How many bands have I played with this year? An unofficial count comes out to 23. Twenty-Three different bands just this calendar year! A lot were one-offs, sub gigs that I did one or two shows. Some were put together for a specific show. A couple were bands I was, or am, a ‘member’ of, but actually joining a band is a rarer thing for me.
Twenty three. It’s a good number. Twenty Four, on the other hand, is a great number. Willie Mays wore 24. Twenty Four has a lot of symmetry to it. Two dozen.…
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Added by Kennan on October 1, 2009 at 12:00pm —
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Added by Kennan on August 31, 2009 at 8:00pm —
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As you probably know, I am something of a “Freelance” musician. This means I do a lot of subbing for other bass players, and various other fill-in gigs for bands that need a bassist short term.
While there is nothing like being in a band that you’re proud of, that works a lot, and satisfies your artistic wishes, playing with a bunch of different people, playing a bunch of different kinds of music keeps everything fresh and exciting.
One reason I get so many of these gigs is that I have a reput…
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Added by Kennan on August 17, 2009 at 11:53pm —
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Howdy friends,
Fresh off our fun appearance on KRSH with Linda Seabright, The Brothers Goldman return to Armando's for another Thursday night of funk, jazz, R&B, and whatever else comes flying by. The Brothers Goldman don't play a lot, but for me it's an opportunity to really stretch out and play some bass!
Armando's is a gem of a club, a place where musicians can play and feel like musicians, NOT feel like Beer Salesmen. If you haven't been, you should go.
Armando's is located at;
707 Ma…
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Added by Kennan on August 12, 2009 at 4:40pm —
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We’ve discussed this before; I am not a Luddite, but I do exist somewhere between “New Media Savvy” and “Old Guy with Flashing VCR Clock.” The fact that I even use the ‘flashing VCR clock’ to describe myself in any way is a tip-off as to which end of the spectrum I favor. What this all means is, as a ‘Working Musician’, I’ve got to try to keep up with the technology enough to use it to my benefit.
First I got my own website;
http://kennanshaw.com…
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Added by Kennan on August 5, 2009 at 1:20pm —
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As I’ve probably mentioned a time or two, I’ve had the good fortune of knowing and playing with a lot of really good musicians. As a bassist, it’s usually drummers who stand out, because a great drummer is like Magic Johnson; he makes everyone around him better.
However, when I think about the musicians I most enjoyed working with, and who could amaze me the most, it’s a handful of singers that leap to mind. A really, really good singer has the ability to hold a crowd, and has the gift of infus…
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Added by Kennan on July 21, 2009 at 10:22am —
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I stand here before you an apologetic man. I have strayed, and in the eyes of some, I have sinned. I have betrayed my solemn commitments, and violated the trust of many who are dear to me. I can only stand here before you and beg your forgiveness, and perhaps try to illuminate my story to garner your understanding.
I have always promised to love, honor, and obey The Blues, and now I feel I have let that promise fall by the wayside. It started innocently enough; a “Trio” gig at The Maple Leaf, a…
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Added by Kennan on July 10, 2009 at 10:32am —
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I believe that it’s become a law now that if you write…anything…you must comment on Michael Jackson. Sorry, that’s just the way it is. Coup in South America? Yawn. Civil unrest in the streets of Iran? Whatever. American Governor going AWOL in Argentine with his “Soul Mate” in the most public Mid-Life-Crisis Meltdown in history? Well, that one’s pretty damn good, but…hello…’King of Pop’ over here.
Unfortunately, my life is fairly bereft of MJ episodes. I remember someone brought a little Black a…
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Added by Kennan on July 3, 2009 at 10:49am —
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There’s an old story about going to Nashville to “make it” in music. What you’re supposed to do as you drive towards Nashville is pull off the road about fifty miles from town, and find the nearest gas station. Roll into the gas station, take out your guitar (or bass), and hand it to the attendant. If he plays better than you, turn around and go home. If not, continue on your journey, stopping about every ten miles to pit your skills against the ‘locals’. If you make it all the way to the city l…
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Added by Kennan on June 15, 2009 at 10:30pm —
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Music is hard wired into our brains. Every culture has had music. While not every culture has the same 12 note scale of Western music, “octave equivalence”; the fact that if the frequency of sound waves of a given tone is doubled, the note will be the same but an octave higher, is present in all music. The “perfect consonances” of Fifths and Fourths are easy concepts to anyone who’s learned a blues, folk, rock, country…any kind of song. The “oldest known popular song” was written on a Sumarian c…
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Added by Kennan on June 12, 2009 at 8:16am —
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People play music because they love to play music. “Play”. The artistic freedom. Good times with friends. The titillating satisfaction that comes with the situational adoration that accompanies performance…y’know; chicks.
