Dunedin Blues

Down time

2011-11-17T06:57:00.001+13:00

No more harmonica teaching for the year and BlueStone isn't gigging until New Years. I am heading to Sydney this weekend to play with my old mate Clay Hichens and his band, Vinnie and the Moonlighters for Clay's birthday party, so that's going to be plenty of fun.

Meanwhile, here's a little taste of Bluestone's last gig in Dunedin's Octagon during the Rugby World Cup.

Talent runs in the family

2011-08-15T09:36:00.000+12:00

It'll come as no surprise that most of the guys in Bluestone have kids with musical leanings. I guess with dads so into their music, a little of that obsession has to rub off. Plus the kids will have been exposed to quality music from their earliest days. Not that we expect them to be Blues nuts. Geordie Boy has spawned a couple of hard rockers while Miss C(7) is just learning the 1812 overture on her violin.

Meanwhile, Mack's daughter Lizzie is taking on the world from her bedroom, composting scores for Hollywood. She's also the brains behind the Bluestone Android Ap - soon to be out on iphone. Check out Lizzie's story at Otago Polytechnic's site.

Mr Watson On Tour

2011-07-06T12:31:00.000+12:00

Dates for Darren Watson on tour this August are here. Darren is a huge Kiwi blues talent: Singer, songwriter and guitarist par excellence. He's playing 2 dates in the Dunedin area, Aug 9 at the Careys Bay pub and Aug 10 at the Church Cafe, Dundas St. I'd consider catching them both if I were you.

Happy New Year

2011-06-20T09:14:00.000+12:00

I just received confirmation of something we're all very much looking forward to: We're booked to play the New Year's Eve celebrations in Dunedin's Octagon. We follow The evergreen Oxo Cubans at 9.30 and after us at 11.00 pm the veteran Argus rock show kicks off. We'll be working on 90 minutes of knock-em-down R&B.

Lounge Party

2011-06-19T12:29:00.003+12:00

Played our first lounge party (with this lineup) at Joyce Lepperd's B&B in Opoho last night. Great fun all 'round. White Boy Slim and his keyboards were AWOL, so we performed as a four piece, which is just as well, otherwise the whole audience would have had to have been in the kitchen.

Geordie Boy played on drum pads instead of his Ludwig kit. They took up much less room and sounded great - except maybe for the Indian tabla preset. Not quite blues, y'know?

Tonight's The Night

2011-06-10T11:46:00.001+12:00

Stand back! We're tearing it up at Chicks tonight.

If you don't already know, Chicks is at 2 Mount Street, Port Chalmers and is a busy little venue for music and arts with a slight 'alt' bent. This is going to be Bluestone's first gig there, but the lads are greatly looking forward to it. Bring $5.00 for the door. Dress code: Light, comfortable clothing, possibly a fire extinguisher. It's going to get hot tonight.

Mr Watson

2011-05-20T07:57:00.000+12:00

If you don't already know of Darren Watson, tunnel over here and check out his Facebook page. I've been a fan of Darren's ever since his days in Chicago Smokeshop, about the time I was starting out playing with the Mudflat Houserockers in Dunedin. He's an extraordinarily versatile and able guitarist and a wonderfully gifted singer and songwriter. You can hear his new album "St Hilda's Faithless Boy" on his page.

Do youself a favour, check out the album, buy it. And if you're ever in Wellington, go see the man. You'll thank me.

New Class

2011-05-13T08:11:00.000+12:00

Welcome to my 10 new harmonica students at Otago University's Recreation Services! It's going to be a fun four weeks. Just remember to practice!

In other news, in the wake of our gig in the Botanic Gardens, it looks like BlueStone might be playing the Octagon New Years party. The lads are rather excited at the prospect.

Blues in the Gardens

2011-04-27T13:55:00.001+12:00

Bluestone will be playing in the Dunedin Botanical Gardens this Sunday at noon until 3.00pm. We're planning to have some special guests. So far we've got the wonderful Tahu Mackenzie to sing with us. Stay tuned for more.

Sadly, I just heard that Phoebe Snow just died. Phoebe had one of my favourite voices. Check out her fantastic version of Etta James's "At Last" with Donald Fagen et al at the New York Rock & Soul Revue:

I know this Sunday I'll be playing one for Phoebe.

To Teach Or Not To Teach?

2011-04-15T09:21:00.000+12:00

Just finished this semester's harmonica class for the Otago University Students Association on Monday night. I love doing that class; it lets me pass on some of the cool things I've learned, as well as my enormous enthusiasm for the blues. Hopefully some of my students will form their own bands one day. It was great to see so many of them at the Dunedin Muso's club the Friday before, so I could show them what it looks like when you bring it all together with a live band. I always bring my mic and amp setup to the last lesson to give everyone a taste of electricity, but you've really got to see blues in the wild to really get it.

I also have to pass around evaluation forms on the last night, so the Students Association can tell which courses are worth running. I got a call the other day saying that the feedback was universally good; that it's actually one of their most popular courses, and would I consider running two in a semester? It's so gratifying to hear that.

But I'll have to think long and hard about it. If you read my photography blog, you'll know I occasionally need to head out of town to work, sometimes at very short notice, like as soon as the weather comes right for a shoot. I love to teach, but I love my business as well.

Of course there's one thing I'll definitely try to be in town for: band practices and gigs. The new Bluestone lineup is smokin' We're ready to do some serious gig hunting now. I just have to get a new photoshoot organised!

Last Blast for the Boogiemen

2011-03-29T14:30:00.000+13:00

Bad news Dunedin, the fabulous Boogiemen have played their last stand. The enormously talented Boog Roberts is leaving town for personal reasons (no he's not going to jail this time).

I went to see them one last time at the Waterloo Tavern, with my good friend and Blues Brother Dr Mike. They were at their raucous best. I'm not sure what Mad Dog Dooley, Ropes, Steve-O and Jack will do without the Boogster, but I know I'll miss him greatly.

In other news, Bluestone has a private party to play this weekend, and will be appearing at the Dunedin Muso's Club on April 8th. Light blue touch paper and stand back, we're going off like a firecracker!

Coming Up...

2011-01-28T12:51:00.000+13:00

Stand Back! We're unveiling Bluestone's new lineup at Cableways Tavern, Kaikorai Valley on Sat Feb 12.

New Year, New Lineup

2011-01-07T08:27:00.000+13:00

Dr Mike and I went down to the Dunedin Muso's club last night with our latest drummer Geordie Dave. The mission was to audition John Mackie on bass. It didn't take long to decide we had found the right man to fill Sid's spot on the bandstand. We did four or five songs from our set that I'd given John to listen to, then a few more we just picked on the spot. Great success. I don't even think the crowd of usual suspects at the bar realised it was an unrehearsed audition until we told them - John and Dave communicated so well together, it was tight, every groove in the pocket. Our new rhythm section is firing hot on all cylinders.

Bring on the year. Bluestone is back in business.

In other news, my 4-week harmonica classes start running on March 21 and May 12 this year. Sign up at Otago University Clubs and Societies or Recreation Services if you want to learn to play the blues.

...and there will be beer

2010-10-06T11:01:00.000+13:00

Had a practice session with our new drummer Dave Johnstone last night. Great success. Dave is a thoughtful and dilligent stick man. The Outram Octoberfest won't know what hit it.

Wound up another semester of harmonica lessons on Monday. Always sad to end those classes. After four lessons, it's when most of my students are just starting to make real progress. Ah well, time to send them off into the world to spread the Gospel of Muddy.

