MikeLewisMusic - BLOG

4th of July at the San Diego County Fair

2006-07-08T00:03:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been almost a year since I last updated the blog. Since then, I've finalized my CD (including a professional remix), released it (if you can call a home-made job an official "release"), fought through a bout of carpal tunnel syndrome (and kicked it's ass with acupuncture), got back in touch with a few old friends, dabbled into (and fell in love with) the Ukulele, and played at The Big One, the SAN DIEGO COUNTY FAIR. Yes, I scored a gig on the busiest night of the year, the 4th of July. I played on the Flower Show Stage, and it was a rousing success.

I played for about an hour and I was totally relaxed and prepared with my setlist. I even wrote 5 new songs and I ended up playing 4 of them during the gig. My whole family attended and danced up front through the whole gig. Took a bunch of pictures and even got some songs recorded on video. They can all be checked out here:

http://mikelewismusic.us/sdcf070406.html

I played on my beloved Hummingbird (aka The Bird) and I really felt I came into my own. I knew that I would be alright. A few months ago I played at an open mic at Lestat's Coffee House in Normal Heights, and I got a lot of positive feedback from that short set. I knew it was time. This gig really showed me that I can do this and be somewhat successful, at least be able to hang in there and perform as a singer-songwriter. This has always been my dream as long as I can remember, to be able to write and perform my own songs. It's been a long road to get here, but I feel that the long road was the logical one for me given my past and just the way my life has gone. I feel like I'm just starting to hit my prime and the best is yet to come. Thanks to The Lord for watching over me and giving me these gifts. I hope I can act responsibly with them.

ezFolk Artist of the Week

2005-07-24T22:16:00.000-07:00

Wow. I spent the past week as ezFolk.com's "Featured Artist of the Week". ezFolk.com is the website that I house my music, and is hosted by Richard Hefner, a fine gentleman and a champion of acoustic music. ezFolk is all acoustic, and features some of the best independent acoustic artists who play banjo, mandolin, fiddle, ukelele, and acoustic guitar. There are many genres of acoustic music represented on this site, and everyone is very talented.

This honor bestowed upon me was very flattering as I respect everyone that puts music up on ezFolk. There are a lot of very, very talented artists on ezFolk, and quite honestly, I just look at myself as a face in the crowd. Nonetheless, it was nice to be recognized for my efforts. I never deluded myself with any thoughts that I was a good singer or a good guitar player, but I have absoulte, 100% faith in the songs that I write, always have and always will. I stand behind my songs and I know that I am a good songwriter. I'm really happy that this recognition served to get my music out there for people to listen. ezFolk Featured Artists tend to get a lot of listens during their featured week, and it was no different for me - this past week I have received almost 1200 listens between the 12 songs I have posted, so I'm averaging about 100 listens per song this week as the Featured Artist.

My week will end tomorrow at 5pm PDT, but it was a great ride. I was on Cloud 9 all week, and it's an honor I'll never forget. I feel that this has been a big milestone in my musical life, and a big corner has been turned. It's been a good year so far. A real good year.

My ezFolk site can be viewed here

Halfway Home - new recording posted

2005-04-25T22:45:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been busy recording. This week, I decided to record my favorite personal tune, "Halfway Home", a song I wrote about my oldest daughter Mackenzie. When she was 1 year old, I wrote this introspective tune about reaching middle-age. My perspective was that before Mackenzie, I had always viewed myself as the indestructible-perpetual-youngster. After Mackenzie was born, suddenly I was concerned about the rest of my life and whether or not I'd always be there for her. I also noticed that time seemed to just be speeding by the older I got, but even moreso after Mackey was born.

So I crystallized that notion and basically wrote the lyrics to "Halfway Home" in under an hour. The music, however, has been a work-in-progress pretty much since it's birth in late 2001. When I gave up the band life and became a solo artist, I reworked the music into what I feel it's best incarnation.

I recorded it this week, and I am very proud of it. George Martin I'm not, but for a guy who's just learning to use a home-recorder, I feel I'm doing ok, especially with the version of "Halfway Home".

I mixed it three separate times. When recording it I wanted to have a track that featured Mackenzie and her little brother Adam. When I first wrote "Halfway Home", I recorded a crude demo on a boom-box, and when I finished, little Mackenzie was climbing up my leg going "Daddy, Daddy". It made it onto the recording, and it sounded so cool, as if she knew it was about her; it just seemed so perfect. When CenterAisle (the band I was in at the time) played at the Del Mar Fair in 2003, my family attended. We played "Halfway Home", and as I was finishing the last verse, Mackenzie came up to the stage, looked at me and started saying "Daddy, Daddy", just like that first crude demo. I finished the song in tears.

Anyway, I wanted to attempt to recreate it even though I know it would really be spontaneous, I felt it needed to be part of the recording. So, when I finished laying down the vocal and guitar tracks, I brought Mackey and Adam into the room and had them record "Daddy, Daddy" over and over at the end of track 7. It sounded good, and I proceeded to mixdown. I didn't realize it at the time, but I forgot to disconnect the mic, so it picked up what I like to call "Beautiful Noise".

When I listened to the mixdown, at the end there's a little ruckus going on: Adam walks in with a toy hammer, banging on the wall. He proceeds to try to climb the mic stand, I tell him that it will hurt him, and he says "I'm not" as in "I'm not going to get hurt". Then Mackenzie says "Hey Adam, let's go build it, let's go build a house". It's all caught, and it's like magic. Mackenzie and this song will always be tied to the hip.

The "Beautiful Noise" version, however, was crudely mixed. The vocal was buried and there was too much reverb. I kept it anyway and posted it on my ezFolk site, it's called "Halfway Home - Beautiful Noise version" and you can listen to that version here. Make sure you listen closely at the end. Because all of that "Beautiful Noise" was recorded on the mixdown and not on any individual track, I can't incorporate it into any new mixdowns. So, this "Beautiful Noise" version is a one-off I'm afraid, but it's definitely a keeper for that magic moment at the end.

The official version can be accessed here. The "Daddy, Daddy" portions are featured prominently at the end. Someday, if I can extracate the "come on Adam, let's go build a house" portion out of the first mix, I will definitely use it. I'm sure someday I'll have a tool that will be able to do that. But for now, I'll just enjoy the "Beautiful Noise" version.

I hope you like it. Both versions.

New Recording Posted

2005-04-19T22:24:00.000-07:00

I finally bought the 8-track recorder I was looking to buy, the Tascam DP-01FX. Good little unit, has a 40GB hard drive and a USB port so song transport is easy. Over this past weekend I toyed with it and came up with my first home-recording, "Hawks and Doves". You can listen to it here.

I ended up getting a Baggs Element acoustic pickup installed in my Gibson Hummingbird. While I still feel it will be a somewhat useful tool (especially for live performances) I am a bit disappointed in it for recording. The tone was not quite what I was looking for, it almost was electric sounding. If I want to use it as a primary tone for recording, I think I will need some kind of EQ box for it.

I tracked four guitar tracks onto the recording. Three of the tracks were recording direct from the 'Bird using the Baggs. The fourth track I mic'd the 'Bird with my Shure SM-57 mic, and that was the sound I was looking for. The mic'd track is the primary guitar track, and the other three tracks are mixed low - they provide some good backing tracks and give the song some "beef".

Listening to "Hawks and Doves" in my car, the guitar sounds really, really sweet in tone. There's a residual tone that almost sounds like an accordian behind the strumming. I love that Hummingbird, definitely the best instrument I own.

I will post more here as I record new songs. I am hoping my skill improve in recording as I move forward. But for now, I'm doing what I hoped I would do, record my original tunes. Hopefully I can mix in some live dates too.

Planning to Record

2005-03-30T22:05:00.000-08:00

I'm sick of being sick. Had to take off work today because my throat hurt so bad. Took a long nap, and that seemed to do the trick. Just getting some rest made me feel better. My kids have been sick all week, and I have been teetering on sickness myself, and it finally got me. Not sure if I'll take work off tomorrow, depends on how I feel.

Been impacting my practicing as it hurts to sing. I started working on fingerstyling. I want to try to practice that in earnest the next few weeks, mixing it in with my current regimen of practicing pieces of my setlist. My short-term goals right now are a) practice and b) record.

I received a recording of my last gig at the Metaphor and I posted them on my site at ezfolk.com. Click here to listen to my tunes from that night.

I plan on purchasing a 8-track Tascam really soon. I have about 16 songs to record and I plan on tracking them all. I'm going to start with recording each tune as a scratch (vocal and guitar). Then I plan to re-do the rhythm guitar track on all tunes. Once that's down, I will decide if there needs to be a second guitar added. Hopefully, that's where the fingerstyle will help out. I don't think I'll be using fingerstyle on all tunes as an embelleshment, but we'll see. It will be a time to experiment. I'll add the vocals last. My vocals are my weak spot, hopefully I can take a measured approach on that and be successful.

