Destiny and Moments

I believe it has always been my destiny to play music. I do it for love and not for money, which I believe is the right reason to do it. Hasn't always been the case, but it is now. And looking back, I can see that God has always set my life up with that door to walk in regardless of the roads I've chosen to travel and the destinations I happened to be stationed during any particular time in my life.

When I was 13 years old, I picked up a broomstick and strummed it like a guitar. My parents asked me if I wanted to learn how to play guitar. I excitedly answered "Yes!", and so they bought me a cheap acoustic guitar from the Sears catalog. Many nights of studying the Mel Bay Easy Guitar Method Book 1 followed, and after a few months, I had worked my way up from inept to lousy. I think that can be considered progress anyway.

I kept at it. I fancied myself as a guitar player, but other then knowing a handful of my major, minor and seventh chords, I wasn't very good. I convinced my parents to buy me an electric, a cherry sunburst Les Paul knockoff and a small amp, both from the Sears catalog. I wanted to play blistering leads like Ace Frehley of KISS, but I didn't even understand the concepts of scales and how they applied to chords and signature keys.

Nonetheless, I soldiered on. In 1979, when I was 16-going-on-17, I managed to hook up with a bunch of friends in high school. They needed someone to play bass for their garage band. I didn't have a bass, but I had an electric guitar and amp. So, I brought that in, dialed the treble all the way off on both the amp and the guitar, and played the bass solely on the low E string of the Sears Les Paul.

Something clicked. Somehow I understood the concept of the bass using the root note to support the song. It was rudimentary (not to mention comical, playing bass on the guitar using only one string), but I stuck around for the summer playing with these guys. Alas, summer ended and the guys found a real bass player to play with, and I went back to the bedroom, noodling around with no direction or idea on how to get better on guitar.

I went through high school in this mode, and then into college. I pretty much gave up on the idea of playing in a band. I really loved music, and I loved writing too. I kicked around the idea of becoming a writer so I could write for a music magazine like Rolling Stone. It was settling for second-best, but at least it would be involved with music.

A friend of mine (who happened to be the drummer of the aforementioned garage band and had now taken up the guitar) was in between bands and recruited me to play the Sears Les Paul again as a bass player . Another friend, who was an excellent drummer, rounded out the trio. We were crude, but we sounded pretty good. We kept jamming together, and we became committed to practicing a few times a week. I broke down, saved my pennies from my job at McDonalds, and bought an Avila P-Bass knockoff from Bonavero's Music in Chula Vista CA.

Now before I continue, I must talk a little about Bonavero's Music. This place specialized in cheap knock-off guitars and was owned by a big Italian man named Bonavero. He actually lived in the store in the back.

Bonavero's competed with Harper's Music down the street. Harper's was the big music store of the city, and Harper's was where all of the school band players went to either buy or rent their instruments. They also sold Fender and Gibson guitars there. It was like going to Disneyland to go to Harpers and drool over the Fenders they had on display, always out of reach for me to grab and play (as if I could anyway). I knew that Bonavero's was more my range, and in high school I went to Bonavero's to check out the wares. Not knowing any better, I strolled in and asked Bonavero if they had any basses for sale. He asked what kind of bass I was looking for. I said, "I don't know, do you have any Fenders?".

His face morphed into a giant scowl and he proceeded to launch into a tirade about how I didn't really want to buy anything in his store, and I was wasting his time, and that I should just go to Harper's. He literally chased me out of the store. Somehow, I felt for the guy and didn't blame him for this. I knew I'd be back when I had the cash in hand and I was ready to buy.

I eventually went back and I picked up the Hondo P-Bass. During the transaction, he showed me a big wad of cash he had in his pocket. He explained how he handled the cash himself. And then he asked me if I knew how he could feel safe with all this money. I shrugged my shoulders and said "I dunno", and he then pulled out a Saturday Night Special and showed it to me. "This," he said, "is my protection". Hell if I know why he decided to show a skinny baby-faced kid like me a revolver, but it was uncomfortable for sure.

