Detroit

Friday I accompanied Slakah the BeatChild to Detroit to play a gig at Alvin's. I had a lot of fun doing it and it's always nice to associate with good people. The planned setlist was something like this, with all tunes being from his solo material or his Art of Fresh project:

1. Intro


2. Enjoy Ya Self


3. Share


4. Illusions (new track)


5. B-Boy Beef


6. The Chase (Art of Fresh - Back To The Earth)


7. Out of This World (Art of Fresh - Back To The Earth)
   

The highlight for me was playing What's This Thing. Slakah originally forgot to put it in the set but because I already knew this tune (me and the wifey listen to this tune plenty), there were no problems putting it in.

There was plenty going on with display tables of people shopping their wares, opening acts, the listening party for the new Angie Stone album "Unexpected," and DJ JMO (in from St. Louis) holding it down after we finished.

The above picture is JMO, Slakah, and myself after our set.

A couple more things here to wrap up:

• I went to Detroit and everyone there treated me nice, and I did not die or get shot at.
• Stay tuned for the Slakadeliqs, and other projects by Slakah because this is one talented guy.

Going International With Slakah the Beatchild

Today at 9:30am I received a call from Slakah the Beatchild, who just got back into Toronto after a successful west coast tour. After that conversation I had to let my fellow church players know that I will not be joining them tonight as I will be playing some bass in Detroit. My wife and I really dig his first album "Soul Movement Vol. 1" which can be purchased at most online music sites. Check out his link.

Gotta run because I'm leaving shortly. I'll be back here Monday.

Happy Thanksgiving Round 2

As I wake up this morning, there's so much to do, because it's Thanksgiving. The first reason why I love American Thanksgiving is that I get to celebrate it twice. So twice a year I get to be thankful for everything in my life (except for the minor crappy stuff once in a while, but who keeps score, really).

I myself am not American but I have many friends who are, and two nieces whose father came up here from Detroit. So for many of the years my routine has consistented of this one thing, sitting at my sister's watching the Detroit Lions get their Thanksgiving dinner handed to them, and just hanging with the fam.

So here's a shout out to Aaron in Warren PA, Rob in Denver CO, Mel in Grosse Pointe MI, Uncle Brad near San Diego CA, Thompson in Boston MA, Chauncey in Minneapolis/St. Paul MN, and Dammien in Philadelphia, PA....

...and of course to the fam in Scarborough...

Happy Thanksgiving.

Adventures With Ayah 3 - Revival (part I)

A couple months after my friends wedding, Thompson lets me know that Ayah would like us to support her for her tour kick off at the Revival on Nov 6, 2008. As per usual with any artist that is great to play for, I received the tunes to learn early, giving me plenty of time to prepare.

The day of the show arrives and it is going to be a busy one for me. I had to unload at the Revival, then go to church band practice in Mississauga, and then come back for the show. I would normally skip the practice but we were learning the songs for the Christmas services so I had to be there. Ayah then lets me know that Tona will be in attendance and will be performing her single "Pusha Man," which was not on the original list. She asked if I could go on YouTube to watch her music video and come up with a live bass line that would work for it. So I did.

Last Friday I mentioned that some jobs I take contain pleasant surprises. Well this was the song I heard on FLOW back in August (see previous adventure) and I was going to be allowed to make a bassline for it, pretty much on the spot. Here's the video...

Happy 60th Mom

Today is my mother's 60th birthday. So I'm going to talk about her today.

Like most mothers she enrolled me in music (piano). Maybe because that's what parents did back then. Then like most mothers she became uncomfortable when I realized I was great at music and wanted to look into avenues to make it a career.

But unlike most mothers, she let me go ahead with it and made sure her desicions regarding my future were in my best interest. Some descisions didn't turn out the way she wanted, and some did. That means the ones that did didn't turn out the way I wanted, oh well. Considering all musicians want to be millionaires at it, I'm very happy with where I am now.

Here are three opinions about myself I believe she is responsible for forming:

1. I would rather live in a stable environment than live out of a station wagon trying to make a dream come true that is a one in a million shot.
2. I would rather work a job to make sure my bills are all paid as well as be a musican so I can have two jobs and more money than trying to just live off of an income that started off as a hobby.
3. I would rather trust God to put me in a position to play places and events I enjoy playing than to struggle to make it work all by myself.

Thanks Mom, and happy birthday.

