever think about. I have to say that if it weren't for my wife I'd probably go insane because I know that I wouldn't keep my job, I wouldn't have a home, and I'd surely be a bum on the street with my saxophone. THAT IS CRAZY!!!
This is one of the reasons that I don't go to concerts...I can't bring myself to see others lucky enough to do what I want to be doing so badly, although I really try to be big about it and to some degree cavalier.
Sometimes I feel so foolish for feeling the way that I do but I can't help it.
I'm writing this particular blog because I want to stress to everybody that is trying to do this as well to not give up.You really can't worry about the length of time it takes to make a career, but you do need to be prepared as much as you can for it. Network, network, network, the key is to get involved wherever you can and whenever you can.
If you're meeting people who think that you're silly, get away fast from them because they will drain your energy quick, fast and in a hurry.
The other side of this is; try hard to be real, I mean if you have a family, don't sqaunder away your life together just to pursue your art, that would be just as foolish. Be open to learn some things...about your craft and about yourself.
The desire for this career can be a double edged sword, it can find you, but it can also cut you and destroy you. Instead find some happy medium where you can go for your dream, and you can dare to dream it.
The last harsh reality is that music is not for everyone. That includes people who are makng a living at it (my true feeling about American Idol judges). Just remember always what I said: the fool find dreams the cheapest road to glory, but the wise man knows the high price of awakening.
"By concentrating on precision one arrives at technique, but by concentrating on technique one does not arrive at precision."
Sunday, April 24, 2005
Gas, Ass or Grass...
When I was in college, I had a roommate at some point named Herman Gwinn. "Silver- throat" as we called him in those days had as you can imagine a great voice ( he could sing his butt off, and then some...).When he pledged to one of the many fraternites on campus, for the one he chose, he was a welcomed addition.
In those days (the 70's to be exact) fraternities and sororites had traditions of great singers and showmen. On days such as Homecoming , and when the pledge period was over and the pledgies crossed their respective "burning sands ( a fraternal ritual term meaning that they have been inducted into the organization)," the new members and the old guard would get together in the Student Union or the lobby of the dormitory and put on one amazing show after another.
All of the fraternities and sororities at my campus had at least one phenomenal singer, but in my opinion Herman topped them all...
I thought about Herman recently when The Carpenter Ants got caught in the quagmire of trying to negotiate prices for performances. It's the age old question; how much should we charge? How much are we worth (that's my particular question)?
I said in a recent blog that it's difficult to be in our position because while we genuinely love to play, but we've also got things to take care of like everyone else. It's a very uncomfortable stance for Michael to take because on the one hand you want the exposure, but on the other, you'd like to hope that the people who are paying see you as worth more than $400.00 dollars, especially when you know that they've made more on the deal than you can hope to.
I on the other hand don't have a problem with asking for what I believe we're worth. This is not to say that I think Mike is wrong, clearly he's not, because he in fact has gotten us far more gigs than I have, and that brings me to the point of utilizing Herman in this story.
One of the things that Herman did while we were in school was to drive people around, I mean he would take them to the airport, to the train station, or wherever, but he did this for a fee. The remarkable thing here though was that he made ungodly amounts of money doing so. People seemed to not have a problem with his asking price, and even more remarkable was that he never charged me, and I made plenty of offers to pay but he always told me to hold on to my money. It took me a long time to realize what was going on...I was the one who got the people to sequester his rides; he had a nice car, he had music (on an 8 track, but hey !), and there were always cool conversations going on in that "limo" service. Instead of people being outraged, because they were on a college budget, they not only paid but it also translated into other areas (are you starting to get the picture here?) Mr. Gwinn managed to garner a following, It's no wonder he was so well liked in the fraternity world, folks were also paying to go to his frat's parties, because he would always bring down the house with a song or two, which in turn made them rich by campus standards.
This is funny now, but Herman's philosophy was ALWAYS, that "gas, ass or grass nobody rides for free." He said that if you do things right, people will pay, and pay good money to have their needs met. I'll leave it to your imagination to figure out what that phrase really meant.
So I'm torn here, is this the way we should go? Or do we lower our sights and continue to play small venues and regional stages hoping for that break?
You be the judge...
In those days (the 70's to be exact) fraternities and sororites had traditions of great singers and showmen. On days such as Homecoming , and when the pledge period was over and the pledgies crossed their respective "burning sands ( a fraternal ritual term meaning that they have been inducted into the organization)," the new members and the old guard would get together in the Student Union or the lobby of the dormitory and put on one amazing show after another.
All of the fraternities and sororities at my campus had at least one phenomenal singer, but in my opinion Herman topped them all...
I thought about Herman recently when The Carpenter Ants got caught in the quagmire of trying to negotiate prices for performances. It's the age old question; how much should we charge? How much are we worth (that's my particular question)?
I said in a recent blog that it's difficult to be in our position because while we genuinely love to play, but we've also got things to take care of like everyone else. It's a very uncomfortable stance for Michael to take because on the one hand you want the exposure, but on the other, you'd like to hope that the people who are paying see you as worth more than $400.00 dollars, especially when you know that they've made more on the deal than you can hope to.
I on the other hand don't have a problem with asking for what I believe we're worth. This is not to say that I think Mike is wrong, clearly he's not, because he in fact has gotten us far more gigs than I have, and that brings me to the point of utilizing Herman in this story.
One of the things that Herman did while we were in school was to drive people around, I mean he would take them to the airport, to the train station, or wherever, but he did this for a fee. The remarkable thing here though was that he made ungodly amounts of money doing so. People seemed to not have a problem with his asking price, and even more remarkable was that he never charged me, and I made plenty of offers to pay but he always told me to hold on to my money. It took me a long time to realize what was going on...I was the one who got the people to sequester his rides; he had a nice car, he had music (on an 8 track, but hey !), and there were always cool conversations going on in that "limo" service. Instead of people being outraged, because they were on a college budget, they not only paid but it also translated into other areas (are you starting to get the picture here?) Mr. Gwinn managed to garner a following, It's no wonder he was so well liked in the fraternity world, folks were also paying to go to his frat's parties, because he would always bring down the house with a song or two, which in turn made them rich by campus standards.
