Guitar Musings

After a long night of great music at the Swallow Hill Folk and Roots Festival in Denver, Bruce Cockburn was the last to play.  We had quite a long wait after Nanci Griffith’s set, probably about 45 minutes.  Good thing the emcee’s Harry Tuft, Mollie O’Brien and Rich Moore had quite a few songs in the repertoire to keep us entertained.  But we were ready for Bruce and he was finally on stage, just him 3 guitars and a mic.

The show started off a bit tough because the mix was a bit hot and Bruce even mentioned it and asked for the mix to be turned down a bit.  A few songs in, the mix was pretty much dialed in and we were on our way.  As always Bruce’s playing was spot on and that thumb never quits.  Had some great solos on “Stolen Land” and “If a Tree Falls” and surprised me with “Kit Carson” and “Trouble with Normal.   Ended the night with “Rouler sa Bosse” and “Tie Me at the Crossroads.” 

Great show by Bruce, one of the better shows that I have seen him do.  The only thing that was different about Bruce, this time was that he didn’t really converse with the crowd all that much.  He would respond to some of the comments the audience made but wouldn’t offer anything on his own like he usually does.  So sometimes there was an awkward silence when he was tuning or switching guitars.  Maybe because of the long delay before he went on, bad day, etc…  Who knows?  Either way, his performance was awesome and he never fails to deliver.

Set List

1. Last Night of the World
2. See You Tomorrow
3. Lovers in a Dangerous Time
4. Pacing the Cage (wow!)
5. Trouble With Normal
6. Stolen Land
7. Kit Carson
8. Put it in Your Heart
9. If a Tree Falls
10. Wondering Where the Lions Are

Encore:

1. Rouler Sa Boss
2. Tie Me at the Crossroads

Other Bruce Cockburn Concerts I have reviewed:

1. 7.22.03  Boulder Theatre  – Boulder, Colorado (First time I saw Bruce Live)
2. 10.30.05 Gothic Theatre – Denver, Colorado (solo)
3. 8.17.06 Chautauqua Auditorium - Boulder, Colorado (Sarah Harmer, opening act)
4. 8.18.06 Denver Botanic Gardens (Sarah Harmer, opening act)

* I also was at the the November 12, 2003 show at the Paramount Theatre in Denver but didn’t leave submit a review.  Should-of though because he did a version of “Stolen Land” on electric guitar that was amazing.  I remember thinking that he was channeling the spirit of Jimi Hendrix during that song

Last night, I attended the Swallow Hill Folk and Roots Music Festival at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House in Denver.  To be honest, the only reason why I bought tickets was to see Bruce Cockburn but I got so much more.   The show started at six and we got almost  6 hours of top quality folk music from southern spirituals to Australian indigenous music.  To top it off, it was all staged in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House that, by far, was one of the best venues I have visited.  The acoustics and mix of the music was amazing.

The show was emcee’ d by Harry Tuft(Swallow Hill Founder), Mollie O’Brien and Rich Moore.  Between each set they would perform one or two classic fold song to help pass the time.  I was really impressed by the guitar playing of Tuft and Moore, they both played together but it seemed as if it was one instrument.  The collaboration of their guitars were inspiring.  Moore was the nice surprise with his blues fingerstyle licks all over the fingerboard.  He more than once got the crowd going with his playing.

Other Acts:

• Souther Journey, featuring Emily Morgan Bates and Marta Burton:

Morgan Bate’s voice filled the hall with her voice with old time southern spirituals like “Wade in the Water.”  It was a great start to a wonderful evening.

• Fifth World:

Mix Australian didgeridoo playing with Native American flute and rhythm, you have Fifth World.  First time I ever heard them and I’m getting their CD now.  The rhythms of the didgeridoo and the calmness of the flute was intoxicating and I wanted more.  If you like good mood music with a cosmic feel, check them out.

• Santa Cruz River Band

A three piece band from Arizona playing traditional Mexican music with the and Arizona flair.  Tight rhythms and perfect harmonies during their set and thy topped it off playing one of my favorites, “Volver, Volver.”  I’m a sentimental fool, that song reminds me of my grandma.

• Dakota Blonde

Yet another first time listen and I will definitely get their CD.  There were so many things I could go on about them but what got my attention was the mandolin play of Ernie Martinez.  Worthy to note was their rendition of Men at Work’s “Man Down Under.”  I Highly recommend a listen.

