Musically, I have never been very fond of labels. They are handy, but sometimes feel to me like they put into a too small box of what you do. Our first band, The Blood Mountain Boys played mostly bluegrass music and I played banjo almost exclusively in that band. But I did not want to be known as a 'bluegrass band', though we probably were, with some progressive tendencies. There have been times we have played a lot of gospel music and performed in different churches, but I did not want to be known as a gospel group. David and I as Buck & Nelson, played a lot of old time and traditional music, but I did not want to be known as an Old time musician either. I was an am a mixture of all of these and started using the label Roots music more than anything. A label that could be and was applied to Doc Watson, David Holt and other musicians I have tried to emulate.
Those labels can help to define a type music you play and sometimes to help you find a place to play, but I still have discouraged using them a lot. There is one label that I would not mind earning. That is the label of singer/songwriter.
I have written a few songs over the years, but hav not felt them good enough to sing regularly. Like everything else, I think songwriting takes practice to get better, and I do plan to do much more songwriting. I have lines and parts of songs that have been lying around for a while. Some of these I will try to finish, some to incorporate in new songs, and also I have several ideas of songs I want to start and write.
When I look back it seems most of the people I admired most were songwriters and singers. The Beatles were a band, but most were also songwriters. Even Elvis wrote a song or two. The one I followed most when learning to play was John Denver and how many great songs he wrote. I still do a few of his songs. James Taylor and Gordon Lightfoot were and are two other favorites. Of course Bob Dylan is in there and some of his songs were the first ones I learned. I do a couple of his songs now and have another one or two I want to learn. Willie Nelson can fit there, though he is mainly a country singer, he still wrote many great songs.
I am working on a CD and plan to include some original songs on it. Hopefully someone will like them enough for me to start performing them. Maybe I will someday be able to honestly claim to be a singer/songwriter. I'm getting a little long in the tooth to be starting something, but maybe it takes a lifetime of living for some of us to be able to write the songs we feel in our hearts.
There are many ladies that fit this genre too, and several that I have come to admire, though I only mentioned the men above. There are many others out there that I have not yet listed. Men like Jerry Jeff Walker and Jimmy Buffett. Country singer Shania Twain, Clint Black. Didn't realize it for years, but Lester Flatt wrote many songs he and Earl did.
Other writers are doing excellent songs, but have not yet had a lot of commercial success. These folks are the heart and soul of singer/songwriters. Traveling the country, playing small venues, and writing the stories of their lives and those they meet.
I am not looking for, or expecting to be, some great commercial success. I am just hoping to write some songs I would be happy and proud to sing, and a chance to share them with folks.
See you down the road.
Nelson Thomas
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Listening to Music
I love to perform and I love to play and sing. One of the great joys in my life to play music, or at least something close to music. I also enjoy going to hear others perform and play music. I really enjoy getting to meet musicians I admire and learn that they are real people willing to spend some time talking with you, even though you know you are nowhere near the level they are.
I had that expereience again last weekend. Last Friday night I drove to Decatur, GA to hear the Claire Lynch Band performing at Eddie's Attic. Claire has one of the best voices you will hear, and is easy on the eyes as well. That is a killer combination. The band consists of Jason Thomas, an extraordinary fiddle and mandolin player, as well as a great harmony singer. The bassist is Mark Schatz, an awesome musician who also plays clawhammer banjo, dances, and performs a great hambone routine. I have watched out for Mark since he was playing with the Tony Rice Unit many years ago. He is one of the world's great upright bass players. He replaced Missy Raines in the band a couple of years ago, another world class bassist. On lead guitar, mandolin, and singing harmony is Matt Wingate. He fits right in, keeping this one of the very best bands in the world of bluegrass. The guitarist for Claire until last Spring was the phenomenal Jim Hurst.