This is funny now, but Herman's philosophy was ALWAYS, that "gas, ass or grass nobody rides for free." He said that if you do things right, people will pay, and pay good money to have their needs met. I'll leave it to your imagination to figure out what that phrase really meant.
So I'm torn here, is this the way we should go? Or do we lower our sights and continue to play small venues and regional stages hoping for that break?
You be the judge...
Change What You're Doing Today...
This blog was inspired by my friend Todd Burge. I got an e-mail from him recently, thanking me for trying to put a positive spin on a gig that we did together.
For some people it really is difficult at times to do the things that we love, or to get to the space in time where we feel like what we're doing is making a difference...to anyone. I think sometimes the true reason for that is that subconciously we have fear of what others think, and this negative energy sinks into us, and sinks our beliefs. Conversely, it's one of the reasons that music has such profound messages when we listen objectively. Take for example Marvin Gayes' monster hit in 1971 "What's Goin' On." It touched people deeply with strong statements about loving each other and fair treatment of our fellow humans, but although he wrote the message and really felt so strongly about it he still died at the hands of violence...and from his own Father to boot. He had demons as such that he really needed help of the highest order.
Although, I really struggle with believing in myself at times ( and even that's weird because I in fact have a very strong belief system; although at times it gets short circuited.), I still feel that I'm going to get where I'm going with my life. The key is change !! "Change what you're doing today, and tomorrow will change." In order to garner the things that you want in this life you have to put everything into some chronological order. It could be playing music; you would need to have an understanding of it before attempting to make it a livelihood, it could be falling in love, for that to truly happen, you must first love yourself. If you wanted wealth, then the chronology is to understand a dollar.
Whatever the instance, in order to achieve something it's best to change other things, even as much as by changing your thought patterns.
Another song that deals with that is by The Emotions and it's called "Rejoice."This song states that: " if the things you do, are not pleasing you, it's time to take another point of view...you find the things you seek are within your reach, your mind conceived it, and your heart will believe it, first you sacrifice and make it right."
The more you resist change the harder it will be to see the forest, let alone the trees. The less you give in to change, the less you will see of yourself and the more likely you won't let egos and emotions stand in your way.
For some people it really is difficult at times to do the things that we love, or to get to the space in time where we feel like what we're doing is making a difference...to anyone. I think sometimes the true reason for that is that subconciously we have fear of what others think, and this negative energy sinks into us, and sinks our beliefs. Conversely, it's one of the reasons that music has such profound messages when we listen objectively. Take for example Marvin Gayes' monster hit in 1971 "What's Goin' On." It touched people deeply with strong statements about loving each other and fair treatment of our fellow humans, but although he wrote the message and really felt so strongly about it he still died at the hands of violence...and from his own Father to boot. He had demons as such that he really needed help of the highest order.
Although, I really struggle with believing in myself at times ( and even that's weird because I in fact have a very strong belief system; although at times it gets short circuited.), I still feel that I'm going to get where I'm going with my life. The key is change !! "Change what you're doing today, and tomorrow will change." In order to garner the things that you want in this life you have to put everything into some chronological order. It could be playing music; you would need to have an understanding of it before attempting to make it a livelihood, it could be falling in love, for that to truly happen, you must first love yourself. If you wanted wealth, then the chronology is to understand a dollar.
Whatever the instance, in order to achieve something it's best to change other things, even as much as by changing your thought patterns.
Another song that deals with that is by The Emotions and it's called "Rejoice."This song states that: " if the things you do, are not pleasing you, it's time to take another point of view...you find the things you seek are within your reach, your mind conceived it, and your heart will believe it, first you sacrifice and make it right."
The more you resist change the harder it will be to see the forest, let alone the trees. The less you give in to change, the less you will see of yourself and the more likely you won't let egos and emotions stand in your way.
Friday, April 22, 2005
Sensitivity and Humility
Here's one of those life lessons that you either learn the hard way or it falls into your lap like meteor:
My bassist Ted Harrison is truly one the nicest people that I've ever known anywhere...period. I also know that that Theo has a bit of a stubborn streak (it rears its strange head ocassionally).
At rehearsal on Wednesday, Michael was playing a new song that he's been working on, and was trying to get Ted to play the bass part similar to the way he'd done it the previous week when we first attempted to work it out. Now mind you Ted is a very great bassist (in my opinion), but for a long time he played just the basics, meaning he would not be very adventurous ( his was more quiet dignity, like the great bassist Chuck Rainey); but in the last couple of years as we've began to really take off as a group he has started to come into his own, taking all kinds of chances and stretching out quite a bit... I love it. Michael on the other hand will wield his guitar like a machine gun and rip off some solos that are astounding, lyrical and just beautiful; they're just inspiring to me. He plays that way all of the time, which is one of the reasons that we've grown so much as a band. All of these things are good but at times Michael and Ted can get they're roles reversed. Here's the deal, Michael has been writing original songs for us to play. The songs have been funny, poignant, and well meaning but he is very sensitive about them mainly because he feels that he's only an average writer ( to which I say, ba-lo-ney !) .
First of all, I think if you're in a band that's trying their hardest to do something with their music, and you take the time to try and do something original more power to you.
Now I'm gonna fuss a little at Theo because although he's trying to make his playing match the excitement he feels about these songs he could be a little more sensitive to Mike when Mike is already feeling weird about his music writing abilities, and when we perform live Mike does the same thing to Ted. It's funny because their roles reverse at times depending on the situation.
I say all this to say that on the part of both of my bandmates, there needs to be a little bit of sensitivity and humility.
Please don't misunderstand me or misconstrue what I'm saying, these two guys really are brothers and they truly care about each other but they have to be more patient with each other. Ted has to not take it to heart when Mike asks him do something different, and Mike needs to understand more that all of us get lost in his playing at times...it's hard not to, so when we make mistakes don't frown, just go with the flow and hope that we'll work it out and concentrate.
I feel privileged to play music with these guys, I've learned alot, and I'm grateful that they've accepted me on my terms.