Out of hibernation

2010-09-09T04:48:00.000+12:00

It's been a sad case of neglect here on Dunedin Blues, but I'm still here. I've just been rather busy reinventing myself as a photographer and guide that I've had little time to make music.

However, I'm teaching another semester of harmonica at Otago University, and I'm trying to put a little combo together for the Outram Oktoberfest. Should be fun, Sid and Mike are keen, I just need a good drummer to complete the circle.

This just in

2010-05-26T15:40:00.002+12:00

It's been a while, but I haven't exactly been inactive. I've just finished teaching my little blues harmonica course at Otago University. Once again I've set a dozen or so young people out into the world of blues, hoping they'll take root and do great things one day.

Not much more to tell, apart from this:

Tickets are now available for the fourth Long Beach Blues Ball on 5 June 2010 with King Leo. Anders "Junior" Jensen is back with his fellow Vikings in the far north and the other Growling Dogs have moved on to different projects, so this is your chance to see the new lineup. King Leo will be serving up high-octane Blues with the addition of a horn section, so don't miss it.

Dunedin favorites, Skybus will be opening, and once again Purakanui School will be raising funds by selling refreshments. The Blues Bus will be making the trip to and from the hall as well. Doors at the Long Beach Hall open at 8:30.

Admission is $20, or $30 including transportation to and from the hall on the Blues Bus. Tickets are available on the website (www.kingleo.co.nz) and as soon as tickets are printed you will be able to purchase them from Twang Town (45 Moray Place). The Long Beach Hall only holds 100, so we recommend getting your ticket early.

Boogiemen

2009-06-01T17:36:00.002+12:00

My harmonica classes are coming to an end for this semester, and I haven't been too active with the band lately. Fortunately I got a dose of blues last weekend out at the Commercial Tavern in Green Island with The Boogiemen. I've got decent pictures of Boog, Dooley and Jack, but would still like some decent shots of Steve-O and Ropes. Conditions were challenging (crowded dance floor and no lights) but I managed to pull off a decent black and white of Steve-O.

A sore blow

2009-05-14T12:28:00.003+12:00

Well Boogie Chillun' I've been teaching harmonica again. I've been taking a Monday night class at Otago University Clubs and Societies centre, and am about to start Thursday nights down at the Oval for Unipol. Just four weeks at a stretch, but it's a lot of fun, and I've got a pretty good bunch at Clubs and Socs. There's some early talent in that class and I expect at least 2 or 3 of them to go on in bands. Maybe it's the teacher! Here's hoping the Thursday class is as good. It should be, two of them are already doing the Mondays!

I haven't done a lot with my own music this year. I've devoted a lot of my spare time to photography.

The sad news of the week is that Bluestone's drummer, The Sweeney is leaving town for Timaru. God it's hard to hold on to a good stick man. We'll have to have a celebratory gig for the bugger!

Penguin Entertainers

2009-04-11T16:30:00.003+12:00

Oh yeah, a great time had by all. Pat Trembeth was a fantastic host, delivered us a top venue and sound, as well as accomodation. I love road trips, and this little 24 hour spell was perfect. We shot a little video on the tripod, so will see what that's like and maybe pop it on our site in a little while.

Oamaru, here we come!

2009-03-21T17:44:00.004+13:00

The gardens gig was a good time all round, great crowd and we all had fun. Leo and the Dogs couldn't be there, so Nik Leeden, Robin Murphy, Jack Hiku and John Hodge filled the breech. These guys are doyens of the Dunedin covers scene, and always deliver a great sound. Later, Nik joined us for a set on slide guitar, and it rocked - if you don't mind 3 guys doing extended blues guitar solos for forty minutes! No complaints from the crowd.

Some sad news in the last week is that Garth and Kate have moved on from the Empire Pub, so last week was the last gig for bands there for the time being. One less venue for the less commercial styles of music in town, and that's a shame. I hope the new management are as loyal supporters of local music as Garth has been.

The Bluestone boys and I have been working on our act for an upcoming gig at the Penguin Entertainers Club next weekend. Should be a blast, and we're all amped for it. Speaking of which, I need to get my amp seen to. It seemed very gutless at the Gardens gig last month, and yesterday it developed an intermittent fault. Best I get that seen to!

Blues in the Gardens

2009-01-27T15:46:00.001+13:00

This Sunday, my band BluesTone is playing at the Dunedin Botanical Gardens. We'll be appearing with our friends King Leo and the Growling Dogs as well as Nik Leeden and perhaps the infamous Boog Roberts. I love outdoor gigs. It'll be fun.

http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/events/performing-arts/music/blues-concert

In other news, The Growling Dogs album has just been released - check their website for details, and they've just finished a nationwide tour. My buddy Mike and I played with them at the Whare Flat Folk Festival on New Years day and it was a blast. This Sunday should be even better.

More of the Boogiemen

2008-11-25T20:03:00.005+13:00

Some shots of the Boogiemen recording their demo DVD at the Beach Hotel. Go see them some time!

The Boogiemen

2008-10-25T16:58:00.009+13:00

Last night I finally got my arse off the couch and caught Boog Roberts band, The Boogiemen at The Empire. Naturally, they rocked. I took my new camera along and took a few snaps of the boys.

If you like your blues music loud, unrestrained and with a serving of boogie rock, you can't go past these boys. They're making a demo DVD soon that I'll be helping out with.

Refreshed Website

2008-07-30T20:50:00.005+12:00

The Dunedin Muso's club went well. Not a huge crowd, maybe 30 or so people, but definitely an enthusiastic bunch. Work's keeping me pretty busy, and everybody's got other committments over the next few weeks, so it's time for a few weeks hiatus.

The band is tightening up nicely, playing a lot more intuitively. Our sound is really defining itself as distinct from the other local blues acts like King Leo or The Boogiemen. We play very eclectic mix of high-energy, intense blues. Quite a punky London edge to it, dut to the influence of Nine Below Zero. I've loved those guys after seeing them on TV in the 80's and am a huge fan of Mark Feltham's harmonica playing as well as Dennis Greaves' guitar. After cogitating on our sound and stage style, Nik has come up with some new imagery for the band's website, which I promptly put up. Later we'll give it a thorough overhaul.

I just spent some of my gig money on a new toy: A vox AC30 Amplug. I'm loving it. Now I can practice electric guitar in the living room! I'm taking it on vacation to Wanaka next week. Looks like there's plenty of snow so the skiing should be good. I may not get to practice much guitar at all. That's okay. After the last few weeks, I'm actually looking forward to a break!

The Empire Wakes Up

2008-07-17T21:41:00.011+12:00

I popped into The Empire Pub yesterday to chat with the owner Garth. He and his wife Kate were on vacation in the UK when they had to come back and rescue the place. The folks he left in charge hadn't had it two weeks and things were falling apart at the seams, hence them stiffing us for our fee. Good on Garth, he put things right and gave me the balance of our cash.

Last weekend we played the NHNZ winter party in their TV studio. It's a great room, we had a fun crowd and had a ball.

In other news, Nik has been working on our visual imagery and as you'll see, we had a new photo shoot in Lindsay's studio. We took a few, but the one above is my favourite. It's us alright. This Saturday we're playing the Muso's club. Not a high paying gig, but we're looking forward to it.