Really happy with the guitar. I'm on the fence as to whether I should put some amplification inside the Hummingbird. If I do, it's down to either the K&K Pure Western or the Baggs I-Beam. I'm leaning toward the I-Beam, if I decide to amplify at all. I thought it might be a good tool to have for recording, but I really love the genuine sound of the Hummingbird mic'd, so I'm starting to have my reservations about modifying the 'Bird. If I decide to play out it might be good to have the onboard electronics, but I'm not sure if I can't just go with the mic since I play solo and I don't need to be very loud. For now, I think I'll hold off, but we'll see.

The Debut of MikeLewisMusic

2005-03-09T22:49:00.000-08:00

Well, I did it. I had my first gig as a solo artist. Last night I joined my good buddy (and former bandmate) Ed De Caro for a show at our usual haunt, The Metaphor Cafe in Escondido. It had been my first appearance onstage since October of 2004 (playing bass for With Intent) and my first solo guitar appearance since 1988 (I played (horribly) at an open-mic at the old Spirit (now Brick-by-Brick) nightclub).

I had been practicing pretty religiously every night. My guitar playing has improved immensely in the past 5 months or so that I have been focusing strictly on guitar. My voice, though still needing work, is not betraying me too often it seems. Playing solo on acoustic guitar, I feel I become one with the music, thus making it easier for me to sing. Playing the bass and trying to sing along with a loud noisy band was too distracting. Doing the solo-acoustic thing seems much more natural and comfortable for me.

So anyway, I arrived a little late at the Metaphor. We both agreed that we each play two 30 minute sets, for a total of approximately 2 hours or so. Ed started out with the opening set (since I arrived after 7pm due to work logistics). As I came in, I could hear Ed's rich voice and pretty harmonica adorning Neil Young's "Heart of Gold". As I trudged in admiring Ed's work, I wondered how I was going to be able to follow that. Ed played very well.

Ed played until about 7:40 pm or so, then it was my turn. Since I arrived late, I had to set up. I took my trusty Gibson Hummingbird, placed the soundhole pickup in, and plugged into the Metaphor's direct box to the board. I strummed, but the soundman could not get a sound. I examined the direct box, and to my surprise it was a passive box, which means that it was not powered (in other words, plugged into a wall) so it did not have enough juice to push the sound from my passive pickup. I had an active direct box, but time was ticking away, so we just grabbed Ed's vocal mic and mic'd the Hummingbird. Luckily there was no feedback, and off I went.

I had a setlist of my originals, but no real game plan except my opening and closing numbers. I opened with my theme song "MikeLewisMusic", which segued directly into "Hawks and Doves". My closing tune, as planned, was "Headin' North" which segued into the reprise of "MikeLewisMusic" - both opener and closer worked nicely together. I pulled both off with nary a hitch, and I found myself surprisingly relaxed and even comfortable. While preparing for this gig, I found that all of my originals (about 17 of them) put together was about one hour and a few minutes. But, I did not account for the fact that I would be so chatty during the gig. I found myself actually introducing each tune with a story behind it. Wow, I was surprising myself.

I also liked the fact that I could keep my voice relatively low - this helped me with my pitch control and also with dynamics. Singing in a band, I often had to strain and even sometimes scream to be heard, but not last night. It was a pleasure to be able to treat my voice as an instrument and not a horn for once. Now I'm not even close to being a good singer, but I felt I served myself well.

One thing I got out of the gig was affirmation that this was my musical destiny. I always fancied myself as a writer first and foremost, with my main outlet being songwriting. Focusing on the bass all these years seemed to sidetrack this though, as it was my preference to sing my own songs. Feeling inadequate as a guitarist made me suppress my songwriting desires. As I've written in previous blogs, the circumstances that forced me to quit bands turned out to be a huge blessing, and last night reaffirmed this for me.

My guitar playing, though not where I want it to be, was acceptable, and I think I have the potential to put my own stamp on what I do. I have been playing pretty much in Open E tuning, and I've been developing little licks, tricks, and whatnot to enhance my sound. My only bane has been sore fingers. Now that the gig is under my belt, I'm going to take a few days off from playing just to heal (really, I am!).

The Gibson Hummingbird sounded and played beautifully. It looked good too. I love that guitar.

Thanks to Ed for letting me play last night. Our plan to do two 30-minute sets each kind of got thrown out, I think we both kind of got caught up in the moment and played a little longer on each set then anticipated. We ended the show after my set. Ed is a great guy and a great friend, and although I can't play in a band with him, this is the next best thing, which is continuing to share a musical experience with him.

Gigging Again - and catching up

2005-02-18T23:06:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been awhile. Let's get caught up.

First thing's first - my mother, Sachiko Lewis, died on January 30, 2005. She was 75 years young. She suffered a massive stroke which pretty much destroyed all motor activity. She lasted two days before she passed away peacefully in the night. All-in-all, she lived a good life and had two sons whom she loved very much, and who loved her equally back. I will miss her dearly, but she lives on in my heart...

Musically, I am going to be gigging again. My good friend, and former bandmate, Ed De Caro decided to start playing solo as a singer/guitarist and procured a gig on March 8 at our old haunt the Metaphor Cafe. Now my plan all along was to take all of 2005 to "hone my craft" so to speak, but Ed approached me about sharing the bill that night. Ed has a way about him that causes me to be nudged into a certain direction, and that's a positive thing. My creative juices started flowing again, and I agreed to do it.

I have about 16 original songs, with about 1/3 of them I need to memorize. So I have work to do, the gig is a little over two weeks away. No worries, I think I have enough time. My set amounts to about an hour's worth of material, so we think we can pretty much split the load that evening. Format is to be determined, and I will just follow Ed's lead as this is really his gig and I consider myself a guest on the bill. I'll take however much time he gives me.

This will be a good gauge as to where I am at. The pressure will be minimal as a) I will have a friendly face out there in Ed, b) it's a Tuesday night and I don't expect much traffic and c) it's the Metaphor, my favorite place to play. I consider the Met my "home turf", so hopefully I won't be too nervous playing up there all by my lonesome.

I'm hoping this goes well, if it does, I may have the courage to hit up some open mic gigs aroung town. Lestat's, Just Java, and many other coffee houses has an Open Mic. And if I do ok, maybe I'll play the Met again, if they let me. We'll see...

Anyway, I'm stoked about this and I'm praying my voice and playing holds out ok. I'm really a rookie when it comes to singer-songwriting, but I really love writing and performing my own tunes. If I can pull this off it will be a dream come true. I hope that I have enough foundation to build upon for future playing. I do know I am still in need of work, but I'm hoping I can pull it off.

I have been playing exclusively in Open E tuning, and I find my voice is best suited within the key of F-Sharp, which is a capo on the 2nd fret. I love playing the open tuning because it makes it real easy to play licks while resolving the notes against the open chording.

Well, I'll write back with any updates, and for sure after the gig. I hope I have good news to report.

And one last thing, Ed is also playing drums again with a local group called "Arroyo" and I managed to catch them tonight at the Metaphor. Bunch of good guys, they play all original music, and they sound really good. Ed's drumming is top notch, and his style meshes well with this group. I plan on catching them again in the future.

The Year That Was

2005-01-03T22:45:00.000-08:00

Recap of my past year or so musically

October 2003 - CenterAisle (Brian Baxter, Harry Brandon, Ed De Caro, Mike Lewis) plays their last gig together as a foursome, though we didn't know this at the time. We played at the venerable Metaphor Cafe.

December 2003 - CenterAisle officially breaks up. My daughter Jessica is born. I take a brief break from music.

January 2004 - Brian Baxter, Harry Brandon and I jam with Bob Schreiner, a local drummer who plays in the cover band "Ivlvinl". Jams were ok, but I felt I was in a rut artistically.

March 2004 - Ed De Caro asks me to join him in his band "With Intent". I jump at the chance as I will get an opportunity to play more of my original material. I am no longer in a rut. We jam regularly and set out to gig right away as a twosome (Ed on acoustic guitar, me on bass). We play two gigs as a duo and pick up two musicans, guitarist Dan Stuart and drummer Mark Schaefli, both formerly of the Christian rock group "Freedom 51". We play a lot of gigs at the Metaphor, land a pretty good paying Labor Day gig, and a gig at the biker bar Pounders. Shortly thereafter, Dan and Mark leave "With Intent", and we embark on a few more gigs with substitute players.

October 2004 - I play my last gig in "With Intent". Family matters force me to leave the band. I begin my new endeavor "MikeLewisMusic", just me on acoustic guitar, playing my original tunes. Suddenly I am artistically renewed.

It's been quite a year for me, but I am right where I want to be. I can work on my stuff and concentrate on writing and playing my beautiful Gibson Hummingbird. I so do not miss playing in a band right now. There were a lot of good times, but there were issues and personality dynamics that were a little bit challenging, and at my age I don't need those types of challenges. But I loved the experience, and I loved the bands I played in and all the people that I played with.