For people in any walk of life; while on your journey you need to always carry with you sensitivity and humility because if you're not humble, you'll stumble, and if you're insensitive, you'll not be inquisitive and you won't get the answers you need to fulfill your life indeed.
My bassist Ted Harrison is truly one the nicest people that I've ever known anywhere...period. I also know that that Theo has a bit of a stubborn streak (it rears its strange head ocassionally).
At rehearsal on Wednesday, Michael was playing a new song that he's been working on, and was trying to get Ted to play the bass part similar to the way he'd done it the previous week when we first attempted to work it out. Now mind you Ted is a very great bassist (in my opinion), but for a long time he played just the basics, meaning he would not be very adventurous ( his was more quiet dignity, like the great bassist Chuck Rainey); but in the last couple of years as we've began to really take off as a group he has started to come into his own, taking all kinds of chances and stretching out quite a bit... I love it. Michael on the other hand will wield his guitar like a machine gun and rip off some solos that are astounding, lyrical and just beautiful; they're just inspiring to me. He plays that way all of the time, which is one of the reasons that we've grown so much as a band. All of these things are good but at times Michael and Ted can get they're roles reversed. Here's the deal, Michael has been writing original songs for us to play. The songs have been funny, poignant, and well meaning but he is very sensitive about them mainly because he feels that he's only an average writer ( to which I say, ba-lo-ney !) .
First of all, I think if you're in a band that's trying their hardest to do something with their music, and you take the time to try and do something original more power to you.
Now I'm gonna fuss a little at Theo because although he's trying to make his playing match the excitement he feels about these songs he could be a little more sensitive to Mike when Mike is already feeling weird about his music writing abilities, and when we perform live Mike does the same thing to Ted. It's funny because their roles reverse at times depending on the situation.
I say all this to say that on the part of both of my bandmates, there needs to be a little bit of sensitivity and humility.
Please don't misunderstand me or misconstrue what I'm saying, these two guys really are brothers and they truly care about each other but they have to be more patient with each other. Ted has to not take it to heart when Mike asks him do something different, and Mike needs to understand more that all of us get lost in his playing at times...it's hard not to, so when we make mistakes don't frown, just go with the flow and hope that we'll work it out and concentrate.
I feel privileged to play music with these guys, I've learned alot, and I'm grateful that they've accepted me on my terms.
For people in any walk of life; while on your journey you need to always carry with you sensitivity and humility because if you're not humble, you'll stumble, and if you're insensitive, you'll not be inquisitive and you won't get the answers you need to fulfill your life indeed.
Thursday, April 21, 2005
Hi, I'm Charlie Tee and I want to officially welcome you to my blogsite.
This is what it's all about for me...playing music.
I hope that the things I talk about will be inspiring and create a dialogue among musicians and anyone trying to make a career in the music business, as well as those who just love music.
Some of the previous blogs have been archived, feel free to read, enjoy and comment.
If you enjoy what you're reading, come hear my band The Carpenter Ants, most every Wednesday at The Empty Glass 410 Elizabeth St. Charleston WV (www.emptyglass.com)
Your imput is important, so join me, won't you.
Sunday, April 17, 2005
Happiness
Playing music makes me very happy, listening to music makes me equally as happy.
I know all this happiness sounds like too much lithium but I've really tried to make it my business to find happiness on a consistent basis. Even through the foggy days of my life I've tried to make myself see through it and smile.
Switching channels a bit...why is it that we are soooo obssessed with other people's happiness or lack thereof ? It seems to me that if Prince Charles wanted to remarry why should the public have such great concern.
The way I see it is , if it doesn't directly pertain to you what should it matter...
Now I love celebrity and I like celebrities but what they do when they're at home is just not a concern that I feel that I should have. I'm not saying that if they do something illegal that they shouldn't pay, quite the contrary but your basic persuit of happiness (whatever that is) is for you to find.
One shouldn't be classified a nerd or geek if they get their happiness from engaging themselves at a computer. You shouldn't be made to feel uncomfortable because you lose yourself in books, or music.
Whatever it is for you, find it, try it, and go for it.
For me that happiness is a beat that makes my hair stand on end (OK smart alecks, I know that I don't have any hair, but you get the picture), and a melody that takes me home, and a groove that fills me up like a gallon of water.
At the end of every Mountain Stage, host Larry Groce engages the audience to "go out and catch some live music," I think Larry is on to something!!!
If you're not sure what kind of music to listen to, there's fuel food and lodging when you when you get off at any exit in the state of Happiness.
I know all this happiness sounds like too much lithium but I've really tried to make it my business to find happiness on a consistent basis. Even through the foggy days of my life I've tried to make myself see through it and smile.
Switching channels a bit...why is it that we are soooo obssessed with other people's happiness or lack thereof ? It seems to me that if Prince Charles wanted to remarry why should the public have such great concern.
The way I see it is , if it doesn't directly pertain to you what should it matter...
Now I love celebrity and I like celebrities but what they do when they're at home is just not a concern that I feel that I should have. I'm not saying that if they do something illegal that they shouldn't pay, quite the contrary but your basic persuit of happiness (whatever that is) is for you to find.
One shouldn't be classified a nerd or geek if they get their happiness from engaging themselves at a computer. You shouldn't be made to feel uncomfortable because you lose yourself in books, or music.
Whatever it is for you, find it, try it, and go for it.
For me that happiness is a beat that makes my hair stand on end (OK smart alecks, I know that I don't have any hair, but you get the picture), and a melody that takes me home, and a groove that fills me up like a gallon of water.
At the end of every Mountain Stage, host Larry Groce engages the audience to "go out and catch some live music," I think Larry is on to something!!!
If you're not sure what kind of music to listen to, there's fuel food and lodging when you when you get off at any exit in the state of Happiness.
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
On Being Muslim
At about the age of 11, I made a choice that even at that young age would be a defining moment in my life, I chose to embrace the religion of Islam.
I realize that this may be a touchy subject for some people, so I won't be offended at all if you turn away.
God and religion is such a very personal thing for so many, and following the doctrine of separating church and state it's difficult to want to bring it to the forefront of people's conciousness or their topics of conversation.
