Merry Christmas

So I was trying to clear up my hard disk space on my computer and I came across this awesome ditty. To set up the story, after a previous long-term relationship ended my ex's sister was a real help to me when I ran into some difficulties. Once I got out of those I thanked her by getting her front row center tickets to one of her favorite artists, gospel legend Shirley Caesar.

So we went and it was amazing. We were both so excited because she got to meet Pastor Caesar and I got to meet the band (top notch). Overall, this was probably some of the best guitar playing since I saw Stevie Ray Vaughan when I was in Grade 8. That was a while ago. I didn't really know what we were in for until the band started to sound check. There wasn't much lighting and though I originally brought the camera to take pictures for Stacey, I drained all my batteries recording this sound check. It was totally worth it.

This clip features Cris Johnson on guitar, and the organist is Mike Mathis.

Merry Christmas from the pocket.

I Survived an Drunken Irish Flash Mob

Saturday I have the privilege of again playing with Jeff Eager, Chris Caddell, and Ed Mortenson. After our success at the Hideout it was nice to play with them again. This time it was at the Rose and Crown. Though I generally like the Rose and Crown, tonight was different. There was an Irish ugly Christmas sweater flash mob going on and when Tricia and I arrived at 9:30 to set up, the place was jammed and everyone was plastered.

Then I found out I had to play the first set turned off because of some stupid rule over there which states that basses can't play until 12:15 or some crap like that now. I just played without sound because the place was too drunk to know what was going on anyway.

Once we got going as per what should be expected, we played great. Here's a shot video that Tricia shot, produced, and directed of the band playing Miss You by the Rolling Stones. It features the highlight of the night, a double guitar solo by Jeff and Chris, enjoy.

Slakadeliqs release Love Controls the Sun

Back in September I participated (briefly) in the filming of the Slakadeliqs video for Love Controls the Sun. I bumped into Slakah of the Slakadeliqs at the Forgive Me Love release and he said I had this great shot in the video (briefly). You can see me running in faded slow motion at 3:38-3:39. I also believe those were my legs running on the left just before it but I'll ask my wife just to be sure because she'd recognize them better than I would.

Ayah & DJ Jazzy Jeff release "Forgive Me Love"

On Tuesday Ayah and the magnificent DJ himself released their video to the public. I've seen it. It's pretty good. It covers an issue that doesn't get covered enough. Watch it. You'll see.

Adventures With Ayah 9 - Forgive Me Love Live

This past Sunday evening I had the privilege of accompanying Ayah at her video release event for her song "Forgive Me Love."

Essentially the video is about abusive relationships so she coincided the event with The Forgiveness Project. This is a foundation where more prominent figures talk about the abuses they suffered in the course of their lifetime. The goal of this is to inspire others that may be experiencing something similar that they can survive and get away from it. Then there would be a set of unplugged music from Ayah, which is where I come in. It was a very nice event.

As the night was going on, however, her piano player and I were getting increasingly nervous. Not about our ability but we both were feeling it was going to be very hard to play upbeat tunes after people were pouring out their hearts on the stage about all the shitty things that have happened to them. And I'm not referring to "My husband calls me a fat cow all the time." kind of stuff. These events being described were terribly violent and we're both sitting there thinking of all the great acts that have opened before and after other artists we've played for, this one was difficult in a weird way.

Nonetheless our worries were vanquished as the set went well, and Ayah has never sounded better than she has right now. I'm looking forward to more things that are in the works.

A PR Contest for You

My friend from hockey Adrian asked me to help him out. Because he has almost singlehandedly turned me into a serviceable adult league power forward I would help him out anytime. If he had singlehandedly turned me into the crappiest power forward I would still help him though, because he's a good guy, I think.

He owns a PR company and they're having a contest to design their website.

Please visit Trill PR to see what's going on. I honestly think this is a good opportunity for students to get experience designing a site.

The contest ends November 15th.

For those that remember, this is not like the Kingdom Covenant Center songwriting contest where it kind of just dissappeared like Jimmy Hoffa.

My Second Video

I am going to be in a video. I don't even know what the name of the song is but I heard the Slakadeliqs needed some extras for a video. Since that is one of my favourite new projects on the go right now, I jumped at that chance. I ended up going to the beach at Scarborough Bluffs late Friday night for the shoot. I had a lot of fun. It's always good to see Slakah. Here's the fire we made and where we ate smores and Caramilks after we were done shooting.