I'd like to take this little opportunity to thank the following people:

Ed De Caro - Thanks for all of the support, beginning in CenterAisle, and continuing into With Intent. You were never judgemental with my original material, your pragmatic approach was much appreciated. You were truly a prince and a pro during my association with you. I look forward to checking out your new musical endeavors soon.
Brian Baxter - Thanks for singing my songs in CenterAisle. I felt our voices blended together well. I hope you keep active musically.
Harry Brandon - To my fellow gear-head, your lead work breathed life into my songs. Thanks for the care you gave to them.
Mark Schaefli - Thanks for being a cool dude and a good drummer. Our short association was enjoyable, and you often made me laugh while we played on stage
Dan Stuart - Thanks for your impeccable lead playing. You have great skills, and you and Mark really rounded out the group.
Tony Vigo - Tony, you are a cool dude and a great guitarist, I hope that somehow we can play together again.
Tony Taravella - Tony, thanks for sitting in with us. You did great, and handled all the new stuff like a pro. For a guy who never heard the songs before, you did great
Allen Robinette - You played great with us, and considering we only gave you a couple of practices before the gig, I was impressed. You're a great guy.
Jason Borisoff - Young squire, you did great playing with us old geezers. Best of luck to you in all of your musical endeavors. You have a good future ahead of you in music.

I have a lot of great memories and all of you played a big part in helping me grow musically over the past year or two. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You, and may God Bless all of you.

-Mike

New Year's Musing

2005-01-01T22:02:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

Been toying with alternate tunings lately, and came up with one that is working for me and my songs. I tuned the high E string down to a D and coverted my tunes to the key of D (instead of G). This gives me some very interesting dynamics.

First off, it brought my voice down a few registers. This is a good thing for my voice as it lowers the strain on the vocal cords. My voice needs work in the lower registers though, but I think with some continued practice I'll be ok.

The second thing is that I seem to be much stronger guitar-wise playing in this key. I am free to play more lead-type licks in this configuration - generally involving the D, C and G chords and the variations that exist with those chordings such as the add9, etc.

The third (and IMO, the most important) thing is I'm keeping my ring finger pinned on the 3rd fret of the B string, which is a D note. This, coupled with the open D tuning on the high E string gives me a interesting dynamic with the open chiming dual Ds going. I'm getting a good chiming D at the high end of the sonic spectrum that's sounding pretty sweet on the Hummingbird.

So I'm toying with a new sound that's pretty cool. This is just another page in my ongoing music education, but I'm pretty excited with what I can do with this configuration. One of my songs, "MikeLewisMusic" (which happens to be, obviously, my theme song) has been vastly improved with this key change / alternate tuning, as I able to wail away on a lead lick throughout the song, and actually engage in an acoustic solo that sounds like a solo with rhythm guitar, all on one guitar. It needs to be cleaned up, and of course I don't consider my playing to be even close to perfect, but my foundation is getting firmer by the day, and the framework has been built. Just need to fill in the gaps.

Did I say Happy New Year?

Couldn't Stay Away

2004-12-27T22:58:00.000-08:00

Ha! Yesterday I wrote that I would take a couple of days off from playing, but I couldn't keep away from my beloved Gibson Hummingbird. Pulled it out tonight and played around on it for an hour. Too bad, my left middle finger's knuckle was starting to get a little better, but it's sore again. I'll eventually work through the pain, I've noticed as I get older that aches and pains are now part of the game.

I went to Guitar Trader today and picked up a new acoustic guitar strap and some more strings. The strings I use are D'Addario EJ-16 Phospher Bronze lights (.012). The acoustic guitar strap I bought was a Planet Waves strap. It has a retractable end on it, so I can attach it to the headstock of my 'Bird and just detach the strap. No drilling for a strap pin required, nor do I have to take the trouble to tie the strap to the headstock. Just attach and play. Pretty convenient, huh?

Real compelling blog tonight for sure, but hey, nobody's reading this anyway.

Later!

The Day After Christmas

2004-12-26T21:57:00.000-08:00

Hello, it's been awhile. Couple of brief updates

First off, hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. Santa brought my kids lots of neat presents. Now onto music-related stuff:

Harry Brandon - CenterAisle Lead Guitarist:

Had lunch recently with my ex-bandmate Harry Brandon. Harry was the lead guitarist of CenterAisle, the band I had been in prior to With Intent. Good fellow and great guitarist. We caught up, he's been busy with the job (as we all have) and hasn't been jamming too much. Harry and I are fellow gear-heads, and he recently angled (via trade, he traded a Line 6 to get this, which in my estimation was a great trade) to get the new version of the Fender Cyber-Twin amp. Good acquisition Harry.

Ed De Caro - With Intent:

Ed De Caro has been keeping busy playing drums in a band called "Arroyo" (I think I got the spelling right). An all original band hailing from Clairemont (ironically, where I live, now he has to travel to my neck of the woods to practice, how's that for irony?), they've been keeping Ed busy. Ed is also trying to keep With Intent together, they practice sporadically. He has acquired a bass player to take my place. Additionally, Tony Vigo (lead guitar) and Jason Borisoff (drums), both guys who played in my last gig in With Intent, are now permanent members. I hope to see them playing real soon, they're a really good band and have lots of potential to make the local scene.

MikeLewisMusic Update:

As far as myself, I've been working on my acoustic guitar skills, as well as perfecting some arrangements on some of my tunes. I have completely reworked two of my songs, "Halfway Home" and "Headin' North". "Halfway Home" has been changed pretty drastically, I have changed the key to it, a few chords, and have added a modulation. All of these improve the song in my opinion. I've also played with the melody a bit and I believe the changes have improved the song overall. With "Headin' North", I changed the key to it so I sing it in a higher (tenor) register, and it matches my voice much better. My left middle knuckle finger has been sore lately, so I did not play today and I don't plan to play tomorrow. Hopefully a couple of days off will help my finger heal. I've been playing pretty much every day since before I quit With Intent, so that's been almost three months of intensive guitar playing.

I plan on plugging away. I have about 20 songs written, and they all need to be worked on in fine detail just as I have been working "Halfway Home" and "Headin' North". I have lots of work to do. A huge labor of love. If I can find some time, I want to start recording some demos, nothing fancy, just an opportunity to work with my ZOOM PS-04 4-track recorder to get familiar with it. I will probably try "Halfway Home" first.

Well, that's it for now.

MikeLewisMusic

2004-11-14T01:01:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm back after over a month. It's been a pretty hectic month for me, and a lot has changed.

First off, I am no longer in a band of any sort. I quit both With Intent and the Praise Band. As I outlined in my last blog, I indicated that my personal life has been getting really hectic. But, I was going to let God sort this out for me. The tone of my message was such that I thought that God would somehow lay out a path for me that would let me continue with music.

But, with three young kids (ages 4, 2 and 10 1/2 months) and increasing practices, gigs, performances, and whatnot, I was finding myself leaving home for untenable amounts of time. My wife was getting impatient with me, and to be honest I was becoming mildly anxious each time I had to leave home to practice or gig.

The With Intent practices were very time-consuming affairs. Because Ed lives up in Valley Center (a good 38-mile drive through a mountain, about 1/3 of that drive is a 2-lane highway) travel time was a good 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Coupled with the fact that practices were on weeknights meant that I had to drive through rush-hour traffic up the I-15 North, probably the worst freeway in San Diego during rush-hour. By the time I would get to Ed's I would be wound up and usually in a bad mood. Even though we did not have a permanent guitarist or drummer, Ed was still lining up gigs. We would get substitutes, practice furiously, and then play. All of the gigs were in the North County. The short of it is that the time and travel was too much burden on my family.

This was coupled with the Praise Band at my church (Northminster Presbyterian Church) and this was becoming a time-burner too. We would practice weekly on Tuesdays. Because my wife would get off work late, I would usually have to rush to church and then practice. Performances on Sunday would be more time spent away from the family as I usually had to arrive at the church early to rehearse before the service.

My wife was understandably losing her patience. So we talked about it, and I decided to quit the bands. At first I was very disappointed, but I thought long and hard about it, and I realized the kids came first. So I put in my notice to the two groups. I had one commitment to perform in With Intent at the Metaphor and I fulfilled it even though I couldn't attend the final practice. I had a blast, it was my last gig, and at the end I annouced how much I appreciated Ed as a friend and a bandmate. Of all the people I've played with, Ed was truly the most supportive and the one guy who never BS'd me. I really appreciate that and I am honored that I was able to play in his band. I wish him well. One of the subs we had that gig, Tony Vigo, will remain with Ed, but he is still looking for a drummer and now a bassist. I wish them well. Ed tells me he may shelve With Intent for awhile and look for gigs as a drummer. Keeping a band together is hard work.

As far as the Praise Band goes, they've been having very fractured practices. People are not showing up. One of the things I was good at was keeping on people and reminding them about rehearsals. I have volunteered to keep doing this, but Elisabeth (the Music Director) won't take me up on this offer, she feels I will be burdened. But this is something I can do from home or my office, the only issue I had was a time issue specifically relating to my time away from the family and the homefront.

Now all this said, a few weeks has passed since this has gone down. And remember what I said about God and how he keeps pulling me back into music? Well...

Again I am amazed at the power of God. I've always considered myself a songwriter first. I became a bass player because I was good at it, and I found guitar to be a struggle. Once I quit the bands, I thought a good way to keep my head in music was to tool around on the acoustic guitar (I own a Gibson Hummingbird, very nice guitar) and work on songwriting. Eventually I want to put my music down on 4-track, and I have a nice little ZOOM PS-02 that I can use to do that.

