Post 2318
- 8 years and 220 days since I started this blog -
Daily Comment
When he heard what was going on with I am Fool, my friend Frank stepped in - saying he'd try to use me whenever he could.
Frank is a guitarist (he actually started on drums, and plays bass and keyboards, too) who tours with the Grammy-award-winning Jamaican reggae band, Black Uhuru. He is a Syracuse native, and lives in a trailer that has a kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and a recording studio. It's known as the Wailing Trailer., which is where I am Fool's first album (Freak in the Machine) was recorded, and where there are fifteen tracks waiting to be completed when J. can sing again.
Since then, I have spent quite a bit of time playing with Frank, and I'm better for it.
I think Frank is a fabulous musician and a good man. He's a bit eccentric, or out-and-out crazy, depending on when you meet him. He is self-deprecating and funny one moment, and raving about some social or political situation the next. I have seen him moved to tears in sympathy with some victims at one time, and with some abstract musical concept another.
He is very good at all the things he does. In addition to music, he makes his day-to-day living with the stagehands union (which overall pays better than his touring and local music ventures).
I met him about nine years ago, when I was jamming reggae music pretty regularly with a drummer in Frank's local band, Reggaedelica. The drummer brought him around, but never told me his background. He was just another yankee playing reggae. He played well, but my first impression was that he was a little bossy.
Which turned out to be fairly accurate. Frank likes to run the show. What I didn't know (at all) then, was that he was absolutely capable of running the show, better than almost anybody, and his talent, skill, and experience justified his attitude.
At that initial meeting, he invited me to sit in for a set at a gig he was playing the next week. I still didn't know a thing about him. Before the show started (I had previously met the bassist in the trio, and was concerned that I would fit in, as our styles were very dissimilar), we had a brief conversation where he told me some of the songs we might get into, and urged me to follow him. I told him I was pretty good, I'd do my best to make him look good. He said, don't worry, just try to stay with me, and I'll carry the whole thing.
He was much more correct than I was, but it did turn out well, and after my half-hour, I got complimented (especially by the sound man, who told me I was a dream to do sound for - he got a great bass sound from me).
I've never been his regular bass player, but on a couple of occasions he's subbed me in for the odd gig. One of my favorite live recordings is one I made at a low-volume gig we did, after only a few hours of rehearsal. I love to listen to the quality of Frank's performance. It was a good show.
We'd jammed together a bunch, but that gig was the first time I ever rehearsed with Frank. That was about four years ago, by which time we were pretty close friends.
It was that friendship that led me to introduce Frank to my bands. There was lots of jamming going on, and I brought Frank into the house band of an open mic I played at for about four months, with really positive results. That is how I try to give back a little.
There have been other rehearsals recently, in front of a few more gigs. I've come to better understand what he wants, and I appreciate the investment he's making in me. Frank has played with excellent bass players, he really can pretty much choose who he wants. It's a bit flattering to be chosen to join those ranks.
This week, I've been rehearsing and playing with him a lot. There's even a free gig coming on Saturday, with a short preview played tonight. I always feel like I'm a better player around Frank, even when I screw up and get the evil eye from him.
I'm grateful for his friendship, and all the ways he helps me.
Food and Diet
Frank is a guitarist (he actually started on drums, and plays bass and keyboards, too) who tours with the Grammy-award-winning Jamaican reggae band, Black Uhuru. He is a Syracuse native, and lives in a trailer that has a kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and a recording studio. It's known as the Wailing Trailer., which is where I am Fool's first album (Freak in the Machine) was recorded, and where there are fifteen tracks waiting to be completed when J. can sing again.
Since then, I have spent quite a bit of time playing with Frank, and I'm better for it.
I think Frank is a fabulous musician and a good man. He's a bit eccentric, or out-and-out crazy, depending on when you meet him. He is self-deprecating and funny one moment, and raving about some social or political situation the next. I have seen him moved to tears in sympathy with some victims at one time, and with some abstract musical concept another.
He is very good at all the things he does. In addition to music, he makes his day-to-day living with the stagehands union (which overall pays better than his touring and local music ventures).
I met him about nine years ago, when I was jamming reggae music pretty regularly with a drummer in Frank's local band, Reggaedelica. The drummer brought him around, but never told me his background. He was just another yankee playing reggae. He played well, but my first impression was that he was a little bossy.
Which turned out to be fairly accurate. Frank likes to run the show. What I didn't know (at all) then, was that he was absolutely capable of running the show, better than almost anybody, and his talent, skill, and experience justified his attitude.
At that initial meeting, he invited me to sit in for a set at a gig he was playing the next week. I still didn't know a thing about him. Before the show started (I had previously met the bassist in the trio, and was concerned that I would fit in, as our styles were very dissimilar), we had a brief conversation where he told me some of the songs we might get into, and urged me to follow him. I told him I was pretty good, I'd do my best to make him look good. He said, don't worry, just try to stay with me, and I'll carry the whole thing.
He was much more correct than I was, but it did turn out well, and after my half-hour, I got complimented (especially by the sound man, who told me I was a dream to do sound for - he got a great bass sound from me).
I've never been his regular bass player, but on a couple of occasions he's subbed me in for the odd gig. One of my favorite live recordings is one I made at a low-volume gig we did, after only a few hours of rehearsal. I love to listen to the quality of Frank's performance. It was a good show.
We'd jammed together a bunch, but that gig was the first time I ever rehearsed with Frank. That was about four years ago, by which time we were pretty close friends.
It was that friendship that led me to introduce Frank to my bands. There was lots of jamming going on, and I brought Frank into the house band of an open mic I played at for about four months, with really positive results. That is how I try to give back a little.
There have been other rehearsals recently, in front of a few more gigs. I've come to better understand what he wants, and I appreciate the investment he's making in me. Frank has played with excellent bass players, he really can pretty much choose who he wants. It's a bit flattering to be chosen to join those ranks.
This week, I've been rehearsing and playing with him a lot. There's even a free gig coming on Saturday, with a short preview played tonight. I always feel like I'm a better player around Frank, even when I screw up and get the evil eye from him.
I'm grateful for his friendship, and all the ways he helps me.
Today's Weight: 203.4 lbs.
Previous Weight (8/7/19): 205.4 lbs.
Net Loss/Gain: - 2.0 lbs.
Diet Comment
Food Log
Breakfast
4:10pm:
Lunch
Skipped.
Dinner
1:15am: Carrots with homemade mayonnaise, and a Quest bar.
Liquid Intake
4:10pm:
 |
| A LEO (lox, eggs and onions). Not shown: Chopped salad (arugula, cabbage, chard, kale, spinach, walnuts balsamic vinaigrette). |
Skipped.
Dinner
1:15am: Carrots with homemade mayonnaise, and a Quest bar.
Liquid Intake
Espressos: 1; Coffee: 0 oz.; Water: 88+ oz.; Jim Beam on the rocks; a shot of Jameson Irish whiskey.
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Thank you!
that is great
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