A couple of gigs into Fall Tour 2014 Post gig response. We discuss Led Zeppelin and odd time signatures in lots of musics.

RCGood show?

JCHYou’d know better than me. 😀 You never know how people really feel, right? Everyone showed up.

RCEveryone I spoke with seemed knocked out by the bass solo. Although I must say I was surprised. You doing a cover? Using loops? Anyone who has read your rants would be quite shocked.

JCHWell, that’s not a ‘cover’ really. I have no objection to ‘loops’ as a seasoning. I just can’t stand a whole evening of that stuff. I think three minutes is a good limit.

RCCome to think of it, it was sort of an Jaco homage.

JCHI always said: the album I wanted to hear was “Robert Fripp joins Weather Report!” Or “Jaco joins King Crimson!” So there you have it.

RCCome to think of it, it was sort of an Jaco homage. […]

Night before Fall Tour 2014 kicks off in Vancouver, BC. We discuss hand care, real Canada vs. Vancouver, performance spoilers and Tim Hortons.

RCBig weekend coming up in Vancouver. First show. Excited?

JCHYeah, I’m pretty excited. So I’m on Palmolive Lockdown.

RCPalmolive Lockdown?

JCH(Laughs) yeah, it’s where I start taking care of my hands–like Madge in those old TV commercials.

RCI don’t think anyone under fifty will get it.

JCHWell, maybe they watch Mad Men. Anyhoo. It means wearing gloves. Not digging in the garden. No fishing. Gardening Trying to remove paint to with my fingernails. That sort of thing.

RCSounds serious.

JCHIt is. It sounds so sissy and it’s really bitten me in the ass for decades. I used to sound different night after night because one night I would be playing with my fingernails and the next night I’d break a nail and changed my technique and then I’d bust something else and then […]

A status report on the upcoming Fall Tour 2014, including reminiscing on Detroit House Music, college and Robin Williams

Over the years, I’ve gotten into an ever-increasing number of serious flame wars (I guess even this speaks volumes. The youth of today don’t ‘flame’ because not much goes beyond 140 chars.) But I’m already digressing…

Several acquaintances/colleagues in the Progressive Rock community have finally gotten fed up with my emphasis on the ‘serious’ nature of high-level music making. Relax. Don’t take it all so seriously. This is awkward of course. It causes me to opt out of various ‘networking opportunities’ (festivals) where I know this attitude prevails, but it also makes it hard because I value the friendship of everyone in our little world. It’s sort of like politics: we all should be able to disagree in good conscience, but of course, that’s easier said than done.

Progressive music has had a pathological insecurity complex since he late 70’s. The whole genre got beaten to shit and unceremoniously kicked to the curb first by critics (who never liked prog) and then by fans who made a clean sweep of pretty much […]