Serenity Gardens (08.14.17)

A happy crowd at Serenity Gardens gets to hear me do some new tunes. Photo by Kat.

I've always been one of the very fortunate musicians who has what they call "good ears". Since I first picked up a guitar as a small child in 1976, I've had the gift of being able to quickly hear the melodies, chord progressions, and rhythms that make up songs, and then being able to reproduce them on my own. I find it likely that otherwise, I'd not have had the patience to climb to the level of musical proficiency I enjoy today... it would have taken way more work than I'd have likely been willing to put in.

When I was in my teens and playing in local bands, my friends and bandmates would be rather astounded by this ability. "When did you learn that song?" they'd ask after I played something new, and I'd have to honestly answer, "Just now." I have to assume this is some kind of innate ability; perhaps it can be taught, but no one taught that part of my musical training to me. Rather, I seem to have been born with it. It's a pretty strange genetic trait, if that's what it is. Most traits are passed on due to their being evolutionarily advantageous (i.e., having them helps you survive and reproduce). If you can run fast, you don't get eaten by the tiger. If you're taller, maybe you can jump into the tree to avoid being eaten by the tiger. And maybe, if you have particularly sensitive hearing, you can differentiate between the sound of your pal coming back to the cave versus the sound of the tiger coming to eat you. Maybe it's more simple than that; perhaps a distant relative of mine got the girl because he was the caveman who was the best at banging rocks together so she could dance. Stranger things have happened.

Why can I hear and replicate music so easily? No one knows, least of all me. Photo by Kat.

The reason I'm musing over this is that as I've mentioned a few times, I've recently been on a drive to add more songs to my repertoire that I hadn't performed previously. I have no idea if this is a difficult process for most musicians, but it really isn't that hard for me. In the case of most simple music - pop, rock, and folk - it doesn't require me more than a listen or two to be able to perform the song. Granted, there are nuances to each one that takes a little more time to internalize, if I expect to perform them well. In any case, due to whatever set of abilities I'm lucky enough to have, it was pretty easy to add four new songs to my repertoire that I performed at Serenity Gardens last night in Second Life. New material is something I feel a) keeps me interested and excited as a performer and b) gives my audience something unexpected and hopefully enjoyable, so it's almost always win-win.

Hitting the Limits (And the High Notes)
Are there limiting factors in terms of the music I choose to play as a solo acoustic artist? Oh, hell yes. Topping the list is the vocal range of the original performer. Look, the progressive rock band Yes is terrific, but I have as much chance of singing like Jon Anderson as I do of flapping my wings and flying. Second is the arrangement of the song. Many tunes just don't work as a solo performance on a single instrument. Sure, the performer can do totally new arrangements that are better accommodated by one person strumming a guitar, but frankly, there are too many songs out there that do work well. Finally, the genre can be a limiting factor as well. Who wants to hear EDM music done on solo acoustic guitar? No one, really, which is why I focus on styles of music that are more readily translatable to the sound of one person on one instrument.

Good Music or Good Times?
A lot of artists and bands you see perform seem very serious onstage. I have nothing against that. I understand that musicians can be artists who expect that people take their work seriously, and exhibit the gravitas they find necessary to impart that attitude. I'm obviously not like that. At the same time, I'm not some comedian or clown (nothing against those fine entertainers). When I play a song, I'm not doing it for the laughs. I think most people who come to see me play understand that I'm a guy who likes to have fun, but that the songs themselves are performed with the respect and sincerity that they deserve. It's asking a lot of people to accept this hybrid approach, and I appreciate the fact that people can come to my show and experience what are hopefully solid performances of songs they enjoy while also getting some giggles here and there.

Frankly, I actually don't care if people are smiling at my music or my antics, as long as they're smiling. Photo by Kat.

The New Stuff
As I said during my show, I love new music, and go out of my way to make sure I'm aware of the new stuff that comes out each week. When I do a "new" song in SL, I'm referring to a song I haven't performed previously. Sometimes they are indeed new songs; earlier this year, I started playing "It's Easy (Like Walking)" by the Sadies with Kurt Vile literally the same week it was released. One of my new songs this week was "Abrasion" by my band They Stole My Crayon. That shit is so new, it was only written in the last few weeks, and likely won't be released until 2018. But the other "new" tunes were respectively from 1968, 1979, and 1994. If I'm playing them for the first time, and my audience is hearing me do them for the first time, that's new enough for me.

The sun goes down at Serenity Gardens as I rock the Second Life peoples. Photo by Kat.

Serenity Gardens set list...
Airport Bar (Martin Courtney)
Friday I’m In Love (The Cure)
*Wichita Lineman (Glen Campbell)
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
Old Man (Neil Young)
Low Key (Tweedy)
*Abrasion (They Stole My Crayon)
California (Joni Mitchell)
*Bang and Blame (R.E.M.)
Northern Sky (Nick Drake)
Fire & Rain (James Taylor)
*Goodbye Stranger (Supertramp)
*Hey Serenity (Zak Claxton improvisation)

*Indicates the first time I've performed this song in SL.

Massive thanks to all who came out to the show, with special thanks to those who helped support it!
JAMBA Losangeles, ErikKottzen Resident, Poneh Resident, shaggycritter Resident, Kathrise Resident, Gandalf Mornington, go2smoky Resident, RoxxyyRoller Resident, JazzCat Skytower, paula31atnight Resident, Alex Zelin, RansomTalmidge Resident, Ludhir Resident, Asimia Heron, Aurelie Chenaux, Kat Claxton, not4gods Resident, Tyche Szondi, TheaDee Resident, my lovely manager Maali beck, and the great staff and owner of Serenity Gardens, Tilly Rose and Ilsa Wilde!