2,951 Reply by Tenement Funster

(580 replies, posted in Bands and artists)

Steve Hackett    "Los Endos"    Budapest, 2004

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZdyR0GBOu8

Another superb track from the "Once Above a Time" DVD. Hackett goes to town on his Fernandes Monterey guitar, using it's abilities and some of his unique techniques to create interesting sounds and embellishments to the song. "Los Endos" is a track from the 1976 Genesis album "A Trick of the Tail", the first album they made after the departure of Peter Gabriel. Steve stayed on with the group for one more album (Wind & Wuthering), and the band made a significant change in direction towards pop music afterwards.

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2,952 Reply by Tenement Funster

(21 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

Thanks so much for the update, Kev! The very best to you, Graham, for a speedy recovery.

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2,953 Reply by Tenement Funster

(22 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

Zurf ... don't practice!

Instead, just play with the darn thing and have some fun. Everyone needs a break from the formal rigors once in a while, and that's not a bad thing ... it's usually necessary. Put on some concert clips of your favorite groups playing favorite songs you know, play along like you're one of the band, and imagine the applause at the end is for you! It's simple escapism, but take a break and enjoy it ...the student in you will come back all on his own.

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2,954 Reply by Tenement Funster

(4 replies, posted in Songwriting)

KIR ... no worries, my man ... just horsing around!

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2,955 Reply by Tenement Funster

(57 replies, posted in Songwriting)

I absolutely love the idea of a "Beach Boys" feel for it ... never even thought of that.

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2,956 Reply by Tenement Funster

(57 replies, posted in Songwriting)

UncleJoe & KIR ...way to go for pulling this all together!

Phill made a comment about this being a USA - Europe collaboration. I hope Canada gets an honorable mention somewhere, eh? big_smile

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2,957 Topic by Tenement Funster

(2 replies, posted in Poems)

I made the mistake of watching the news this morning, and became paralyzed with grief. Writing this poem about it doesn't help at all, but it's better than nothing, I guess:

SO FEARFUL

CHORUS:    So sad and so tearful,
        So mad and yet fearful,
        My hands won't stop shaking,
        My heart won't stop quaking,
        Despair gets the best of me … so fearful.

Hear how another child blows himself to bits,
See how apathy blindly turns and just sits,
Read how hatred abounds … gives me the fits,
Why are we helpless? Why can't it be fixed?

CHORUS:    So sad and so tearful,
        So mad and yet fearful,
        My hands won't stop shaking,
        My heart won't stop quaking,
        Despair gets the best of me … so fearful.

Bring on the amusement! Bring on the clowns!
A delusion of joy may wipe off those frowns!
My head in the sand, repressing it down,
Hope lived here once, but became a ghost town.

CHORUS:    So sad and so tearful,
        So mad and yet fearful,
        My hands won't stop shaking,
        My heart won't stop quaking,
        Despair gets the best of me … so fearful.

Our record speaks volumes, for this little planet,
If it can be destroyed, we manage to plan it,
At the base of it all, beyond all our need,
The one human constant: unquenchable greed.

CHORUS:    So sad and so tearful,
        So mad and yet fearful,
        My hands won't stop shaking,
        My heart won't stop quaking,
        Please God forgive us … we're so fearful.

Seriously ... what are we doing to ourselves!

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2,958 Reply by Tenement Funster

(57 replies, posted in Songwriting)

Thanks, KIR ... how's this for the cutting room floor:

To win any race, ya gotta be wise,
Don't matter how big, all those other guys,
'Cuz big ones fall, even the super-sized,
A thing I like to call ... you got Mini-mized.

It was Graham's idea to enter his Mini Cooper in the race against the muscle cars, so that's surely the focal point that's got everyone's attention.

I think I'm about to get "gonged"! It's all fun ...

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2,959 Topic by Tenement Funster

(1 replies, posted in Bands and artists)

I was surfing around for entries for the weekly "Prog Rock Chill Out" section, and came across this phenomenal young lady:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLT3Cb96-Mk

The Moog on top of her Hammond Organ is actually an old one that Keith Emerson had, and sent it to her. It's easy to see she's very accomplished, and another level of amazement is the fact that she was born blind. I love the way she claps her hands at the end with delight, crying out, "That was fun!"