Again my aim here is not to offend anyone but merely help people to understand me, and the things that give shape and life to my music.
I want to first share with you the opening chapter of the Holy Qur'an (the book that Muslims are gaged to to live our lives by...hopefully). It will set the tone for this blog.
"In the name of Allah, the beneficent and merciful, all praise is due to Allah the beneficent, the merciful, master of the day of judgement, thee alone we worship, and thine aid we seek; show us the straight path, the path of those on whom thou bestowed thy favor, not the path of those who have gone astray(Al-Fatiha, or the opening, the 1st chapter of Qur'an )."
Many people who know me, know that I can be very passionate about certain things. The things that really give meaning to my life occur in my life on a very consistent basis. My wife Vickie, my children, my family, the Carpenter Ants, my job at the library, and the Bronx all have extreme relevance to me. The only thing that has more prevalance than any of those with the only exception being Vickie is my love for the religion of Islam and greater than that is my love for Allah (GOD), and the holy prophet of Islam, Muhammad (pbuh:peace be upon him).
When I fell in love with Islam, it came without a warning, and found me in the depths of myself and in the dregs of my life. I was at rockbottom emotionally.
No I wasn't going off the deep end per se but I was at a real low point in my life. I couldn't seem to figure out my life at that time and I felt as though I was coming up short on everything. In much the same way that Midas in Greek mythology was coming up short. In his case anything he touched turned to gold including his only beloved son. In my case everything I touched turned away; relationships, friendships, and seemingly my family.
Every time that I tried to connect to something, something in it would go wrong. One year I spent the better part of the year playing music with some people who were on the fast track to nowhere, and I was so wrapped up in it that I failed to really look at all the signs that I was getting. The drummer of the band was a criminal, he'd do things like catch a taxi to our rehearsals and then stiff the cab driver.We had to pay for the space where we rehearsed and he seemed to always come up short with money and so on. All of these things weighed heavily on me, because I just hated the fact that someone who busted their rear end everyday driving people all around the city of New York would have to be subjected to that...it was just unnerving.
Finally, one day I was talking to one of the youngsters in a Boy Scout troop that I knew from where I lived; his name is Sundiata Westcott. I don't why (yes I do) but for some reason I was pouring my heart out to Sundi, and he in turn says "you need to talk to Rashid."
Abdul Rashid Sabur was sent to me by Allah to change my life and that he did.We became fast friends, and he became my mentor, and my path out of my darkness.
As I said earlier, I embraced Islam at a young age, and although I did I was a typical American teenager, and I didn't take my religion seriously, and I took that attitude with me until adulthood; just taking Allah casually.
Now at the time when I started to be around Abdul Rashid he recognized something in me that I didn't see for myself at the time, he saw a person who was just flying by the seat of their pants and not focused, and very much unprepared to deal with life.
Here is the mark of a real friend...Rashid and his wife Desna began to show me things about life and about dealing with people, and they spent time with me teaching me the true essence of Islam. They helped me to see how Allah intends us to live our lives, and how, when we stray from that path it can lead us to nothing but darkness. Allah wants us to have the things that we are desirous of, but we need to ALWAYS put him first.
I spent the next 10 years studying intensely with Abdul Rashid. On Sundays he would come to my home at 7am sharp and we would study Qur'an and decipher it's meaning. When I made the decision to leave New York and move to West Virginia, I felt confident to meet life head on...and I did.
The day I arrived in the Charleston area was the first day that I was tested to see if I was truly prepared. My first wife (who is deceased, pbuh) was extremely ill at the time which was one of the reasons that I moved here. When i walked through the door of my home she informed that she no longer wanted to be married to me and that I needed to find somewhere else to live.
A big blow to say the least, but I found the Mosque, I found Muslims, and I found other friends who took me in. From there, as painful as it was, I began to retool my life, and with Allah's help I made it through. I found the library where I'm proud to say that I've been employed for going on 12 years, I found a band who has the same dream I have, and we're working together to see our goals, and I have found a wife/ friend /everything who has stood by my side when I didn't have a red cent, I have found an Uma (Muslim community) and Imam that mean everything to me, and who continue to add to my knowledge of al-Islam, and last but not least I have memories of my life in the Bronx and how one man who is a true believer in the Lord showed me through example that all things are possible when when you're intent on being Muslim.
Here is a link to see our glorious Islamic Center of West Virginia.
To learn more about the religion of Islam here is a wonderful website:Islamicity.org
There is a wonderful book which gives a very concise, but down to earth explanations about the religion of Islam entitled:"The Joy of Sects: a spirited guide to the world's religions." by Peter Occhiogrosso. It was the first book that I read by a non-Muslim who painted a non biased picture of Islam. Check it out at you local library.
This blog is dedicated to Abdul Rashid Sabur (Marshall), Desna Westcott Marshall, Sundiata Westcott, Imam Jamal Daoudi, Imam Samuel Majied, and Vickie S.Tuitt, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your love for me.
To all who read this blog: may peace be upon you always.
I realize that this may be a touchy subject for some people, so I won't be offended at all if you turn away.
God and religion is such a very personal thing for so many, and following the doctrine of separating church and state it's difficult to want to bring it to the forefront of people's conciousness or their topics of conversation.
Again my aim here is not to offend anyone but merely help people to understand me, and the things that give shape and life to my music.
I want to first share with you the opening chapter of the Holy Qur'an (the book that Muslims are gaged to to live our lives by...hopefully). It will set the tone for this blog.
"In the name of Allah, the beneficent and merciful, all praise is due to Allah the beneficent, the merciful, master of the day of judgement, thee alone we worship, and thine aid we seek; show us the straight path, the path of those on whom thou bestowed thy favor, not the path of those who have gone astray(Al-Fatiha, or the opening, the 1st chapter of Qur'an )."
Many people who know me, know that I can be very passionate about certain things. The things that really give meaning to my life occur in my life on a very consistent basis. My wife Vickie, my children, my family, the Carpenter Ants, my job at the library, and the Bronx all have extreme relevance to me. The only thing that has more prevalance than any of those with the only exception being Vickie is my love for the religion of Islam and greater than that is my love for Allah (GOD), and the holy prophet of Islam, Muhammad (pbuh:peace be upon him).
