The SH Forums Band!

[Holy Zoo]

In the "what's your hearing like" thread, I noticed that several people posted that they used to (sitll do?) play in bands. I thought it might be interesting to see how many forum members are musicians (hobbyist or pro, everything counts!).

Ok, I'll go first:

Jeff - Rhythm Guitar (can't solo worth *****)
Played in a garage band in college named Free Beer (believe me, the name didn't go over well!).

Continued playing with friends through the years, at one point turned my garage into a recording studio. That house has since been sold :(. I now rarely play, mostly just live vicariously by managing my brother's band (you all know the name by now ;))

Ok... your turn!

[Michael]

Songwriter, Guitarist ( Can Play Any Style ) Active in Music For Many Years. We have a self produced CD.

[Holy Zoo]

Originally posted by Michael
We have a self produced CD.

Hey! Where can people get this cd?

[Steve Hoffman]

In the 80's, I played in an oldies band. But, here's the kicker, the band was made up of all MCA Records' employees.

We called ourselves "Quagmire" though we were actually pretty ok. We just did songs that we liked, from Elvis Costello's "Radio Radio" to The Shadows "Man Of Mystery" and a bunch of Marshall Crenshaw, to "Runaway", "Good Lovin", "Let's Dance" and whatever Steve Earle song happened to be in our key (har har).

I played rhythm guitar (but no mouth organ :) and I had (still have) this Farfisa mini-compact organ that I played all the tacky organ stuff on. Sometimes I played drums when we wanted a change. I used a Gretch Duo Jet (black) with Filter-Tron pickups and a Burns Wang bar and my trusty 1964 Fender Strat into a Fender Concert 1964 amp.

We only played at informal parties and to amuse ourselves, but the highlight of our band days was when the late Doug Sahm developed a crush on our lead guitar player's wife. He would hang with us just to be closer to her (she just ignored him). So a few times we got Johnny Perez and Doug and Augie to jam with us ("The Sir Douglas Quintet is indeed back and jamming with Quagmire").

That was a fun time...

[Dave]

Professional singer, amatuer (semi-pro) rythmn guitar, trumpet, player, lyricist. Haven't played in a while mostly for fun now.

[Kym]

Drums, rhythm guitar, bass. Only for fun, though. :)

[Larry Naramore]

Does the "Air Guitar" count? I've jammed with the best of em. Hendricks, Clapton. I've sung with Janis, Elvis..., louder the album plays louder I sing.
...try to set the night on fire!!!!

[Holy Zoo]

Larry,

We'll give ya a tamborine...

:D

[RicP]

I play guitar, piano and I can sing (well) :)

I was in a touring band for 4 years in the late 80s. We played mostly Journey and Zeppelin covers, but we had 8-10 originals that we interspersed into the set.

We opened for L.A. Guns and Extreme at some club dates. That was our claim to fame. :)

I've been playing Acoustic Folk & Blues a lot lately and haven't really picked up the Les Paul seriously in a few years. Sad isn't it.

[Uncle Al]

Sang in bar bands on Long Island in the mid-seventies to mid eightees. Claim to fame: opened up for Twisted Sister prior to their record contract (they were generating buzz at the time, though). Oh yeah - and Zebra when they were still doing Zep covers.

Stopped singing when I got married, starting doing live sound (for about 2 years). Kids forced me to turn my attention to my day job, and all the rest are just memories now......

[PsychFan]

I am a (strictly amateur) songwriter and "recording artiste." I just do it for fun, because I enjoy it.

I've been into recording since my preteen years. When I was about 12 I wrote my first song (a real piece of tripe called "Hour After Hour"). My father -- a semipro guitarist (he taught me to play) since he was 13 -- helped me record it on the 4-track Tascam PortaStudio he had at the time. My brother played bass and drums, and I played everything else and sang. I was hooked, mesmerised by overdubbing, adding effects, mixing, etc.

My ever-supportive father bought me my own 4-track Tascam cassette recorder in 1988, when I was 16. (I still have it, and it still works great and produces better recordings than you'd expect.) Just last year, he moved on to an all-digital setup and bequeathed to me his Tascam 388 8-track reel-to-reel deck (for a paltry sum) ... which is now the cornerstone of my home-studio setup.

I've archived quite a library of original songs (and a few covers here & there) since I first got that 4-track in '88. Several hundred songs, probably, sitting around on cassettes and CD-Rs; I've never counted.

