[I'm a dummy, how to use avatar]

Sorry Jim. I never would have guessed Kenny Burrell, and the Charlie Christian pickup is certainly obscured in the photo. So what else was I to think? Jim Nabors, naturally. And does Mondrian make me hip? Well, yes!

[I'm a dummy, how to use avatar]

Jim R,

There's something kinda Gomer Pyle-ish about your avatar. Who is that ? (if it's not Jim Nabors, that is).

[Those silly UPC stickers on fruit]

Hi couw!!

Yes, in American supermarkets each piece of fruit (and vegetables too, in some places) has a tiny sticker attached, so that the employee working the check-out can enter the correct PLU or UPC or whatever. These are annoying to no end, for all the reasons posted by various members above!

Shopping carts!! I like using that little flap on the upper part of the shopping cart as a percussion instrument. In some stores, you can get a nice little snare sound with it! My wife HATES it when I break out into a solo! B)

[BNBB Closed until May 1]

No Jeff, it's 'FIDO'.....as in the BNBB is history and it's time to FIDO

Ah, Weiz, I forgot about that!! Thanks fo' remindin' me!

[BNBB Closed until May 1]

Jim, I'm SO glad that one can write "Fuck it" here without fear of the evil eye.

[BNBB Closed until May 1]

FYI-

Bluenote has closed the BBS. Now what was it that pushed it over the edge?

[Any guitar players out there?]

Could you give me an example of "upper structure tensions on simple chords"? Do you mean, for instance, a minor 6th over a major triad, something like that? Do you have a method, or just experiment with sounds?

And you mentioned Robert Fripp. Have you checked out the Guitar Craft website? They are teaching some pretty cool stuff, but it seems you have to completely overhaul your approach to fit theirs if you take a retreat. I'm not ready for that.

Hi Joe-

Sure. I like playing with 9s, 11s and 13s, and all chromatic passing tones in between, like b9, #9, b13, etc...but most of what I do is sound-oriented, and if and when it comes time to write or arrange other parts, then I sit and figure out what's what. But in the beginning, I just go with what sounds nice, and try to position my fingers in places where they should not be---like play a Bbmaj7 chord in 6th position, and move 2 or 3 fingers a note below or above, and see how it sounds...

One thing I like to do is anchor a song's harmony around a single note, or group of notes as pedal point. The melody played or sung over top would tweak this note too. So (off the top of my head) in the key of C for example, if the song progresses around some simple changes like Cmaj7 - Fmaj7 - Bb7 - Dm7 - G7 - Cmaj7, if you choose lay heavily on, say, the A note, 10th position, B string, what you end up with is Cmaj (add 13) - Fmaj7 with the 3rd emphasized - Bb7 (maj7) - Dm7 with the 5th emphasized - G9 - and then back to Cmaj7 (add 13). Things get a lot more interesting when the bass plays something other than the root of the chords, so that the harmonic movement is really shot to shit by that point, and it becomes very atonal (or it DOES resolve, but only in terms of the chords adjacent and not to an overall key center). This is a compositional tool I like working with, and it's all aimed at creating an atmosphere, rather than going for what the ear is used to hearing, and progressing from there. With the guitar, it's difficult to pull off without twisting your fingers madly, so I usually end up leaving a note or two out of the fundamental chord, and just focus mostly on the tensions. The bass and the keyboards can cover the other fundmaental pieces of the harmony. All I can say is it works for me!!

Indeed I have seen the Guitar Craft website. Man, that stuff makes me crazy, because there's just SO MUCH I'd like to learn. AND I wanna meet Fripp, too!! It's frustrating because actually registering and attending a seminar is not possible given my current life/lifestyle. It seems to me that not only does one need to overhaul their approach, as you say, but each student needs to get on board with their philosophy in order to succeed. Some of Fripp's little anecdotes are hilarious!! It's definitely intense, and I imagine if I did attend, I'd be so wound up and nervous that I wouldn't be able to play a note, and Bob would send me home!

[Any guitar players out there?]

Thanks, AfricaBrass. I'll call on you if I get stuck in the Krautrock swamps.

I've heard a lot about Can and Neu (I also belong to a Progressive Rock BBS and I read it daily. Those are two band names that come up frequently).

I think I'll start there, and I'll see if that bastard moderator at the BNBB hasn't deleted the Krautrock thread yet.

[March Listening]

I'm going to devote most of this month to Roland Kirk. I have 6 titles that will go into rotation starting tomorrow.