When I fell in love with Islam, it came without a warning, and found me in the depths of myself and in the dregs of my life. I was at rockbottom emotionally.
No I wasn't going off the deep end per se but I was at a real low point in my life. I couldn't seem to figure out my life at that time and I felt as though I was coming up short on everything. In much the same way that Midas in Greek mythology was coming up short. In his case anything he touched turned to gold including his only beloved son. In my case everything I touched turned away; relationships, friendships, and seemingly my family.
Every time that I tried to connect to something, something in it would go wrong. One year I spent the better part of the year playing music with some people who were on the fast track to nowhere, and I was so wrapped up in it that I failed to really look at all the signs that I was getting. The drummer of the band was a criminal, he'd do things like catch a taxi to our rehearsals and then stiff the cab driver.We had to pay for the space where we rehearsed and he seemed to always come up short with money and so on. All of these things weighed heavily on me, because I just hated the fact that someone who busted their rear end everyday driving people all around the city of New York would have to be subjected to that...it was just unnerving.
Finally, one day I was talking to one of the youngsters in a Boy Scout troop that I knew from where I lived; his name is Sundiata Westcott. I don't why (yes I do) but for some reason I was pouring my heart out to Sundi, and he in turn says "you need to talk to Rashid."
Abdul Rashid Sabur was sent to me by Allah to change my life and that he did.We became fast friends, and he became my mentor, and my path out of my darkness.
As I said earlier, I embraced Islam at a young age, and although I did I was a typical American teenager, and I didn't take my religion seriously, and I took that attitude with me until adulthood; just taking Allah casually.
Now at the time when I started to be around Abdul Rashid he recognized something in me that I didn't see for myself at the time, he saw a person who was just flying by the seat of their pants and not focused, and very much unprepared to deal with life.
Here is the mark of a real friend...Rashid and his wife Desna began to show me things about life and about dealing with people, and they spent time with me teaching me the true essence of Islam. They helped me to see how Allah intends us to live our lives, and how, when we stray from that path it can lead us to nothing but darkness. Allah wants us to have the things that we are desirous of, but we need to ALWAYS put him first.
I spent the next 10 years studying intensely with Abdul Rashid. On Sundays he would come to my home at 7am sharp and we would study Qur'an and decipher it's meaning. When I made the decision to leave New York and move to West Virginia, I felt confident to meet life head on...and I did.
The day I arrived in the Charleston area was the first day that I was tested to see if I was truly prepared. My first wife (who is deceased, pbuh) was extremely ill at the time which was one of the reasons that I moved here. When i walked through the door of my home she informed that she no longer wanted to be married to me and that I needed to find somewhere else to live.
A big blow to say the least, but I found the Mosque, I found Muslims, and I found other friends who took me in. From there, as painful as it was, I began to retool my life, and with Allah's help I made it through. I found the library where I'm proud to say that I've been employed for going on 12 years, I found a band who has the same dream I have, and we're working together to see our goals, and I have found a wife/ friend /everything who has stood by my side when I didn't have a red cent, I have found an Uma (Muslim community) and Imam that mean everything to me, and who continue to add to my knowledge of al-Islam, and last but not least I have memories of my life in the Bronx and how one man who is a true believer in the Lord showed me through example that all things are possible when when you're intent on being Muslim.
Here is a link to see our glorious Islamic Center of West Virginia.
To learn more about the religion of Islam here is a wonderful website:Islamicity.org
There is a wonderful book which gives a very concise, but down to earth explanations about the religion of Islam entitled:"The Joy of Sects: a spirited guide to the world's religions." by Peter Occhiogrosso. It was the first book that I read by a non-Muslim who painted a non biased picture of Islam. Check it out at you local library.
This blog is dedicated to Abdul Rashid Sabur (Marshall), Desna Westcott Marshall, Sundiata Westcott, Imam Jamal Daoudi, Imam Samuel Majied, and Vickie S.Tuitt, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your love for me.
To all who read this blog: may peace be upon you always.
Saturday, April 09, 2005
The Groove Factor...Ants in the zone.
For sometime now I've had this description of the Carpenter Ants when we not only take our audience on a journey but also lift them up as well. I like to call it "Ants hitting the zone."
The zone is that place where you reach inside of yourself and pull out premier performances.
Sunday April 3rd was that kind of night...
When Michael arrived at the club after Mountain Stage we were milling around and he says to "put on your game faces, I think tonight is gonna count." In human language, that translates to mean that everyone ( meaning all the musicians who appeared on the show) is coming to our show to hear us, so play your best. It's really a different vibe when you have musicians as part of your audience, because they know what to listen for so you can't fake your way through or give just a mediocre performance (we don't do that anyway).
Well, if you remember my little theory about the Yankees (read blog #4,"Carpenter Ants 0- Life 22.") , not only did I pull up a great performance, but also, the entire band did as well, and you really had to have been there but we were unbelievable.The vocals were astonishing, the music was amazing and it was so tight that the air had to pay to get in.
People were dancing and just generally losing their inhibitions and we turned the heat up to a fever pitch boiling point.
To say the least, the groove factor was in effect, and the people in the audience felt every drop of music like rain from the heavens.
It's a great feeling when we arrive in the zone, you can see it in our faces and hear it in our voices. During the course of the show we got people from various bands who were on Mountain Stage to come and join us and many of them did, and it affected them as well. At the end of the evening many of them hugged us, kissed us, and were in complete awe because they felt as if they had discovered a lost treasure...fun.
One of the people who joined us was a singer/ guitarist named Johnny Hickman who plays with the great band Cracker. Before I left to go home, Johnny told me that we moved like a freight train...with absolute power and at full throttle. To which I said, paraphrasing the song "Rock Island Line," if ya wanna ride it, gotta ride it like you find it, get your ticket at the station for the Carpenter Ants Line.
The zone is that place where you reach inside of yourself and pull out premier performances.