A few years ago I was at the Wartrace Music Festival in Wartrace, TN and the Claire Lynch Band was one of the featured bands at the festival. Buck and I were performing at the festival as an open mic guest, though we had a full slot of time and were included in the program that was handed out. It was a great experience and we had the privilege of getting to spend some time talking with Jim Hurst. Jim was so gracious to spend time with us and treated us as peers.
About a year after that, they were appearing at the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds in Hiawassee, GA. That is only about 15 miles from my house. So I went to that and again had the chance to talk with Jim, meet Mark, and even speak a few words with Claire. These are small things, but mean a lot to us. I have always tried to remember that when I am performing and so I take time afterward to speak with all who want to come by and say hello. I am nowhere near the level of these folks, but being on stage does put me in a category that most people do not completely identify with.
Again this past Friday, I was able to speak a few words to the band members. Jason Thomas was very nice and I enjoyed speaking with him, as well as saying hello to Mark and Matt. I was most happy to talk with Claire for a little while and to get a band photo signed by all of them. I also came away with another of their CD's to listen to as I travel - the newest one, "Whatcha Gonna Do".
These folks have been gracious enough to accept me as a friend on Facebook too. Through this medium, I have just learned that Jim Hurst will be doing a series of concerts in Georgia in the Spring, and I intend to be at one of those dates. Jim is performing as a solo act right now and I am anxious to see him again.
Being a performer may make me go to a concert with a little different slant on things, but you do not need to be a musician to enjoy a concert. Sometimes I think a non musician may even enjoy them even more. Either way, I encourage you to go whenever you get the chance to support any performer that strikes your fancy. It is good to support the arts, but sometimes it is more important to support the artists.
See you down the road.
Nelson Thomas
I had that expereience again last weekend. Last Friday night I drove to Decatur, GA to hear the Claire Lynch Band performing at Eddie's Attic. Claire has one of the best voices you will hear, and is easy on the eyes as well. That is a killer combination. The band consists of Jason Thomas, an extraordinary fiddle and mandolin player, as well as a great harmony singer. The bassist is Mark Schatz, an awesome musician who also plays clawhammer banjo, dances, and performs a great hambone routine. I have watched out for Mark since he was playing with the Tony Rice Unit many years ago. He is one of the world's great upright bass players. He replaced Missy Raines in the band a couple of years ago, another world class bassist. On lead guitar, mandolin, and singing harmony is Matt Wingate. He fits right in, keeping this one of the very best bands in the world of bluegrass. The guitarist for Claire until last Spring was the phenomenal Jim Hurst.
A few years ago I was at the Wartrace Music Festival in Wartrace, TN and the Claire Lynch Band was one of the featured bands at the festival. Buck and I were performing at the festival as an open mic guest, though we had a full slot of time and were included in the program that was handed out. It was a great experience and we had the privilege of getting to spend some time talking with Jim Hurst. Jim was so gracious to spend time with us and treated us as peers.
About a year after that, they were appearing at the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds in Hiawassee, GA. That is only about 15 miles from my house. So I went to that and again had the chance to talk with Jim, meet Mark, and even speak a few words with Claire. These are small things, but mean a lot to us. I have always tried to remember that when I am performing and so I take time afterward to speak with all who want to come by and say hello. I am nowhere near the level of these folks, but being on stage does put me in a category that most people do not completely identify with.
Again this past Friday, I was able to speak a few words to the band members. Jason Thomas was very nice and I enjoyed speaking with him, as well as saying hello to Mark and Matt. I was most happy to talk with Claire for a little while and to get a band photo signed by all of them. I also came away with another of their CD's to listen to as I travel - the newest one, "Whatcha Gonna Do".
These folks have been gracious enough to accept me as a friend on Facebook too. Through this medium, I have just learned that Jim Hurst will be doing a series of concerts in Georgia in the Spring, and I intend to be at one of those dates. Jim is performing as a solo act right now and I am anxious to see him again.
Being a performer may make me go to a concert with a little different slant on things, but you do not need to be a musician to enjoy a concert. Sometimes I think a non musician may even enjoy them even more. Either way, I encourage you to go whenever you get the chance to support any performer that strikes your fancy. It is good to support the arts, but sometimes it is more important to support the artists.
