So much for "summer", which is meant to be a time of relaxation and fun. Once again, I end up on taking on too many projects, and I spread myself too thin. As the Beastie Boys said: "No Sleep 'Till Brooklyn", or in my case: "No Sleep 'Till Death".
On top of my 40-hour per week job, I still find myself teaching. I have a select few students who insisted on continuing their studies over the summer. It's cool, I guess. I guess it means that they are inspired to learn, and that is one of the best compliments a teacher can have.
Even though we are on hiatus, the Savoys have been hard at work, ensuring our newest member, MA, will be ready to Gig in September. If I have not mentioned it, our first gig this fall is a big one, as we will be performing for a wedding in Kananaskis, where some of Canada's most talented musicians will be attending. I don't like saying too much, but there will be Juno-award winners there, and they will have the itch to jam. I had better bring the camera, as I have no idea when will be the next time that I will get to make music with musicians of such a caliber.
My mother has also been begging me to make music with her on Tuesdays. It is looking like I will be doing so again tomorrow night. It's contemporary jazz, so again its a style of music that I'm not too familiar -- or comfortable with, but I am a sucker for a challenge, and I treat every gig as a learning experience.
And by now, we all know about my reprise with ZanZee in two weeks. What fun that's going to be; It will be just like old times (and I assure you, that there is no tone of sarcasm in my voice). I love Dave and Arleen like family. I can't wait.
But I saved the biggest news for last. It seems that I have retained my first recording studio client.
I am in business!
This weekend, I made an effort to play catch up on an old band I used to gig with, and I found myself at the Royal Hotel to catch a Mule Shoe playing their last gig. Ever. When they took their break, the whole band congregated around my table amidst a packed bar, and we chewed a lot of fat, you might say. I spoke to DH, the lead singer at great length, as I knew for some time that he was planning on writing a solo album. So we spoke about this, and, making a long story short, I asked him how he felt about recording his album with me.
He liked the idea. He liked it so much, that nary a day went by before he called me and offered to take me up on the offer. DH came by this evening to check out my recording setup, and he brought a CD of unfinished demos he had been working on the past year -- or at least since my untimely departure from Mule Shoe.
You see kiddies? This is why you never burn your bridges after you crossed them.
So DH played me the material he had been writing, and to say I was impressed was an understatement. In two days we agreed to re-convene and put music to (hard) disk. Not only will I be engineering and producing DH's solo album, but I will be playing drums on the recording.
C'est magnifique, n'est-ce pas?
This is huge news, for little ol' me. I'll be sure to let you know how things work out on Wednesday.
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2 comments:
Wow--congrats. I don't know if I could have been as good as you about the Mule Shoe Situation. I definitely would have burned my bridge & then some..
JK
Thanks for the compliments, Juniper. The first recording session happened tonight and both DH and I were pleased with the results.
As far as burning bridges go, I hate to quote The Donald: "It's not personal; it's business".
Artists have a differing perspective, I guess, mainly because we take our art personally.
As far as my departure from Mule Shoe went, I discussed this in last years' entries. When we parted ways it was made clear that it was not due to my musicianship, nor was it due to my personality or attistude that was the impetus of my firing.
Simply put, one of the members wanted to make music with his offspring. And the whole band parted with me on good terms.
I just saw a silver lining in the cloud. Some days I had to look pretty hard, but it was there. It allowed me to focus my attention on "Tongue & Groove" -- my new musical venutre with MA, and paved the way for being hired by the Savoys -- which is -- in my opinion a far easier band to work with than Mule Shoe was.
For these reasons, I didn't have to take my firing personally.
WIth respect to your last statement, I never thought you as the malicious type. After being fired from the Anglers some 12 years sgo, I learned my lesson to control my unusually-large-mouth. If you like, I can tell you that story one day.
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