Sunday April 3rd was that kind of night...
When Michael arrived at the club after Mountain Stage we were milling around and he says to "put on your game faces, I think tonight is gonna count." In human language, that translates to mean that everyone ( meaning all the musicians who appeared on the show) is coming to our show to hear us, so play your best. It's really a different vibe when you have musicians as part of your audience, because they know what to listen for so you can't fake your way through or give just a mediocre performance (we don't do that anyway).
Well, if you remember my little theory about the Yankees (read blog #4,"Carpenter Ants 0- Life 22.") , not only did I pull up a great performance, but also, the entire band did as well, and you really had to have been there but we were unbelievable.The vocals were astonishing, the music was amazing and it was so tight that the air had to pay to get in.
People were dancing and just generally losing their inhibitions and we turned the heat up to a fever pitch boiling point.
To say the least, the groove factor was in effect, and the people in the audience felt every drop of music like rain from the heavens.
It's a great feeling when we arrive in the zone, you can see it in our faces and hear it in our voices. During the course of the show we got people from various bands who were on Mountain Stage to come and join us and many of them did, and it affected them as well. At the end of the evening many of them hugged us, kissed us, and were in complete awe because they felt as if they had discovered a lost treasure...fun.
One of the people who joined us was a singer/ guitarist named Johnny Hickman who plays with the great band Cracker. Before I left to go home, Johnny told me that we moved like a freight train...with absolute power and at full throttle. To which I said, paraphrasing the song "Rock Island Line," if ya wanna ride it, gotta ride it like you find it, get your ticket at the station for the Carpenter Ants Line.
Thursday, April 07, 2005
What's the Point? (letting some things go)
In my short life I've had to learn some hard lessons about letting go and moving on.
I don't know why that's such a seemingly impossible thing to do for so many people, but I know that it's difficult. Mind you I'm not necessarily a pack rat, but I could cling to something I like for decades before I let it go, I'm sure that it must drive my Wife insane, but hey that's me like it or not.
Recently, I came to some conclusions about certain things: this mainly involves people. I've always been one who tries to give people the benefit of the doubt; mostly because I realize that we are all fallible and we are all human, so mistakes can and will be made but I'm now of the mindset that while some things ( well...maybe most things) happen for a reason we can set ourselves on a course that will ultimately lead us to places where we don't want to be...you know, play with fire, you'll get burned!
I ran into a guy that I went to college with named Bud Anderson ( a really nice and well meaning guy) Bud has become pretty successful at most of his endeavors, and he was sharing with me over lunch some of the things that he's doing with his life.
Anyway, he asked me about becoming involved with the Alumni Association of West Virginia State University (ne'e College), our Alma Mater, and as hard as it was for me to do this I had to flatly turn him down. Why? Well, if you remember a few blogs back I told of how I once thought that I was fairly popular in school only to find out just how much I wasn't. When I was in school I really did try to be a good friend to mostly eveybody, and I did in fact help lots of people in college and since we've graduated. I can't tell you how many times I've been approached by folks asking for all kinds of stuff of me...and I came through.
Now, when I've asked the same of them with regard to supporting my band I haven't heard from one soul, and truthfully that has hurt my feelings immeasurably.
I realize that I shouldn't expect things from people just because I did them a good turn, but I'm not asking them to go out on a limb or over-extend themselves, all I ask is that they go to their local nightclubs, concert venues and talk us up, we'll do the rest.
Some of these people are even in positions to really help us. One guy I know is the manager of the great trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, another lady is the head of A and R for CBS/Sony, and still another was formerly the president of Black Music Association of America.
What's the point? The point is that like it or not I have to let go of my grip on the dream of classmates coming through like the towns people came through for George Bailey in "It's A Wonderful Life." No matter what, I've got to keep on keeping on.
Thank you Elizabeth for your kind words...they meant alot !
I don't know why that's such a seemingly impossible thing to do for so many people, but I know that it's difficult. Mind you I'm not necessarily a pack rat, but I could cling to something I like for decades before I let it go, I'm sure that it must drive my Wife insane, but hey that's me like it or not.
Recently, I came to some conclusions about certain things: this mainly involves people. I've always been one who tries to give people the benefit of the doubt; mostly because I realize that we are all fallible and we are all human, so mistakes can and will be made but I'm now of the mindset that while some things ( well...maybe most things) happen for a reason we can set ourselves on a course that will ultimately lead us to places where we don't want to be...you know, play with fire, you'll get burned!
I ran into a guy that I went to college with named Bud Anderson ( a really nice and well meaning guy) Bud has become pretty successful at most of his endeavors, and he was sharing with me over lunch some of the things that he's doing with his life.
Anyway, he asked me about becoming involved with the Alumni Association of West Virginia State University (ne'e College), our Alma Mater, and as hard as it was for me to do this I had to flatly turn him down. Why? Well, if you remember a few blogs back I told of how I once thought that I was fairly popular in school only to find out just how much I wasn't. When I was in school I really did try to be a good friend to mostly eveybody, and I did in fact help lots of people in college and since we've graduated. I can't tell you how many times I've been approached by folks asking for all kinds of stuff of me...and I came through.
Now, when I've asked the same of them with regard to supporting my band I haven't heard from one soul, and truthfully that has hurt my feelings immeasurably.
I realize that I shouldn't expect things from people just because I did them a good turn, but I'm not asking them to go out on a limb or over-extend themselves, all I ask is that they go to their local nightclubs, concert venues and talk us up, we'll do the rest.
Some of these people are even in positions to really help us. One guy I know is the manager of the great trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, another lady is the head of A and R for CBS/Sony, and still another was formerly the president of Black Music Association of America.
What's the point? The point is that like it or not I have to let go of my grip on the dream of classmates coming through like the towns people came through for George Bailey in "It's A Wonderful Life." No matter what, I've got to keep on keeping on.
Thank you Elizabeth for your kind words...they meant alot !
Sunday, April 03, 2005
It's Time For Some Changes
Before I launch headlong in to this blog, I'm going to give myself a short disclaimer:
My views here do not in any way reflect the views of those I write about, or who are mentioned in this blog.