See you down the road.
Nelson Thomas
Monday, November 8, 2010
Getting back on the Water
Earlier this year, I posted about hoping to soon report on owning another canoe. Today I get to do just that. I found a canoe that was almost exactly what I have been looking for and worked out a deal with the owner. I picked it up on Saturday. I would like to put a photo on here, but it is just sitting in my back yard right now. I will post some in action in the future.
Now that I have it, I am hoping I will enjoy the activity of canoing as much as, or at least partially as much as, I did when I was younger and doing a lot of canoing. The next hurdle is finding the time and actually getting out on the water. I want Vincent to learn about the canoe and to be able to use is well and safely, and would like to bring in Patrick and Caroline as well. They are all so busy that it is hard to get time with them for these things, but I will keep trying. I think they would enjoy it too.
The first canoe I owned was really made for use on lakes, but I used it on rivers, and even took it down the Nantahala once. The second one I had was a square sterned aluminum canoe that I only took out on a few lakes. Patrick was very small at the time, so I didn't get on many rivers (or any).
Both previous canoes I have had were aluminum and I wanted one made of Royalex this time. that is an ABS composite plastic material. The Royalex is a very resilient and tough material. It flexes and goes back to its original shape, instead of denting as aluminum does. It also slides off rocks easier, aluminum tends to stick to rocks.
Those who have been around me much, know that I have been looking for another canoe for several years. My dream canoe has been an Old Town Tripper. A canoe that can be used for anything from recreation on the lake to extended trips in the wilderness and down long rivers. It will hold over 1200 pounds of people and gear. While that was my dream, I was looking at several different possibilities. My desire was to have a canoe that was a minimum of 16 feet in length, and would take a Royalex, Polyethelene, or aluminum construction of that canoe. The one material I did not want was fiberglass, as it is prone to holes when hit and not really good for river use.
My dreams of using the canoe involve day trips, overnight, weekend, and longer trips. These may be on lakes, oceans or rivers, though most likely on lakes and rivers. While I expect to stay mainly in the Southeast, - with the concentration on North Georgia, Western North Carolina, and Eastern Tennessee, - I hope to someday get farther away, such as the Western states, Canada, and Alaska. Only time will tell if any of those happen.
Now for my new (used) Canoe. It is a Blue Hole Canoe that was built in Sunbright, TN. This was one of the premier canoes of the 1970's and early 1980's, and the first of the Royalex designs. The one I have is 17 feet in length, has a rounded bottom, 15 inch depth, and slight rocker to help handle whitewater. It is very close to the Old Town Tripper in capacity and versalitity of use. While for years I wanted a green canoe (the dark green used by Old Town), though would take a red or the silver of the aluminum canoe and be perfectly happy (I had inquired on several Gurmmans while looking). In the past year, I decided that I really would prefer a red canoe. Color is not the main thing though, use is. The one I have is blue, which I have went ahead and named "Old Blue". It has seen some use, but obviously has a lot of use left in it. I hope to get a lot of that out. While I am not the whitewater paddler I was in younger years, I do plan to do some whitewater paddling.
My wife has already told me I could not go alone, though that will still be discussed further. I see no problems on going out on the lake and practicing alone, but she does. The good news is that my nephew Matthew has said he will go with me. Hopefully this will work out when I cannot get Vincent to go. Matthew already has a little experience on the water.
You may have gathered that I am excited about this development in my life. I have to clean up the canoe some. It has been hanging in a shed and needs cleaning inside and out. I then plan to try using Armor All on it to protect the color and exterior. Maybe, making it look a little newer, though if it doesnt' that is okay too.
See you down the river,
Nelson
Now that I have it, I am hoping I will enjoy the activity of canoing as much as, or at least partially as much as, I did when I was younger and doing a lot of canoing. The next hurdle is finding the time and actually getting out on the water. I want Vincent to learn about the canoe and to be able to use is well and safely, and would like to bring in Patrick and Caroline as well. They are all so busy that it is hard to get time with them for these things, but I will keep trying. I think they would enjoy it too.