In 1985, I received one of my favourite albums for my birthday, Slippery When Wet by Bon Jovi. It was then I knew what I wanted to be in life, the guy that played the beginning of "Living on a Prayer." I learned every song on that album and I can still play some of them today.

Flash forward 22 years....

In 2007, a Pastor asked me to teach a girl at his church how to play guitar. She was in grade 7 and had never picked up the instrument. The goal was to get her good enough to lead worship at church in 3-6 months. Needless to say that did not happen.

So after the introductory lesson, I sit her down in lesson 2 and ask her why she really wants to play the guitar, what she hopes to accomplish with this, and what songs she's interested in playing. So let's compare, shall we:

The pastor wanted:

1. her to play the guitar to lead worship at his church
2. her to accomplish this in 3-6 months
3. her to learn Israel Houghton and Hillsongs

The girl wanted:

1. to play the guitar because she saw India Arie do it and thought it would be fun
2. to play and sing along by herself and eventually with her friends
3. to learn Umbrella, and "anything by Bon Jovi because he's sexy and they're awesome."

She instantly became the best student I ever had, and so I put Israel and Hillsongs on the backburner and taught her "Wanted Dead or Alive."

Not only did she learn one of the greatest guitar songs she also learned how to sing lead, sing backup, jam on rhythm guitar, and learn chords. But most importantly she learned that she had the ability to sing and play the songs she wants, and she had a crapload of fun doing it.

And so did I.

Sometimes as a musician, I will accept a playing invitation and have no idea what I'm in for. Last Friday I mentioned about playing for a friend from my church. I always knew he was good, but DAMN he is an amazing player. It's a shame his section leader at our church gives all the specials to the trumpets, who are terrible in comparison to the saxes.

Here are some other things I learned so far:

I think I'm playing bass for a soca band called "Fyahorns and de Brigade."

My friend's cousin wrote the bassline for the greatest soca/calypso song of all time. That would be "Lorraine" by the artist Explainer. Look it up (he also does it with Bunji Garlin on Soca Gold 2005). It was a real treat to jam on this tune at the rehearsal.

The guitar player has played with Machel Montano at some point. Here is a clip I took of Machel Montano and Xstatic performing "Higher than High" at Harbourfront's CARNIVALISSIMA celebrations on June 10, 2007.

I'm sure there are more surprises coming, and I can't wait for them to arrive.

2008 Easter Seals Telethon

Yeah, I know it says 2008 when it's almost 2010. The reason that I'm posting this today is that it's being sent to a record label. I don't know for what or why, but the fact that someone finds this relevant almost two years later is a good feeling.

Thompson asked me to accompany him live on CBC for the Easter Seals Telethon on April 6, 2008. To me this was an exciting honour as we love to volunteer and now I get to make my "tv debut" as a bonus.

The people at Easter Seals/CBC took extremely good care of us. I loved the free parking downtown, the dressing room, and the guy whose sole assignment is to do everything the trio asks of him. Hair and make-up was an interesting experience. You have to trust in a hurry with hair and make-up. Trusting Jesus is much easier than trusting a stranger slopping goo all over my face and head for the first time.

Ok girl that introduces us, do your thing.....

Adventures with Ayah 2 - Something Good on Flow

The next week after I first played for Ayah, I attended a wedding for a co-worker. There was no way I was going to miss this wedding. So I picked up a friend of mine and off we went.

Watching my friend get re-married (to the same girl) was awesome and I also learned a few things. First, bring kneepads. Second, don't high-five your friend when we both get the "and also with you" part correct. And third, Catholic priests are SERIOUS about their communion so if you're not going to follow the etiquette (with which I am unfamiliar) then don't bother taking it.

After the ceremony my friend and I drive to the mall to kill time when we switch the channel to FLOW 93.5. I was expecting to hear Maroon 5 or Coldplay because FLOW was having an identity crisis. To my surprise, the most banging R&B song I have heard for some time came on the speakers. We rolled down the windows and cranked the crap out of it.

I didn't know it at the time, but it was Ayah.

Rush releases live CD/DVD "Working Men" today

Today my favourite band of all time, RUSH, releases its first ever compilation of live material from 2003-2008. For those who do not know, they are the greatest band to ever come out of Canada. I'm sure some people will have arguments, but they will not be listened to by me, and most likely not by Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters either.

