Happy New Year! This month…a new free arrangement, new year / new projects, and some recommendations.
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Free Piece
I posted a video of an arrangement of Pink Floyd's “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” the other day and received several requests for the notation/TABs. I had never actually transcribed what I was playing before. It was always a loose, quasi-improvised thing, but I decided to finally transcribe it and give it away.
I never really figured the tune out note for note. Whenever I played it, just noodled it, so this does not follow the exact melody that David Gilmour sings. I did, however, change the opening bars of the verses in the notation to grab what is actually sung. So the video will be slightly different in those few bars.
My arrangement is a simple one. It's inspired by Christy Moore & Declan Sinnott's version. Look for that on YouTube…it's beautiful. I prefer to focus on feel rather than a lot of notes when I arrange a song. If you are a guitarist, maybe this example will help you out when approaching your own arrangements. If you don't play, I hope you enjoy listening.
I enjoy giving away free music every month, but if you would like to buy me a cup of coffee, tips are always appreciated. You can do that here.
New Year - New Projects
This promises to be a very exciting new year for me musically. You may have seen the little teaser videos out there for a new group I am grateful to be a part of with Jeff Oster and Tom Eaton. We have an album coming out in April titled “seven conversations”.
Jeff Oster, Tom Eaton, and myself started improvising together on a whim almost seven years ago. We were touring with FLOW (Fiona Joy, Lawrence Blatt, Jeff Oster, Will Ackerman) in the fall of 2017. Oster was in the group, Tom was playing bass and keys, and I was playing duets with Will. During the tour, an opportunity opened for the three of us to do an evening of playing at a church called The 1867 Sanctuary in Ewing, New Jersey. I had been an artist in residence there that year.
Inexplicably, we said yes to the gig, and then Jeff and Tom inexplicably convinced me to play ambient electric guitar (yes, you read that correctly). We had no material and had never played as a trio before. What could go wrong?
We played a sold out FLOW show at Carnegie / Weill Hall on Friday night, and wandered to New Jersey for our Saturday improv adventure. During soundcheck at 1867 we were feeling things out and played for a bit. When we wound down Tom asked my wife Marie how it sounded and she told us that we had been playing for a solid twenty minutes. I guess we were on to something. Five more audience members showed up (well…maybe a few more) and we started to play the show for real... and we WERE on to something.
The next day we wandered into the studio at Echoes to record a Living Room concert with FLOW. Jeff had, in his infinite wisdom, convinced John Diliberto that the trio should record as well. We had no material and had played once as a trio the night before.
The Echoes performance went extremely well. So well, that John Diliberto insisted that we get into the studio and record an album. Well…we finally did.
The three of us met at Tom's studio and spent six hours improvising. The only planning that went into each piece was picking the key to play in. After that, it was just listening, feeling, and responding. Those ambient improvisations would become our new record “seven conversations”.
We will be releasing three singles leading up to the full album release on 04/26/24. You can pre-save the first single "hushed", which comes out 2/23/24, with this link. We are extremely excited to get this music out into the world!
Duets
I am working on some new duets with guitar friends Denis Turbide and Lance Allen. More details to follow when those songs are completed and I have release dates to share. I really enjoy collaborating with long distance friends. Viva technology!
Solo and Solo-ish Work
I write every day. It is a natural part of my daily morning routine. That being said, I have plenty of music to record. I can now say that some of that music will be on….the…el….elec…..electric guitar. (Tom and Jeff have inspired me to branch out a bit. A whole lotta bit.) Some of the music will be solo, and some will include musical friends.
I don't know what, which, or when, but I will have new music to release throughout the year. That is certain…so stayed tuned.
I first became familiar with Ted through a Facebook fingerstyle guitar group years ago. He is a fantastic guitar player and performer. Recently, I rediscovered Ted and his book art.
It. Is. Mind blowing.
What Ted does can best be described at book sculpting. He says, “I open books in unorthodox ways, reminding the viewer that books have always beenmagical.”
You need to see it, because me describing to you it does not do it justice. Check out his website and follow him on Instagram.
Nick is a fantastic classical guitar friend who streams his practice sessions on Twitch. If you are interested in getting a peek behind the curtain of a concert guitarist as he prepares his concert repertoire, check out his streams. This is a great resource for guitarists interested in classical guitar, or any guitarist looking for ideas on how to improve their practice regime. And there are cat cams to boot. Go check it out…and while you're at it, check out his recordings. Nick is an incredible player.
This book by Rick Rubin should be required reading for any artist, or anyone just interested in the creative process…which really applies to all of our lives. Part Buddhist thought, part Brian Eno Oblique Strategies, and a lot of simple, yet outside the box thinking that will help you find your muse and always be inspired. I absolutely loved this book and will go back to it often. It's the perfect book to have lying around so you can pick it up when you need to be reminded of the simplicity and power of the creative process.
The Prophet's Song by Paul Lynch is a 2023 Booker Prize winning novel that follows one family as they struggle together in a dystopian Ireland as the government slips into totalitarianism. It was hard to put this one down. It was a bit terrifying considering the current state of our own country. Highly recommended.
I love Bill Evans work and I loved this documentary. If you are a fan of jazz, don't miss this one.
I recently discovered Canadian singer/songwriter Kim Albert. Her 2023 album To Hold It Allis a beautiful record that deals with how one handles grief and navigates through loss. Gorgeous record…
That's all for now. Thanks for hanging in there with me. Talk soon…
