Live Acoustic Guitar at the Library

On a very cold Sunday afternoon in Fairfield, Ohio, I sit near the lobby of the Lane Public Library and am enjoying guitarist David Cochran and his fingerpicking style. For the past few minutes, he has played mostly classical music, and it's been wonderful to watch his technique.

We have begun timing our visits to this library so that we can make it to these Sunday Sounds series events:

One big key to playing well, as I'm watching him, is being able to move up and down the fretboard with ease, without the aid of a capo to transform the key in which the guitar is tuned. He makes it look so easy, but I know that such grace is anything but.

I see two other acoustic guitars on stands next to him; perhaps these are tuned differently for different styles, and we'll be sure to hear something from them soon.

Oh how cool is that? He just launched into a beautiful rendition of "Here, There, and Everywhere" by The Beatles! Having finished that song, he just said that he's got a few more for us.

Others in the audience ask him about his style in between songs, and it's very cool to hear the interaction. I'm definitely impressed with the use of barre chords and variety of fingerstyles.

Now comes "Michelle" by The Beatles. The acoustic guitar is such a beautiful instrument.

The library's Sound Series occurs on the first Sunday of every month, and free coffee is provided. Just be careful not to spill it on the carpeting like I just did!

Related tags: journey+inside+my+mind journeyinsidemymind jimm daniel+johnson+jr david+cochran lane+public+library acoustic+guitar

Jazz and Java at the Library

Fortunately for us we came to the Lane Public Library on the first Sunday of the month. It turns out that they have someone playing music from 2-3PM, and they provide some coffee as well. Not just someone, but a great guitar player named Bill Littleford. When we walked in, I thought the library was playing a jazz guitar CD. Then I saw Bill playing over in a corner. It was really nice to watch his technique of playing the different positions along the fretboard, as well as his style of picking and plucking the strings.

I also got to meet some other musicians in the audience, including DuWayne Cunningham's brother.

We'll be sure to come back next month.

Related tags: journey+inside+my+mind journeyinsidemymind jimm daniel+johnson+jr coffee library

Canon in D Guitar (Google Video)

I may have just found my motivation for practicing the guitar:

If I Had My Own Pensieve...

Mood: a little sleepy
Listening to: my own thoughts
Reading: just finished Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Eating: chocolate cake a coworker brought in
Watching: Just Married with Ashton Kutcher and Brittany Murphy

Some notes to myself for later blogging:

tired car
Friday driving delays
Winton Woods
Library incident
Guitar in class
Marriage seminar
Just Married
Half-Blood Prince

A Guitar Family

In this audio post, I share some thoughts about a birthday present we gave Keisha for her birthday:

Guitar and Kong Ball

Mood: anticipatory
Listening to: "Hitch" soundtrack
Reading: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Eating: Chips
Watching: Othello

(links to come later)

Guitar

Keisha has wanted a guitar for her birthday for quite some time. A few weeks ago, while grocery shopping, Jennie and I spotted it at a somewhat reasonable price at Meijer. Today we returned to to some more grocery shopping and check to see whether the guitar was still there.

After getting the groceries, Keisha and I went over to look at board games while Jennie picked out a birthday card for her. We wound up getting Clue and math game called 4-Way.

I sent Jennie and Keisha to go pick up some beer, which we had "forgotten". It was really a diversionary tactic to allow me to go get the guitar without Keisha seeing me. We agreed to meet by the checkout lanes.

I got a student guitar, a strap, some picks, extra strings, and an instruction booklet with a CD. Then I went to the U-Scan checkout and paid for the stuff.

I guess it was because I had to wait to use the U-Scan for some time that Jennie and Keisha spotted me. Keisha inevitably saw the guitar. I put the guitar stuff in the truck, hiding it with some camp chairs, and then I returned.

When I found Keisha and Jennie, Keisha asked me where the guitar was. I told her that I didn't have the cash now to pay for it. Obviously, since I'd just paid for it. It was another diversionary tactic. She was disappointed, but we'd talked about it earlier in the week, so she was able to deal with it.

We got home, brought our groceries inside, and realized that we didn't get some waffles, which Keisha had wanted for her birthday breakfast. Seeing an opportunity to get the guitar stuff out of the trunk, Jennie told Keisha that they would head back out to get them. Before they left, I decided to take our dog Jake outside, and I got the guitar stuff out, went around the building, and waited for them to leave.

After sufficient time had passed, Jake and I, guitar stuff in hand, went inside. I took the guitar out, tuned it, and played a few chords on it. I stowed it under our bed before the ladies returned.

Kong Balls

I'd first heard about Kong balls on the Bob and Tom Show. When we went to Jungle Jim's last week, we bought one for Jake. We put some peanut butter in it last week, and he just loved it.