• Steppin’ In It & Rachel Davis

These guys (and gal) totally surprised me.  Wasn’t sure to what to expect but they didn’t disappoint.  High energy Jazz in the spirit of the 30′s and 40′s, they got the crowd rocking.  Two brothers in the band were Andy and Joe Wilson and it was fun to watch them.  They would switch between instruments in the middle of the song and I’m not just talking 1 or 2 but three or four.  From fiddle, resonator, trombone, trumpet, harmonica and even a flute, they played each instrument like it was their main one.  A pleasure to hear.

• Nanci Griffith

A legend in her own right, Nanci Griffith was nothing short of magnificent.  Her beautiful voice resonated through out the hall and I was hooked.  She played for about an hour and her energy was infectious.  She chatted with the audience and told stories just like a true folk musician should.  

• Bruce Cockburn

Bruce was great but you will get a more detailed description of his set in my next post.

I have to say that the Swallow Hill Folk and Roots Festival was worth every penny that I paid for my tickets.  Swallow hill needs to be congratulated for bringing such a talented group of musicians to Denver last night.  Swallow Hill Music association is a hidden jem in not only Denver but all of Colorado.  I encourage you to check out their site at http://www.swallowhill.com/. 

OK, so I’ve started this blog and here is one of the reasons why.  My best friend, Hercules (yes that is his real name) Castro, has recently released a CD called “Singularity.”  The thing you need to know about this is that he recorded all of this himself in his home studio. I’m talking all the drum tracks, bass, guitar, keyboards, etc…   Corey Brown provides his vocals for 2 tracks on the release but other than that, Hercules does it all and does it well.   The music on this CD covers many genres, from blues, electronica and progressive and all are at a high technical level.   One of my favorite tunes is called “Pulse Detonation.”  This song is fast, I mean really fast and the funny thing about this is that I didn’t really care for speed when we were younger. I would always say that feel is better than speed but I didn’t realize that you can have both and this song exemplifies this.

So after watching him going throught the creation process, it really inspired me to work harder at my playing and just being creative (hence this blog).  I also did the photography and artwork for the CD which helped spark my passion for creation.  It is also a great example of what independent musicians are accomplishing by themselves.   So if you like progressive rock, blues, electronica, etc… I would recommend giving “Singularity” a listen.  I know you won’t be disapointed.  

http://www.herculescastro.com   (Links to CDbaby, digstation and itunes available there)

The Toronto Fingerstyle Guitar Association just posted a three part interview with Tommy Emmanuel.  Great insite how some of the chances he took to get where he is and the hard work that Tommy went through to achieve his accomplishments.  He, of course, talks about how he always try’s to improve his playing and keeping it fresh.  What’s exciting is him talking about a new Live DVD that will be shot in Chico California and a new instructional DVD featureing songs from “Only,”  “Endless Road,” and “The Mystery.”  That is certainly exciting and I can’t wait until those come out.  Oh yeah, a new CD should be out by Christmas, so Tommy is a busy man.  But don’t take my word for it. 

The links are below: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kEBr_xiRiM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZz7zRHoONg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52eLzA66tso&feature=related

I’ve been listening to streaming radio lately and have found myself addicted to Pandora.com.  Pandora is a new type of radio that was founded by the Music Genome Project.  What happens is you create what is called a radio station.  You start the radio station with a seed, either an artist name or a song title.  That’s it, Pandora will then sort through it’s extensive database of analyzed music to find songs that match the qualities of the artist or song you specified.  This could be anywhere from keys, time signatures, type of singer, type of instruments used, etc… For me, I started a station with Tommy Emmanuel and Bruce Cockburn as the seeds.  I then got tons of music of solo acoustic guitar with some vocals.  If you like a song, you can give it a thumbs up and you will hear more like it.  If you don’t like the song, a thumbs down will restrict similar music from your station.  You will definately use this because there will be songs that you hear that you wonder “why the heck is this playing.”

What is nice about this station is that I have been exposed to music that I didn’t know was around.  It has definitely broadened my musical knowledge.  My first criticism of pandora was that I can’t create a station based on a genre.  They do have some “presets” that you can use that sort by Rock, Soul, Jazz, Holiday, etc… but not even close to enough. For example, I love musicals but they don’t have a category for them and I have yet to find very many in that genre.  I hope they expand.

 I encourage you to check it out and let me know what you think and if you have an special tips that I can use to better use pandora, that would be great.