Anyway, a funny thing started happening. I always had this concept of "MikeLewisMusic", but I didn't really have a definition for it. But as I played on the guitar, I found myself somewhat adept at it. These past few years of intense practice and gigging has helped me to improve as a musician. I have absorbed a lot of knowledge through playing, reading up on the internet, and most of all, through the people that I played with. So I started rearranging all of my songs into a certain key. Some songs were rewritten musically. I started molding them into a cohesive sound, mostly revolving around the key of G. Putting all of my songs into a common key helped me to vocally find my voice as well. I was surprised to learn that I had a pretty decent tenor voice, and through this range I had the potential to not be an off-key wanker. I still have a lot of work to do on my voice, but the framework is there.

So, I started working on original tunes. I have about 20, and I started carving out a cohesive setlist as a singer-songwriter. The key I selected got me to thinking about how I could make the music sound fuller. So I tooled around with the idea of open G tuning. I read about it, but I didn't want to go that far, I liked playing the chords I was familiar with (especially since I rearranged my songs with some alternate chordings I came up with), so I created an alternate tuning - I would tune the E and A strings to G and G, and then tune the other four strings standard. So now, with my songs played in the key of G, I get this wonderful, full-sounding wall that at times sounds like two guitars. Additionally, I was able to stumble into a lot of blues-licks I could incorporate into my playing. With the dual-droning-G's at the bottom of the sound, it sounds great. This revelation actually only happened in the last two days. Wow. I have work to do, but I'm really excited, I think I'm on the verge of a real breakthrough with my playing, and it truly is "MikeLewisMusic". I'm creating something personal and fresh. I can't put the guitar down it seems.

So now I come back and have to give my thanks to God again. I was shortsighted, and desperately trying to hold onto my old musical habits to the detriment of my family. Once I honored God by honoring my family, He honored me back with these gifts. I am always humbled by these events, it truly shows me again how blessed I am and how God always provides for me if I just let Him.

So now musically I work on my guitar playing. The Hummingbird is the best instrument I own and I love it. It's truly a joy to play. And I can't wait to pull it out again and start working on some more MikeLewisMusic.

Destiny and Moments

2004-10-06T21:24:00.000-07:00

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

2004-10-04T22:12:00.000-07:00

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:

**********

"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.

*********

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.

Sammie

2004-07-28T23:56:00.000-07:00

I walked around the empty backyard surveying the scene. I felt very alone and lost. No longer there was my loyal companion following me at my heels, looking up with me with a smiling face, anticipating my every move so lovingly and loyally. A simple chase, or a game of fetch, or just a pat on the head, Sammie was easy to please because she just loved being with me. And now, my beloved American Eskimo Sammie is gone.

Today I had to take her to the vet and have her put down. She was diagnosed with cancer of the leg, and the prognosis was not good. I had a couple of options, one being amputation, but our vet Dr. John Hetzler advised against it. Sammie was at least 11 years old but probably closer to 12 or 13. We never really knew because she was given to us by a stranger. The other option was to just try to make her comfortable with meds. We took the latter route, we had already gone through numerous surgeries with our cat Tigra and the inevitable occurred anyway, and Tigra's quality of life was pretty bad for a long time. We didn't want to go down that road again, so we chose quality over quantity.

*****

"Ya want her?", the man said with a southern drawl as he approached us. My wife Arlain and I had just exited the San Diego Humane Society when we admired this man's little white American Eskimo. He asked us the above question, and we were curious as to why he would just give away such a good looking dog. He went on to explain how this dog was running around his neighborhood for a whole week in the rain. He and his neighbors tried in vain to catch her for a week, and he finally got a hold of her. Unfortunately, he could not keep her as he lived in a townhouse that didn't allow pets. So he brought this dog to the Humane Society, but they could not take her without paperwork showing she was licensed, which she was not. So he asked us if we wanted her. It was either that or off to the pound, where it was questionable she would last 72 hours before being euthanized. We agreed to take her. That was May 1, 1994.

She was very hungry when we took her home. She gobbled down the dog food we bought for her too quickly. She ended up vomiting the food and then she buried the vomit, it seemed, to save it for later. She also found a dead, decomposed rat that a bird left behind and tried to eat it. Poor little dog, she had learned to survive on the streets.

We named her "Angel" at first, but that name didn't really stick. We then named her "Sammie" as in Samoyed, because that's what she looked like. We didn't know what kind of breed she was but she looked like a mini-Samoyed - through research we found out she was an American Eskimo. We put an ad in the newspaper but nobody responded, so she just kind of stuck around. Sammie became one of the family.

I would take her for a run or a walk almost daily. It was one of the joys of her life. She also loved going for rides with us and she would get excited everytime she would see a dog walking with their owner. She also loved being chased in the backyard. I could never catch her, she was lightning quick and agile. And smart too, she would use the tree to dodge me, and I could never get near her. "That is cheating" I would say to her, and she just smiled back at me in her American Eskimo smile.

She also loved to go to Dog Beach in Ocean Beach. We would let her run free, and she loved to frolic in the water. She fancied herself as a big dog, and this little American Eskimo would run with the St. Bernards, German Shepherds, and Labradors thinking she was just as big as they were. Coversely, the snob looked down on the little chihuahuas and yorkies, these were little dogs and she was a big dog I'm sure she thought.

For about 8 years in a row, until our second child Adam was born, we would without fail take her to the Walk for Animals sponsored by the Helen Woodward Center in Rancho Santa Fe. She just loved taking the 3 mile walk and it excited her to be around the other dogs.

Once we started having kids though, the focus on Sammie diminished unfortunately. As we focused on the kids, Sammie diligently stood by, but the rides in the car and the trips to Helen Woodward and Dog Beach became few and far between. We continued with the walking and running though, and Arlain trained for two marathons with Sammie - she was a great training partner.

Back in February of this year I noticed that Sammie was limping around on her hind leg. It wouldn't go away, so I took her to see Dr. Hetzler, and that's where we received the news. It was grim, but we determined to make her last days as comfortable as possible. We took her walking again, and this time with the kids in tow. We gave her some Deramaxx, which is a pain med for dogs, and it seemed to help her. So much so, that I actually was able to run with her occassionally. She never got down or depressed - she kept her happy-go-lucky demeanor, and to her the pain was a minor inconvenience.

Early this month we noticed that a sore was developing on her leg. We took her in, and the Doc indicated that the tumor was breaking through the skin. He said he could excise it, but it would reappear in a couple of weeks and it would be just a futile surgery. So we resolved to keep the wound clean and bound on a regular basis. We did this for a week, and noticed the wound was just getting bigger by the day, and pretty messy too. So I took her back and the Doc said we should start thinking about doing the humane thing. This was on Saturday, July 17. We agreed and made an appointment for Monday the 19th.

On Sunday the 18th I took her to Dog Beach for one last time. Her leg was heavily bandaged and her energy level was down. I carried her onto the sand, but once she realized where we were, she wanted me to let her down. And she played with the other dogs, limping around but playing nonetheless. And yes, with the big dogs, the little snob. We spent about an hour there, and when I brought her home, she was rejouvinated and alive. The next morning, which was the day that she was supposed to be "going home", she was just too perky and alive. I felt it wasn't time yet, so I cancelled the appointment.

For the next week or so I changed her bandage more frequently, and I noticed the wound getting bigger and more bloody. On Monday the 26th I changed her bandage and noticed the irritation from the wound was reaching the top of the leg and the foot as well, so I wrapped up her whole leg real good. Right after that, she seemed to lose her energy. She was lying around all day, and she just wasn't excited about anything anymore. So I started thinking about doing the deed finally.

On Tuesday the 27th, I had to coax her to the kitchen to eat her meal. It was through her meals that I gave her the medication. She wanted to come but had a hard time walking. But I managed to get her to eat her breakfast. I thought about her all day, and when I got home from work I opened the back door and called her outside. Surprisingly, she came right out, as if she was waiting to go in the backyard. She limped to the grass and did her thing. And then she walked over to the gate as if she wanted to go for a walk. So I put on her harness and leash, and we took a walk together. She limped along slowly, but I patiently let her take her time. She sniffed around, and we got to the end of the block and she just stopped. She looked at me with some tired eyes. We turned around, and she limped alongside me all the way home. I didn't realize it at the time, but that would be our last walk together.

When I finally came into the house I saw that she had been vomiting all day. Her breakfast was pretty much all over the bedroom floor. I tested her appetite by giving her some meat from the fridge, but she wouldn't take it. She just wouldn't eat anymore. I knew it was finally time. The next morning, which was this morning, I called Dr. Hetzler and made an appointment.

So this morning we went to the backyard one last time. I cried while holding her, and she looked in my eyes and I could see the pain that she was enduring. She was weak, in pain, and suffering. It was the right thing to do but it was also one of the hardest things I had to do. The time came and I put her in my car and drove her to the vet.

