One thing I noticed is that Steve's name is very similar to Steve's name from the previous post. Two totally different Steves, just to clear that up.

Steve finally Got an amp of his own. it was a huge cabinet with four massive speakers below the amp itself and heavy as all get out. It was also some off brand that worked about 3/4 of the time. This was probably a year or do after we first met up. Steve's lead work was coming along fine and it got much easier for us to get into tune with each other.

I don't tune in the normal way. I tune apparently in an open G. It is a what is called a power chord and works just fine for me. It drove some guitarists that I jammed with crazy. I wasn't playing guitar buy just being able to lay my finger across the neck of the guitar and produce a chord. I was supposed to manipulate the strings in such a manner as every other guitarist. I tried that many times. Couldn't get it to work. Then I saw Footage of Woodstock. There was a Black guy playing at wood stock that used his thumb to lay across the neck. I can't remember his name right now, but I think the song he played was Here's come the sun. Once I saw that, I started detuning strings till I got the right mixture to produce an open chord. I actually only have 4 notes different going across the neck, with six strings. But It has worked for me. Still, it drove some folks crazy.

Personally, I think it was due a lot more to Ego than what or how I was playing. Usually the one's that complained the loudest, I could out play them and they didn't like it. My lead work was coming around, as was my technique with the pick. There was also something else that I developed that I absolutely Loved.

I heard a song in my head, and then I was able to reproduce the sound of the song through my Amp. I will never forget when that happened. I was at my Mom's house. T had my amp set up in the living room, with the parents gone for the weekend. I had a very long patch cord. I was getting a drink of water in the kitchen. I took a long drink, while I came up with this tune for some reason. I set the glass down, grabbed the guitar and played it on the guitar. I heard it coming out of the amp in the Living room. I was amazed at being able to do that.

I hadn't ever tried before, playing a song IO created, But that opened a flood gate. I started creating more and more songs in my head and would work on recreating them with th4e guitar. It worked many times, and many times it took quite a bit of work to get the song recreated, but I would usually get eventually. I especially liked it when I started playing songs that I didn't have to create in my head. It became like my fingers were doing the creative work on their own. (Continued)

Digging deep, going back to the stone age, I need to Introduce you guys to Steve. Steve and I made some amazing music together, for many years. He started with a fender Guitar Copy, white, with a maple neck. In contrast I had a Mosrite Copy, a semi Hollow Bodied guitar that was quite similar to what Ted Nugent used for many years and may still do. Been awhile since I have seen Ted play. My guitar, when we first met was in it's natural colorage. It was a sunburst stain with a deep yellow paint job over most of the body. It looked great if you were into Country western music, but I was into, and still am into Rock and Roll. Preferably fast loud progressive music of my own creation.

But it certainly wasn't that way when we first met. I had probably been playing guitar for about 4 years. I could play, sort of, and I knew how to tune it real good, which helped tremendously. Steve had a great ear for tuning as well, so if nothing else we were always in tune when we played. At first, Steve was able to out play me. He could play rhythm and lead guitar,which I was totally jealous of. I could Play rhythm, mainly and totally sucked at playing lead. I had the one amp, A Fender pro reverb amp which I still have. Its a beautiful marvel of Human engineering and provides great amplitude to the music I provide to the front inputs of the Amp. 100 watts, 2 - 12 inch Celestion speakers, a solid heavy frame and that great Fender name. It has Tube technology which doesn't really fit hand in hand, because tube amps are not technically advance, and their in lies their beauty.

Tube amps, especially this Fender, has such a nice warm tone to it, which you would be able to hear, if I din't have the guitar plugged into anywhere from 2 to 4 different "toys" before the music finally hits the amp. The sound has traveled from my guitar, through a distortion unit, which has taken the original sound and transfered it into a rough rock necessary sound. It also goes through either one or two flangers (which I am not even going to be able to describe what the effect is within this blog. Some day when I have a day or two I might try to explain it, but it iis so much easier to just hear the effect in use. I think it is amazing.) Then last might be a waa waa pedal, but not very often. (to be continued)

I just watched a great movie called the Soloist. If you haven't seen it yet I give it two thumbs up.

But it got me to thinking about 2/3 thirds through the movie about My life and how I could relate to the Los Angeles Times writer in the movie. Dealing with an individual that wasn't all there mentally and what I have gone through in that regard.

Steve came to mind, but there have been others. I got to live right next to Steve. He was always taking meds for his illness. I'd wouldn't want to think what he would have been like if not for those meds, But I'm not sure they had the mix quite right back then. I knew Steve long Time ago. The stories I could tell and may just cover some of them.

I will Never forget one year near Halloween. Probably 2 weeks before the 31st of October, Steve came over to my house. It was probably about 50 yards from his front door to my front door, if even that. Steve cam knocking, well, his way of knocking. He'd come to the front door and stand. We , the wife and I, usually had the front window curtains open, and Steve had to walk by the window to get to the front door. If I didn't see him walk by, well ... Anyway, this day I saw him walk by and then stop by the door as he would do.

I wanted to show him my new Mask I had gotten for Halloween, so I let him in. He sat down and didn't say anything, as was usually the way it went with him. I had to start the conversation.

Me: How ya doing, Steve?

Steve: Ok.

Me: So whats new?

Steve: Nuttin.

Steve was a great Talker. Not. Unless he had had his coffee. Oh My gawd. The it was the complete reverse. I think the caffeine did something to his meds. because you literally couldn't hardly get him to be quiet. But this day he wasn't talkative.

Me: I got a new mask for Halloween. Hang on, I want to show it to you.

I went into the next room and got the mask and put it on. It was a great hairy latex creation that fully covered my head. It had a great open mouth with sharp latex teeth and a large red tongue and I had add some paint to the teeth and added some red to the pointy ends of the teeth to make it look like blood. I thought it looked awesome.

So I walked into the living room with this thing on. I was going to let out a loud growl, but thought better of it. Good Thing. Steve had gotten up out of the chair and was facing the large window facing to the west, by the front door. I just stood there, just inside the living room, and waited for him to turn around.

He finally turned and saw my mask, and he freaked out on me. He let out this blood curdling scream and stared shaking and fell into the chair where he had been sitting and covered his face with his arms. He let out another scream. Instantly, I took off the mask, threw it into the room where it had been and tried to comfort him. He was shaking something fierce.

Some ten minutes later I finally got him to uncover his face. He looked at me and wanted to know where the monster went. I explained to him again and again about the mask, that it wasn't real, that it had been me.

Once he calmed down, he got up and walked out the front door with out saying a word. I followed him to our gate and he yelled at me not to follow him, to stay away.

We never spoke of the mask again. Steve had to of been in his late 20's. I spoke to him the very next day and everything was cool, just like he hadn't freaked out or anything. I lived Next to Steve for about another 2 years.

Apparently the Driver of the first one with a much more sane approach to Paris.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHn5Q15kaIA