Empire V

2008-07-05T17:41:00.003+12:00

Last night we got together at Lindsay's apartment for a few band photos before the gig. Now that Bluestone's sound is defining itself, it's time to look at marketing ourselves around town. Nik's come up with some new graphics, and I got myself a new suit for gigging. It might come in handy for weddings and funerals too. Hopefully Nik'll have all the new imagery for me to update our website later this week.

Anyway the gig was pretty good. There were a couple of guitar leads that didn't exactly go according to plan, but I was pretty happy about how I improvised. The other lads played out of their skins. The best part was that when I messed around with the format of songs as practiced, everyone was relaxed enough to go with it. Despite the nasty chill outside, we had a good little crowd for most of the night.

The only downer was that the new management stiffed us for half our fee, claiming some misunderstanding with Garth and Kate about the money and time we play. They say they'll sort it out and get back to me this week. If we end up not getting the rest of our whack, I'd be happy about canning our further dates there and concentrating on getting a demo recording done to get other gigs elsewhere. Stay tuned.

Empire IV - Redemption

2008-06-08T19:08:00.006+12:00

Last Friday we played the Empire as a four piece. To say I was nervous was an understatement.
This was a make-or-break gig for Bluestone, ever since I cut Ros from the band. So I had to step up and sing a little more, as well as play a little more guitar. I'd also just been to Melbourne the weekend before and got myself a new axe. The night before the gig I found myself worrying that on top of everything else, a new instrument was adding another layer of complexity.

I'm happy to say that things went unexpectedly well from the start. One thing we all agreed on at the last practice was to make more space, and not overplay or rush ourselves through the songs. We stuck to plan, and it worked. I was happy with my harp sound, and although I didn't play exactly what I planned to on guitar, the stuff I was improvising seemed to work okay. I was pleased with the guitar. It's an epiphone dot studio, based on a gibson 335, so it's got a lovely mellow tone, in contrast to our usual Stratocaster guitar sound.

So we had the audience from the start to the finish. There was one obstreperous sheila there who had to be ejected, and a chap who'd drank too much and felt my boot a couple of times when he fell into my mike stand, but everyone else was just dancing or cheering in all the right places. Garth the publican was pleased too. We all had a great time. Finally, the band working as I want. I'm fairly sure eveyone's in it for the long haul, so - something to build on.

Top Blues Albums No. 3

2008-04-22T10:09:00.004+12:00

It's interesting that so far, my list of favourite albums are all white boy blues. Well, this boy's as white as they come, he's an albino!

This is another album I'm sure that one day I'm going to get around to covering all the songs from: Johnny Winter's White Hot and Blue. It's got everything a JW album should have: Solid blues tunes including some classic cover versions, Johnny's over-the-top guitar playing, and his heartfelt howls and growls, but there's one other thing that makes this album a must for me, and it's Pat Ramsey's harmonica playing. On "Last Night" it never fails to blow me away. Ramsey's style is very guitar-like, and he's a robust match for Mr Winter. If it came down to it, I think I'd probably put this album somewhere in my top 3.

Empire III - The Nadir

2008-04-21T08:03:00.002+12:00

OK, another gig at the Empire. A pretty quiet night, small crowd, and considering the goal we've set ourselves, we didn't play up to our potential, although it was nice to get some good feedback on small portions of my performance. But it's not about me - we're a band, not just some jammers. Considering the small crowd and the band not delivering, Garth the publican was reluctant to pay us the agreed sum and I found it hard to press for the amount originally agreed on. Damn.

While it was disappointing, Ros, Nik and Lindsay seemed to be especially unhappy and discouraged. There was more at work just some performance boo-boos. Mike's uncomfortable with the non-blues material I've been introducing, I had an internal clash of personalities to deal with. Now that kills good bands, and has come close to killing this one, which is a shame, because I belive Bluestone has great potential. Maybe by trying to take us down a pop and covers path so we can get more gigs, I've been trying to make one great little blues band do too much - So I've got a commitment from the gang to play one more Empire gig. Pure blues this time and without Ros.

In due course I'll take a look at reviving Dry Martini as a cocktail event/smaller venue combo.

Stay tuned.

Empire II

2008-03-10T21:20:00.002+13:00

On Friday Bluestone played its first full night at the Empire Pub's downstairs band bar. There was a moderate-sized crowd that seemed to stay all night, and the first two sets went really well. I was really pleased with how my guitar sounded, without much effect other than the odd bit of gain. Big fat fender tone. A few little boo-boos crept into the third set, but nothing we can't fix - and we will fix them! Feedback after the gig was great from the punters. Feedback from the band indicates a high motivation to sound nothing less than excellent.

The biggest downer of the night was that some idiot stole one of my new harps in the first break. I think it was one of the guys who'd been so effrusive in their applause during our set. What a low trick. Loser. Anyway, we all stayed for a few drinks and I got home around 3:00. Long hours, but boy it's good to be gigging again.

I hear Graham Dooley is playing with Boog Roberts again in The Boogiemen. Watch out! When they were with Mike and I in White Hot and Blue, they were a formidable combination. I expect they'll get some good gigs soon.

Live At Last

2008-03-05T10:44:00.002+13:00

Okay, it's taken a little while, but we're live at last. There's a permanent link to the Bluestone website on the right. Check us out! Better yet, book us!

We're playing the Empire Pub this Friday night. Been hard to rehearse as much as we've wanted, what with some of us being out of town and such. Should be a lot of fun though.

The Logo

2008-02-18T18:38:00.003+13:00

Courtesy of Nik our drummer who's a design and marketing genius, here's our mug shot with our corporate logo incorporated. What an asset everyone's day jobs are turning out to be to this band! Next I'll have to produce a video, Ros (who's an accomplished TV cameraman) will can shoot it, her husband and our sound man Warren can edit it, and Mike can... well I'm not exactly sure how Mike's expertise in fisheries stock assessment is going to help us, but there's bound to be a way!

The Big Picture

2008-02-15T15:08:00.003+13:00

At last! A decent band photo, courtesy of our bass player Lindsay (http://www.thebigpicture.co.nz/). We took a few shots in his studio last night before getting down to learning a few new tunes.

So, right to left: Clive Copeman, Ros Saunders, Mike Beentjes, Lindsay Somerville, Nik Sweeney.

Top Blues Albums No.2

2008-02-07T10:53:00.000+13:00

Continuing our series on the recordings that have made me the muso I am, I have to say this would have to be in my top 3. And like all good things, there's a story behind it.

As a grad student just learning to play harp, I used to crash parties with a couple of friends, Mike and Arthur. Arthur used to carry this battered tape around. Usually in a pretty trolleyed state, Arthur would accost the owner of the stereo and persuade them to put his tape on. If there was no-one in attendance, he'd just put it on anyway. You know the usual howls this kind of action elicits, especially if you're a party crasher. But that seldom happened. The grooves on that tape seemed to cast their spell immediately. There was little protest, and the party usually amped up by a couple of orders of intoxication and turn into a wild debauch. Or maybe that was just Arthur, Mike and I. Anyway, The Fabulous Thunderbirds - Girls Go Wild was on one side of that tape.

I eventually got a copy of the album and began practicing whichever Kim Wilson harp chops I could figure out. Every band I've been in has done at least two or three tunes from that album. You just can't go past it for 12-bar blues efficiency. Kim's powerful vocals and harp, Jimmy Vaughn's oh-so frugal guitar licks. Notes and chords placed so carefully, you'd think they're gold. To me they are. Don't be fooled by the cheesy cover. If you're a blues fan and don't have this album, get it. It could change your life, or at the very least, your party.