The first canoe I owned was really made for use on lakes, but I used it on rivers, and even took it down the Nantahala once. The second one I had was a square sterned aluminum canoe that I only took out on a few lakes. Patrick was very small at the time, so I didn't get on many rivers (or any).
Both previous canoes I have had were aluminum and I wanted one made of Royalex this time. that is an ABS composite plastic material. The Royalex is a very resilient and tough material. It flexes and goes back to its original shape, instead of denting as aluminum does. It also slides off rocks easier, aluminum tends to stick to rocks.
Those who have been around me much, know that I have been looking for another canoe for several years. My dream canoe has been an Old Town Tripper. A canoe that can be used for anything from recreation on the lake to extended trips in the wilderness and down long rivers. It will hold over 1200 pounds of people and gear. While that was my dream, I was looking at several different possibilities. My desire was to have a canoe that was a minimum of 16 feet in length, and would take a Royalex, Polyethelene, or aluminum construction of that canoe. The one material I did not want was fiberglass, as it is prone to holes when hit and not really good for river use.
My dreams of using the canoe involve day trips, overnight, weekend, and longer trips. These may be on lakes, oceans or rivers, though most likely on lakes and rivers. While I expect to stay mainly in the Southeast, - with the concentration on North Georgia, Western North Carolina, and Eastern Tennessee, - I hope to someday get farther away, such as the Western states, Canada, and Alaska. Only time will tell if any of those happen.
Now for my new (used) Canoe. It is a Blue Hole Canoe that was built in Sunbright, TN. This was one of the premier canoes of the 1970's and early 1980's, and the first of the Royalex designs. The one I have is 17 feet in length, has a rounded bottom, 15 inch depth, and slight rocker to help handle whitewater. It is very close to the Old Town Tripper in capacity and versalitity of use. While for years I wanted a green canoe (the dark green used by Old Town), though would take a red or the silver of the aluminum canoe and be perfectly happy (I had inquired on several Gurmmans while looking). In the past year, I decided that I really would prefer a red canoe. Color is not the main thing though, use is. The one I have is blue, which I have went ahead and named "Old Blue". It has seen some use, but obviously has a lot of use left in it. I hope to get a lot of that out. While I am not the whitewater paddler I was in younger years, I do plan to do some whitewater paddling.
My wife has already told me I could not go alone, though that will still be discussed further. I see no problems on going out on the lake and practicing alone, but she does. The good news is that my nephew Matthew has said he will go with me. Hopefully this will work out when I cannot get Vincent to go. Matthew already has a little experience on the water.
You may have gathered that I am excited about this development in my life. I have to clean up the canoe some. It has been hanging in a shed and needs cleaning inside and out. I then plan to try using Armor All on it to protect the color and exterior. Maybe, making it look a little newer, though if it doesnt' that is okay too.
See you down the river,
Nelson
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Recording
I am excited about recording a CD to have available when I perform. I don't know how many of you reading this have ever tried recording anything, but it isn't as easy as it seems. Maybe it is for some people, but not for me. David and I started over two years ago working on a CD, and never finished it. We have some good tracks and some that still need work. Now I am working on a solo CD and am struggling with whether to make it completely solo or to invite in some friends to play on some tracks. I like both ideas.
My other adventure in recording was in 1994 & 1995 when David and I recorded and produced a cassette tape. I would like to digitize that to reissue as a CD also, but first things first. Recording is a challenge. The first challenge is adjusting the microphones between instrument and vocals to get the right mix and sound. I have that mostly worked out. The biggest challenge is recording the song almost perfectly and having the right energy for the song. The frustrating part is sitting down and playing the song perfectly, then turning on the recorder and messing up every other phrase. Recording is very different from playing live. Little glitches that I would never pay attention to live become a reason to discard the track. What is on that CD is forever and you want it to be right (at least I do).
