My guitar tutor has put me onto this chap – Ryan Adams. Different to what I normally listen to, but this is usually how I come across music that I end up loving. Adams’ sound is a blend of rock/country/folk/blues, he’s got a great voice and is really prolific in his album releases. I’m now thinking of going to see him play at the Civic on 8 March. This video is off his latest album (Ashes & Fire) which he’s currently touring behind. I’ve just bought it on iTunes and I think Gold is about to follow suit. Take a listen…
OMG, are these cute or what?! Well of course they are. Who doesn’t love penguins? It’s like saying baby polar bears are fugly. Pfft. If I can inch past the knitting and the spinning and the buggered shoulder from said knitting and spinning, then I’m going to make some. My fabric stash is massive and increasing. I try not to think too much about the fact that it’s not lovely cotton print quilting material, but is in fact interiors swatches (albeit gorgeous Mokum Fabrics interiors swatches) liberated from their swatchbooks. I’m going to need a gruntier sewing machine than the plastic pipsqueak currently in residence…
Instructions for making them are at Purl Bee, and be prepared to get lost in this wonderful site as you see more and more lovely things to make. There’s just.so.much!
Incidentally, I haven’t been idle these past weeks. I’ve been destashing the fibre stash and have now spun up 4 lots of Southern Cross Fibre Club Fibre from aaages ago. I’ve also not neglected the Cultivated Vines sweater – the back is done and I’m a third through the front. Are there mistakes? Of course. Will it fit? I have no idea. Do I care? Not a whit. Well, not yet anyway. I also managed to tackle a new song on the guitar – Blackbird by The Beatles – and am making miniscule progress on accurately playing chords. I’ve got the hang of tab, at least for this song, but fretboard fluency and proper technique continue to (mostly) elude me. Still, I’m not worried – it’s an improvement over 2 months ago when I couldn’t play a single note. So, go me! Plus, I’m encouraged by things like this:
In a weird mix of nerves and excitement, I tackled the basics, such as holding it correctly. Yes, that makes a huge difference. Hold it upright against you, not leaning back so you can see the fretboard – that’s a no-no. You lean over the guitar to see the fretboard (until such time as you don’t need to, of course). Also, hold it horizontally – not with the neck sticking up in the air like you’re some kind of stage-rocking axemonster. This also makes a huge difference. And now I know.
Next was learning some chords (A, E, D) and strum patterns. Well, that was pretty hilarious… fumble, fumble, fumble. Fortunately, the thought of making mistakes no longer makes me freeze like a possum in headlights – as instructed, I just kept strumming and let my other hand fumble merrily away. I’m secure in the knowledge that eventually the two will connect.
The half hour flew by and I’m looking forward to a week of tender fingertips and much chord-fumbling, as I practice these three chords, a bunch of strum patterns and the 12-bar blues thingummyjiggie…
Meanwhile, I’ll go torture myself by watching clips of SRV on YouTube…
After months and months of vascillating, I took the plunge and bought a guitar!
Yes… it’s a mid-life crisis thing, but as far as crises go, this one is fun and I’m completely failing to see the crisis bit. Got a great deal at Rockshop Sylvia Park – Epiphone Les Paul (sweet tones for both rock and blues) and a Marshall 15w amp (great set of basic features and the sound is so much better than the little loaner I had ages ago). Also came with bag, lead and strap – for just under $700.
Now the hard part – learning to play. I wish learning an instrument was easy, but no. However, I enjoy guitar way more than piano, plus I unburied my Irish whistles this evening to go through my repertoire of slow airs and was much encouraged to discover that even after months of not playing, it all came back as easy as falling off a log.
All going well, I’ll be able to knock out a few tunes before the end of summer… wish me luck…