Once we got there, they took us to the room, and they gave her a shot to make her fall asleep. As the nurse injected the medication into her back, Sammie and I locked eyes one last time. With that patented smile, she kept looking into my eyes, with her own eyes getting droopier by the second. Within a couple of minutes she was fully asleep. Dr. Hetzler came in, and shaved a bit of her coat off and put it in a baggie for a keepsake. He then completed the task of sending her Home. Once the final injection was made, Dr. Hetzler put the stethoscope to her heart. I watched Sammie's face, and I saw her tongue come slightly out, then go back in. It would be her final breath. Dr. Hetzler said that she was gone.

I cried all the way home, and when I got home I called Arlain and through my tears gave her the news. When I hung the phone up, I painfully wailed for quite some time. It was almost dog-like, as if I was howling at the moon or something. A loving member of my pack was gone, and I was hurting.

Unfortunately, I had to go back to work, but not after one more stroll in the backyard. It was an empty backyard. I felt lost and alone walking around, and it seemed so much bigger, as if an important presence that used to be there, a presence that used to fill the big void, was missing. She surely was missed. And I found one of her old chew toys laying on the ground. It was a toy newspaper that we had bought for her when we first got her back in 1994. I held it and sat on my back porch, looking out at the empty yard, already missing my beloved Sammie.

I Am Right Here
Michael D. Lewis

You were always there without fail
Sometimes I would neglect you
But you always stood by my side
You never would let me forget you
I just kind of made an assumption
That you’d always be there for me
But the sunset has set right upon you
Leaving me feeling empty

It never occurred to me
That this day would come to pass
Time never seems to slow down
It seems like we travel too fast
And one day the end of the road
Leads us to Heaven’s great lair
But for now, I am right here
And I don’t see you anywhere

I look out at the empty horizon
And it seems so much smaller today
Everything reminds me of you
And how you would frolic and play
Across the grass so green
And through the hills and the trees
So eager to lean up against me
So eager you wanted to please

It never occurred to me
That this day would come to pass
Time never seems to slow down
It seems like we travel too fast
And one day the end of the road
Leads us to Heaven’s great lair
But for now, I am right here
And I don’t see you anywhere

And as I held you close
And said my final goodbyes
Through tears of pain and sadness
I looked right into your eyes
I could see the pain you were holding
Was dragging your spirit away
A spirit so free and giving
A love that forever will stay

I’m holding those knick-knacks and memories
Close to my heart and mind
Looking for meanings and purpose
And looking for gems I can find
And sometimes I’ll fall into old times
And live in the past somewhere
I swear that just for one moment
I saw you standing there

It never occurred to me
That this day would come to pass
Time never seems to slow down
It seems like we travel too fast
And one day the end of the road
Leads us to Heaven’s great lair
But for now, I am right here
And I don’t see you anywhere

Sammie Lewis - 1992 - July 28, 2004

Goodbye to the Metaphor Cafe - The Jewel of Escondido

2004-07-19T22:09:00.000-07:00

With Intent had a gig last Saturday (July 17) at the legendary Metaphor Cafe, located on the corner of 2nd Avenue and Juniper in Escondido, CA. Ed De Caro and I have played there numerous times, beginning with our last band CenterAisle and carrying over into the early incarnation of With Intent (which just consisted of Ed and I) to the current incarnation of With Intent which now includes Dan Stuart and Mark Schlaefli.

When I arrived to the cafe for setup in the early evening I was greeted by the owner of the Metaphor, the great Jim Nemish. Jim is an Escondido icon. He has owned many a business over the years (he was a hairdresser by trade) and in the 80's he suffered a serious stomach ailment that required hospitalization. Many people in the community pulled together and gave him support during his convalesence, and when he got back on his feet he felt compelled to give back to the community. What resulted was the Metaphor Cafe, established in 1989. Jim wanted to open a place where people could hang out in a drug-free/crime-free environment. He wanted that environment to center around the arts. He encouraged musical acts, comedians, magicians, artists, photographers, sculpters, and any other type of artist to perform at the Metaphor. He couldn't afford to pay the acts that passed through the Metaphor, heck, he barely broke even over the years. But that didn't stop the artists from coming in and honing their wares.

Now as I was saying, Jim greeted me last Saturday as I arrived to the Metaphor. It was a miserably hot, sticky day, but I was looking forward to playing that night. Jim shook my hand and showed me an article that was written in that day's San Diego Union Tribune, our local newsrag. And there on the front page of the local section was the headline "The Metaphor to Close its Doors". I wasn't too surprised, as Jim had alluded to quitting in one of his own online journals on the Metaphor's Website <www.metaphorcafe.com>.

We sat down at the bar and as Jim lit up a cigarette (in violation of code, but why should he give a shit at this point?) Jim talked to me about how the city was putting the screws to him. Seems all he wanted was to have the city's non-profit small business council open up their books. They pretty much spat at him, thinking that Jim was just a gnat to be swatted away. But Jim was persistent. He had many years under his belt running various businesses on large to small scales; they were not dealing with small potatoes here. Jim started a petition drive and was successful in getting the books opened. Suddenly, he found he was being hassled with various code violations. For example, Jim had a sandwich board he would put on the edge of the sidewalk to advertise the entertainment for the evening. He got slapped for a code violation for that. They basically started nickel and diming him.

The Metaphor was not doing too well financially for some time. It had never been a moneymaker, but that was not Jim's intent. He just wanted for it to pay for itself and make a little profit so he could keep it going. But 2004 was not kind to Jim, and coupled with the hassles brought forward by City Hall, sadly Jim decided to call it quits.

Since I've resurrected my musical journey a few years ago I have played quite a few gigs. In fact, I've squeezed more gigs the past two years between CenterAisle and With Intent then I had in my previous 20 years of playing (I took a 12 year break from playing live music in between this time though). I can say unequivocally that the stage in the Metaphor is one of the smallest I've ever played. The hum from the neon sign in the window caused some havoc with our amps. Escondido in the Summer is miserably hot, and the ventilation is not that great in the Metaphor. But without a doubt, this is the best venue I've ever played, and it has nothing to do with the physical aspects of the place. No, it just feels like home. I never have any butterflies when I walk onto that stage. Even when Ed and I played as a two-some, just an acoustic guitar and a bass, I still felt calmly confident walking on that stage.

I am going to miss playing at the Metaphor. I envisioned us someday having our CD release party there.  I looked forward to knowing we could always go back and play there in front of the pool players in the back and to the regulars who sat outside, smoking and drinking their coffees or beer. Most of all, I'm going to miss Jim, his cook Andy, and all the people who make up that great little place. There was a nobility about the venue, and it makes me sad to see it go. There's not many places like this for a band to cut their teeth. Most places are coldly business-like, but the Metaphor was a welcomed respite.

Well, we have one more gig this Saturday the 24th, and we will play the Metaphor no more. Jim is booked all the way to the final day of August 21. From August 22-28, Jim will be holding a weeklong party to celebrate before closing the door for good. I plan on being there.

Jim Nemish, I know I speak for a lot of people you touched over the years, but I'd just like to say Thank You. The world could use more Jim Nemishs.

With Intent at the Metaphor - Post Gig Thoughts

2004-07-12T21:26:00.000-07:00

Well, we had our big debut as a foursome at the Metaphor on Saturday night (July 10). As previously written, we just added Dan Stuart (Lead Guitar/Vocals) and Mark Schlaefli (Drums) just a few weeks ago, and as of Friday night (July 9) we had a grand total of four practices together as a foursome. In fact, Friday night will be a good place to start this blog.

I was dog tired on Friday. I had planned to take a quick cat nap during lunch in my car, but it never materialized. I got so bogged down in work that before I knew it I was looking at my watch and it was 1:30 pm. My lunch was about 1/3 eaten at that point too. Now, I don't miss too many meals, so for me to lag on my lunch meant I was pretty busy.

So work ended, I went home, packed my gear, and took the long trek to Ed's house in Valley Center. It's about a 35 mile drive from my door to his, and I have to take the always-jam-packed-at-rush-hour Interstate 15 North. That's half of the journey. The other half is the trip from the Via Rancho Parkway exit on I-15N to Valley Center through Bear Valley Parkway and the mostly 2-lane road through the mountains.

It took me about an hour and 15 minutes to get there, and I was already dog tired to begin with. I setup, we got going, and I lost my steam real quick. I resolved not to stretch my vocals, so I did the bare minimum. About halfway through practice, I was too tired to stand, so I sat on my Carvin 600W amp. I never had to sit down before that I can recall, usually I have pretty good stamina when it comes to music. I was struggling to keep my eyes open.

Speaking of the Carvin, for some reason I was not satisfied with the tone I was getting. It seemed a little hollow compared to my little Ampeg B-100R (100 watt combo) and it was a bit frustrating. Fortunately it proved to be too loud for us, so I resolved that night to go back to the Ampeg for the gig.

Anyway, we practiced until 11pm, so we got a good 4 1/2 hours of practice in. But we did not finish our setlist. We spent a good portion going over the songs we were shaky on: "Carry On Wayward Son" (Kansas), "Wonderwall" (Oasis), "Kryptonite" (3 Doors Down), "Hollywood Nights" (Bob Seger) were just a few we had to go over a few times. We seemed a little shaky. I'm sure we were all tired. I found myself losing my concentration and making mistakes, and I feel I know all of the parts pretty well.

