That said, here's the truth of this gig. (Stephen Stills said that introducing the classic "Super Sessions" album and I've always wanted to use it. Finally I get to!) I've loved music all my life. I pretty much love it all, but at the end of the day my First Love would have to be rock and roll, with blues a really close second. Everything else is ok, but those two styles are pretty much where I hang out. Truth is, I just plain love the music. Love it. End of story.
For the greater part of my occasionally mis-spent life I've contented myself with listening to music. If a turntable or CD player (that's about as much technology as I'm capable of embracing at the moment, so don't bother to write me about the other stuff) were a musical instrument I'd be a virtuoso. They aren't, though, much to my chagrin and, perhaps, loss, so I've had to confine myself to being a closet musician, embracing fantasies of playing something, maybe anything, but never taking that Big First Step to learn how to do it. Until the divorce.
Let's set things straight right now, before we continue. I don't know where Jenny was for all those years, but I've been waiting for her pretty much my whole life. I'm about to take that giant step into my sixth decade, and she came into my life last year. It's a late start I know, but it's a whole lot better than no start at all. She's my darlin', ya'll. (I think I might have said that once or twice before.) I was, however, married before. Twice, to be exact, and the first marriage produced a daughter, and then a son. I love my kids, ya'll. I really do.
I gave my son a guitar, an inexpensive flat top, for our last Christmas together. He wanted to learn to play, and I wanted him to play too, so the guitar was pretty much a no-brainer. Unfortunately, but setting the stage for The Appearance of Jenny, a divorce quickly followed that particular Christmas. There was Pain, and then the kids moved to The Big City, and I stayed in my tiny little Texas town alone. (Except for Reggie the Wonder Dog, but that's a story for another day.) Then it came to me---I'd buy my son a guitar! If I got one too, that would be something we could still do together! YES!!! So off I went to buy an inexpensive flat top of my own, secure in the knowledge that I'd done The Right Thing. That turned out to be not quite true, since my son went off into the world of electric bass and I had this acoustic flat top, but at least he was playing, and he was happy doing it. I bought him an amp, then sat down to try to figure out how in the world to play that danged guitar I'd just purchased. It was not an easy thing to do, mostly because I decided to eschew a guitar teacher and teach myself instead. What should have taken a few months took a few years, but I stuck with it and eventually learned how to play well enough to fool my friends who didn't. (My friends who really are musicians pretty much laugh, but that's life.) I played from 1995 until this very minute. It got me through that first divorce. I'm ok at it, too. Just ok, not Good, and certainly not Great, but every once in a while I'll plug in the Gibson and it all sounds like rock and roll to me which is, after all, all I ever wanted to do.
Then came Jenny. She was in the back of the house one morning, and I was playing. She walked in on me and said something along the lines of "That's pretty good. I thought you were playing a record." My head immediately grew by about twelve hat sizes---somebody actually liked my playing! Wow! After that, I'd play while she was cooking breakfast, or lunch, or supper. She liked it, and I liked doing it. I think I may have said it before, but my ego truly knows no bounds. Then came The Day.
"Will you teach me how to play guitar?"
"I don't really know how to do it. I just make noises, that's all."
"Well, I like it, and I think you can play, and I'd like you to teach me. Will you?"
How could I refuse? We've already determined that my ego knows absolutely no bounds! Of course I'll teach you! You bet!
Now we sit down and play almost every day, generally after supper. She knows where several chords live, and she can play the riffs for "Bo Diddley", "Mona", and "Gloria". We're working on Buddy Holly this week. I'm not much of a teacher if the truth be known, but she's a great student and she's learning almost faster than I can teach her. I like it! Nowadays things are a little different around here.
"My fingers hurt."
"Yep. They will for a while, until you get some callouses."
"How long will that take?"
"I dunno. Wanna learn another blues riff?"
"YES! Let's get after it!!!"
That's my darlin', ya'll. It just don't get no better than that!
I've been playin' sunshine games,
All my lonely life.
Look around, look around,
Look 'round again!
"Sunshine Games", Music Explosion, 1967
And that's what I know. Be good to those around you and we'll talk again soon!
hasta bye bye,
phil