Gesellen

2008-02-03T14:19:00.000+13:00

Something to add about the gig last night: There was this mob if strangely dressed chaps there last night, Germans by the sound of them. You may have seen some around. They dress in black bell-bottom pants, white shirts, double breasted black waistcoats and black floppy hats. You could mistake them for Amish missionaries - without the beards.

So who are these strange young men? The beer drinking is a clue. They're young German carpenters, travelling the world getting experience before they settle down and become master craftsmen. It's part of an old German tradition, and a lovely one. They're called Gesellen and their whole travelling bit is a last vestige of European craft guild culture and where we get the word journeyman from. Be nice to them when you see them. Next time I do, I'll buy them a beer, maybe they'll help replace some of the weatherboards on my house. They were drinking heroic amounts of beer last night and maintained impeccable manners and a happy countenance. You can read a little more about them here: http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,416564,00.html

The Empire Strikes Three

2008-02-03T10:33:00.000+13:00

Last night we played at the grand reopening of the Empire Pub's historic third bar - the band bar. Quite a night. Rather than sharing the bill with just one other band, there were five bands through the course of the night. I asked for a reasonably early spot for us - 10 pm. Actually, that's as late as I want to start playing these days. But I only just made it in time.

I'd been out shooting video at a friend's wedding on the beach at Doctors' Point. Leo and the Growling Dogs were there and it was good to play some harp and sing a tune with them. They're such a great bunch of guys. We've got to do some kind of Blues Summit gig with them this year.

Anyway, I got to the Empire bang on 10 and my band mates had my gear all set up and ready to go for me. Thanks to SMS messaging on the drive into town, there was no "Where is he?" "When will he get here?" "Where the $#@% have you been?" They have my enduring love and respect. I just had to strap on my guitar and we ripped into our set...

...Which seemed to go rather well. OK, the stage sound wasn't perfect, my harp setup wasn't ideal, and coming in from the cold straight onto the stage meant it really took me a little while to warm into it. I even made my share of boo-boos, but none of that mattered. Bluestone, which Garth the publican introduced as the renamed Dark Horse, played tight. All the others played out of their skins, and Lindsay has this infectious on-stage fun thing going on. We had so much fun on stage it spilled onto the floor. There was a lively and enthusiastic crowd, and it was great fun to work them, get them shouting back etc. Personally, I could have done without the smoke machine, but there you go. A great start to real gigging again, and Garth even offered us a regular monthly spot. We'll see about that.

We all hung around to see Boog Roberts and The Boogiemen, catch up with old muso mates like Graham Dooley and Mark Reeves, and enjoy a beer or two. Mike even said it was one of his best gigs ever. We'll see about that too. I've got a feeling that now we've got this great little lineup, the best may be yet to come.

Name This Band!

2008-02-03T10:23:00.000+13:00

So we've been vacillating over our name again. Seems like Dark Horse hasn't struck a chord with everyone, or the saddle got loose. Anyway, for a while it seemed we were back to square one, unhappy with the name we'd picked and unable to find one that we all felt good about. While I kind of believe the name becomes the band, whatever that name is, your name is still your calling card, and that first impression counts in peoples minds.

So, after practice the other night, we hopped down to the Muso's club to road test a set in front of a small live audience. The music went down well, but more significantly, the handful of members there got into a great game of "Name that Band". Lloyd even pulled out a tattered list of band names from his wallet. He'd been compiling it for years. We almost went for one of them: "INTERIM NAME SUPRESSION". After a brief dalliance with BEDROCK, Mike suggested BLUESTONE, and that stuck. Works not only because of the Blues/Tone factor, but because so many significant local buildings are constructed from Otago Bluestone. Bluesy, simple, and local flavour - big ticks in my workbook. Nik immediately started thinking graphic concepts, which is a great sign. Sure there are a few bands around the world with that name, and a record label, but I think the world's big enough for now for us all to coexist peacefully.

So we'll see if this one sticks!

Gigs Ahoy!

2008-01-11T13:45:00.000+13:00

On the strength of our jam a few weeks ago, Garth from the Empire Pub (aka The Garthness) texted to offer us a gig the other day. Looks like we'll all be back from vacations in time for a practice beforehand, so why not? We'll be sharing the night with with another band anyway, so it's more for the practice than the money. Mike has also fielded an enquiry from a mate in Wellington who's interested in flying us up there to play at his 60th birthday in April some time.

We used to play backyard parties for twentysomethings, now it's 50th and 60th parties. Scary.

Ipod, Newpod

2008-01-11T13:41:00.001+13:00

So the very next day, I went back to Dick Smith Electronics and they gave me another new 80 gig ipod Classic. It's been two weeks with this one. So far, so good. Nice screens on these little machines. So I've been ripping DVD's and Youtube videos to it for Georgia to watch over the Summer vacation. I've also got my Fabulous Thunderbirds live DVD in there. Very cool.

I Don't Believe It!

2007-12-26T21:14:00.000+13:00

Three hours after that last post, just a week after I got it, that new ipod Classic died. Nearly full charge, I had it in my pocket. It had powered off after playing a song, and an hour or so later when I went to use it again, it wouldn't start. Nothing. Black screen, not even a spinning disc. Back to the store! And I'm going camping tomorrow, dammit.

My Bad Apple

2007-12-26T16:56:00.001+13:00

Last week my ipod died, just two weeks out of warranty. It was a 30g 5G video model, and with the Christmas holiday coming, I was really going to miss it. So I took it into the retailer, Dick Smith Electronics to see if I could get it serviced.

Dick Smith's sales assistant told me that since it was out of warranty, there was nothing I could do. That just wasn't good enough. So the next day, armed with a copy of New Zealand's Consumer Guarantees Act, and some information from the Consumers Instutute on reasonable lifetimes for electronics. The manager really gave me the runaround, I argued for over an hour, even getting the national service manager on the phone. Eventually they agreed to service it here in Dunedin, so I wouldn't have to wait their minimum 15 working days for a repair in Auckland.

A few days ago I went in to check on progress and they told me what I suspected - it needed a new hard drive. They were going to repair it, but decided to replace my unit anyway. So I got a brand new 80g classic for pressing my consumer rights. There are some slight snags: It has problems charging in the car when connected to my itrip, and if I want to play video through the TV I need to buy a new AV cable, but it's nice to have so much capacity. I've got my whole expanding music library on there now. Yay for consumer rights!

Dark Horse

2007-12-20T16:48:00.000+13:00

That's the name of the new lineup! Roslyn is away with family, so Mike, Lindsay, Nick and I popped down to the Empire last night to let rip with some solid blues. We had a ball, and it seemed the punters did too. Our old mate Boog Roberts was there too, so we got him up on harmonica for a couple of numbers. Great fun.

Hopefully Nik will harness his graphic abilities for the band, so stay tuned for some Dark Horse visuals!

Top Blues Albums No.1

2007-12-14T13:48:00.001+13:00

While we wait on band news, I thought I'd start a little series on my most influential Blues albums. This isn't really a list of all time greats. I'm not sure I'm is fit to judge the world's most influential. This is just a list of the ones that made me the bluesman I am. It'll be more of a chronological list rather than any order of importance. So first up it's these guys:

I'm almost (but not quite) ashamed to say my blues journey started here. Believe me, I wish I could tell you it was the day I met Dr Feelgood, or shook BB King's hand or snuck into some seedy blues bar at the age of 15. Instead, I was about 17 when I hear a radio ad on a tape of a recent top 40 from Capitol Radio, London. The ad was for the Blues Brothers movie. I'd been fooling around on harmonica, and didn't really know anything about blues music. But this radio ad had clips from "Sweet Home Chicago" "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love" and "She Caught The Katy". I was hooked, I had to hear the rest of those tunes, but it took more than a year for me to see the movie or hear any of the albums.