I have to thank user "spongspongspong" from YouTube for posting this great clip (which I ripped & edited). It is Taylor Hawkins playing the Rush classic instrumental YYZ in Toronto on March 22, 2008. I'm sure most people I know recognize YYZ more from Guitar Hero II as opposed to the album "Moving Pictures." Accompanying Taylor Hawkins are surprise guests, and members of RUSH, Geddy Lee (bass) and Alex Lifeson (guitar). Enjoy.

As most of my readers know, I was married last month. One of the perks of being married to a fashion stylist who doesn't suck is that I get to go to some very neat events. She also has a blog at www.triciacampbell.blogspot.com. I have had the pleasure of attending some of the events that you will see on her blog. I will share some of these pictures in future postings.

Last night I had the opportunity to help out a friend I play with at my church. He is in the Humber College music program and because I am a graduate of this program it is nice to go back. I bumped into friends I have not seen in a while so it was nice.

But now I’m going to tell you what really irks me about playing with most Christian church musicians. Most don't know how to stay in their lane in a professional sense. If the person running the session asks me to read a chart, or play a certain way, I will do that. Last night, my friend had all my charts prepared and ready. For some reason, others chirp in your ear about what they want to hear, or how it should be played. I assume my friend was satisfied with what I was doing because he didn’t ask me to change anything.

This isn't the first time this has happened so here is something these musicians need to understand. My friends ask me to play. These are not “blind date” situations. They have seen me play the styles they want and are comfortable with how I play them. This is why they ask me. They do not ask me to play what is not on the chart or to play something different.

What I appreciate most playing outside of the "church musicians scene" is that effort and talent are appreciated here, much more than in places where it is blessed. And they pay me well out here too.

Tuesday I met Thompson at the Toronto Island Airport and made our way over to meet Brandon at Artscape Wychwood Barns and play for the FINCA Canada Gala Launch. It was a fantastic event and I hope it did very well. The evening featured a very large silent auction, a key contest for some monster prizes, and an art auction featuring the works of Leonard Cohen and Jane Seymour.

The MC for the event was radio personality Humble Howard. I remember him best doing mornings with Fred on the Edge 102.1. My favorite bit was their call of a hockey game with all the different religions.

While we were playing I was asked to move my car, even though I had inquired twice if I could park there and was told it wouldn’t be a problem. So I handed off the bass to Humble who said he’d hold it down for me while I went missing. So here's a blackberry clip of the hardest working radio personality MC in show business. Enjoy...

Adventures with Ayah 1 - I Reminisce

It all started on a rainy Thursday in August of 2008. I was playing with the Thompson Egbo Egbo trio at the Rosedale Golf Club when he reminded me that “Ayah needs a band at the Gladstone and I said we’ll help her out tonight.” I had said sure on the condition that I was out at 11pm. I used to have a job where I started at 5:30am so sleep was important.

This was an event for a charity but because we went from one gig right to the other, I don’t remember the specifics of this one. We arrived, parked at the Price Chopper, and set up. My playing instructions were “You’re playing an upright. It’s going to sound cool regardless so just play loops and follow me.”

The event started late so I have to give Ayah a ton of credit for still managing to get me out of there by 11:15. We sounded great and played “re-mixed” tunes from Ayah’s “Problem Woman” mixtape which can be downloaded for FREE at her website (http://www.ayahmusic.com/ and click on music). Little did I know that this would be the first of some good times I would have playing for her.

One thing that my friends and I enjoy doing is playing charitable events and fundraisers. Whether public or private, we relish the opportunity to make a difference. On November 10, the Thompson Egbo Egbo Trio is playing a special event, FINCA Canada’s Gala Launch Event (http://fincacanada.ca/). For this event I have to familiarize myself with a handful of Haitian songs. This is always nice because I love to get out there and play different kinds of things. If you are interested in learning more about FINCA or to make a donation, please check out this website (http://www.fincacanada.org/).

A friend who I play on a variety of projects with is now studying at Berkelee College of Music out in Boston Massachusetts. Ever since he left, a lot of my gigs have disappeared. That’s what happens when you’re in the role of Robin when everyone wants Batman. But last week he flew in for a special half hour performance at Paul Hahn and Co. Pianos. (http://www.paulhahn.com/). This meant I get to dust off my upright bass and start playing. It was really nice to play the tunes again. You appreciate them much more when you haven’t played them in three months as opposed to three times a week. The place was fairly full to see us play considering Feist was doing a free concert within walking distance.