So gig day comes and I happened to wake up early - comes with the territory if you have three beautiful children who want to get Daddy up and out of bed. So I got up at 6:30 and turned on the cartoons for the kids. Then my brother-in-law comes over with free Padres tickets, and although I just wanted to relax, the temptation to go and take my two-year old son Adam was too great. So off I went to spend the afternoon at Petco Park. It actually rejuvinated me, it was really cool to go (for the first time I might add) and check out the new park with my son. We had great seats at Field Level, and we were in the shade too.

We left in the third inning (two-year olds can't sit still very long), and I came home, got ready, and off to the gig with my wife Arlain and our daughter Mackenzie. We dropped the other two (Adam and Jessica) off at Grandma's.

I wasn't too sure how we'd do at the gig, given that we seemed to be pressing and cramming the night before. Ed, as always, was relaxed and just wanted to treat this as another practice. I resolved to look at it in this fashion too. I felt ok going in.

We setup and did a sound check. We cranked up a couple of our "shaky" numbers that we weren't confident with (hey, it was another opportunity to practice them), which were "I Want to Be With You" (an original) and the Kansas tune "Carry on Wayward Son". They sounded fabulous. We nailed both of those troublesome tunes, and after the soundcheck we felt really good about our prospects.

The gig started, and I was really relaxed. I was situated on the stage with Mark, and it was cool just to be able to have little side conversations with him about anything during the gig. Ed and Dan were on the floor up front. The gig went great. We stumbled a few times, but nothing really noticeable. After the gig I felt we did great. I was proud. I knew we had a good nucleus, and this performance confirmed it in my mind.

We got a lot of kudos from our family and friends, but there was one patron there playing pool who I spotted during our rendition of REO Speedwagon's "Take it on the Run". This person stopped shooting pool to check out Dan's blistering, note-for-note lead solo. Dan played great and this guy noticed. After the gig, this person came up to me and congratulated us and said we sounded great.

I feel Mark and I make a great rhythm section, we seem to be able to compliment each other very well. In time, I think we'll really be a kick-ass rhythm section. I really enjoy playing with him.

Ed recorded the gig, and tomorrow I get to listen to my copy for the first time. Ed has already told me it sounds great. I can't wait to hear it. And it looks like we may be able to play again this Saturday the 17th. Jim Nemish, the owner of the Metaphor, had a band cancel on Saturday so he offered us the slot. We already have a confirmed date on the 24th, so that will be three straight Saturdays at the Metaphor. Woohoo!

And in closing, I want to reiterate that my 1982 Fiesta Red '57 Reissue Fender P-Bass is The Best Bass In The World. She sounded great throught the Ampeg B-100R, the tone just sat really well in the mix, and it was beefy and it was great. No need for the Carvin. I was in bass heaven. Can't wait to hear it on the mp3. Heck, I can't wait to hear all of us. I feel blessed, what a great situation I find myself playing in With Intent.

Thoughts Before Gig Day - T-Minus 2 Days

2004-07-08T22:01:00.000-07:00

Hello. It's been awhile. Some thoughts before With Intent's big debut as a four piece this Saturday.

With Intent is ready for our first gig as a four-piece. We're playing at the Metaphor again this Saturday the 10th, and this will prove interesting. Due to our conflicting schedules, we haven't had too much rehearsal time together. Ed and I managed to get together with Dan and Mark separately once each, and since then we have had two 3-hour practices together. We plan on having a full-on run through tomorrow (Friday the 9th), then off to the gig on the next day.

We have a lot of work to do, but the potential is evident. We all mesh together pretty well. It is obvious to me that we are four good musicians who are musically on the same wavelength. We are also definitely four very compatible people. Four up-front guys who just want to play good Rock 'n Roll and work together as a team. The nucleus of talent is also there, we have a good, aggressive sound, yet we also have the potential to be as deep as we are wide, if you know what I mean. In other words, our sound has some heart and soul in it. We now have to work to hone it and let it come out. But come out it will. I am excited.

Dan's lead guitar work is impressive. Solid guitarist, he mixes the right amount of flash and stability. Truly a joy. Mark is getting more comfortable with the tunes, though he would tell you otherwise. He is going to be just fine this Saturday. His drumming is bringing an intensity to all of our original tunes, where in my opinion is where we truly shine. And of course, Ed is his solid, dependable self on vocals, rhythm guitar (he just bought a really nice Carvin guitar) and fearless leadership. We're going to take a conservative approach on Saturday as we haven't had much time as a foursome to rehearse. But I am jacked about this gig, and I'm going to have to really work at just laying back. I must remember to stay disciplined and focused on the groove. It's all about the groove if you're a bass player.

It's been just a short time that we started this endeavor in March. In that timeframe, we have learned about 35 songs, with 8 of them being originals. Ed has one on the docket and I have two. Dan has two ready to go as well. That's 13 originals. I have a few extra ones in my back pocket as well, but all in due time.

Anyway, it will be a challenge this Saturday. Cramming to get ready in a short amount of time. Hauling our equipment and attempting to fit ourselves on that tiny Metaphor stage - we will have to have Ed and Dan play in front of the stage on the floor.

Oh yeah, I am bringing my 600w Carvin amp with 2x10 speakers tomorrow in preparation for the gig as well. I'm having issues with headroom from the little Ampeg B-100R. The Ampeg is a great little tone monster, but it gets lost in the mix of a full band, and I've been pushing it a little too hard so I'm bringing in the big guns. There will be no issues with headroom with the Carvin. I will probably leave the volume at 1.5 and it will be plenty loud enough to cut through with a clean tone.

I have to put a plug in for my Fender '57 Vintage Series bass, my beloved Fiesta Red P-Bass. That thing is a tone monster since I took it in for setup and restringing. I had some TI Flats installed on it, and it gave me a good vintage thump ala Motown and Stax. But I felt something missing, and I soon (re)discovered what that was - that sizzle that I used to get from playing roundwound strings. I have been listening to The Who's Live at Leeds CD in my car for the past 4 weeks, and really getting back into digging my bass-playing role model and absolute favorite bassist of all time John Alec Entwistle, "The Ox". Now on that recording he played his beloved "Frankenstein" P-Bass, which was essentially cobbled together from parts from various P-Basses he had either broken or smashed. I started Jonesing for that tone big time. So I took the '57 Fiesta Red P to my Guitar Tech, the brilliant Fred Marotta at the Repair Zone in Kearny Mesa (San Diego) off Ronson Road (http://nakedguitar.com). If you live in San Diego and you are a guitarist, I highly recommend that you let Fred and his crack team take care of your axe. Fred put some D'Addario XL Round Wounds on it, tweaked the setup, and wouldn't you know it, I was able to cop the Entwistle Live at Leeds tone with no problem. Been working on the typewriter tapping style that The Ox popularized, and although I am just a hack trying to emulate a true artistic visionary, I am getting a little more adept and I'm actually using this technique to some extent on a few of our tunes.

Anyway, the Fiesta Red P-Bass (which I will someday write about in it's own little Blog, there's an interesting story behind it) is the Best Bass In The World. You can have your high-end boo-teek basses, I'll keep this one thank you very much. It will be interesting to run this through the Carvin and see how it sits in the mix.

Well, that's all for now. I hope to be writing more regularly.

Good night now.

Ch-ch-ch-Changes

2004-06-17T21:32:00.000-07:00

With apologies to David Bowie...

Well, With Intent has gone through a change, and this one appears to be final. Dan Stuart, who answered our ad for a drummer a few weeks ago, is now our lead guitarist. Dan is an accomplished guitarist who took up the drums a few years ago. He came in, and as I previously wrote, performed well enough to earn the job as With Intent's drummer.

However, Dan had a friend who also played the drums named Mark Schlaefli. Both Dan and Mark played in the band Freedom 51. Dan felt that if he could take over the lead guitarist spot and could also get Mark on board as the drummer, we'd have a great band.

Both Ed and I really liked Dan, so if Mark was anything like Dan then we knew that we had the potential to finally fill in the missing pieces to our puzzle. I have to admit I was personally concerned for Dan, as I know he wanted to play the drums. But Dan convinced me that his real love was just playing music, he wanted to play good music, and he felt this band had that potential if he switched to guitar and Mark agreed to come on board to play drums.

Dan talked to Mark, and he was interested. So we setup a jam and asked Mark to learn three songs, "Heroes" by David Bowie, "Hollywood Nights" by Bob Seger, and "Wonderwall" by Oasis. We started with "Heroes", and by the first few measures I knew this lineup was The One. I was shocked to learn that Mark had only been playing the drums for four years, it sure seemed like he was pretty seasoned.

When we finished the three tunes, Ed pulled out two demo CDs of our original music, handed one to Dan and the other to Mark. As he handed the CD to Mark he shook his hand and welcomed him into the band.

We continued on, just throwing our material at them. Remember, this was fairly new to Dan too as he was playing guitar now and not the drums, yet he was getting good ideas of how he could fit his guitar sound into our arrangements. I also spied him singing a few tunes too, we could definitely use the help on backups vocals. They liked playing our originals, which was great, and most importantly, these guys are a fit with us personality-wise. It's truly a pleasure to be in a band that has a cooperative spirit, and having a team effort is going to make us a strong band. Not only that, we sound pretty damn good.