I heard that Bonavero eventually contracted cancer in the mid 80's and whithered away. His shop got sold, and I'm not sure what's there now. Perhaps I'll venture down to Chula Vista soon and cruise down 3rd Avenue to see what rests on old Bonavero's music shoppe. Probably a Starbucks I would guess.

Anyway, I now had the Avila, and our band took off. The band was called "The Radical Molesters", and before long we were playing a lot of college parties. I found myself to be a natural on the bass. I learned a minor pentatonic scale, and suddenly a whole world opened up for me. Using that scale, I found myself able to understand a premise of the style of my new hero, bassist John Entwistle of The Who. Only a few months as a full-time bassist, and people were coming up to me complimenting me on my playing.

I contemplated my good fortune. I had a "moment", which is something I experience where everything stands still for a few seconds and I have a totally lucid moment of clarity where I am able to bask and glow in the goodness that surrounds me. It's one of those "life can't get any better then this" moments, and it truly warms my heart when that happens, which isn't very often. This "moment" was the notion that I had given up on playing, but something bigger then me somehow scooped me up and put me in the situation that I had dreamed of. I now know what the "Something Bigger" is. I kind of knew it back then too, I just wasn't a very gracious person back then.

My youthful arrogance stripped away what grace I might have possessed (which was probably close to nil) and set me on a destructive path. Relationships were were broken, friendships ended, and egos raged on. I had a big hand in my own downfall. By the end of the 80's, I had soured on music and set it aside. I had become a decent bass player, but I had much to learn; at the time I didn't think so, I felt I knew it all.

In 1991 I had met my current wife Arlain and we were married that year. I gave up on music completely, and sold all of my equipment. I was done. Time went on, and I would wistfully think about music and what might've been and all that I had wasted. I had a great opportunity to truly enhance my life in a spiritual way and I completely dropped the ball. Well, it was too late now, I was married, had a full-time job, and I was set on a path.

Well, God is the lifeforce of all we know (and all we don't know too). Again this fact was proven to me. In 2000, my first child Mackenzie, a daughter, was born. My job was in jeopardy due to the dot-com implosion that was occurring during this timeframe. I really found The Lord during this time. I prayed daily, and I leaned on Him for strength to get through my workplace crisis. I was truly living minute-to-minute, and I was praying to God a lot. I didn't pray for a new job, I didn't pray to win the lotto, I didn't pray for a golden gaggle of money, I just prayed for strength. Strength to make it to the next hour. That's all I needed.

I found myself really itching to play again, just to keep my mind off my troubles. I talked Arlain into letting me pickup a bass, and thankfully she let me, even with the turmoils surrounding me with work. I bought a Rickenbacker 4003 in Sea Green (which I still have) and began seriously noodling again.

I was extremely rusty. I did not have an amp, but I didn't care. I was playing music again. I started gaining an appreciation of this gift, the gift of playing music. Even though I wasn't doing anything more then sitting in my room ripping out rusty old Who and Rush riffs. I thanked God for giving me this joy once again.

I eventually got laid off. I truly lived minute-to-minute in order to keep focused on what I had to do, and that was to find another job. My layoff notice gave me three weeks (unpaid) to find a job while technically an employee - this was a good advantage as it allowed me to access company resources to search for a new job. I managed to get a couple of early interviews, one within the company and one outside the company, but time marched on and I was getting close to the endgame. On my last day of leave-without-pay, I received a call from the internal position, and I got the job! Yahoo, I didn't have to leave my company, and I was secure!

I reported to work the next Monday and ran into an old acquaintance, Brian Baxter. We had casually played a couple of times together in the 80's and it was a total coincidence to run into him again. He asked if I was playing, and I told him I was! So he introduced me to his boss Harry Brandon, and they invited me to play with them and a drummer they had recruited named Ed De Caro (yes, that Ed De Caro).