When I did see it, in Invercargill, 1981, people left the movie in droves. I thought they were nuts. I was mesmerised. It took a while to gather pace, but my blues habit started with that ad. As for the album, well, The Blues Brothers is an all-star band, and the soundtrack is a killer list of blues, soul, gospel and rock. I still rate it as a very warm introduction to the deep world of blues. I think I played those tunes I heard in that radio ad in my first gig in my first blues band, and they'll always be on my master set list.

Name Struggle

2007-12-14T13:25:00.000+13:00

Okay, after more time that I care to contemplate, the struggle for a good stable band lineup may be over. The struggle for a new band name has just begun.

Practices have been going well. I'd like a band new name to give us a fresh identity and a feeling of cohesion, but finding one that works for everyone is impossible. I'm sure if you've been in the same position you'll know how hard it is. Your name is important, especially in a blues-based band. You want some sense of pedigree. You want some stand-out. You want it to be user-friendly and not easily mangled mis-spelt or mocked.

We've been through scores of names in the last week. Nothing has stuck yet. I thought we were there with The Revelations, but there was some reluctance. We're close though. Stay tuned for an announcement, hopefully some visuals soon after.

Changes

2007-12-06T10:14:00.000+13:00

Ok, I think we might just have the line-up we need to really get to work. A few weeks back Lindsay was doing business with a chap in his photographic studio and discovered he was an experienced - and more importantly, free - drummer. After a jam with him, I'm pleased to say we've added Nik Sweeney to our lineup. I'm sorry to have to let Mark go, we all love his drumming and he's a lovely guy, but without more of a time commitment from him, Circus Animals just wasn't going to get anywhere. He was very gracious and understanding when I told him, which was what we all expected. We hope to jam with him in future and expect he'll sit in on some tunes with us when we get gigging around town. Best of luck with your other projects mate.

So, onward! Nik hasn't played a lot of blues, but is a versatile and intelligent drummer. He's already picked up the subtleties of the less-is-more style of blues drumming, and his enthusiasm is pretty uplifting too. He's also a graphic designer. Along with Lindsay's photographic business, I'm expecting the band to start presenting some visual images as sharp as our sound!

White Ribbon Day

2007-12-06T10:08:00.001+13:00

Another little gig just to whet our appetites. We played four or five tunes in the Octagon for the White Ribbon Day concert on Nov 25. The hardest part was getting everyone together for a practice first. Our drummer Mark spreads himself kind of thin. Anyway, it went pretty well. If only we could get enough practice time to get a really tight set together and get gigging! Watch this space.

Dry Martinis

2007-10-24T11:35:00.000+13:00

A few weeks back, my old friend Gordon Smith, former bass player for White Hot and Blue called me up. Gordon had an acoustic gig in Wanaka that he wanted some support for. It was a living room concert at a private home out of town known as "The River House". I asked Mike if he'd like to join Ros and I, but he felt unprepared. Lindsay turned out to be keen, and revealed himself to be not just a rock steady bassist, but a fine guitar picker as well. After a couple of practices I thought hard about our sound and the material, and hit upon the name Dry Martini.

We practiced hard. We needed to. We weren't playing 12-bar blues any more. Well, not a lot. It was only a set of about 14 songs, but went from reworked ABBA to Bigbang's Norwegian Rock. Just so we don't sound completely Scandinavian, there's a little Eric Clapton in the set too, and even a Kiwi tune by the Muttonbirds.

We felt ready, having had a thorough dress rehearsal in front of Warren our critical-eared sound engineer, but come the actual gig, we were as nervous as hell. You could hear a pin drop, and the audience of about 30 were right in our faces. Happily, they warmed to us and we had a ball. That's not to say we didn't make a lot of mistakes. You could hear the nerves in our voices. I've never been so nervous on stage. The worst was a tune we just couldn't strike the right tempo on and had to abandon. I've never done that before, and so exposed to the audience, we almost died, but by then they had kind of taken us to their hearts, and they were very gracious, and we managed to laugh it off and move on. For the last couple of tunes, Gordy joined us to play some lead guitar, and helped us raise the bar. We had everyone clapping along on the Vidar Busk and Clapton tunes (Lovestruck and Big Bill Broonzy's Got You On My Mind).

I think they were also pretty generous because we were after all, just the warm-up act to Gordy. He got me up for a few tunes in his set, and that was even more fun. I think I learned that although I yearn for musical growth, my own brand of blues harmonica playing is still my strength, so the blues is going to muscle up in our set at future gigs.

I also learned that Gordy is a world class solo player - a fine singer and phenomenal guitar player. He plays some originals, a lot of singer/songwriter stuff from the likes of David Wilcox, with a few blues stomps thrown in for good measure. He has a new toy, a Digitech Jam Man looper pedal, which he used sparingly, but to amazing effect. We had a blast. So I guess my second band is Dry Martini. Or maybe Dry Martinis. We're still evolving.

Presenting Circus Animals

2007-09-09T11:13:00.000+12:00

A couple of months ago I started practicing some new tunes with my friend Roslyn Saunders. Ros hadn't sung since she was a kid, but has a great ear and harmonises beautifully with my blues shout. We were doing a few blues numbers, as well as some rock covers and ballads, with me on guitar. I felt we'd never sound good enough as a duo, so I roped in my long time guitar buddy Mike, with a view to gigging small venues. Our first road test was to be Ros's husband's 40th birthday party.

Unfortunately, it snowed heavily that night and Mike was stuck at home. So Ros and I toughed it out, and the result was pretty encouraging, especially since Warren is a complete audio fiend and had the PA tweaked to make us sound as good as we could.

Then Mike told me a friend of his asked him to assemble a band for his 40th. He'd heard us play as White Hot and Blue a few years back and wanted something similar. Mike said he'd try and get something together. He and I were ready. Ros was keen, but where to get a rhythm section from? Luckily Mark Reeves was available, and promised to do his best to scare up a good bass player. Mark has jammed with us on drums at the Empire, with great subtlety and feeling, so I was confident that we'd be good if he could get a reliable bassist. He enlisted Lindsay Somerville, who hasn't played for many a year, but turned out to be a fine player as well as a very sympatico character. The only snag was, because of everyone's other committments, we only had 2 practices in which to get 24 songs tight.

The first night was hard work. The second was a marathon. We knew we could use a couple more to get things really tight, but we were ready. Leo LaDell and Paul Southworth warmed up for us as The Resonators - a pretty hard act to follow. They're both excellent players. I've already written about Leo's skills.

I'd bought myself a guitar pedal - a Line 6 Floor Pod, and since I haven't been doing much TV work lately, had thrown myself into upping my skills on my Strat. I have to say, it was like going back 20 or so years to when I first started playing. Playing 2nd guitar was so new, and the lineup so exciting. Having Ros sing lead on some songs and harmony on most others was a really fresh sound for Mike and I.

I think we were all a little nervous as we started. But that just melted away very quickly. Sure, there were a few little errors due to the lack of practice - endings and things, but otherwise, we felt great. The band really gelled. And of course, Warren was there to make sure the stage sound was impeccable. The upshot is that it wasn't just a one-off. We're a band, and fingers crossed, one that'll be getting a bit more work soon. We're a lot more versatile than the hardcore blues bands I've played in before. I don't know what to call us other than a blues-rock party band. Exciting times. I'm sure we'll find room for some Cold Chisel covers too.