[For whom the bell tolls it tolls for the BNBB]

I was just over there a few hours ago, and I see a lot of new names. Doubtless, these are people who have changed their handle, and a re more comfortable shouting insults because of it! And this, of course, just grossly increases my admiration for Ed Swinnich, who isn't going down peacefully!!

Go Ed!

[Those silly UPC stickers on fruit]

I think the UPCs might have to do with planning for the future. Out here at the major supermarket chain they have recently instituted self-service checkout. (jmjk, if you shop at Star Market, you've probably seen 'em.)

Big Wheel - yes, I have seen them, and actually, they work well if those using them know what they're doing.

If you're stuck behind the newbie or the uninitiated, then you're going to be waiting a long time while they figure it out. I should know. I still have the impression of a customer's glare burning the the back of my head from my first time!

[Any guitar players out there?]

Yes, AfricaBrass, alternate tunigs are a pain in the neck in a live situation. Of course if one has 6 guitars and a roadie to tune them, it's fine (that's NOT me, though!) Live, I've played some 12 string electrics and acoustics that seem to THINK they'd like to go into an alternate tuning!! Not fun when another band member has to tell jokes to waste time while I tune 12 strings. Repeatedly.

I usually go the treated capo route these days. I bought a few cheap capoes, and cut slots in them with razors, so that, even though I may have the capo in the 5th position, the D string and B string are left in open position and ringing out. I've had some wild results! Each capo has a different "open string" treatment, or in some cases more than one open string, and one can switch without too much troube (sometimes re-tuning is a bitch with these too).

I also like fooling with the E-bow for some nice attackless effects...

Krautrock is a genre that I admire, but from afar. I know some Kraftwerk material, but beyond that, nothing. Thanks for giving me new avenue to explore! Most of my avant rock listening is rooted in electronic synth-based stuff, like Eno, but also including the more conventional like Japan, some experimental Depeche Mode, and film music. Even the sappiest pop, if done well, can be an influence if one digs deeply enough.

[Highest paying gig]

Man, a ska/punk band I was in 12 years ago took in $650 at the door one hot summer night, playing an 11 to 4 at a college bar. It was the most money I ever made playing (which amounted to $125.00 for my take), but I think I enjoyed watching the sweaty ladies peel and toss more than I enjoyed the cash. God, I wish I were 22 again!!

[This forum gets as much use as it used to!]

Some things never change, eh, B-3er?

I'll start another topic to see if we can get some stuff going.

[Any guitar players out there?]

I'm a guitar player. I can play decent jazz chord solos and do some single-line soloing around pretty conventional changes. I can comp well behind a soloist, but still, I'll never be a true, pure jazz guitarist, though. It's beyond my ability or beyond my commitment (probably both).

I studied at Berklee for 1 1/2 years in the late 1980s, and have studied jazz privately, and I have to say, knowing all your theory and chord scales and all the mechanics is a great feather in one's cap, but it doesn't come close to what one can learn by actually getting together with some other players and just going for it.

As I was reading the other posts in this thread, I noticed that no one here shares the same core influences with me. So, I'll just need to post at the risk of appearing trivial.

My main guitar background is really as a sound-painter. I enjoy playing some blues-based stuff and funk here and there, but what really thrills me are the sonic textures and atmospheres the guitar can create in rock/pop and minimalist formats. I know, this description provides easy armor for a player who sucks, and doesn't know what he/she is doing, but in my case, I'm proud of what I know, and all the jazz theory stuck in my head actually helps with what I do in a rock format---and without playing jazz. I love laying back with open-string arpeggios, upper-structure tensions on simple chords, treated capo, a boatload of effects, weird tunings, etc... To me, creating an atmosphere within a piece of music is as poignant and effective as soloing. Matter of fact, I recoil at the task of having to solo in a conventional way on music that I record or play with others. My soloing sounds stale to me, and therefore, I'm not very inspired to do it!

Some guitarists I admire:

Robert Fripp

Allan Holdsworth

Steve Hackett (1970s Genesis)

Pat Metheny

Andy Summers

David Torn

Kenny Burrell

Joe Pass

Emily Remler

Alex Lifeson (Rush)

Robben Ford

Martin Barre (Jethro Tull)

Adrian Belew

Dave Gregory (XTC)

Charlie Burchill (Simple Minds)

[Those silly UPC stickers on fruit]

Wow. My first post to Organissimo, and I regret that it's not about organs. But it IS organic, somewhat.

Here I am, delighted as heck to check out the organissimo forums while I eat a peach. Problem is, I have to peel off the little UPC sticker first, and damned if I can't do it without bruising the fruit and making its juice run all over my fingers and into my keyboard.

Do these little stickers annoy anyone else?