I Need A New Drum Kit—In Praise Of Ringo & Art

My drum kit she is a gone. And she’s a no coming back. My loverly Ludwig Silver Sparkle set (aka ‘Old Ringo’ appears to have been ‘liberated’ from the storage space I had kept it at during my recent studio renovation. I am told that it is not insured for the current market value of $1,500 smackers.

So it’s time to mourn. Not just for the dough-re-mi. And not just because it was my pal for several decades. But rather because it was a critical part of my education as a musician. Drums are a big deal. Even if you’re playing bass or guitar, the more you know about ‘the set’, the better you do your job. So I shall grieve.

And then? I gotsta get me a new one. And, since every loss is also a chance to ‘learn something’ (grumble, grouse, grumble), I think I ought to use this tragedy to re-think my drumming.

From Pee Wee To Ring-o

My whole concept […]

After nine years? The first record from JCHMusic will finally be available as a professionally remastered version.

As long-term listeners know, in late 2007 I embarked on a plan to re-master the first four records prior to the release of Home. For some reason, I released them in reverse order, starting with Balance — then Compartments and Superpower. Then all heck started to break loose in my life and I had to leave off.

Until now, this has always been a great personal sadness for me. After more than twenty years playing other people’s stuff, Positive was a chance to finally get the music out there that I wanted to do. So, like many artists’ first records, it contains some of my best stuff (in fact, the sophomore jinx so many artists encounter is often simply the result of one simple fact: they’ve usually had umpteen years to develop ten great songs for their initial offering […]

We regularly receive questions about why we tour where we tour, and why not here? Whether it is Detroit or Dublin, the answer is pretty much the same:

Any confirmed touring plans will always be posted to this website and via Twitter (so following is always a good idea.
We are always actively trying to find ways to tour as many places as possible. We enjoy touring, we love to travel to new places, and we want to play to you.

The Challenges
The Band Thing

However, many countries/regions/cities are simply not always financially viable to reach. This is a complex balance of issues. First of all, there the whole ‘band’ issue. Which gigs do we bring the whole show vs. going solo? JC will happily rock the house for fifty devotees. But to bring the entire band and all the requisite gear requires not only at least 200 tickets, but obviously a larger venue.

The Popularity Thing

Shocking but true, not everyone thinks this is the greatest act in the history of live entertainment. Overall […]