I am enthusiastic for the project and have my list of songs ready. The other challenge is finding the quiet time to record. Between work, things that have to be done around the house, having everyone making noise, not to mention two dogs that like to bark whenever I try to record. Just have to keep at it. Hoping I can capture something that sounds decent and finish this project.
Thanks for sticking with me. You will know how it went when the CD is available.
See you down the road,
Nelson
My other adventure in recording was in 1994 & 1995 when David and I recorded and produced a cassette tape. I would like to digitize that to reissue as a CD also, but first things first. Recording is a challenge. The first challenge is adjusting the microphones between instrument and vocals to get the right mix and sound. I have that mostly worked out. The biggest challenge is recording the song almost perfectly and having the right energy for the song. The frustrating part is sitting down and playing the song perfectly, then turning on the recorder and messing up every other phrase. Recording is very different from playing live. Little glitches that I would never pay attention to live become a reason to discard the track. What is on that CD is forever and you want it to be right (at least I do).
I am enthusiastic for the project and have my list of songs ready. The other challenge is finding the quiet time to record. Between work, things that have to be done around the house, having everyone making noise, not to mention two dogs that like to bark whenever I try to record. Just have to keep at it. Hoping I can capture something that sounds decent and finish this project.
Thanks for sticking with me. You will know how it went when the CD is available.
See you down the road,
Nelson
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Refinding the Joy
For most of the years I have been playing, I had a saying. I would say that 'There are lots of people who play and sing better than I do, but no one enjoys it any more." That remains true, though in the last year, I feel as though I have lost a bit of that joy. Not in my core, but some in my exhibition of the joy I am feeling when I play.
It may have something to do with the stroke I had the summer of 2009, and it may not. It has happened since that time though. I first noticed it on some of the recordings we had made of performances. After listening to them, I told David (Buck) that something was missing to me. It did not sound like I was having fun. I wasn't telling many jokes, or even talking a lot. After hearing those playbacks, I started noticing it as it was happening. I wasn't as quick as normal, wasn't moving much or tapping my toes even. I was still experiencing joy inside, but it wasn't bubbling to the outside. I would find that I wasn't even smiling much of the time, and that was not the me I had been for so long.
So as I am getting started again on a solo performance road, I find myself working on songs and picking, singing, stories and jokes, and in finding the joy to share with my audience. It is there, I just have to make sure it shows. Music has to be fun to you or it will be too much work. It does take a lot of time to practice, to travel, and to perform. But it is always worth it to me. Before I was taking Blood pressure medicine, I found that performing would lower my blood pressure. Now that I am a Type 2 Diabetic, I have found that performing lowers my blood sugar just as much as walking does. It has health benefits for me, as well as spiritual and soul enriching benefits. I do love to play and perform. And I thank those of you who come out to support me as I do.
I look forward to seeing you down the road. If I don't have a smile, give me one of yours.
Nelson
It may have something to do with the stroke I had the summer of 2009, and it may not. It has happened since that time though. I first noticed it on some of the recordings we had made of performances. After listening to them, I told David (Buck) that something was missing to me. It did not sound like I was having fun. I wasn't telling many jokes, or even talking a lot. After hearing those playbacks, I started noticing it as it was happening. I wasn't as quick as normal, wasn't moving much or tapping my toes even. I was still experiencing joy inside, but it wasn't bubbling to the outside. I would find that I wasn't even smiling much of the time, and that was not the me I had been for so long.
So as I am getting started again on a solo performance road, I find myself working on songs and picking, singing, stories and jokes, and in finding the joy to share with my audience. It is there, I just have to make sure it shows. Music has to be fun to you or it will be too much work. It does take a lot of time to practice, to travel, and to perform. But it is always worth it to me. Before I was taking Blood pressure medicine, I found that performing would lower my blood pressure. Now that I am a Type 2 Diabetic, I have found that performing lowers my blood sugar just as much as walking does. It has health benefits for me, as well as spiritual and soul enriching benefits. I do love to play and perform. And I thank those of you who come out to support me as I do.