When Keisha and Jennie returned from their small errand this evening, they had bought some "Scooby Snacks". What a great opportunity, I thought, to use the Kong ball! I broke two of them in half, and I put them in the Kong ball. Then I rolled it over to Jake.

He was preoccupied with it for about 20 minutes, and I think he's now taking a break out of frustration.

Capo on 4

Here is one of those posts about my playing the guitar.

Some time ago, I found some chords and tabulature for the song "I Need You" by Jars of Clay. Until this past Saturday, I was really confused by it:

I've only been playing the guitar since December 2003 (see "Early Christmas Gift - Acoustic Guitar", from the December 2003 archives), and while I've gained some experience and expertise with open chords and some barre chords, I haven't developed a lot of skill progressing up the neck.

For Christmas this past year my wife Jennie bought me a capo. Well, she gave me the money while I went inside the store and bought it myself.

The great thing about the capo, of course, is that it transposes the key a song is in and lets you play it using chords you're familiar with. For example, a song in the key of E-flat can be played in the key of D by putting the capo on the first fret. Although your fingers take the shape of a D major chord, you actually play an E-flat major chord.

On to the Jars of Clay song... I figured out that I can play the song, which is written in E major, best with the capo on the 4th fret and using the chords I'd play in the key of C major.

I was fired up when I figured this out late Saturday night.

After strumming the chords for awhile, I realized that my baritone voice strains to match Dan Haseltine's voice on the song. No problem, however. I just moved the capo down to the 2nd fret, meaning that the song was now in the key of D major.

I then found that I could play the song and sing without straining.

Now, I just need to practice it more to get good at singing and playing in tempo.

Earworms - Music Stuck Inside

At 43 Folders, Merlin writes:

I can’t stop listening to a Kelly Clarkson song (yes, that Kelly Clarkson. Shut up!). What are your worst, lifelong earworms? What songs have demanded to be played over and over to the point of madness?

I've explored this topic once before (see "Music in My Mind", from February 2003). I added my comments:

Ever since I saw the Grammys recently, I've had "Across the Universe" going through my head. I've since gotten a hold of a couple different copies of it - from the "I Am Sam" soundtrack and "Let It Be - Naked".

Moreover, I found the guitar chords and am learning to play it, so I'm sure it will be with me for quite some time.

The same is true for Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" and Johnny Cash's "Hurt". I'm learning both of them on the guitar, so they're always fresh in my mind.

But now that you mention it, I'VE got that Kelly Clarkson song in MY head!!! How ironic, considering that the song is entitled "Since You've Been Gone".

Wrote a Song About It...

(lol - that famous line from "In Living Color" many years ago)

I wrote a song over 13 years ago, when I first became a Christian, but I never had a chance to put it to music because I didn't know how to play the guitar.

Last night I should have been in bed, but I wasn't sleepy because I drank some coffee with Jennie before she left for work. I hammered out some notes on the guitar and figured out the chords. I typed up the lyrics and added the chord names to it.

I'm pretty fired up about this because it's an original song, and I look forward to playing it in front of others.

Originally done as a Mail-to-Post feature, but I got impatient waiting for it to show up. (Blogger Status: "Mail-to-Post is currently slow to post...")

Tender Fingertips

Last night while I was waiting for dinner to cook and Keisha did her homework and a book report, I pulled out my guitar.

I'm getting really good at "Wish You Were Here" by Pink Floyd and "Hurt" by Johnny Cash. I learned how to play those songs via Guitarnoise.com.

I was playing so hard that the fingertips on my left hand are so sore. These fingers press down on the steel strings.

Especially the pinky finger. Most of the chords for both songs require the pinky finger to press on the third fret of the first string (G). For example, during the chorus of "Hurt", every chord requires that high G.

I'm actually beginning to sing some of it along with playing the guitar. It's like learning to rub your belly and tap your head.

I enjoy it so much that I can forego the tender fingertips (that could be a song title?). They will become calloused soon.

Daytonians! Come See Me This Week!

Mood: Awake
Listening to: Bob and Tom Show, my daughter's CD player playing some Kids Bible Songs
Reading: nothing in particular
Eating: Honey Nut Cheerios, milk, toast with homemade jam
Watching: PBS Kids


Dayton, Ohio -- Hey Daytonians! Stop by the Kroger on Needmore Road today from 12 to 4 where I'll be playing and singing Christmas songs for the Salvation Army. I play the alto saxophone and the guitar and sing. While you're there, make a donation to the Salvation Army!

Scheduled appearances for the rest of the week are as follows:

Tuesday, 12/21: 12PM-4PM Kroger Needmore (Needmore and North Dixie)
Wednesday, 12/22: 12PM-4PM Kroger Siebenthaler (Siebenthaler and Klepinger)
Thursday, 12/23: 12PM-4PM Kroger Needmore (Needmore and North Dixie)
Friday, 12/24: 9 AM-3PM Kroger Needmore (Needmore and North Dixie)

For information on how to donate to the Salvation Army online, head over to their website:

The Salvation Army National Headquarters

Update: I found out this afternoon that the Salvation Army has finished its kettle campaign for the season, so I won't be playing tomorrow or on Christmas Eve.

Observations from the Kettle

Mood:Tired, needing to go to bed
Listening to: the sound of the dying battery in our smoke alarm ("Change me! Change me!")
Reading:a book on the origins of Christmas carols
Eating: Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, and carrots
Watching: Deliver Us From Eva


Here are some things I've learned from serving at the Salvation Army kettles thus far:

Motivation for Giving

People have different reasons for giving money at the Salvation Army kettles. Here are some of my observations so far this season:

• A kettle tended by a musician gets more donations that one tended by a simple bell ringer
• People who do not give almost never make eye contact with the person tending the kettle
• A lot of parents give their money to their child to place into the kettle
• Some people give because they see me working hard
• Some people will comment that they gave previously as a way of allaying any guilt they might feel for not giving now
• A handful of people give because a certain retail outlet (the "bullseye" one) has refused to allow kettles in front of their store

On Being a Musician

Here are some other neat things I've discovered:

• I love taking carol requests from the employees who are working at the store
• People can here my saxophone from the very back of the store even though I play in the front entrance area
• Everyone loves a "Merry Christmas", "Happy Holidays", "God Bless You", or a simple "Thank You"
• I play my saxophone very well, I've been told a number of times
• I switch from playing the saxophone to playing the guitar and singing from time to time
• I call the guitar/singing portion the "comedy" portion because it often doesn't sound as well as the saxophone playing portion
• A 34-year old man with a beard, singing and playing "All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth" is a riot
• My impression of Elvis singing/playing "Blue Christmas" pales to the real thing, but I have a lot of fun trying
• Kids just think I'm the coolest thing to see me playing and singing
• I can play the saxophone while wearing gloves, but I have to take them off when I play the guitar
• I almost can't believe I'm getting paid to play music and encourage others

The Usual Info, Visit From Dad, Kettle Kontemplation

The Usual Information:

• Mood: Upbeat
• Listening to: Bob and Tom Show downloaded archives
• Reading: Flapdoodle: Pure Nonsense from American Folklore
• Eating:Sloppy Joe sandwiches, asparagus, and salad with Italian dressing
• Watching: Down to Earth, starring Chris Rock

Visit From Dad
My dad spent the better part of his evening driving from his job in Cincinnati to our place in Dayton and then to his home in Bright, Indiana. An easy three hours. He came to bring us packages and such. We hadn't seen him in over two years. Our lives had just gotten so busy that the distance seemed to far to make a trip to their place on the farm worthwhile. I hate the way that sounds, but I think that's the truth.

Kettle Kontemplation
I wasn't home. I had mistakenly thought I'd be off work by the time he was to arrive. Instead I had the evening shift. You may recall that I'm doing a few gigs with the Salvation Army this season, playing my saxophone and guitar while tending a kettle. It's true that people are more apt to put something in the kettle while hearing someone play Christmas carols than by hearing someone ring a bell.

I enjoy it because I get to get paid for playing music, encouraging people along the way. It helps me be in the holiday spirit.

Also, I was encouraged to see a woman who has a child in Keisha's school. I saw her at the school's holiday program last Thursday. My wife says that she's a morning news anchor for the local CBS affiliate. When this woman came to put some money in the kettle, I said, "Hi! I remember seeing you at the Jingle Jump last week." I could have made a reference to her job, which I'm sure others do when they see a local celebrity. But I didn't. And I think that encouraged her more.

(More Than) Three Chords and the Truth

Time for an update on my "progress" in learning the acoustic guitar. But first:

'All Along the Watchtower' Quote

All I got is a red guitar
Three chords
And the truth

All I got is a red guitar
The rest is up to you
-- from "All Along the Watchtower" by U2, from Rattle and Hum

Passionate Practicing

I got an acoustic guitar as an early Christmas present from my wife last December. I have been passionate about learning to play it since then, and I'm encouraged by my progress. I played an original song for my wife in front of some married members at church, and I currently play it during the children's ministry class I help to teach on Sundays.

That Dubious F-major Chord

Learning the F major chord is one of the hardest things for new guitarists, and I've been no exception. The hard part about it is that you're supposed to use the index finger to fret the first two strings: check out this picture. Getting this to work and making the strings ring has been a bit of a challeng.