I mean no malice toward anyone; nor harbor any ill will, even toward those viewed in a not so positive light.
My true aim here is to clarify for myself some of the misgivings that I have had or that I have about being in the Musicians Union and about being in the music business.
The American Federation of Musicians is a great organization and has done many wonderful things for a great many people who aspire to careers in all aspects of the music industry. CDT
Like many other professions, music has a professional organized arm, it's called the The American Federation of Musicians. Here in the Charleston West Virginia area our local is AFM local #136.
The ultimate goal of the Union is to foster and help those with aspirations toward careers in music. Help by most available positive means necessary. Which include and are not limited to promotion, promulgation, career building etc.
For a number of years as an organization we struggled with being totally professional; by that I mean the members didn't take it as seriously as we should have to get the desired results from being involved in the local or national music industry. Chief among the reasons why members were/are disheartened with local is that it is felt that things are not always in reality as they are preported publicly.
For those reasons some of the people who have governed us have not always been forthright about their dealings on behalf of the members...in short, personal agenda had become the norm on many occasions.
A few years ago the president of our local was indicted and then convicted of federal racketeering charges. He was a nice man and I genuinely liked him, but it was just plainly wrong to do the things that he did, and expect the membership to adhere to the rules of the local, or participate in being members at all.
I have been a member in good standing for years, starting with being a member of local # 802 in New York City. I also must add that I truly believe in the organization as a whole in general. I know first hand the many things that it has done for me when I was an active participant. I also learned alot about the business of music which also has been helpful to my career aspirations.
While I've been friendly with most of the staff of this local, I've also seen them make what I think are some horrific blunders, for example: not completely disclosing all monies spent on behalf of the local; there has been no paper trail for us to follow. Hiring an office manager, where there is no clear need for one. I made the suggestion sometime ago that whenever our newsletter is published there should be one article per issue that thoroughly explains how our membership monies are categorized and broken down...what pays for what.
Those are just miniscule examples of the things that are transpiring here, and it's very sad to see because Charleston has some talented musicians who deserve to have our professional organization run correctly and astutely by people who have the complete best interest of the members.
Because of some of the negative changes that I've seen in the local I have opted to not continue my membership at this time, as a vocalist that is my right, but that saddens me as well, because at a time when music is absolutely needed by a distraught nation it's a feather taken out of our caps to not be involved in the right way, to which I say...it's time for some changes.
As professional musicians (meaning non student musicians), whether full time or part time, we need to be organized, we need to stick together to increase our professional status thereby increasing to whatever degree our monetary gain.In other words if we expect for club owners, concert halls, restaurantuers and the like to take us seriously, we need to be serious about the health of our organization. Starting from the top down.
MUSICIANS OF THE WORLD UNITE !!!
My views here do not in any way reflect the views of those I write about, or who are mentioned in this blog.
I mean no malice toward anyone; nor harbor any ill will, even toward those viewed in a not so positive light.
My true aim here is to clarify for myself some of the misgivings that I have had or that I have about being in the Musicians Union and about being in the music business.
The American Federation of Musicians is a great organization and has done many wonderful things for a great many people who aspire to careers in all aspects of the music industry. CDT
Like many other professions, music has a professional organized arm, it's called the The American Federation of Musicians. Here in the Charleston West Virginia area our local is AFM local #136.
The ultimate goal of the Union is to foster and help those with aspirations toward careers in music. Help by most available positive means necessary. Which include and are not limited to promotion, promulgation, career building etc.
For a number of years as an organization we struggled with being totally professional; by that I mean the members didn't take it as seriously as we should have to get the desired results from being involved in the local or national music industry. Chief among the reasons why members were/are disheartened with local is that it is felt that things are not always in reality as they are preported publicly.
For those reasons some of the people who have governed us have not always been forthright about their dealings on behalf of the members...in short, personal agenda had become the norm on many occasions.
A few years ago the president of our local was indicted and then convicted of federal racketeering charges. He was a nice man and I genuinely liked him, but it was just plainly wrong to do the things that he did, and expect the membership to adhere to the rules of the local, or participate in being members at all.
I have been a member in good standing for years, starting with being a member of local # 802 in New York City. I also must add that I truly believe in the organization as a whole in general. I know first hand the many things that it has done for me when I was an active participant. I also learned alot about the business of music which also has been helpful to my career aspirations.
While I've been friendly with most of the staff of this local, I've also seen them make what I think are some horrific blunders, for example: not completely disclosing all monies spent on behalf of the local; there has been no paper trail for us to follow. Hiring an office manager, where there is no clear need for one. I made the suggestion sometime ago that whenever our newsletter is published there should be one article per issue that thoroughly explains how our membership monies are categorized and broken down...what pays for what.
Those are just miniscule examples of the things that are transpiring here, and it's very sad to see because Charleston has some talented musicians who deserve to have our professional organization run correctly and astutely by people who have the complete best interest of the members.
Because of some of the negative changes that I've seen in the local I have opted to not continue my membership at this time, as a vocalist that is my right, but that saddens me as well, because at a time when music is absolutely needed by a distraught nation it's a feather taken out of our caps to not be involved in the right way, to which I say...it's time for some changes.
As professional musicians (meaning non student musicians), whether full time or part time, we need to be organized, we need to stick together to increase our professional status thereby increasing to whatever degree our monetary gain.In other words if we expect for club owners, concert halls, restaurantuers and the like to take us seriously, we need to be serious about the health of our organization. Starting from the top down.
MUSICIANS OF THE WORLD UNITE !!!
David Sanborn...that great cry.
If ever I can say that someone influenced me greatly as a musician, I would have to pick David Sanborn hands down and heads above everyone else.
Years before I actually heard him, I had heard of him because everyone that I had played music with from around 1969 on compared me with him. Starting with a guy that I grew up with in the Bronx, Butch Ford (a fine guitarist). He was a big fan of the Paul Butterfield Blues band, of which Sanborn was a member.During a short well lived tenure in a band that Butch had I was the saxophone player (no one knew that I could sing because I tried to keep that to myself). Butch always told me that he really loved the way I could handle my horn... "Charlie, you just play the sh** outta that thing, just like that F***ing David Sanborn, in Butterfield's band."