My first few jams with them were filled with many Moments. I basked in my good fortune. I was playing music again, and I was truly grateful to God. Just when it seemed I was out for good, once again he put me back into the situation I seemed to be born for.

That was three years ago. Brian, Harry, Ed and I split up. Egos got in the way, nerves were frayed, personalities clashed, and though we all remain friends, we broke up. It was inevitable. On my end I was starting to get tired of the hassle of the politicking within the band, so it was good that we split.

I found myself immediately being recruited in two directions musically: 1) my church's praise band and 2) by Ed De Caro to play in With Intent. I took both opportunities. Before I could even blow it myself, God was gracious enough to open two musical doors for me.

In the past year or so that I've been doing this double-duty, I have improved immensly as a bass player. I can actually sight read a little now, and this is from playing with the church. And my participation in With Intent has netted me valuable time working on my vocals. I can sing a lot better now, probably better then I ever have (although I still consider myself a lousy singer) - I can competently back Ed up with harmony and backup vocals when appropriate. And I feel totally in command of my bass playing with Ed's band. I know I still have a lot to learn, but standing on stage and playing in With Intent, I have been having quite a few Moments and it feels good.

I currently have some serious time issues in my life. I have three little kids, and I consider myself a family man. I strive to give my family the priority. But there are times when I neglect them when doing band things. I'm starting to think that maybe, for the good of my family, it's time to take a hiatus from music and focus on the family. Maybe so. But before I decide to do anything, I think I'll let the One who put me on this road in the first place decide if that's the path I should take. I think it isn't really my decision whether I should quit or not. God will make that choice for me. Many milestones in my life attest to that.

It's been awhile - With Intent notes; Olympic White 70's P-Bass Report

Wow, I sure have taken a long time off from blogging. Just want to get back in the groove, here's a few updates as to what's been going on:

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"With Intent", the rock band that I belong to, has been going through quite a bit of changes lately. In early September we lost our lead guitarist Dan and drummer Mark. Dan left on pretty good terms, but there were some venues that we lined up that he didn't feel comfortable with. So he finished up our scheduled gigs and turned in his notice. Mark and Ed, on the other hand, didn't quite see eye-to-eye and that hastened Mark's decision to leave the band too. I personally liked these two guys very much, both as musicians and people (and I believe Ed did too), but in the end the fit wasn't quite right. Everything seems to be on good terms with those two and I hope to see them and possibly play with them in the future.

During a one-week stretch in early September (before Dan and Mark left the group) we had three gigs lined up during Labor Day week. The first gig was on Labor Day, and it was a private party for an owner of an avocado grove in Valley Center. That gig netted us $600, not bad. We played pretty well, but most of the party goers didn't really pay us any mind, though afterward they were heaped us much praise. It was a hot day and I had a few issues with a sticky neck on my Olympic White P-Bass, but other then that all went well.

The second gig was at a biker bar called Pounders in Escondido. It was a Wednesday night gig that started at 9pm. I went into the gig sort of tired, but by midnight I was pretty rejouvinated. There were some concerns within the band (not with me I must add) about the "roughness" of the venue, being a biker bar and all, but I knew we would be all right. And we were. In fact, we were pretty damn good, and we had won the crowd over by the end of the night. It was a great gig. And we were just starting to gel as a band too.

Our third gig that week was on Friday night at the newly re-opened Metaphor. Yes, in a previous blog I lamented the closing of the Met, but it is under new ownership and back for business. Alas, Jim Nemish is no longer involved with the venue (and we miss his presence dearly), but nonetheless it is open again with the same theme, and our favorite venue is back in business. We played very well given that we were all tired from the Pounders gig. At the end of the evening is when Dan gave us the news he was quitting, and on next Monday Mark gave us his notice. Phase 2 of With Intent had come to a close (Phase 1 was just Ed and myself playing as a duo).

Undeterred, Ed set out to find sub players. We found two guys that came in and started rehearsing on a temporary basis. The drummer is a member of Ed's wife's (Mona) church, and his name is Allen Robinette. The guitarist we recruited was none other then Tony Taravella, who has a few CD Releases to his credit - check out his website here - and currently works as a solo jazz guitarist. Ed had lined up one more Metaphor gig on September 24th. After only three rehearsals (one rehearsal I had missed so I only participated in two) we set out to do the gig. And there were some hiccups, but the owner and managers of the venue liked us so much they insisted on us coming back in October. Which we will on October 22.

Tony and Allen only agreed to sit in on one gig, so we had to find two more replacements for the Oct. 22 gig. Ed found an 18 year-old kid to play the drums for us. His name is Jason Borisoff. He has a gig with a Christian band lined up, but has agreed to sit in and play with us. The guitarist we found is a guy who works in the same company as Ed and I, and his name is Tony Vigo. Tony V is an excellent guitarist, and it looks like he may be sticking around permanenently. We have had one rehearsal together, and although there were some rough patches, we were cohesive enough in that one practice that I felt we could have gigged that night at the Metaphor. We have a couple more practices scheduled, then off to the Met.

Going forward, it looks like Tony V will probably be sticking around for the long-term - Ed will need to discuss the details with him, but all indications I'm getting shows that Tony wants to stick around, and Ed and I are definitely interested in having him. Ed has been in contact with several drummers, and hopefully we can find a permanent drummer soon.

These past two months of bringing in subs and constantly rolling with the punches have seemed to make me a better bass player. At least I feel like I am. I played with my church group for the first time in a month last week, and I noticed a couple of things - my sight reading, though very rudimentary, is improving, and my confidence in just playing what's presented is much improved. I feel I've turned a tiny corner in my playing. Now if we could just keep the lineup consistent we will be on our way.

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My Olympic White Fender "70's" P-Bass:

And I'll close on one note regarding my Olympic White FSR 70's Fender P-Bass the thing has become my #1 bass as of late. I absolutely love my Fiesta Red '57 reissue (manufactured in 1982, which makes it an original first-run of the series and made in Fullerton before Fender moved their facilities to Corona, CA) but the Oly White is something special. First off, although it's a "B Neck" Precision Bass (meaning it has a 1 5/8" nut width) it has a slimmer profile throughout the neck. It's almost, dare I say it, "Jazz-like" (Fender Jazz basses have a very slim neck with the 1 1/2" nut width).

There was something speical about it from the first time I played it on Mothers Day of 2003. I went to Guitar Trader and I had the salesman pull it down from the wall. I played it unplugged, and the notes sounded and felt very "milky". Not sure how else to describe it, but it just sounded very rich and full, and the tone eminating from my fingertips felt very rich and full too. It was a bass that truly spoke to me, and I can't recall that ever happening with any instrument I've ever played. I plugged it in, and it had that enourmous P-Bass thump. I bought it on the spot.

I was very happy with it, but I managed to get ahold of the Fiesta Red '57, and I was very enamoured with it. The tone was a little better on the Fiesta, but over a period of time the "C Neck" (1 3/4" at the nut) started wearing on me. For grins I went back to the Oly White P and it was like playing a Fender Jazz, the neck was so comfortable. The tone was deep and rich, but not quite up to par with the '57 Fiesta. So I went out and dropped some dough into a set of Lindy Fralin P-Bass pickups, and this baby just rocks now. Deep, rich tones that aren't microphonic in quality. Very vintage tone. The notes are deep but defined, as are the highs. And on the stock Fender pickups (this is true with my '57 Fiesta as well), turning up the tone all the way up results in a clanky tone. Not true with the Fralins, the tone becomes trebly and defined, but it does not result in a clanky tone. A very good upgrade on a bass that I truly have been enjoying as of late.

I still love the Fiesta Red '57, but the Oly White seems to be the one right now.