How to Explain Where You Were
I hate it when bloggers don't post for a while and then out of the blue post a quick note that says, "I've been really busy guys." Everyone's busy, pretty much always. What they mean is, they're busy...
View ArticleRoad Games: How to Keep it Together When You're on Tour
In the past few months I've been all over the US playing with some great musicians and I've learned a tremendous amount—not only about music but how to make the most of life on the road.Since I've had...
View ArticleJohn McLaughlin: 1 Nite Stand Solo Transcription
My first encounter with John McLaughlin was when I was probably about 12 years old. My brother who was responsible for all my early exposure to decent music, had brought home McLaughlin's Birds of Fire...
View ArticlePaul Motian
Paul Motian died today.Thanks for your taste and incredible feel, not to mention some inspired performances all the way up until your death.We should all be as lucky to make music of that quality until...
View ArticleNAMM Day 1
I might have bitten off more than I could chew on day one. I knew NAMM was big, but I really didn't appreciate how big until I had been there for well over two hours and realized I hadn't seen even an...
View ArticleNAMM Day 2
Janek and MikeI'm currently at Fodera watching my buddy Janek Gwizdala tear it up with the equally prodigious Mike Pope in a 2-bass playoff and it's only 12:20pm. Holy cow. Thanks to Fodera basses for...
View ArticleNAMM Day 3
I'm quickly going deaf but it's been mostly worth it so far. I spent some time today in the C.F. Martin booth taking with their rep and checking out some of their guitars. I was particularly taken with...
View ArticleNAMM Day 4
Day 4 was much quieter than the previous three, especially Saturday which was absolutely a madhouse.I only had a few people I wanted to talk to, specifically the people at Steve Clayton picks and...
View ArticleThe Pump: Goodbye Radio
I know this is mostly a jazz and improvisation based blog but... I have a shameless plug today-- a band I'm a sideman in, Uncle Pumpkin has released a new record that I'm proud of.I play guitar,...
View Article50,000+ and Counting
Sometime while I wasn't looking a few days ago this blog hit over 50,000 unique page views. It turns out my videos have hit over 50,000 views as well. Not bad for a blog about improvisation. I can't...
View ArticleJohn Scofield Explains How to Practice a Tune
I recently posted a quick hit on a clinic that John Scofield did in the mid-90's that covered mostly how he practices and learns a tune as well as some general philosophy on improvisation and theory....
View ArticleThe Key to Success
I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.-- Bill CosbyIf you write music, think about that the next time you wonder what this person or that person is going...
View ArticleApp Review: Time Guru -- a Metronome That Tests Time
Have you ever practiced with a metronome and found yourself drifting in and out of consciousness at the repetitive click-click-click? Or maybe you've wondered if your time is any good away from the...
View ArticleBruce Nauman on Lennie Tristano: You Can Learn a Lot From Other Artists
Lennie TristanoI read an article in The New Yorker a few years ago and a part of it always stuck with me. The brilliant way a visual artist described Lennie Tristano's playing and how it applied to his...
View ArticleThis Is Your Brain on Jazz
A recent study of musicians and non-musicians studied their perception of a particular piece of music and their ability to detect subtle changes in it while listening. While there have been studies...
View ArticleDoc Watson: RIP and Thanks for the Music
Doc WatsonAmerican flatpicking and bluegrass legend Doc Watson died two weeks ago on May 29 at the age of 89. In honor of his memory, NPR's Fresh Air re-aired a great interview and in-studio concert...
View ArticleDownload Alert! -- Apple Wrecked My Files
Some readers have written to let me know they're unable to download files that I had available on the site.It appears everything I ever uploaded to Apple's iDisk has been nuked.Don't panic, I still...
View ArticleFiles Updated
Hey all--After the iCloud fiasco, where Apple killed the iDisk servers which just happened to be the place I uploaded all the files I link to on this site, I managed to get them to another...
View Article
More Pages to Explore .....