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Part one of trying to win Max Webster Tickets

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Well faithful readers, I am very desperate to get tickets for the super-Canadian Music Event of this millennium!

I decided to go down to Q-107 at the Hard Rock Cafe in downtown Toronto and attempt to obtain some tickets to this cherished show.

I put on my jacket, picked up my guitar and made a sign. I was determined to grovel and beg Kim Mitchel, the D.J. and Mr. Max himself, to give my wife and I tickets to the show!

I finally arrived in front of the street level Q-107 booth with guitar and sign in hand. I just set up my sign, took out my faithful Larrivee L-03 and with Kim Mitchell’s back against the booths window, knocked on the window. He turned around and at first glance he must of thought that I was one of those “more then a little misunderstood” street people.

He then glanced down at my sign and started to laugh! He then started to say, through the glass, “I have no tickets for you.” He then opened a side door and said that the office was now closed, and he said that they should have more on hand”. I then asked him if I could come down this Wednesday and play the song “On the Road” for him and hopefully get some tickets for my effort. He said sure, but said “You would/may have to play it on the air.” I said I’d do anything for tickets.

So please listen for me to be playing LIVE at Q-107 online and click on the “Listen Live” button. I will also try to tape it and put it on another post. Hopefully, if this happens it will be around 6 pm EST.

The pictures should say it all.

Just before I left!

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When I got back from the mighty “Q”

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Keep on Jammin’, cause you never know when you might win some tickets to the original MAX WEBSTER!!!




Oh Damn I wish I wrote that tune, oh hi Kim

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Now this is a song that I wish that I could have played live, back in the day, let alone write it!

Every single time I hear this song on Q-107 or on my CD home/car stereo, my mind conjures up these feelings as a young impressionable guitar player back in Brantford.

I was being influenced by jazz and free jazz that allowed my mind wonder off into another realm. You know how they say that classical music lets your mind work on different levels simultaneously, Max Webster‘s unique arrangements, work in this fashion as well.

So here’s to Max Webster!

BTW, if you are part of the Max Webster never have seen them live club , PLEASE go out and see them for probably the very last time this Thursday, May 24, at the Docks. This is a Q-107 30th Anniversary Event. Honestly, do your Rockin’ Roll Canadian Duty!

Keep on Jammin’

Stevie Ray Vaughan – RIP

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To this day I still remember the moment when I happened to stumble upon the guitar icon just my mistake playing live in 1982.

It was during the summer at the annual music event called Chicago Fest at Soldiers Field. I was there with my brother in law.

The event was both inside and outside of the stadium. Inside I saw “Chicago” and the “Beach Boys” while outside there were beer pavilions that highlighted different styles of music.

My brother in law went to the bathroom and I was told to sit down at the edge of the Budweiser Pavilion. There was the song below playing and I looked up to see this trio playing this song about 150 feet away. They looked like some back woods band playing in the big city for their first time. Their attitude was bluesy and Rock & Roll epitomized to a “T”.

The drummer was on this small set, the bass player looked like the average guy that you might bump into on the street but the guitar player was a hold out from the 60’s. They were very tight and looked quite at home in their element on stage. The guitar player was the one who stood out like nothing that I have ever witnessed live before.

He had this great looking beat up old battered 1959 Fender Strat with a big rimmed hat with these fairly big silver Texas round things on it. His hands were just mesmerizing to look at. The sound was very southern. He even played part of the solo with his teeth. Up to that point in my life, I had never seen anyone play like this except Mr. Hendrix on old video footage.

I just sat there for a short period of time before I went up a little further. I was just in awe of this guy playing guitar. I also couldn’t believe that the crowd was so small for the talent that was in front of us, but what a huge win for the ones who were there.

I later found out who it was and he had just came back from recording the “Let’s Dance” album with David Bowie. He turned down the opportunity to tour with him to pursue his own tour with his band. This must have been a big ballsie move in Bowie’s eye’s to pull something like this off. Imagine the exposure that he would have gotten from touring with Bowie! Anyways, it was a concert that I will forever cherish.

So Mr Stevie Ray Vaughan (October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990), R.I.P.

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Keep on Jammin’ Stevie

It’s wonderful to be a home owner

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I can’t believe that we’ve owned our house for almost 7 years. For a time we didn’t think we’d ever be able to own a house. In fact it was my wife that finally convinced me that we could do it and you know what she was right. We are doing better in our own home than when we rented an apartment.

I think it was the whole idea of applying formortgages that scared me. Well applying for one, getting it and having to pay it off. We were really lucky though when we got our mortgage. The interest was unbelievably low at the time and for the first six months we didn’t even pay any interest, then we paid 0.5% for another 6 months or so … and then it slowly crept up to about 3.75% by the end of the first 5 years that we owned our home. Obviously we had a variable mortgage. Even though our interest rates increased over the years that we had the first mortgage ours was still lower than many of our friends who purchased their homes just before we did, or even a few months later. Our timing was fantastic!

Last year we applied for a mortgage renewal. Since it was our first renewal that was a bit scary. We actually toyed with the idea of either getting one of those secured loans or perhaps even to Remortgage when we were renewing because we are in the middle of renovating and we’d slowed down for a bit. I wanted to just borrow some money and hire someone to finish the work, but we decided not to do that.

When we did get our first mortgage we found it nerve wracking. The banks look into your credit history and want to know all the nitty gritty details of your finances before they’ll approve your mortgage request. Plus you never know how much of a mortgage you’ll qualify for until they tell you. Now that we’ve been through all of that I’m glad the bank did their homework on us and checked us out thoroughly. I mean, they approved a mortgage that we’d be able to pay. Wouldn’t it have been awful if they let us decide how much of a mortgage we wanted for a home and it ended up that we’d purchased a home that we couldn’t really manage the payments for? That’d be awful.