Chord Progressions

This morning, however, while practicing, I finally figured out how to make it work. So I gave myself a bit of a pat on the back. BTW, I've learned that the chord progression: C-Am-F-G7 is the same progression used for "Heart and Soul" and other oldies. Now that I can play the F chord, I can do this progression.

OLGA - The On-Line Guitar Archive

Cool tools. Thanks to Jenny for the link!

The dog, the car, the guitar, and the daughter

One of those multi-topic posts...

THE DOG

Yesterday we bought Jake his license, so he's legal -- just stay off the roads! *wink* Seriously, though. In Montgomery County, Ohio, pet owners are required to purchase a dog license annually. Not only is it a source of revenue, but it also helps us in case Jake happens to get lost and is later found by someone from Animal Control.

I am not sure if licenses are required for other kinds of pets. I would think that it would be hard to fit the license on a snake, for example.

THE CAR

Maxine (Mom's 1983 Nissan Maxima) is desperately needing some new brakes. I'm also looking for the other windshield wiper; on Christmas Eve I had to install a new one on the driver's side. We need to get another spare tire, too.

Last week when we had a cold snap, the left rear door wouldn't close. So I had to sit in the back and hold onto the door as we drove to and from the laundromat. Jennie and I reasoned that the mechanism that makes the door stay closed must have gotten frozen. On the way home, we stopped at AutoZone and got some silicone spray, which I then applied to the door mechanism. It still wouldn't stay closed.

I used a screwdriver to disable the button that triggers the inside car lights when a door is open. I also shut off the voice alert that constantly told us, "Left door is open." Finally, I found an old swing assembly, which we'd obtained when we bought Keisha's Baby Tenda™ before she was born. It consists of chains and some springs that would hook onto her chair. I rigged the assemby up so that the door would stay closed. Fortunately, the next day was warmer, and the silicone spray worked. We've decided to keep the assembly handy in case we'd need it again.

When I talk to people about the car, they are just as surprised as I am that the car has held up for so long. I don't know of many 20+ year old cars that are still up and running.

THE GUITAR

If callouses on the fingertips of my left hand are one way to gauge progress with the guitar, then so be it. I've been going through some books and a video I found at the library. I still have a long way to go before I'm proficient, even to the slightest level. Yet I am able to see progress.

My main reason for wanting to develop skill with the guitar is to be able to play to encourage others and at church. I've been going through the songbooks we have at home during practice. Most children's songs have repetitive melodies(e.g., "The Alphabet Song", "Twinkle Twinkle", "Baa Baa Black Sheep")so I'm trying to get the chord progressions down for those. I'm also learning songs that we sing during church services, too.

THE DAUGHTER

On December 31st, Joanne, the audiologist at Children's Medical Center made some new impressions of Keisha's ears to make some new earmolds. Keisha wears Oticon Behind-The-Ear (BTE) hearing aids in both ears. The earmold is the "rubbery" part that fits into her ear. The way that the aids work is such that a microphone on the aid amplifies the sound and transmits it to Keisha's ear through some small tubing.

At that appointment, Joanne also tested Keisha's hearing - aided and non-aided. It turns out that Keisha's lost more hearing in her left ear, and the majority of the hearing she is getting with her aids is coming from her right ear. The current hearing aids are no longer adequate.

So, after talking with the audiologist at Keisha's school, she's ordered Keisha some new hearing aids. So, very soon Keisha will have blue earmolds AND blue hearing aids. These new aids will apparently have three programs: a "normal" program, a louder program, and a program to be used with the FM system.

An FM system is great in that it doesn't use the typical amplification methodology. Instead an FM signal is transmitted to receivers, which are attached to the hearing aids. This FM signal overrides ambient sounds. It's best used in a setting where you want to make sure that she is hearing what's being said. Her teachers use it at school, and we use a different one at home.

I guess that's enough of the audiology lesson, LOL! I know that I probably have not been completely accurate in describing how things work, but hopefully you get the general idea.

Home PC, Guitar, Weird Dream Blues

At library. Home PC still not working. Low E-string on guitar broke today; too much tightening.

Weird dreams: guitars, women, ants in the basement -- multiple days.

More later, I hope.

Previously entitled "More Me"

Early Christmas Gift - Acoustic Guitar

I'm learning how to play the acoustic guitar, an early Christmas gift. After several years of enjoying the sounds of others, I'm trying to make sounds myself. I'm currently reminded of this line in Bryan Adams' song "Summer of '69"

Played it 'til my fingers bled

because the fingers on my left hand are raw from pressing down the strings so hard.

Guitarnoise.com