Leave of Absence

2007-08-26T18:49:00.000+12:00

Nearly a year since I last blogged? Yeah, well, I haven't had that much to talk about. Sadly Crosseyed Cat was a hard band to get gigs for, and ultimately, keep together. At the end of the Academic year, Anders and Chris left town, and after a while Bob went home to the States, so Mike and I were kind of back at square one - two dedicated bluesmen without a band.

My musical career really is "The Blues Brothers" meets "Spinal Tap".

So what have I been doing in the meantime? Well, I wrote a TV series about the brain. Don't hold your breath for it though, it mutated into a kind of reality show that many of the crew are less than impressed by. I'm still waiting for a DVD, but I'm not hopeful. That's Television. I also field produced a documentary about shark attack survivors for Discovery Channel. That was fun, coordinating things on a 2-week shoot up in the Bay of Islands. Fake blood, actors, rubber shark... A much better show, with a great producer called Thomas Quinn, who's own blog I heartily recommend to you: http://godzooks.blogspot.com/

Musically, I've been down to the Empire for a few jams, fairly hard work. King Leo has kind of saturated the traditional blues scene here in Dunedin, and he's so damn good that it would be silly to try and play the same sort of thing. He even recruited Anders into his band!

So I've been trying to stretch myself by branching out on guitar and slightly different material. I guess the tunes I picked to jam down at the Empire Pub were a little too complicated for some bass players, because on two occasions, I've had guys walk off stage in anger in mid tune. Sorry guys, sometimes blues (and its baby, rock'n'roll) has more than 3 chords. Talk about dummy spitters. Fair bounced off the nursery wall.

Anyhow, exciting news: Mike and I have been woodshedding with new musicians, and we played our first gig in the new band last night, a 40th birthday party for about 50 or so people. It's a hell of a story. As soon as I get some pictures to post, I'll tell it.

Hail to the King!

2006-10-16T15:20:00.000+13:00

As part of a friend's birthday celebrations, I went along to see Leo LaDell close the 2006 Otago Festival of the Arts. This time he'd recruited a fine couple of horn players. The set included a fair bit of Memphis-style stuff. It was a fantastic show, another testament to Leo's talent and versatility. He also managed to attract a better class of punter than the usual pub crowds.

University exams are here, so Chris and Anders are sequestered away to study. Thereafter they'll be heading out of town for the summer. Mike will have one of his research trawls coming up soon too, so Crosseyed Cat will be going into recess for a few months, dammit. I'll just have to come up with something else to keep the habit satisfied.

Empire Pub

2006-10-09T15:48:00.000+13:00

On 29 September we played the Empire Pub. It was tough, since Bob had only been back in the country for a few days after heading home to the states for a month. And Anders had a heavy essay to do for his course, so we weren't all able to practice much together before the gig. That made it pretty heavy going, especially since we wanted to do 2 new songs. Kauia also had to pull out, with a sore throat.

It was also a fairly quiet night in town. Nevertheless, we managed to pull it off and had a small but appreciative audience. My mate Warren Saunders came along and did a great job of mixing sound for us.

I think we still all agreed that we never want to be so underprepared for a gig like that again.

Harmonica Blow Down

2006-10-09T15:29:00.000+13:00

On 9 September, I played at the Harmonica Blow Down. Organised by Leo LaDell, it capitalised on the Charlie Musselwhite concert in town that night, so it had a pretty healthy crowd. I played a couple of songs in each of two sets, and had a thoroughly good time. Anders was second guitar, and he had a ball too.

The other harp players - Terry Ebeling, Matt Langley, and Leo were of course fabulous. And there were a few special guests there - nobody from Charlie's band, but ex All Black Josh Kronfeld got up and did a fine stint, and Midge Marsden's offsider Bullfrog Rata played a little guitar and sang. Midge was there at the bar, but looked pretty shagged after the Musselwhite gig, so didn't get onstage.

Another great blues gig, thanks to the catalytic power of Leo LaDell. Good on ya Leo.

Musos Club

2006-10-09T15:26:00.000+13:00

On 28 August we played the Dunedin Musicians club. We had a great time. Kauia Moriarty sang with us again, as did Geva Downey, and King Leo Ladell popped along, so we dragged him up to play some of his fantastic chicago-style guitar.

Gig Pictures

2006-07-03T21:32:00.000+12:00

I just got a DV tape of some of the gig from one of my workmates and burned it to DVD for everyone. Here are a few frame captures.

Mike

Boog and I

Action!

Anders and Geva

Anders

Me in full blow

Kauia

Preaching the Blues

You have to love a band with backing vocals - and pretty girls!

First Gig Feedback

2006-06-26T21:53:00.000+12:00

A few people have said they really enjoyed the gig - especially the Bigbang covers! Darryl, the manager of The Backstage has emailed to talk about more gigs, so the evening was successful!

It's a semester break at Otago University, so Anders and Chris are out of town for a week or two. But the lads are red hot to keep practicing, write and add more material. We'll be back at it next week.

First Gig

2006-06-24T20:40:00.000+12:00

Finally the night has come.

We played at a venue called The Backstage, in Bath St. I'm so glad I insisted on a soundcheck when I found Stu our sound guy would be available after all. I had to bunk off from work and it took some effort to score enough mics and sus the PA, but we would have sounded like crap if we hadn't. The venue is a pretty good space and stage, although the sound's a little on the bright side.

It was a wickedly cold and drizzly night, being the winter solstice. Bob's other band Dragonfly warmed up for us, to a pretty small crowd, but they were good. Nice original rock that reminded me a little of Fur Patrol. I missed the middle of their set and went for a walk. I hate hanging around the venue making small talk before a gig. The anticipation distracts me horribly. I think it used to make me power drink, but I'm too old for that shit. Most of the time anyway.

A bunch of family and friends had arrived by ten thirty, when we got up to start. I had two new additions to my gear. A tambourine, and a set of earplugs. Boy I am getting old. We opened with some comfortable blues tunes that Mike and I have been playing for years and jamming with Anders for months. I was pretty pleased with my harp sound, I had my amp mic'd though the PA.

Then I strapped on my strat and played "Curious George", a tune I wrote for my daughter and dad. That was weird. Mike asked me to play lead in the middle, which was scary, and I actually had to fight the tears towards the end. I think it went down okay. We've been adjusting the structure of the tune all week. It'll be great to fill the set with more originals. I'm losing my fear of not being a strictly blues band. We'll be what we'll be.

I started Rufus Thomas's '"Walking the Dog" on guitar, and played some more lead. It felt great, and was scary to stretch myself on another instument, but I don't think I sucked too bad.

Then in the middle of the set, we played some other new material, including some covers of Bigbang, a Norwegian band. I really don't know how to describe their material. Folky, bluesy rock I guess. It's a stretch, but a lot of fun. Mike's stepdaughter Kauia joined us to sing a great version of Junior Wells's "Little by Little", and did a fantastic job of bv's on some other stuff, along with Anders' girlfriend Geva. One of the gang from work video'd Kauia's spell, so I'm looking forward to getting my hands on a copy.

Boog, the guitarist from White Hot and Blue also showed up. It was good to see him again, and hear of his recent adventures in his new band The Boogiemen. Sounds like he's enjoying the band leader thing too. It's a lot of work, but rewarding. He got up and played harp on Little Charlie and the Nightcats' "Thinking With The Wrong Head".

It was all really well received by the crowd, even though they were mainly family and friends. Among the band, there was a feeling that the set softened around half way, then firmed up again, but after all, it was a 90 minute set! We were really stoked by it all, especially since Crosseyed Cat has only been together for three weeks.

New band, new intruments, new material. How could it not be a buzz? It was a great night, and augurs well for the future.

Practice and Execution

2006-06-15T16:48:00.000+12:00

This Tuesday we practiced. We covered around 9 of the 15 tunes we set as a target, and I think the enormity of the task before us has struck home: Assembling a band and a set for a gig within just two weeks. We want to be tight.

The additional factor is Mike's youthful ward Kauia. She's going to sing a number with us, so that took a little work. She sounds great, so thats one less worry.

Then last night, we went to the Empire to crowd test the lineup. I put the newer, more challenging material into the set, since it needed the practice, and because we've been jamming a lot of the 12 bar stuff there for months anyway and needed a change.

Towards the end of the set, Mike blew his amp, and mine didn't sound too healthy, although I suspect that may just be the amount of gain I had on my mic. I'll have to check it out this weekend.

I'm thrilled to report that the crowd called for an encore, and we all had a blast. By the time we were into it, the crowd would have been 40% local musicians, so we couldn't have asked for a more discerning bunch! I managed to get all the new lyrics right, and Mike and Anders played well, but most encouragingly, Bob and Chris are obviously starting to work together and gel. It was a valuable boost to our confidence for next Thursday: The gig!

Crosseyed Cat

2006-06-08T21:19:00.000+12:00

We're a band at last, named - as all great blues bands are - after a Muddy Waters tune. There are probably other blues bands out there with the same moniker, but not in Dunedin. Not this decade. So let me introduce to you the other members of Crosseyed Cat:

Dr. Mike Beentjes. Guitar/Vocals. Mike and I have been playing together for over 20 years now, starting off as a couple of Zoology Students jamming in his flat, then in student band The Mudflat Houserockers from 1986 to 1988, then White Hot and Blue from about 1990 to 2004. We've had a lot of adventures over the last twenty something years. Like Brownie says to Sonny: "That's a long time to be with a man, ain't it?"

Anders M Jensen. Guitar/Vocals. The Oslo Kid. At a jam night featuring mostly wannabes and untalents last year, Anders stood out like a Keith Richards lick against a background of white noise. We started jamming at the Empire pub, and it immediately became imperative that we form a band. So far I've introduced him to Little Charlie and the Nightcats and Freddie King. He's introduced me to Vidar Busk and Bigbang. Not a bad swap.

Bob Zammit. Drums/watch this space. I met Bob in the classified section of dunedinmusic.com. Bob rocks. When we got him along to the Empire, he fit the bill immediately. Fresh from the states, he had a few rock bands over there and ran his own music shop. He's classically trained, y'know.

Chris Miller. Bass/Tuba. Our newest discovery. Chris is still studying music and plays in a local brass band. He hasn't played a lot of blues, so he's doing well for a kid who has been dragged into the deep end. Can't wait to put that tuba to use in the band.

So far, we've had a couple of gentle practices. Plenty of work to do on finding the Crosseyed Cat groove, but some very interesting things have emerged. I think we're going to have a much more original sound than White Hot and Blue, my last band. Secondly, the tune I just wrote for my daughter Georgia really came together. We're all looking forward to the next few months.

Let It Roll!

2006-05-23T20:01:00.000+12:00

Lucky I'm so busy writing and editing at work, otherwise I think I'd go crazy.

Anders, Bob, Mike and I are all fit to burst. In the past few weeks we've jammed with some interested bass players, but nobody has leapt out as being the man (or woman) for the job. And it's only been jamming, no real working on tunes. I think the highlight of last week was that I broke my first guitar string in public. I'd like to work on my guitar skills and play a little in the band.

I also saw that Boog, our old guitarist's new band is playing in town this weekend. Stand back, here come The Boogiemen! I hear they're good. I'd expect them to be. I'll have to drag the boys down there for a listen. It'd be great for the new boys to sit in if they could.

Hopefully our situation will resolve tomorrow. I renewed my membership of the Muso's club last week, and booked it out for a private jam/practice session. We're expecting a couple of highly rated bassists to come along, one recommended by Leo Ladell, and another who's been playing in the Otago University Capping Show with Bob, so the anticipation is high.

Even if the bass players don't work out, the four of us are just eager to really cut loose together for the first time, rather than be constrained by a pub jam night.

Feelers are out for gigs and we've had a couple of positive responses - we can do it as soon as we get this beast together.

Come On, Come On, Come On!

Nearly there!

2006-05-06T19:35:00.000+12:00

My shoot around Melbourne and Sydney went well. I got to work with some great crew, including the fabulous cameraman Peter Nearhos. I also got to meet and interview the legendary Ron and Val Taylor, pioneers of underwater film and shark conservation.

But wait a minute, this is a blues blog! My point, and I do have one, is that I also managed to get a couple of nights off with Clay Hichens. Clay's a current affairs show producer for the ABC. He's also fine guitarist and great music enthusiast. We basically immersed ourselves in cd's, dvd's and intoxicants for 48 hours, and talked a lot of shit about music. He did manage to finish his garage conversion (into a music den), so I can't have been too big a distraction.

The real news is that it looks like we have our drummer. Bob Zammit is new to town, but comes with a lot of talent and experience. Now we just need to find a great bass player and we'll be on our way - once we all agree on a name of course. Bob is currently gigging in the Otago University cappng show, and is off to practice and approach someone he says is a very promising bass player tonight. Maybe this time next week we'll have a blues band and a practice under our belts! Like it says on the cover of Charlie Musselwhite's South Side Blues Band: Stand Back!

The New Paradigm

2006-04-03T20:50:00.000+12:00

It's already two weeks since my Dad died. It's been strange. I haven't exactly been overcome with grief - Dad had a great life and his death didn't come as a shock, but I've been feeling run down, tired, and finding it hard to concentrate at work. I left early on Friday with a headache and fell asleep when I got home.

Last Wednesday I played a tune for him at the jam. He wasn't really into my music - he used to call my stereo a 'noise machine'. But the first time he saw me play with White Hot and Blue several years ago, he was beaming with surprise and pride. I think now I'll always play a tune for him. He taught me much - like: Life is change.

We played with a great local bass player and drummer last week, both happy to play with us, but committed to other bands. I think it finally dawned on us that we don't need to be so desperate about finding permanent members for the backline. Really good players just fit anyway, without weeks of practice. For now, we'll just use the best guys who are available for whatever gigs we get. I think the first step will be to play a freebie at the Dunedin Muso's club, just to get our set into shape. That'll be fun.

So this week, instead of jamming, Mike, Anders and I will go over the set list. We've jammed nearly 30 tunes or so already, so we'll take the best of that, shove in a few new ones, and some of our old original songs, and forge ahead. Who knows, some day soon, we may find a permanent drummer and bass player. Well, as permanent as things can be.

Then I'll be out of town for a few days around Easter. I'm heading to Australia to direct some interviews for a TV series. It'll give me a chance to catch up with my old mate Clay Hichens in Sydney. Clay and I got a great little 4 piece together for a while over there. It'll be fun to catch up with him.