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2,960 Reply by Tenement Funster

(11 replies, posted in Acoustic)

Thanks, Doug!

Wise considerations about feedback and ambient sounds. The folks at GF claim that the rubber stalk on the internal mic helps to reduce feedback and handling noise, but we'll see. With Piezo's and transducers, I haven't really heard one I like the sound of. They just sound thin / shrill / tinny to my ears. I'm hoping that being able to blend the mic and the pickup will give me something more natural sounding in between. I need to hold off on ordering right now, as the CDN$ is at about 0.80 USD right now. Only the lads at the upper echelons in the financial industry really know why.

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2,961 Reply by Tenement Funster

(580 replies, posted in Bands and artists)

Rush    "2112 Overture / Temples of Syrinx"   Rio de Janeiro, 2003

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APbogD9uwFU

This is one of the most "into it" crowds I've ever seen in a concert video. The 40,000 Brazillians attending, with Portuguese as their native tongue, sang along to every word, fist-pumped to every beat, and shouted in unison in time to the music. I haven't performed for almost 40 years, but I get a rush (pun intended) thinking about how energizing it would be to play to a crowd who were this connected with the music. If you're a Rush fan and haven't watched this whole concert, make a big cup o' tea, and watch this one through ... amazing!

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRGY9z_cKMoS5pgMKffAx0XoTYjjm-z94a-9oVLkJEHDWLPbuOx

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2,962 Reply by Tenement Funster

(19 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

For me, the highest calling for all art forms is to make people think.

That thinking may be reflective, imaginative, introspective, emotive ... whatever, but if it exercises the mind and motivates further thought, then it's mission accomplished. Really good music, either playing it or listening to it, has the ability to absorb a person completely. For the musician, the need to concentrate so much is good mental exercise, especially if singing and playing something simultaneously that is somewhat complex. Motivation to think ... final answer!

"The reason so many people get lost in thought, is that it's unfamiliar territory for them."  - Anonymous

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2,963 Reply by Tenement Funster

(6 replies, posted in Poems)

Good song, EasyBeat ... seems like a common scenario around the world.

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2,964 Reply by Tenement Funster

(17 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

The more, the merrier! Love your avatar ... have never seen that flag before. Somwhere in Europe? (LOL)

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2,965 Reply by Tenement Funster

(57 replies, posted in Songwriting)

They thought I was beat 'cuz they were super-sized,
But I knew they were 'bout to get Mini-mized.

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2,966 Reply by Tenement Funster

(14 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

Give this a watch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LUumD0MwL8

No true democratic system would allow this happen, but successive administrations in North America have continually redefined "democracy". This video isn't the least bit funny, and we won't have to wait until 2030 to see that proven.

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2,967 Reply by Tenement Funster

(25 replies, posted in Poems)

I hear you, Phill ...

I don't know why, but the only gal I ever knew who liked Jethro Tull was my sister. Prog Rock in general just doesn't seem to appeal to the female gender, for whatever reason.

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2,968 Reply by Tenement Funster

(14 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

We have a safety boot company here in Canada (Terra) who were originally based out of Newfoundland. They used to make the whole boot here, but moved the uppers component offshore a number of years ago. A big part of the problem was that all of the animal rights people were on their case, for all of the cows being killed for boot leather! As long as the cows killed are from Asia they don't seem to mind, so that's how production eventually ended up over there.

So the boot arrives in Canada, complete except for the sole. It is then put into a direct injection machine (called a DESMA) and the soles are moulded on robotically. When the consumer looks at the finished boot, the sole is embossed with "Made in Canada", but that isn't seen anywhere else on or within the boot. The consumer gets the impression that the whole boot is made in Canada, but only the sole is ... by a robot.

A funny world we've made for ourselves.

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2,969 Reply by Tenement Funster

(8 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

unclejoesband wrote:
Tenement Funster wrote:

If you hold it up, and look down the length from the body end, does there appear to be a hump where the neck joins the body? If so, that's another sure sign of it being dried out. Once it's placed in a properly humidified environment and refinished, you should have yourself a very nice guitar. That's a great deal on an Eastman ... nicely done!