The mortgage that we were approved for was a little less than we’d been hoping for, but as you can see, we managed to get a house that we’re very happy with, in a great neighborhood, close to work and we’re happy with what we ended up having. We can afford it. The payments are more than manageable, even with my wife off work due to illness, and we’ve even managed to pay a bit extra on our mortgage so if we’re lucky we might have it all payed off in less than 15 years.

How have things turned out for you with your home mortgages? Or Do you even have a home? If you don’t – are you a bit nervous about going through the whole buying and mortgage approval process?

The ultimate ROCKMAN by Tom Scholz

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The ROCKMAN by Tom Scholz is the result of the business venture that helped many budding rock stars obtain that BIG FAT Boston sound that everyone was after in the 1980’s.

Unfortunately or fortunately for myself during those years I did not get my hands on any of these ultimate tools of the trade. I was a young player who tried to create the sound that I wanted by going as direct as I could.

I know that is contrary to most of my posts but I wanted to, in the back of my mind, be as pure and honest with my sound as I could. I was trying to slay many dragons on many fields at once. My guitar mentor at the time, always was suspicious about all those tricks that some players used to fool the listeners. This was someone who I had trusted completely and I never thought twice about questioning his judgment. I hope to have him back in my guitar life if he will let me.

Here is an example of the power of the Rockman Sustainor. I’d love to have this one for sure, what do you think?

So, go through this site and tell me if you have had any dealings with any of these products. Please give us the pro’s and con’s of all aspects of them and don’t leave anything out, even if you think that they are self explanatory.

Keep on Jammin’

Calling all Hosers, Take off, eh!

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Note: please play the bottom youtube thingy then start reading the letters, I mean words eh, you hosers.

Oh my God they’re back again! Bob & Doug are having a Two-Four Anniversary coming up this May two-four(when else eh?) on CBC and this is to be the final one, once and for all!

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Check out the SCTV site and the Maclean’s article about these guys! PLEASE read the whole Maclean’s one, it is the best of them all!

These guys were HUGE in the 80’s. I remember when they came back to Toronto one time and the cops had to close down the Don Valley Parkway(DVP) for a while! The reason, thousands of well-liquored fans staged an impromptu parade up and down it! Only in Canada, eh?

The song, that I whistled at the Hospital while moving patients around the Surgical floor’s, was one that brings back fabulous memories from my childhood. You know, some of the patients that were on Morphine sang along doing the “koo, oo, oo,oo, koo, oo, oo,oo!” part and it was a BLAST! I even recall figuring out the piano parts and attempting the song live at High School, damn that Geddy Lee and his 10 octave voice!

Does anyone have a close encounter of the hoser kind out there that would love to share with us? If so, you nappy-headed hosers, get those fingers moving right now, eh?

Keep on Jammin’

BTW the wife has a post about Canadian culture and a bit about Bob and Doug too. Check it out.

Hilarious House of Frightenstein

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This was another show that I watched as a kid growing up in Brantford. The characters were just out of this world, the Count and Igor just to name a few.

The best part of the show was when Igor and the Wolf Man played albums and started to dance with a groovy psychedelic film going on in the background!

They played with guitars and basses during this part of the show. While quite naive back then, I thought that they were actual musicians. This is a link to the scene in the show that I am talking about. Back then I thought that the bat wing guitar that the wolfman used was real and I really wanted one!

If you want to see some more footage, go to YouTube for little morsels of the show.

Keep on Jammin’

4rehabilitation.com hotline

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If you know someone suffering from drug or alcohol addiction it can be difficult.

Trying to get them to seek help or finding a rehab facility once they agree that they do indeed have a problem can be just as hard.

Fortunately for those with addictions and or their loved ones things just got a bit easier. 4rehabilitation.com has a drug rehab hotline. Just pick up the phone and give them a call. Their councilors are waiting to help. They can provide your with more information about rehab treatment types, rehab facilities and even the signs and symptoms of addiction.

Their website is full of useful information as well. So there’s no need to wait or try to do it all on your own. Call the hotline and get help for yourself or the person you love.

The little Canuck that could

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Who says us Canucks are just good for beer and hockey alone!

You remember watching Rockstar last summer? You know the television show where they were trying to find a lead singer for Super Nova (aka Rockstar Super Nova)? Well, for the second year in a row a Canadian won the international competition. Keep on Jammin’ Luke Rossi!


Wolfmother

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I was on my morning break at the hospital, when I came across the nurse who I love talking about guitar playing and bands with in the Intensive Care Ward. She came up to me with this excited and enthusiastic look on her face.

She was bursting with her experience of this great band that she saw this past weekend. The band is called Wolfmother. They are an Australian trio that has a huge sound and the endurance of a 6 year old kid on stage. She says their obvious influences are Zeppelin, and Sabbath, and they have lyrics that are out of this world.

I just Googled them and found their site. I am currently listening to the audio part of their site, and I can’t help but also notice the influence of RUSH on a tune called “Women”. It brings me back to the bands Caressive Steel album days of Working Man, boy what a sound they have.

She told me that it was their last show in North America. They did a 3 hour show that kept going like the old “ever ready bunny”! At the end of the show they just started smashing everything they owned on stage. She thinks that if they smash everything into literal tiny pieces then they wouldn’t have to bring it all home with them, makes sense to me.

They spun the crowd into a frenzy like after having a wild episode of doing the wild thing then just lying there in a daze and thinking to yourself, what just happened?

So check out this band’s site, and maybe grab their album so they can afford to ship their equipment home with them next time, ok?

Keep on Jammin’

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