Long Time Gone

Well it has been a long time since I posted here. Since my last post I created a band , dis-banned a band, and got a real job. Right now I am wondering what the heck to do with the music. Maybe go back to the coffee shop thing? Just write and record some demo songs? The cool thing is that I can do whatever I want I just have to know what that is. So stay tuned as I try to figure it out. I have been spending alot of time on MySpace lately. There is so much great music goin on out in the world now. I put one of those maps on the MySpace Site (thegaryjacksonband) that shows who has been to visit. It is cool to see people from all over the world listening to my music and watching my new live cheezy video. So come visit and add your little corner of the world to the map.

Gary

Finding The Groove

I was reminded by a new friend of mine that I haven't written anything since last year. I have been very busy on my job and unfortunately the music is playing second fiddle for now. I have gotten together a few times with some great musicians that are interested in playing my originals and making the new CD. So I am finding my groove at work and with the music. It is not an easy thing to get busy people together regularly. All of the schedules have to magically collide together into one moment. Those times that we have synched up have been very good. They bring an interesting perspective to my music and it sounds very good. Most importantly it feels very good as well. The feeling part is important. I believe from that space you can create and contribute from a different level. It is a notch up from just playing the music. It is where the groove is. So stay tuned more is on the way...

Back To Basics

This past weekend was filled with music for me. I was blessed to play both Friday and Saturday. Friday night was at a little bar in the West Side of Cleveland. Verlie's is a small neighborhood bar that has been family owned for over 40 years. I was blessed to have my friend Alexis Antes play with me that night. I wasn't sure how my new solo material would go over there. In the back of my mind I guess I was expecting the night to be like most small bars, however nothing could have been further from that experience. Vickie and Ken (owners) are musicians, they have transformed that lil cafe into a simply wonderful place where people actually come to listen to the music. Go there and find out for yourself. You won't be dissapointed. Saturday night was at a nother special place in Akron. Scott's Folkatorium is basically a flea market and concert hall. Scott the owner is a very special person who is living his dream to have this place. I asked my new friends Sacred Fiction to come and play. I also asked an old friend Joyce Elliot to play the violin with me. The music was great. The only problem is that NO ONE CAME. I guess I just not get the promotion job done. Writing the songs, building your website, recording promos and booking gigs is just part of the whole picture. The other is promotion. The difference between the turn outs is interesting. At Verlie's there is a built in audience that is used to having a real mix of musicians. When I walked in the place a guy was playing a guitar sitting at the bar and a fiddle player was jamming along. At Scott's you would think that given all of the great local talent that has performed there you would have a similar situation. No, you can not tale promotion for granted. Without promotion there is no crowd, without a crowd there is no sales, without the sales there is no place to promote. I mean I know this like I know my name, I guess I need to work ecven harder at this part of the process.

You Never Know

Well it's been awhile since my last posting. Life has been giving me the usual roller coaster ride. However, yesterday was one of the best days I have had in a long long while. The day started off with getting a job. Yahooooooo! I then went to my new favorite music store and the owner gave me a Larivee hat. If you haven't had a chance to play one of these fine guitars you should take the time to go and try a couple of them out. They are by far a quality instrument with a special feel and an awesome sound. Later in the day I got to hear one of my songs from the first CD on the radio. What a gas that was. The day ended up with a call from the local paper syaing that they wanted me to play in the big downtown music festival. It's on my birthday. I will be playing there till around 7:00 and then I will be playing later that night for a local benefit. What a great birthday present.

The music project has started to pickup momentum. I have landed some good gigs and I have been working very hard on my original songs and a couple of cover tunes.

Preparation Meets Opportunity

Well the last few weeks have been about promoting my solo music. I have the website
working and the online press kit. I have been mailing venues and I have had some
good responses, and I have had NO RESPONSES! I am going to just keep pluggin
along and wait for the moment "When Preparation Meets Opportunity"...
I did get a new guitar. It is very cool! It is an acoustic electric resonator. I traded
an old acoustic resonator and a nylon string guitar for this baby and some cash.
It really has a tin canny type of sound. It is a good complement to my other acoustics.

Build It & They Will Come...Maybe

It's Monday night and I just finished one of my two long days for this week.
I work two jobs on Monday and Wednesday.
The job market is so crummy here that I have to work two
jobs to come close to getting enough money to make it.

I am excited about my music again. That is a real good thing.
I finished my promo package this past weekend and I also created an online press kit at
Sonic Bids.
It seems to be the way of the future. They also work it the other way with people looking for talent. Those opportunities get posted and you pay a fee to apply. I guess it will be worth it down the road a bit. It is time to start getting some gigs and get out there and play the stuff for awhile. I originally thought I would make the new CD first. I could use that to pave the way. However that project seems to always take one step forward and two steps back. Now there is an idea for a song... This will be a whole new experience playing solo.
I tried a couple of times already and the second time was alot better than the first.
The whole thing feels stronger to me now. I am looking forward to it.

Ready or Not

It's Sunday and a bit of a lazy day here. Today I found a new groove in an old tuning. I wrote a song a couple of weeks ago about Coal. Here in the east coal mining was a major industry that carries a long history of wealth, pain, and suffering. Whole towns grew up around and were named after the mines that fueled their existence. One such mine, Number 9 is the topic of my song. I used a basic tuning, open D in the first versions of the song. Today I found it is a lot more fun to play and sounds cooler in the tuning of DADDAD. I have written several other tunes in this sort of droney tuning. Using the slide and a combination of picking styles gives this song a whole new sound. The song is about a Coal Train Engineer hauling "Number 9 Coal" over the mountain. As he makes the journey he reflects on his life, love, the here after and Numer 9 Coal. I have several great songs now for the solo thing and my next step is to head for some open mic nights and see how they go over. Playing solo is so much different than playing with a band. It's just you and a guitar, but what a way to go... Here is a link to some information about Number 9.