Musicians, what are you working on right now?

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So, my fellow musicians, what your you currently working musically? Whatever, if it's something you're composing/writing yourself or simply learning or studying.

I'm working on a fingerstyle guitar piece by Leo Kottke called "Even His Feet Look Sad." Typical weird title a la Leo, but performance-wise it's turning out to be a bit of a b***h. It's like a Brazilian waltz meets contemporary fingerstyle techniques meets modern jazz harmonies. When I chose this piece, I didn't think it'd be this challenging, but it's a serious performance piece. You have to get every down right - the notes, the tempo changes, the dynamics, the phrasing - or it just sounds like you're plunking the strings like a doofus. I got so disgusted with myself last night while practicing it I had to go back to some easier Leo pieces I already know well to make myself feel better. I've always been awed by Leo's compositional and playing abilities, but I'm gaining a whole new appreciation for him just from this song.

I also started today on a couple fo John they piece, "Desperate Man Blues" and "Requiem for John Hurt." They not quite as challenging, but they still pretty fascinating works for fingerstyle guitar. Fahey was a real character. I haven't ever learned any of his songs and I figure it was time to learn some. he had a real knack for intertwinging country blues techniques like that of John Hurt and Gary Davis and mixing it up with the haunting, unnerving qualities of Delta bluesmen like Robert Johnson and Fred McDowell.

I haven't been playing much piano or clarinet lately. I hate nt having enough time to do everything I want to do.

I've primarily been interested in free improvisation,and "sculpt" recorded improvs into compositions.And for the last year I've been slowly arranging a few songs for solo guitar(including "Summertime" and "In Heaven" from Eraserhead).Thats coming along slowly.I'm becoming a little more familiar with circuit-bending.That's tremendous fun.Hmm,slowly learnng more about tuning systems and especially theory of applications there-of.Once or twice a year I get the itch to make a new weird insturument to use,so that's on my mind lately too.

I'm not as familiar with Leo Kottke as I "should" be,but I like his "6 and 12 String Guitar" record.His playing is deceptively complex.I love John Fahey,he's been a "hero" at times.Let us know how those go for you.

Getting ready for Hulapalooza on May 26th....Organizing a bunch of my original songs and such...

Hulapalooza is a hula hoop oriented concert...several acts involved, including mine...use hula hoops..
I sing, hula hoop and play uke and kazoo...at the same time...

I completed my new CD in March and I haven't worked on much new material since, but I am trying to book some gigs and once I have dates comfirmed, i'm gonna start rehearsing songs to play at the shows.

concept album. i had lost all my recordings so i'm re-building up...but it's a good thing...i think i'm giving better performances this time and have a clearer vision for the songs.


not to mention i'm gonna try and draft some people to help because, well, i suck at playing (at least i think so).


really, i wanna get my old friend in on this because we tend to be on the same musical wavelength. but i'll figure that out later...maybe try and ship out some mixdowns to him and record some tracks to ship back out to me.

What instruments do you use?



I don't know how familiar anyone ought to be with Leo Kottke. He's a musician's musician-cum-folk hero kind of musician, so his appeal is rather limited despite how phenomenal he is. I've been a fingerstyle guitarist for so long, it's a given for me. I hadn't been listening to him much at all for a long time. I listened to him while in college, for I was a jazz major then, and had other side projects, so I never had time to really study his style. But in the past 6 months I've been rather obsessed with his music.

Both Kottke and Fahey are amazing to me because like the old blues masters, they have this almost mystical way of teaching you through their own music. Fahey's songs are also a bit deceptive, like that of John Hurt of Gary Davis. It's like in theory or on papar, i.e., in the abstract, they seem so rudimentary and simple, yet to play them is a whole other universe. It's like the song itself has its own soul that comes out of some other dimension when you sit down and actually play it. I guess that's part of the enduring appeal of this kind of music.

I go through phases of musical obsession myself. I was working on an home-recorded album of my own songs, then I got obsessed with learning Elliott Smith songs and studying his guitar style. Then it was learning Bartok's Microcosmos cycle on piano. Then it was writing an opera (which I'm still determined to finish...eventually...I have too many good ideas LOL!). Now it's Leo Kottke and getting my fingerstyle chops back to what they were in earlier years.

well ive just been plink-plonking on my piano

I use guitars,some that I've modifed,and a couple of stringed instruments I made,plus all variety of electronics,effects,and found objects.

I meant "should",per Kottke,because I've played(we can use that term loosely)guitar for twenty-seven years.As you say,he's one of those big names in the world of guitar.

Yes,John Fahey's playing was almost "mystically" elemental,in arrangement and delivery.True to the nature of stringed instruments in particular,his music is as much about dynamics and sound as it is about the notes.

Here's a good quote about JF from Thurston Moore(of Sonic Youth):"If you look at the pic on the cover you see classic late,but not super late,period Fahey with joyful belly and stormy head and an orange T-shirt.Orange:energy,balance,warmth,enthusiasm,vibrant,expansive,flamboyant,demanding of attention.The man knew what to wear to tell you what was going on.The man played colors like some men play baccarat.Sometimes he'd wear nothing at all.I knocked on his hotel door to ask him a question and he was buck naked and he had no fear.Invited me in to listen to some Messiaen or something.He had an incredible ass,I couldn't help but look,but whoa,I did have to look away,and there in the corner was a crumpled,well worn orange T-shirt.He was handing me CDs of some of his releases, I shoulda asked for the shirt."

I like "Microcosmos" too.Do you have any of your music online?

How in the world do you balance hula/voice/kazoo/uke simultaneously? *bravo* AND :are these original songs on your SHFL site?

Amazing -- hula, voice and ukelele at the same time, I can see that; kazoo too? Do you sing through the kazoo.

Must be a great show.



Michaelmas - in admiration (I thought just playing the drum kit needed especial levels of co-ordination)

methinks - I don't have anything online because it's just a pain in the ass for me to do for such little reward. LOL. I don't record onto my PC, so I'd have to transfer and conver the files from my home digital recorder, and then upload with a dail-up connection. I have nothing really to gain from all of that except maybe one or two people saying, "That was cool." So I'm not terribly motivated. I hoping when I get a better job ot get a laptop and stuff and make a website, but not right now.

BTW, I've met Thurston. Back in 1990 when they were touring for Goo. I thought he was rather pompous and insufferable because he wanted to inform me, a Texan, about how great a "outsider" music history Texas has.

I'm currently not working on any projects at this point. I'm saving cash to get two guitar amps retubes and possibly modified, as well as saving further cash to purchase a 4x12 sealed back cabinet due to my extreme dislike of the tonal qualities inherant in an open backed combo style enclosure.

Cade-I've met a few like Thurston ;it must go with the territory of "rock stars" to a certain degree.

Fogman-what're your amps?

Seymour Duncan Convertable 100 (Combo Version) and an old Bogen CHB-35 PA amp from the 60's.

The Seymour Duncan needs to have all tubes replaced ( Still has the original issue Tungsrams in the preamp modules) and possibly Cap replacement.

The Bogen needs the same as well as replacement of the Amphenol input jacks with .25" Tipring jacks. The Barrier Strip output section needs to be modded over to .25" Tipring as well. I think the Tonestack may need to be modified as well.

methinks - unfortunately, yes, I know there's quite of few like that running around.

Fogman - I can relate your amp situation. I hate dedaling with amp repairs or mods. It's just not my thing. I'm impossible to please when it comes to amps, so I often have settle for going ampless. I do need to save up and get a decent amp for my acoustic and I need to have my little Fender tube amp fixed (the input jack is messed up). I don't play electric much at all anymore though, but it'd be nice to have a decent amp around to play some jazz on my electric.