WOW!! You're good!! I didn't even notice that but upon closer scrutiny, there is an almost imperceptible hump around the 16th and 17th fret. Nice call.  Our humidity hovers in the 42%-45% area in the winter and 50% in the summer. Since I can't access those frets I'll just let things flow and see if works itself out.

I played for a couple hours last night and noticed something I may want to address. It has no pickguard and I already made a few marks on the satin finish. I think I may put one on it. Suggestions????


EDIT:

BTW. Did you do the "pot of water" thing to try to raise your humidity? If so, did it work?

Can't remember where I read about the "hump", but apparently the top shrinks when dried out (especially if it's solid wood like you have) and goes a bit concave. That's what they say causes that slight hump. When it gets really dry, they say the neck will even shrink, which results in the fret ends sticking out a bit on the edges. I guess the wood shrinks, the finish doesn't, so that's what causes the little cracks in it. Here's a great article from Marguerite Pastella's website (www.fretnotguitarrepair.com) about how dryness affects the finish:

http://www.fretnotguitarrepair.com/repa … cracks.php

Thanks for remembering the moisture issue I brought up a few months ago. What I ended up doing was plugging in a vaporizer we have in the opposite corner of the "man cave", and running it over night for most of the winter. The acoustics have all recovered and are good to go. For next winter, I'm going to buy a proper humidifier to maintain that 55% RH "sweet spot".

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2,970 Reply by Tenement Funster

(25 replies, posted in Poems)

Phill Williams wrote:

i am also a big JT fan, but those words are not familiar to me, like to enlighten me? smile

here's a JT lyric can you identify the song or give the next line;

"a concert of kings as the white sea snaps..."

marvelous. what a wordsmith

Got that one Phill! I play this song regularly, and love the haunting quality of it:

"At the heels of a soft prayer, whispered"
(from "Dun Ringhill" off of the Stormwatch album)

Here's a video of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlrxyiIVFUU

The earlier Tull line I posted is:

"A singer of these ageless times,
With kitchen prose and gutter rhymes"
(from the title track off of the "Songs From the Wood" album)

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2,971 Reply by Tenement Funster

(8 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

The problem you're describing Uncle Joe is usually a moisture one ... it sounds like the thing has just been stored improperly and dried out. If you hold it up, and look down the length from the body end, does there appear to be a hump where the neck joins the body? If so, that's another sure sign of it being dried out. Once it's placed in a properly humidified environment and refinished, you should have yourself a very nice guitar. That's a great deal on an Eastman ... nicely done!

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2,972 Reply by Tenement Funster

(14 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

I agree with your position 100%, Russell.

Obviously my take on it is going to be "Made in Canada", but we have given too much to the "cheap labor" economies overseas. That one factor is the main reason why North American manufacturers have been dying off in droves. None of us are willing to work for $2 / day, nor should we be expected to. But as consumers, we're always looking for the cheapest price, and we vote in favor of cheap labor every time we buy something foreign made, just because it costs less.

We've done it to ourselves.

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2,973 Reply by Tenement Funster

(3 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

The last time I saw pics of Mick & Keith, they both looked like someone had unwrapped a couple of mummies ... especially Keith. Some one really should buy him some sandwiches or pizzas or some good ol' Canadian poutine!

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQNhyLwW6WsO006V_XQEKisT4Ve4VDWjFYNf_bmk-1H556ZD-as

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2,974 Reply by Tenement Funster

(34 replies, posted in Chordie's Chat Corner)

Zurf wrote:

Are prison inmates permitted to have sex with animals at a tavern, school, or church?

lol lol lol

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2,975 Reply by Tenement Funster

(25 replies, posted in Poems)

unclejoesband wrote:
Tenement Funster wrote:

Here's a line from one of my favorites ... hope someone can guess the next line:

"A singer of these ageless times..."

I've run this line over and over in my head this morning. I finally came up with the song but don't know the next line so I'm going to keep quiet until someone else has a chance.

Great song btw. smile

Not surprised that it caught your attention, Uncle Joe ... without giving it away, it's a Jethro Tull song, and you and I are both fans.

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