The Use of Social Media

My sister is in town visiting from London England this week and it is great to see her. What was even better is that she got to come see me play my second go round at the Rose & Crown. What was even better is that my brother and his wife were also in town and they came too. Then a bunch of friends contacted me after finding out about this event and by the time Saturday rolled around we had a complete table of at least 10 people.

You see, as in most cases, one thing leads to another. It used to be by telephone. A friend would call me and ask me what I was doing on a certain night and then it would lead to calling so-and-so to see if we wanted to get together at another friend's place and the gathering would be fairly epic. In this case for the Rose & Crown my wife and I just posted where I would be playing on social media platforms and a variety of people showed up. And it was very nice to see everyone.

Hiding Out 'Til the Wee Hours

I have to say the adventures playing in a rock band have been quite fun. They guys are great to play with and I seriously wish my science marks in high school were based on musical chemistry instead of the periodic table.

I received a text on Friday asking if I was available Saturday for an impromptu gig at the Hideout. I thought nothing of it at first until I received a text from Jeff that Chris Caddell was the other guitarist on the evening and that he's really good, so it will be fun. I'm glad Jeff let me know so I could go online and see some footage, which is what I always do before I play with players I have never played with. It makes me feel much more comfortable when it gets to show time after having watched them for a while online.

Holy Crap Chris Caddell man. I google him and I see he's the guitarist for Colin James and Sass Jordan. When I was a young upstart I was listening to Colin James, Sudden Stop, Little Big Band, Tell Somebody, and Racine. I love Canadian music and I'm proud of the history and heritage of the great artists.

Then I proceeded to the first link (click below) which was this guitar solo from last year's Queen Street Music Festival and I was blown away. And I also love reverse headstock guitars.

Back to the Saturday Hideout job. My wife says this was the best gig she's ever seen me play. These players are all top notch. The lineup was Chris Caddell and Jeff Eager on guitars, Ed Mortenson on drums, and myself. We didn't get home until about 5am. That should be a headline in itself. We deserve to play there again and hopefully we get the chance.

Something I Always Wanted To Do

As long as I've been playing I have always been kind of a lone traveler, a mercenary for hire so to speak. I pick up some people I trust along the way and we stick together. Though some of them may not last the entire run, some of them can really help you.

Because of the way the cards have been dealt, I have never really played in a band at any point. I am usually hired to learn original material and go from there. That's not a problem and I really enjoy it, but I usually tell people the one thing that has always escaped me was playing awesome rock songs in a band.

Until now ......

I will be subbing in on the weekend with the Red Light Customers at the Rose and Crown at Yonge and Eglinton. It should be a lot of fun for me and if it is I hope it leads to a couple more of these.

Ayah and DJ Jazzy Jeff Issue a FREE 5-Star Release.

So I just came off two great birthday gifts, and now I feel like a kid at Christmas time. Yesterday Ayah and DJ Jazzy Jeff released their long-awaited mix tape. For me it was a painfully long wait as I had already heard a handful of tracks and snippets from working with her in the past.

Now for the shortest review ever. It's FREE and it's awesome so don't be foolish and go download it. In my opinion this is one of the, if not the best project to ever come out by a Canadian female in this genre.

My New Niece

Though awesome bass gear makes for a great birthday, having a niece born on my birthday would have been the greatest present yet. Unfortunately Zoe came out a day short but I think I'm giving her the championship belt anyway, at the age of 0 days. Youngest champion ever.

My brother and his wife decided to go to Christina Anne Photography to get the pics done and they come out with this gem. I'm gonna have to say she looks just like her dad in his early 20's, passed out over an amplifier.

Happy Birthday To Me

Circle of Life

Here's a shout out to one of my favourite young ladies I've worked with, because she's almost triple threat x 2. Not only can she dance, sing, and act. She's also a real sweetie and even more cute. Every guy around her age thinks so too. If I had a dollar for every time someone asked my opinion about her and if they should ask her out (and I always said she was out of their league), I could pay someone to maintain this blog for me. She also has a birthday around the same day as mine. I remember telling her a story about Michelle Williams when I saw her live singing backup for Monica way back when, and she told me that she read about it in a Destiny's Child autobiography. Though that made me feel old, and her more cute. But it was nice that someone knew what I was talking about.

Now she's kind of a big deal in Germany being featured in the Disney's The Lion King in Hamburg. It's really neat because I remember her starting out as a pregnant Mary in the church Christmas pageant. Sometimes you really have to break away to be successful and I don't think there are enough words for me to describe how proud I am of her.