Live On In Me Old Son

2006-03-28T20:56:00.000+12:00

Nick Copeman

24 Jan 1924-20 March 2006

My Daddy

Gear

2006-03-20T10:32:00.000+12:00

Time to talk setup. Can't say I've got anything fancy. I've used a Sure Green Bullet microphone for years. I run it through a Fender Performer 1000 amp. If I really need to stand out from the band, I use the amp foot pedal to switch to a gain channel. Recently I added a Holmes harp commander, which I love. It gives me some control the eq and gain, and also has a handy compressor to help kill feedback. Guitar amps aren't really made for microphones, so it matches the impedance and lets me get that nice fat tone I've been seeking. In small venues I can just run through the amp, or for larger rooms, can take a feed from the amp into the PA. The Harp Commander can also go straight into the PA. Saves lugging an amp and still gives me a pretty nice sound.

There are a few things I'd like to work on. I like the fender, but a good small to medium sized tube amp would be nice. My next long overdue move will be a volume pot on the mic. I'd like to play around with other effects a little more when I get the time. I went to a workshop with Kiwi harp man Brendan Power, and he demo'd a lot of cool tricks with delays and choruses, but at the end of the day, all we really want is a killer tone.

I mainly use Lee Oskar harps, although I really like the Hohner Special 20. I switched to Lee Oskars 'cause back then they were the only ones I could get replacement reed plates for, so I've pretty much stuck with them. Occasionally I clean them in an ethanol solution - Vodka and a cotton bud is pretty good.

I used to haul everything around in a leather briefcase, harps in their plastic cases, but just bought a little box and packed it with foam for the harps. It's a cheaper solution than a purpose built harp touring box but it's not super robust. We'll see how long it lasts. I think any gig money I make this year will be going into gear.

Star Players

2006-03-18T11:47:00.000+13:00

This week's Wednesday jam went well again. We had a crack at a few songs we've never tried before, like Little Charlie and the Nightcats' "Clothes Line", and Junior Wells' "Little by Little". Definitely stuff to work on and put in the set list. No serious candidates for our new rhythm section among the jammers, although one could have the job if he wanted it. Glen Krawczyc popped along with a couple of my other workmates from NHNZ. Glen used to play bass in big time Aussie band "Icehouse", but of late has been putting in a lot of time with electronic drum kit and ipod. He got up for his first time drumming with flesh musicians and really nailed it. Shame he's only in town for a few months finishing a documentary, or we'd have press ganged him into our lineup.

I've been meaning to check out Leo LaDell, an American bluesman who has moved into town recently. So, last night I got off the couch, called Anders and dragged myself into town. Pity Mike didn't make it, but I'm damn glad I did. Leo is awesome, as a guitarist he has a great classic Chicago style and he's a mighty fine singer and harp player too. Dunedin stalwarts Ivan Hamilton, Jack Hiku and Nic Leeden from Sufficiently Breathless were backing him up, and Nic played some pretty blistering blues himself. That was great, since I've really only heard him play immaculate rock guitar. After Nic filled Leo in on my pedigree in a most generous fashion, they invited Anders and I to sit in for a few songs. We were pretty nervous, not wanting to show ourselves up, but I'm happy to say we didn't embarass ourselves too much. It was a lot of fun. The guys were making suggestions as to who we could recruit into our band, and it reminded me what a great musical community we have in Dunedin. I have to get out more.

Looks like blues is undergoing a little revival in town. Hallelujah. It's good to have more souls in the congregation.

My kind of Podcast

2006-03-10T19:51:00.000+13:00

Nothing personal to add today, but one thing I want to do is point anyone and everyone toward The Roadhouse Podcast. I upgraded to an ipod last year after having a couple of 128mb mp3 players, so I came to podcasts a little late in the game. Finding this podcast fully justified the expense of the ipod. Well, maybe that and the Scott Sigler science fiction podiobooks.

The permanent link is on the right of the page. If you like the blues, you'll love The Roadhouse. The host, Tony Steidler-Dennison is a pretty cool guy who pretty well stays out of the way and lets the music do the talking. It's like hanging out at your blues-loving mate's house while his wife or girfriend is out. Not too much chit chat, just a great a mix of unsigned artists, indies and a few artists from major blues labels like Alligator, Black & Tan etc. It's a solid hour of, as the official line says, "the finest blues you never heard".

One snag: Tony has just upped the res of the mp3's from 96 to 128k, blowing the average file size from 35 or 40 mb to around 50mb, meaning it's one hell of a download if you're on a dialup connection, but it's worth it. I've heard a bunch of tunes and artists I'd love to cover - as soon as I get the band together!

CC

Word on the Street

2006-03-09T11:23:00.000+13:00

Well, Wednesday night's jam was a lot of fun, as usual. We mainly improvised a bunch of tunes, and young Anders played out of his skin, as usual. And, as usual, it's always a pleasure to play with Graham Dooley, a drummer up for anything, including this cozy photo outside the pub.

Word is spreading about our search for a backline, and we're expecting a few people to get in touch any day. I also heard that the mercurial Boog Roberts will be visiting town with his band, The Boogiemen, some time soon. I'd love to see him and Anders trade licks, if they don't cancel each other out in a blaze of musical energy.

The Empire is a great little pub, and one with a rich musical history, being over 140 years old. The host, Garth, plays bass for the house band with Graham. They usually play a mixed set of hard and classic rock, and then let any jammers get up. In the break, I joined the cigarette smokers outside on the street and partook as they passed around ginger biscuits.

Ginger biscuits. We must be getting middle aged. There was a time when...

Ah, that's another story.

It starts here

2006-03-08T18:33:00.000+13:00

Ok, here it is: my blues life. Occasionally you'll see there's a crossover with my day job and my home life, and of course, there's a fair bit of backstory, which I'll cover occasionally. But here's where I'm at right now:

I'm sitting in front of the telly, post dinner. My wife Ali is beside me, commenting on how old David Bellamy looks. Georgia, my two year old daughter is plucking the guitar I got her for her birthday. Now she's asking for a pick. It's a constant battle to hang on to my picks, at home and in the band.

I say in the band, but right now I'm not really in a gigging band. When I was, Boog, one of our guitarists, tended to borrow picks and lose them. Now it's my daughter. At least she's discovering music young. I wish I had. It would be so much easier. My last band was called White Hot and Blue - after the Johnny Winter album. We played together for about 15 years, on and off, but since our bass player Gordy spends half the year ski patrolling in Scandinavia, and the other half out of town at a ski resort, and since Boog kind of left town without telling anyone, it's time for me and Dr. Mike to rebuild.

Dr Mike and I have played together for over 20 years, him on guitar, me on harmonica. Our drummer Graham is still around, but with White Hot and Blue not gigging, he's found himself other work, and since he relies on music for a living, we're not going to tie him to a part time blues band. So we're looking for a whole new back line - bass and drums.

The good new is, Boog has been easy to replace. Guitarists are easy to find, but good bluesmen aren't. Luckily, we met this Norwegian kid at a jam last year and he's great. The three of us just clicked musically, so we've been jamming semi regularly, and looking for other players. Anders is like the anti-Boog, a mirror image, opposite, but equal. Boog was all natural talent and small-time crime. Anders is a trained musician, clean-cut, and studying social work here in Dunedin. They've both got a great feel and dedication to blues music.

So, tonight I'm off to the weekly jam at the Empire pub. I'll read Georgia a bedtime story, pack my amp and harps, and we shall see what happens.

2006-03-08T18:10:00.000+13:00