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Rorschach. (The shapes I'm in.) |
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I would like to thank Martin Simpson for the kind gentle tweaks that I have received over the last few months. Also thanks for the incredible magazines; Meeting you at last had definitely helped me to fight against the long battle against transient ischaemic attacks. (at least twelve small strokes). Ok, I still have headaches, and there are many strange things that happen in my life, but this mid December sees my eyes at last settle to my first computer. I will try to break away from being a hermit; Break into a way of truth of what I have done. You see, Issue 6 (November 2002) of The Bottom Line - it indicates why I started playing a fundamental Bass in the mid Seventies. I'll try to explain the nowness of what’s going on in my life. Hey! It’s the year 2002, and I used the Space Orchestra. These Orchestra Members have no faces, wear large hats, gunmetal grey-suits and are a pleasure to work with. (Thank you Ensoniq T.S 10) Of course I'd like to use a live Orchestra. Whilst working with the band Rush Hour in'89’, we did a project with the Transvaal Chamber Orchestra. They did some of our original songs, and a few great Standards. Two nights of sheer joy and happiness at Linder Auditorium. I state quiet clearly, that no machine can overshadow live playing. Problem:- I don’t have the budget to pay live musicians at the same time of writing new material. Nevertheless, I will tell you what I enjoyed then. To listen to the orchestra playing around me in surround sound. They read in notation, whilst the band read chord charts. I had plugged my Musicman into a small Vox 100 watt bass amp, and had incredible times with two upright bassists who had done some parts in unison with me. Bear with me, it still means that something has grown deep inside of me, and therefore today I can write and arrange any type of song because of the gifts from those who taught me. So--- Each song represents a mood; So I've thrown out the 'Where’s the continuity and flow' angle. I didn’t write these songs to please anybody, but rather to exorcise some of the pent up anger, sorrow, pain---whatever. But you will find a tip of the hat, to some of the people who have influenced me. For example, I'll give you some of my originals titles---and where their inflow’s come from. "Hold this"---Allan Holdsworth. "Isle of Tull"---Ian Anderson. "Cool Penguins"---Bob James. "Agape"---Oystein Sevag. I also have post modern classic\ jazz pieces, that I have worked as ideas from Wyndham Hill. Hit songs are not necessarily defined and categorised by the media , but by simply externalising and recording the results in any way. There are quite a few orchestral arrangements on some of the songs. For the purists, they might hear the cello's treading on the toes of the basses, piccolos picking on flutes or flugelhorns flugelling in odd keys. ( Now you know why the gunmetal Space Orchestra folks play what I told 'em to). Sigh:-I still have not learnt to read--a definite setback. In conclusion, thank you good folks for helping me realise that the horizon always moves away---I will never reach it on this earth. To all the futuroids and scientists who would like to put earthlings on Mars, God forbid, look what we've done to this planet. N.B. Somewhere -mid nineties, I was asked who my favorite bass player was. I said that I could never call one bass player a king, because what most of them played came from infinite, aerial, fourth-dimensia.-Ha,ha. Here's more names :Dave Holland, Steve Swallow, Gary Peacock, Scott Lafaro, Eddie Gomez, Anthony Jackson, Barre Philips, Rick Laird, Ralph Armstrong, Jack Bruce, Charles Mingus, Niels Oersted Pederson, Miroslav Vitous. - Enjoy. |