Now I'm not certain where I lost the interpretation , but it may be around that time that I started to lose confidence in myself and doubt my abilities. I had some run ins with a couple of the other guys in the band (funny, I don't even remember their names) but their taunts affected me negatively, mainly because I was overweight. Butch really believed that I would be a great musician someday; but we were teenagers, and it's hard to see that far ahead, and even harder to convince grownups that this guy's got a gift. So as my teen years faded into bad memory, I kept my dreams and my gift to myself.
I came here to West Virginia to go to college, and during those years I heard some great music and some great musicians, and I really wanted to participate, but my earlier fears sort of got the best of me so I didn't really reveal how well I could play for fear that I wouldn't get to play much because of peoples egos (stupid huh?). Anyway, I wrapped up my time in West Virginia (the first time) after doing a stint as the lead vocalist and flutist/saxophonist with a band called Stratus (they are still going strong here in the Charleston area), and I went back to New York by way of DC, where I lived with my Sister for a year. During that time she tried to tell everyone who would listen about her baby Brother, and I did get a couple of gigs out of it but nothing in DC clicked for me, so I headed back to the Bronx...something was pulling me.
After just over a year in the city I started getting really antsy, so I ventured out to see what the music scene was like, and I started meeting all kinds of people who gave me the same story, and making endless comparisons.
Anyway to make a long story short in 1983 on a complete fluke I was hanging out with some friends when I ran into my cousin Leroy Clouden ( if you're not familiar with the name grab the Steely Dan CD "Two Against Nature," he's the drummer) at a club called Mikells. He and I were chatting it up, he takes me down to the dressing room, and while we're in this conversation in walks David Sanborn, well you could heard my heart drop.Leroy introduces us and tells him that my cuz CT is a great singer; David nods politely.End of story, oh no! I go back upstairs to watch the show and they call my name to come and sing ( as black as I am, I turned as white as Michael Jackson). I should have left well enough alone but David starts inviting me to all his gigs around town, and I even got to play sax at a couple of them.
Fear can do some strange stuff to you if you let it, and I've kept this fear about my talent to myself for too long, I'm trying to overcome it but I've had some terrible experiences with it because of egos.
During the time I spent with David, he encouraged me a lot, and he was the first person to treat me as though I had a brain, and not his valet...and I will be forever grateful.
If you've never experienced David Sanborn live you owe it to your career if you're in music to hear that great cry from his horn, he's in this game for real and when you listen to him you'll understand why he can literally move me to tears, and you'll also undersand why I want so badly to be in this business.
Lastly, if you're struggling in this business, find people who will cheer you on and not bring you down because you have drive, and or talent.Get together with like minded people who are encouraging and will compel you to be the best...you deserve it!
Years before I actually heard him, I had heard of him because everyone that I had played music with from around 1969 on compared me with him. Starting with a guy that I grew up with in the Bronx, Butch Ford (a fine guitarist). He was a big fan of the Paul Butterfield Blues band, of which Sanborn was a member.During a short well lived tenure in a band that Butch had I was the saxophone player (no one knew that I could sing because I tried to keep that to myself). Butch always told me that he really loved the way I could handle my horn... "Charlie, you just play the sh** outta that thing, just like that F***ing David Sanborn, in Butterfield's band."
Now I'm not certain where I lost the interpretation , but it may be around that time that I started to lose confidence in myself and doubt my abilities. I had some run ins with a couple of the other guys in the band (funny, I don't even remember their names) but their taunts affected me negatively, mainly because I was overweight. Butch really believed that I would be a great musician someday; but we were teenagers, and it's hard to see that far ahead, and even harder to convince grownups that this guy's got a gift. So as my teen years faded into bad memory, I kept my dreams and my gift to myself.
I came here to West Virginia to go to college, and during those years I heard some great music and some great musicians, and I really wanted to participate, but my earlier fears sort of got the best of me so I didn't really reveal how well I could play for fear that I wouldn't get to play much because of peoples egos (stupid huh?). Anyway, I wrapped up my time in West Virginia (the first time) after doing a stint as the lead vocalist and flutist/saxophonist with a band called Stratus (they are still going strong here in the Charleston area), and I went back to New York by way of DC, where I lived with my Sister for a year. During that time she tried to tell everyone who would listen about her baby Brother, and I did get a couple of gigs out of it but nothing in DC clicked for me, so I headed back to the Bronx...something was pulling me.
After just over a year in the city I started getting really antsy, so I ventured out to see what the music scene was like, and I started meeting all kinds of people who gave me the same story, and making endless comparisons.
Anyway to make a long story short in 1983 on a complete fluke I was hanging out with some friends when I ran into my cousin Leroy Clouden ( if you're not familiar with the name grab the Steely Dan CD "Two Against Nature," he's the drummer) at a club called Mikells. He and I were chatting it up, he takes me down to the dressing room, and while we're in this conversation in walks David Sanborn, well you could heard my heart drop.Leroy introduces us and tells him that my cuz CT is a great singer; David nods politely.End of story, oh no! I go back upstairs to watch the show and they call my name to come and sing ( as black as I am, I turned as white as Michael Jackson). I should have left well enough alone but David starts inviting me to all his gigs around town, and I even got to play sax at a couple of them.
Fear can do some strange stuff to you if you let it, and I've kept this fear about my talent to myself for too long, I'm trying to overcome it but I've had some terrible experiences with it because of egos.
During the time I spent with David, he encouraged me a lot, and he was the first person to treat me as though I had a brain, and not his valet...and I will be forever grateful.
If you've never experienced David Sanborn live you owe it to your career if you're in music to hear that great cry from his horn, he's in this game for real and when you listen to him you'll understand why he can literally move me to tears, and you'll also undersand why I want so badly to be in this business.
Lastly, if you're struggling in this business, find people who will cheer you on and not bring you down because you have drive, and or talent.Get together with like minded people who are encouraging and will compel you to be the best...you deserve it!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)