I typically play all the instruments and sing all the parts. Real drums, drum machines, bass guitar, all manner of 6- and 12-string acoustic & electric guitars, keyboards, harmonica, random percussion ... you name it.

I have played in bands, too. When I still lived in my hometown my Dad and my brother and I played in a wedding band together (made good money too!). I also had a series of my own bands in high school and college years (with great names like the Bang Factor, Boomer's Eatery, you get the idea ...). In 2000 I briefly played lead guitar in a Boston-area band called Days, but I don't really enjoy playing out much anymore. I'd rather be home tinkering with my tape recorder.

[RicP]

Uncle Al:

I played Long Island a lot. :) Got to play with Randy and the boys in Zebra a few times.

You ever play Cariola's Sundance? What a hole that place was!!

[thxdave]

Drums in high school but it's been so long ago I wouldn't know a paradiddle from a parasail. My mom used to teach piano and tried to get me to stay at home in the afternoons to practice scales....baseball won out over mom. I'm still kicking myself over that one!! Lately I've been hanging out with friends who play and have been reviving a long-lost hobby of location recording (Jeff P, we may need to talk....I've got Steve helping on mic selections ;)

dave

[Gary]

Originally posted by Larry Naramore
Does the "Air Guitar" count? I've jammed with the best of em. Hendricks, Clapton. I've sung with Janis, Elvis..., louder the album plays louder I sing.
...try to set the night on fire!!!!

I envy you, Larry. I can't hold a tune in a paper bag. :(

Tamborine would be too complex for me. :o

I can pay admission, though! s'long as it's not too, toooo much! ;)

[Larry Naramore]

Originally posted by Gary


I envy you, Larry. I can't hold a tune in a paper bag. :(



I think my little funny "Louder the music plays louder I sing" speaks for my melodic abilities. :)

[Mart]

Only did the chior route. Attended some concerts but sat as far back as necessary to stop my ears from clipping & inducing fatigue.

As far as hearing goes, I'm 40 & am still annoyed by supposedly inaudible music store burgular alarms.

[Ronflugelguy]

I play trumpet,flugelhorn(my main axe!) , and piccolo trumpet. Sometimes I play in groups at the local community college,that's when my work schedule doesn't get in the way. I normally practice when I'm at hore surfing Steve Hoffman Forums(in between) . It lets my chops rest!

[Jeffrey]

Originally posted by Larry Naramore


I think my little funny "Louder the music plays louder I sing" speaks for my melodic abilities. :)

Hey Larry,

Don't underate yourself. Me thinks, we can add some great value to the equation by doing some mixing stageside. What is a band wo/ a finely tuned audience?

Jeffrey

[McIntosh]

Never played in a band, but was a singer from the time I was in 7th grade, through the Navy Bluejackets choir.

Love to ride my harley where I can sing as loud as I want w/out bothering anyone (especially me, 25 years of 2 packs a day really screws w/a voice)

Have a Fender Strat, Larrivee Custom OM-10, and an old beat up crappy dreadnaught, can't throw it away though, my hero hand signed it - GO SRV !!!!

[JohnnyK]

I played drums in a band in High school and in College. In college the band was called Haymarket Square and we made an LP in the late '60s called Magic Lantern. The LP became a cult recording in Europe. Last I heard the original LP's that were recorded on the Chaparell label were selling for over 1,000 English Pounds!!!!

I used to have a double bass Ludwig set that was similar to Ginger Baker's set.

[Paul Chang]

I sang the bass part in the Collegiate Choir of Tien Eduational Center in Taipei in high school (as the only high school member) and in college. Led the congregation singing the Lord's Prayer during Lent/Easter. Paid to sing at weddings but never saw a dime - the choir leader/manager always "confiscated" our proceeds into the choir's coffers for general expenses and recreational activities. Once a very generous groom tipped each singer individually and I was dreaming how many records I could buy. You know what happened? CONFISCATED again! :mad:

Continued my "singing career" in the student folk singers group at St Mark's in Isla Vista, California while attending grad school.

Was tutored in piano but gave it up long time ago. Tried learning to play guiar in high school/college but couldn't find the time. Who needed a guitar if you had a steady girl friend and plenty of cuts and bruises from playing rugby football to impress her with? :rolleyes: