Monday, January 17, 2005

 

I'll Be Damned if I Don't Love Open Mics

Someone asked me yesterday how long I'd been playing harmonica. That's a difficult question to answer because as long as I can remember I've owned a harmonica. My very first harmonica now sits proudly on top of my television, a pretty cool 20 hole Japanese model. It's got a really neat tone and I'd play it if some of the keys weren't bent and out of tune. My next harp was a Marine Band 10 hole diatonic in the key of C. I bought it with the first income tax refund I ever received, so that must have been in 1984. I taught myself to play it a little, but that harp was almost relegated to the status of jewelry, something you almost always have with you, but actally serving very little real purpose. Over the years I taught myself a couple of songs, but it was mostly something I did for myself, playing in front of people would still be years away.

Last December I attended Steve Thorpe's open mic at Knight's Cellar in Spearfish. The only reason I attended that was because I had written a song about ex-governor Bill Janklow's manslaughter trial. The end of the trial was coming up and I thought I had better perform the song somewhere while it was still relevant. So I did my one song (on guitar no less!) but needed to add some other things, I knew a few songs on harmonica only and played those. Steve asked me if I'd like to become a regular, and someone else asked me to play another open mic that Sunday in Deadwood, so I guess I did OK. Since it was really the first time I'd played in front of people I didn't know, I was pretty pleased with how things turned out.

A really bad bout with the flu followed. Chest congestion may be bad for the average person, for a harmonica player it's torture. I took about a month off after those two open mics, finally strolling into Cheers on a Sunday night about a month and a half later. Since then, I've spent every Sunday night at Cheers lounge playing harp or guitar.

Last January I could play a little. A couple of open mics in and I could tell I was getting better. I met TSA and the one who shall be known as JB (both of their actual names are 'Andy' - this is the easiest way to differentiate them) early on and within a month we were playing together. Patient 957 was born. There was something happening there, we had an intersting sound and JB was simply a song writing machine. Now I was playing every Sunday night with two guys whose skills were developing rapidly. It's one of those thing where you have to get better just to keep up. When we first started playing together, I didn't really understand the harmonica, after about a month, I had a much better understanding of the relationships on a harmonica, how a melody is formed, how to play a harmony and how to follow a guitar player. The education continues, I don't profess to know everything about the harmonica, but I do know that my abilities are immeasurably better than they were at this time last year.

So when I was asked how long I had been playing harmonica, my response was 'about 16 months.' While that's not entirely true, it's true enough. Before that time, I could draw and blow, make some melodies, do some things that actually sounded cool. Now I can actually 'play' the harmonica.

What's more, other people are noticing. When I got home from open mic at Cheers tonight, I had a message from a respected area musician that he wanted to jam with me. TSA is trying to get me involved with a volunteer program at the hospital, playing music for patients. I got asked to play in a church group with my dad and niece (after some of the songs I've played, I'm surprised my harps didn't burst into flames upon entering the sanctuary.....). A year ago, I wasn't ready for any of these things. Now after playing once a week in front of people, practicing with the 957 guys occasionally and TSA after that, playing 3 open mics a week for a while, I am ready to do these things.

Now I can't imagine my life without playing music. I spent the night at my folks' last week. There was a possibility that I could get snowed in, so I took the guitar and big bag o' harps. When 957 broke up, there was no question, TSA and I would press on, continue to make music, continue to play as much as possible.

I'm not going to kid myself, this isn't something I could ever do as a career. I've been around real musicians, and they have something - you can actually see it - that I will never have. On the other hand, I play an instrument that tends to be a second instrument for most. I can name several professional musicians who, in addition to their primary instrument (voice, guitar, etc.), play harmonica, and I can say without a doubt that I am better than them. I'll never be able to write songs or sing like Bruce Springsteen, but I'll put my harp playing up against his any day. John Popper, James Harman, Kim Wilson? That's a completley different story. Those guys are primarily harp players. They play at a level that I'll never achieve, I can accept that. But I'll still keep having fun with a $25 hunk of metal. As far as I'm concerned, that's enough.

BOJ

Comments:
Whoa... if the times I heard you blowing your harp into that bullet mic and that pignose amp, you didn't think you were really playing... I'd have to drive out to hear you play live now! Man, I always thought you were incredible on the harp, and was really impressed that you taught yourself guitar while you were out here. You've got the makings of a fine musician, which I will always envy. Music doesn't compute in my head and translate to my fingers very well... but I can make cables, patch equipment, set levels, and mix the sounds together!

If I ever have the chance to own a radio station, you'll be featured as program director, evening drive dj, and the stations very own house musician!

Quinn
 
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