So, With Intent is now:

Ed De Caro - Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Harmonica
Mike Lewis - Bass, Vocals
Dan Stuart - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Mark Schlaefli - Drums

Our immediate goal is to get ready for the July 10 gig at the Metaphor. We will be ready to play all three sets, I know it in my heart. By the time we reach our July 24 gig (also at the Metaphor) we will be in good shape I do believe. I am really excited for what the future holds for us, I know we are going to make some really good, kick-ass rock n' roll music. We all have been "around the block" so to speak, and though we are all in our 40's (well, not Mark but he's getting close) we have that young-at-heart spirit that allows us to rock on freely and fearlessly.

The funny thing about this band though, is that I find myself playing in a band with three really good drummers. A bass player's dream, right? Now if we could get a triple-drum-solo number in there, we'll be all set. Yeah baby!

Musical musings

2004-06-07T21:43:00.000-07:00

A few musical musings on this day, June 7 2004, a special day (more on that later):

* * * *

With Intent has a new drummer. His name is Dan Stuart. A lifelong guitarist, Dan took up the drums about five years ago, and decided he wanted to give it an earnest shot.

A week or so ago, our fearless leader Ed De Caro put an ad into a local website advertising for a drummer. It was important to us that the person who applied had the right attitude above everything else. We were looking for a person who fit in with us personality-wise and musically, and was willing to be a team player and subscribe to the direction we have already taken. Dan was the first to answer the ad. We setup a rehearsal at a local studio so we could have a looksee at him and so he could try us out as well. Ed gave him a few songs to learn, but of course we took him on another journey. He stumbled at times, but for the most part he did great. He is not that experienced, but I could tell he was a true musician. He has over 25 years experience playing the guitar, and it shows when he plays the drums. His meter is very good, I never felt the tempo rushing or slowing down, he kept an even keel. That's a hard thing to master.

After the rehearsal, Ed and I had a brief pow-wow and both agreed Dan was the guy. He will be getting a crash course in all that is With Intent, and we hope to have him playing some of the tunes at our next gig at the Metaphor on July 10, and hopefully be ready to go full bore on July 24, also at the Metaphor. If he's not ready, no worries, we want to give him ample opportunity to get ready. After all, the top priorities are to have fun, grow musically, and keep the BS to nil. And we aim to do that, and I think with Dan we are heading in the right direction.

* * * *

The Praise band that I play in, Northminster Presbyterian Praise Band, had their first performance last Sunday the 6th, and it was a very positive experience all around. During our warmup rehearsal before the service, I felt unusually relaxed and at ease. I remembered all my parts, and all was good. We were slated to open the service with three songs.

Then the service started, and it was showtime. We started our first number "Holy Holy Holy", which was just our band backing up the congregation's first hymn number. Good thing, for some reason I blanked out there. Fortunately, years of being an experienced "blanker-outer" has given me many skills in covering up, which I was able to do. It helped that the congregation was busy singing so they didn't have an opportunity to really notice anyway.

The second number was "Come and See", a medium-tempo praise tune. I know this one by heart, and like a fool I began the song by trying to read the chart. I felt myself losing it again, so I quickly just trusted my instinct and stopped reading. Low and below, somehow I was fixed and the music just flowed out of me. The third and final number we played was "I See the Lord", and it is a song that starts out slow and humbly with just a vocal and piano, then segues into a full-blown anthem of Joy for the Lord. We were rocking, and I could feel it. It was great, and the whole congregation seemed to enjoy it too. So much so, that we received an ovation from the congregation, which is almost unheard of for musical performances in our church. Everyone came up after service and offered congratulations. The word is that our Pastor, Scott Mitchell, was really pleased and wants us back as often as possible. It was a good feeling.

It was a good feeling, because we all worked hard. Especially Elisabeth and myself, we put in a lot of time trying to get people to play, and then to pick some songs, then get everyone together and learn them. It feels really satisfying. I personally am very happy, because this praise band thing at our church is a very politically charged issue, with one faction wanting it very badly (so much so that our session has funded it), while another faction exists that is down on music altogether. It was this controversy that made the session very wary when I offered to be a "cajoler" for the praise band to help move it forward. There were no guarantees that what I was attempting to do would even be accepted by the church, I was only given an opportunity. Well it was an opportunity I gladly embraced. I had faith that it would work out. It looks like it will too, God willing.

We're taking this week off from rehearsals, then back next week. I wonder what Elisabeth has in mind for us.

* * * * *

I went to Lestat's tonight to a) drop off With Intent's package of original material/cover letter in hopes of being able to play there someday, and b) to check out the open mic night. I stuck around for about 30 minutes. The first two acts were stand-up comics, and they weren't much to write about. The second guy though had a good segment about divorce and growing up in a one-parent household. Through his humor you could feel his pain. That's the mark of a good comic. Unfortunately, he spent the other 90% of his routine talking about body parts and cheeseburgers, sometimes in the same topic, which I didn't find funny.

The third and last guy I saw was an incredible guitarist named Michael Reed. He played flamenco-styled guitar. He was nervous and announced he had never played live before. But he was great. His third number was a Fleetwood Mac song written by Lindsey Buckingham called "Big Love", which has a killer guitar part that Michael pretty much nailed. It's very difficult to play Lindsey Buckingham's material, and Michael Reed played it with gusto. Everyone applauded, and he was beaming, it certainly looked like he was relieved everyone liked him. For a first gig he did great. An excellent guitarist.

* * * * *

Today, June 7, is my father's birthday. Linis David Lewis would've been 78 years old today. Happy birthday Dad! Wish you were here. I miss you dearly.

James at 15

2004-06-05T22:26:00.000-07:00

Every once in awhile, something will happen to me to remind me of the greater power of God in the universe, and that my desires and perceptions are but a speck in the Greater Scheme of Things.

My old band CenterAisle used to play at a place called the Rhythm Lounge in the Midway area near the Sports Arena. It was a dive, but it was a place that allowed us to basically play whenever there was a free date, so we were glad to take it. They had a doorman who worked there named John Hill, and he liked us. So much in fact that he offered a gig for us: a private party for his daughter Christina, who was going to be celebrating her Sweet 16 party in September of 2003.

I must admit that I wasn't too keen on doing the party. Being a forty-something rocker who liked music from the 70's - 80's, I did not relish playing for a bunch of kids who I felt would not appreciate what we did. But John, and especially his wife Brenda, were persistent. John really talked us up to Brenda, and she really wanted us to play. She insisted that Christina would like us. So, after much gnashing of teeth on my part, as well as prodding from some of the other members of CenterAisle, I reluctantly agreed. The fact that they were willing to pay us helped me to accept this as a job.

So gig day comes up and we arrive, setup, and sure enough, the kids pretty much avoid us like the plague. There were a couple of them who, just to be nice, really made an effort to listen to us, but it was pretty obvious that we weren't their cup of tea. Oh well. We just kept playing in their living room while the kids played in the pool.

We had three sets worth of material to play, and after 2 1/2 sets, suddenly the kids started showing up to give us a listen. They started having fun. They started dancing. It became a pretty fun gig toward the end there. The set ended and it was time to go, but the kids wanted us to stay. Hey, they were just getting started! Well, it was getting late for us old geezers, but we agreed to play a couple of slow numbers to allow the couples to dance.

Christina danced with her boyfriend James Curry-Long. Before the gig, John talked to me at length about James. I could tell John really liked him, and his words conveyed to me that he was a great kid. And as James and Christina danced, I could see the love there. These two kids were really fond of each other.

We finished the gig, packed up, and left. It was done. Time marched on. Shortly thereafter, CenterAisle broke up.

About three months ago we were informed of some tragic news. A couple of weeks after the party, James was killed by a hit and run driver while on his way to a seminary class. Brenda informed me that the party became a big milestone in her daughter's life, as that party was the last time Christina and James would dance together.

Yes, that was their last dance. It was a tragedy. But in tragedy there are always silver linings and lessons to be learned. For me, there was a big lesson. I was a curmudgeon in accepting this gig, and in the end it became a defining moment in someone's life. And participating in that defining moment is something to be proud of in the Greater Scheme of Things.

But proud I'm not. I am ashamed that my thoughts were selfish. In the end, despite my best efforts to resist, I was given an opportunity to play a small part in one important crossroad in the journey we call life. And it had nothing to do with my acumen or whatever. God was in control and put me in this situation - and I am thankful that I was able to be a part of this. As saddened as I am that this young man's fate came to a tragic end, I am thankful that I was able to participate in a cherished memory of this fine young man.

How tragic would it have been if we didn't take that gig? How tragically selfish indeed.

It's been about 8 months since James's untimely death. I keep in contact with Brenda, and Christina is still deeply affected by this, and of course that is understandable. I hope that she can someday find peace with this. My prayers are with her and the whole family.

Brenda closed out an e-mail to me recently with something very telling. She mentioned that the kids were all bummed at the end of the gig, because they were a little late in coming around to us. They wished they would have "discovered" us a little sooner since they had so much fun at the end. There just wasn't enough time in the end. She closed with a laugh, stating "isn't that the way it always works out". Indeed it does Brenda. Indeed it does.

James Curry-Long was only 15 years old. His plans included mission work with his church, the military, and ultimately a family with Christina. A tragic loss, a young life cut down before it really got started.

James Curry-Long: 1988 - 2003

More Praise Band

2004-06-01T22:00:00.000-07:00

Our praise band at Northminster Presbyterian Church had our fourth and final practice before our "debut" next Sunday during service. We are currently a 6-piece unit, with Elisabeth Leatherberry on keyboards (and musical director), Russ Hessler on drums, Steve McHenry on guitar, myself on bass, David Leatherberry (Elisabeth's husband) on vocal and Korin McCoy on the other vocal.

I think we're ready to go. We're playing three songs on Sunday, "Holy Holy", "Come and See" and "I See the Lord". Silly me, I had been thinking all along that we were only going to play two, but I guess I hadn't been paying attention. Imagine my surprise when I was informed that we would open with "Holy Holy", a song I hadn't really been concentrating on. But I was able to get through it ok looking at the sheets. I will just focus on it this week and I will be ready. The other two songs are coming together nicely from my end, I've been working hard on those to make sure I know the arrangements by heart.

We're starting to gel, but it was touch and go for awhile there. Our main problem for the first three-and-a-half practices was that everyone was holding back. We all had our different reasons for doing so, I think with Korin and David, it was the fact that this was their first real experience in a contemporary band-type setting, though both of them are very much musically inclined (Korin is an accomplished horn player and David is a great vocalist). For Russ and myself, our problem was we are both totally unfamiliar with this type of music - both of us have a lot of experience playing in rock bands, but we felt out of our comfort zone trying to play praise music. Elisabeth, who is very much familiar with the material, is not used to playing in a contemporary band type setting too, though out of all of us she seemed the most comfortable.

Last week, it took Steve the guitarist (at his first practice with us no less) to gently nudge me out of the doldrums and remind me what my best asset was, and that was the ability to rock out. Which is what I resolved to do today. I resolved to just be more comfortable and just be me, to show the joy that I have playing music. So I played the basslines as if I was playing for With Intent, and just basically dug in and let myself become one with the music. I noticed that Russ was a little more comfortable too, and I think together with Elisabeth we provided a good groove. Once we settled in, the singers got comfortable, and they were encouraged to just let loose, and they looked like they were getting into it. David told me at the end he was really encouraged by what we were doing, and he was really starting to have fun.

Alas, Steve was not here today, he was out watching the Padres. No worries though, he's the type of guy who can just step in and play, he's that good. He'll just show up on Sunday, plug in, and add the color that he adds so well.

I'm sure there will be a stumble here and there, but we'll get through it and we'll do good, and then we'll build on it and hopefully continue with the building blocks to the ultimate goal, and that is to establish a contemporary service that can attract the youth in the Clairemont area. I think we have a good foundation started, we just have to build on it, get better and help it grow. That's my Intent anyway. I think that's everyone's Intent. I'll say a prayer for us just in case though.

Originals

2004-05-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to using my ZOOM PS-04 handheld 4-track digital recorder. I put down two guitar tracks - one rhythm guitar track, and a haphazard lead guitar track that started as a bassline played on my Rickenbacker 330 Fireglo guitar, but it mutated into something resembling a lead throughout the tune. Oh well, it didn't sound half bad for a crude demo, at least it made the music sound a bit more interesting. I added the vocal track, and was able to successfully load it onto my computer and turn it into an mp3 file for Ed to learn. The tune is "Light of Day" and it's one that I really like.

Anyway, we hope to maybe play at Lestats Coffee House, but they only allow original music to be played. I think it's because they don't want any hassle from ASCAP regarding published material (cover tunes). We have 8 originals in the can so to speak, so we need more if we want to get an hour's worth of originals ready to go. Thus, I had to get off my rear and get to steppin' with the ZOOM PS-04, which I did today. Really easy to use. I just need some more smartcards, the one that came with the unit does not have much storage and after one song it's already full!

I'm hoping to hear more from Ed as well, he has four originals he has written and they are all great tunes, crafted with care and lyrically excellent. If the two of us can move on some original submissions, Lestats and other places like it will be in our crosshairs.

I really love the atmosphere in "With Intent" regarding original submissions. In this band original music is encouraged - in fact, Ed has always been supportive of my original material, even back in CenterAisle. I've always appreciated that, and I continue to do so. It's good to finally be in a situation that I feel is 100% compatible with what I want to do, and that's to be able to write. As you can see I am happy to be in this band. It's what I've always hoped for as a writer and a player.

Doing it With Intent

2004-05-26T22:39:00.000-07:00

Back in my college days a looonnng time ago, I had a philosophy class taught by a man named John Connelly. I think he may still be teaching, I don't know, but I digress. Anyway, his class wasn't the classic philosophy class that taught you about Plato and such, but he taught I guess some kind of Eastern philosophy. The core of his teachings was that everything that happens to you is because of your intentions. So if something bad happens to you, then you intended for it to happen to you. Likewise, if something good happened to you, then you intended that to happen to you too. The gist of his message was that if you think positively as much as possible, then you intend good things will happen to you and indeed it will.

The band I'm currently playing with is "With Intent". Currently a duo (we're looking for a drummer) we play rock tunes from the 60's to current, along with original music. The heart and soul (and the guy who started it) is my good friend Ed De Caro. Ed and I have known each other for about 16 years from working together at a corporation in San Diego, give or take a few months. It's funny, all those years we knew each other, yet we only started jamming back in 2001 in our old band CenterAisle. Ed, who is a fabulous singer with a unique voice and a very good guitar player to boot, was the drummer. But it was obvious from the start that he had the goods to step out in front.

He has a voice that can carry a group and give it an identity. But he also has something that I have rarely seen in anyone, and that is absolute belief in himself. He expects good things to come his way, and they do. I've witnessed it at work - time and time again he just sets out to accomplish something big and worthwhile, and he pulls it off. And with this music thing, he's doing it again. When CenterAisle ended, he just pulled up the bootstraps, and decided it was time he step out in front. And he did. And he did it great. Fortunately for me, he asked me to join him in his little endeavor, and I have to say I am glad that I said yes - even a fool like me gets lucky sometimes. I truly feel we have a good thing going, and Ed is leading the way.

So, I am going to take a cue from Ed, and steal a phrase from him as well (since it's his band and he thought of the name) - I am going to do it With Intent. Intent to make good music. Intent to check the ego at the door for good of the whole. Intent to be able to create from a blank sketchpad and mold it into something good. Intent that good things will happen if we keep positive.

http://geocities.com/rocku_with_intent
rocku_with_intent@yahoo.com - tell Ed that Mike sent 'ya.

Good night now.

Praise Band notes from a ham-fisted bass player

2004-05-25T22:56:00.000-07:00

Well, I just got back from my praise band practice tonight. I'm such a ham and egger. Give me the bassline to "Satisfaction" or "Ramble On" and I'm in my zone, but try to get me to play "Come and See" (a praise tune) and forget about it!

Tonight was our third rehearsal as a band, and it was the first night for our new guitarist Steve. This guitarist is an excellent musician and plays totally by ear. He came in and really spiced things up, and keeping up with him was all this ham-fist (me) could do.

Bottom line is I am not in my comfort zone musically with the Praise Band. I had the same reservation in With Intent too, but I worked through my issues (playing a total support role as a bassist in a two-man outfit) by non-stop practice. Ed and I set an intense schedule, stuck to it, and we have made great progress. I learned how to lay back, help keep the time, while helping to create a groove - and of course it's still a work in progress. It's going to be the same with the Praise Band too. In the Praise Band I am playing with seasoned musicians - Elisabeth on keyboards, Russ on the drums and Steve on the guitar. Right now I am bringing up the rear musically, and I need to pick it up. But I am confident I will find my footing and excel in my own way - I always have and I always will. The upside of this whole thing is that I am going to get better just by playing with these superior musicians.

Tomorrow - off to a With Intent rehearsal. More on that tomorrow. Good night now.

Webpage Launch

2004-05-25T22:35:00.000-07:00

Well, today I decided to launch my own webpage (http://geocities.com/mikelewismusic). Why, I don't know, but after playing music for over 25 years I thought it might be cool to just have a place of my own to jot my thoughts and keep a running tab of what I am up to. Well, last night I played with my current gig, With Intent, a band started and led by my good friend Ed De Caro, who handles the lead vocals, guitar, and harmonica. We played our second gig at the Metaphor Cafe in Escondido, CA. It went great, Ed managed to record some of our tunes digitally and I can't wait to hear the tunes. Right now we are a duo but Ed is hoping to get a drummer in real soon. Ed and I played together in CenterAisle, and when that ended we hooked up and started something real good. We get to play some cool cover tunes while having a pallet to create our own original music. It's a really cool thing and I'm really glad Ed asked me to join him on his little endeavor. I will strive to do my part to help make this thing sound really cool.