I don’t throw around absolutes too often, *ahem*, but I will say this; nobody ever got into music because they enjoyed the concept of trying to book gigs. There is no “thrill of the hunt” in continuously trying to talk bar owners out of their money. Let’s face it; the ‘busines…
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Added by Kennan on June 5, 2009 at 1:52pm —
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I am too young to remember the Beatles appearing on the Ed Sullivan Show. Not by much, mind you; I remember Ed Sullivan, but nothing specific about his show. For a lot of musicians, the Fab Four on the Magnavox was the seminal moment that jump started their own musical journeys.
The start of my own personal bass universe is very clear. When I was a wee fifth grade lad attending Broadway Elementary School in San Pablo (don’t look for it; it’s not there any more), the music teacher who came twice…
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Added by Kennan on May 26, 2009 at 9:29am —
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When I’m writing these little missives, I make a lot of assumptions. I assume that people get a sense of who I am through a few strung-together words. I assume people know that everything I say should be taken with a grain…or five, of salt. I assume that the fact that I feel incredibly happy and fortunate to do what I do shines through all the whining, and sometimes, because of the seedy nature of a particular gig, and a burning need to tell you about it, I assume that some of the people I write…
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Added by Kennan on May 4, 2009 at 10:26am —
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Some people avoid it at all costs. Others do it sparingly, figuring that they can quit any time. Some people need it just to feel normal, and yet others let it consume them, and do it at the cost of losing focus on why they started in the first place.
It’s called Rehearsal, and it’s harsh mistress.
Well…not really, but I recently had an animated Email exchange with Steve Ahola about our two contrasting styles, Steve felt that rehearsing gives the band the opportunity to hone their set list, wo…
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Added by Kennan on April 16, 2009 at 4:33pm —
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I’m pretty full of myself this morning. And humbled. And proud that I pulled the whole thing off! And amazed that I even had the chance. But, DAMN; it was great! Wasn’t it?
My crazy mix-n-match, guitar summit, fantasy concert was last night, and it turned out as good as I possibly could have hoped. The show was fantastic, and even though aside from me, no one in the band had ever even met before last night, the evening flew by, and even seemed too short by the Ten O’clock curfew. It not only wo…
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Added by Kennan on April 10, 2009 at 1:00pm —
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I have this fantasy, and…wait, not like that…hear me out…it’s a
Musical Fantasy. It’s a little like the famed “Trio” gigs at the Maple Leaf in New Orleans, where George Porter and Johnny Vidacovitch enlist a different “third” every week and improvise the whole gig.
In my version, about every two weeks I’d have a gig at a cool joint, like, say, Armando’s in Martinez. And every week, I’d put together a varied list of musicians who I know and play with, but don’t necessarily know each other…
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Added by Kennan on April 5, 2009 at 9:40pm —
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Stop me if you’ve heard this one; a rather wealthy man embarks on an African Safari. First day in the bush, the hunter grows tired of the incessant native drumming coming from the jungle, and complains to his guide, who just turns and says “Drums stop; very bad.”
The days go on, the safari moves deeper and deeper into the jungle, and the drums persist. “Really,” says the hunter, “must they carry on like that at all hours of the day and night?”
His guide turns and says “Drums stop; very bad.”…
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Added by Kennan on March 31, 2009 at 11:41am —
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The title of this blog refers to the only answer a working bassist should ever give to the question “What do you know about playing (insert music style here)?”
“What do I know about playing (insert music style here)? Only everything!”
Zydeco? Piece of cake. Country? Love it. Latvian Wedding Music? It’s my favorite. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never heard it before, you don’t pass up a gig, ever. Gigs make money, and lead to more gigs. Plus, you’ve got two things going for you even in uncharted…
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Added by Kennan on March 18, 2009 at 11:30am —
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Some thing has been banging around in the back of my head for a bit, and I need to put this out to the collective for some more opinions. That is, if anyone on the Internets might have an opinion or two…
Here’s the question; Do different instruments carry with them their own unique set of approaches to improvising and soloing? Does the instrument dictate more of the rhythmic and harmonic content of a solo than the player? Or does attraction to a certain instrument lead to shared influences that…
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Added by Kennan on March 14, 2009 at 11:00am —
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I have been very bad about writing, especially in light of the goings on in my life. Sometimes real life intercedes with my goofy, music guy life, and dealing with that stuff takes precedence.
So, in case you hadn’t heard, last Sunday night was kind of a bad thing. I received an Email form Wingnut saying he had cancelled all the gigs on the calendar, and was taking an offer to live and work in Baja, Mexico. I don’t know what he’s doing; singing with Menudo, or diving for change the tourists thr…
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Added by Kennan on March 9, 2009 at 11:34am —
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