Oh and Chantel, we're planning on passing through next Easter if you're going to be around.

Adventures with Ayah 8 - Who's Gucci Mane?

I haven't had an Ayah Adventure for quite a while but when I heard she was going to be in the Source magazine I knew an adventure was coming. So after work and before hockey I went to every Hasty Mart and Mac's Milk in the Jane and Finch area to finally find my copy of this magazine.

For those who don't know, the Source is the self-proclaimed Bible of hip-hop music, culture, and politics. So to get in here is kind of a big deal. Even more of a big deal, she was referred to as DJ Jazzy Jeff's fresh princess.

So kids, if you're a good person and you work hard, you can get cool things like being in Source magazine.

Here it is:

NHL Round Three Picks

It seems that I can't make any ground right now.

So far the totals are Aaron with 7 points, Matt with 10, and myself with 8.

There is no point going into who picked what. The new champion is Matt as we have all picked the same two teams this round. So whatever happens we will be behind by more points than series remaining.

Congratulations Matt. The title goes south of the border.

Another Awesome Fyahorns Show

Saturday was the show. Fyahorns closing down the Rivoli on a Saturday night. The event was Eclectic Minds 8. One of the sponsors was Toronto Lime. I play in a soca band. This was going to be a legendary night. Or it was supposed to be.

It turned out to be a showcase of pop and rock bands with the Fyahorns closing. We were supposed to get on at midnight but we got on at 1am and played until almost 2am. That is way too long a delay. I had about ten family members that had never seen me play arrive at about 11:30 to see some Caribbean music at Midnight and they were subject to an hour and a half of mediocre to average rock music.

Once we got on, however, we were fantastic. Starting from Esteban's sampled guitar all the way to the encore of Jobs and Misadventures. Jarrod was his usual self leading the charge on vocals.

I would like to thank the people that showed up for me because I realize it was a little trying having to wait an extra hour. That was really bad but I really appreciated it.

Thanks to Liza for the pics.

Never Say Never

So the Fyahorns had their rehearsal yesterday for their show that is coming up tomorrow at the Rivoli. Their rehearsals are always productive which is one of the reasons I love playing in the brigade.

The best thing, however, is that the rehearsal space is three blocks from where my nieces live. I don't get the chance to go out and see them much so it was amazing to stop by and say hi. As per usual uncle duties, I promised to buy the youngest one the Justin Bieber dvd and watch it with after school is over for the year. I also promised the older one I would take her to see the Raptors when they get good. I think I have some time.

Back to Where it all Started, Almost.

Many years ago I was playing at Kingdom Covenant Center. The music director was LJ Mitchell who was pretty good but the drummer sucked some large ass. It was a volunteer thing and I hated it immensely and was thinking about quitting. Right when I was about to quit I experienced divine intervention and Otis Williams was now the drummer.

Friday nights took off and were almost drawing as much as Sunday services. The music was bumping and the joint was jumping with the sounds of good gospel.

Though times have changed I'll always appreciate the start I got there because it allowed me to get back into playing shape to go out and work as a musician again.

Yesterday the three of us re-united to play a charity event at the banquet hall next door. It just reminded me of how blessed I am to know these guys and how far we have come since we first met and changed Friday nights.

Thanks to Fritz at Glamshots for getting me this photo.

NHL Round Two Picks

Ok ladies and gents. Round one is complete. Here are the results.

Aaron has 5 points.
Matt has 7 points.
I have 5 points as well.

Let’s get to round two.

Well all are taking the Bruins, Canucks, and Capitals.

San Jose Sharks vs. Detroit Redwings
Aaron had the wings.
Matt has the wings.
I’m taking the Sharks. Let’s hope I can get back in this thing.

NHL Playoffs: The Quest for Repetition

Last year my friend Aaron and I had a little blog rivalry with our playoff predictions. It was a dead heat until I went 4-0 in round 2. Yes, I had the Canadiens to beat Pittsburgh. Like my fledgling adult hockey career, I only do well at playoff time.

Anyhow, there is a new challenger to the ranks for Aaron's International blogger rivalry we have going on. Now I have to beat off two people. Can it be done. Can I repeat. We shall see. Here goes.

EASTERN CONFERENCE
Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers
Aaron says Capitals in 5.
Matt says Capitals in 6.
I'll agree with both of them and say the Capitals are going to win this one.

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Buffalo Sabres
Aaron says Sabres in 6.
Matt says Flyers in 6.
As much as I love the Sabres, I agree with Matt and say the Flyers are taking this series.

Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens
Aaron says Bruins.
Matt says Bruins in 7.
I'll complete the sweep and say Au Revoir to the Canadiens, even though P.K. Subban is my favourite player.

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
Aaron says Penguins in 5.
Matt is hoping to catch Lightning in a bottle in 6.
I got Aaron's back on this one. Penguins.

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Vancouver Canucks vs. Chicago Blackhawks
Aaron says Canucks in 6.
Matt is doing his best to come in last and say the Blackhawks in 7.
I think the Canucks are going to destroy them. 5 games max.

San Jose Sharks vs. Los Angeles Kings
Aaron goes against his boy Ryan Smyth and takes the Sharks in 5.
Matt is also going with the Sharks in 6.
I'll go with God's team and say the Kings.

Detroit Red Wings vs. Phoenix Coyotes
Aaron is going with the Wings in 6.
Matt is going with the wings in 5.
I'm going with the Coyotes.

Anaheim Ducks vs. Nashville Predators
Aaron is going with the Ducks in 5.
Matt is going with the Predators in 6.
I'm going to side with Matt on this one. Does Anaheim even have a goalie?

See you boys when you reach the top.

Kicking It Old School

Yesterday my bass underwent a little face lift. Tired of the traditional black or white pick guards like in the first picture here, I decided to go with a tortoise shell (because Jeremy said it would look nice. And by nice I mean bad-ass and old school. As in it reflects how I approach the instrument).

Another reason for doing it is because Fender has these dumb lines of guitars and basses out such as the Road Worn Series, where they try to make guitars look beat up and old, but instead look new and crappy. Now they have the new Pawn Shop Series, where they just combine two guitars together and pretend that every guitar in a pawn shop is a mutilated half breed monstrosity and charge money for it. Honestly, when I read the presser, I instantly thought of that South Park episode where the kids breed a pig with an elephant.

The picture below is showing the progress of my new look bass. I figured it was just better to order the parts from companies like Fender and others, making the appropriate changes myself instead of waiting for them to combine new school technology with an old school look.

I started with having a brass nut installed to replace the regular nut that comes with it. An incredible luthier of basses who will remain nameless did this for me. It's nice to have a friend who is an incredible talent live 5 minutes from me.

An amazing repair tech now operating out of Oslo Norway named Allen Hunter replaced the regular output jack with a Neutrik jack, most commonly found on Ibanez basses. That involved routing out the jack end of the body and some rewiring so I left that to the experts. Hey Metallica, if your guitar breaks on your tour stop in Oslo, call AVH Guitar Repair.

Gold Schaller strap locks were next, followed by the tortoise shell pick guard with gold screws. There will be more upgrades and modifications as I progress.

I think I'll call it Randall's Pocket Signature Jazz Bass.

Niagara Falls Again

Every year I am priviledged to play the Daddy's Girl Conference for Pat Francis Ministries. This year was a little different because I no longer play with these gentlemen on a weekly basis. I'm hoping it will go down like a reunion of sorts. Last year I got to hang with my uncle like I do every year but this year he will not be there. I'm hoping that Otis will fill the void.

Valentine's Jobs

For those of you who do not know, which is probably a lot of you, my musical "comeback" as it were started at a Valentine's dinner job. That was my first ever experience with Thompson and it look where that has led.

Now this year Thompson is off doing Berkelee, starring in movies, and traveling to Greece, so I am doing the Valentine's thing this year with the Fyahorns.

I am excited because it's more of a Caribbean valentines thing and it really sounds like fun.

Listen To This!

Just over a year ago I recorded some tracks for the movie Listen To This. After airing on TVO it is now available for purchase. You can get it here.

Happy New Year, Brother's Done Good

The very first day of the New Year; my parents, wife, and myself went on a road trip to Belleville. Their hockey team, the Belleville Bulls were hosting the Brampton Battalion in OHL New Year's Day action. Free tickets are always cool but what's cooler was seeing my brother play the national anthem before the game.

It was fairly mistake free. You may ask what that means but every musician understands. Essentially "fairly-mistake-free" means that the musician didn't play it the way he or she wanted so it sounded a little off. Sitting in the crowd I would have called it mistake free but my brother down-graded it.

It sounded really great and there were approximately 5000 people cheering at the finish line. I only have one picture to show for it so here it is.

Pictured are Belleville goalie Malcolm Subban (P.K.'s brother), my brother, and some family I'm going to assume is American.