I look forward to seeing you down the road. If I don't have a smile, give me one of yours.
Nelson
Friday, October 15, 2010
Reflecting on Fall
Fall has brought special feelings within me all my life. I remember even as a child having warm and somewhat nostalgic feelings every year during the fall. Maybe it started with being raised in a rural area and realizing that fall meant the harvest and more time for families to spend together as they readied for the winter. There was still lots of work to do, but it wasn't the same as during the long, growing days of summer. It was something of a winding down of the year, and I loved it. I enjoyed the cooler days that required me to have a jacket in the mornings and evenings, and even sometimes in the afternoons.
This season continues to bring warm feelings within me. It seems to cause me to reflect more on my life, things I have done, things I have wanted to do, and some things that I miss. And not just things, but people who have been in my life, for a short time, for a long time, and family members that are no longer with us.
Also, like spring, fall is a musical time for me. It is a time that I always feel a strong draw to playing and performing. Like the days were meant to be sung about and to sing in them. It is a time for reflecting and writing. Whether writing letters, stories, or songs, it is a time to be creative. It is a time to remember and to hopefully figure how to use the lessons of the past to do better in the future.
The fall weather and leaf color also tends to call to me to be outside. I want to sit on the porch, go build a campfire, go camping, go hiking, go somewhere to be in the woods, go canoing, or almost anything just to be outside. Walking in the woods during the fall is only slightly less pleasurable than walking in the woods when it is snowing. Both have their own sounds, feel, and smells that enhance the experience.
As I sit here at work, knowing I will be here until almost dark, I am antsy to grab my guitar and go outside to pick, and maybe work on writing a new song. Maybe tomorrow.
Enjoy the fall and I'll see you down the road.
This season continues to bring warm feelings within me. It seems to cause me to reflect more on my life, things I have done, things I have wanted to do, and some things that I miss. And not just things, but people who have been in my life, for a short time, for a long time, and family members that are no longer with us.
Also, like spring, fall is a musical time for me. It is a time that I always feel a strong draw to playing and performing. Like the days were meant to be sung about and to sing in them. It is a time for reflecting and writing. Whether writing letters, stories, or songs, it is a time to be creative. It is a time to remember and to hopefully figure how to use the lessons of the past to do better in the future.
The fall weather and leaf color also tends to call to me to be outside. I want to sit on the porch, go build a campfire, go camping, go hiking, go somewhere to be in the woods, go canoing, or almost anything just to be outside. Walking in the woods during the fall is only slightly less pleasurable than walking in the woods when it is snowing. Both have their own sounds, feel, and smells that enhance the experience.
As I sit here at work, knowing I will be here until almost dark, I am antsy to grab my guitar and go outside to pick, and maybe work on writing a new song. Maybe tomorrow.
Enjoy the fall and I'll see you down the road.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Sinking in
I have the mixed blessing of having my computer at home not working. This means that I cannot update my website and other things as I would like to. It also means that I won't get 'lost' surfing the net when I should be picking more. On top of that, it means that if I want to update my blog, such as now, I have to find some quiet time at work and do it then (now).
It is sinking in that I am about to be a solo act again. As I have said before, there are things that I look forward to about that, and other things, not so much. I do know that I have a lot of work to do to be where I want to be for performing solo.
This weekend I was working on recording some for a CD. I listened to a song I had written that David and I had recorded last year while working toward a duo CD and realized that there was nothing I could do alone that would sound as good as what we did together. It made me realize how much I would miss his picking and singing beside me. There are things I can do to sound good ( I almost said good enough, but remembered that good enough seldom is), just not as good as it is with two. Kind of like Doc Watson. I have gone to see him many times in the last 35 years. I have heard him with Jack Lawrence, his Grandson Richard, with David Holt and others. He always sounds great, but has never sounded quite at great as he did with Merle and T. Michael Coleman. I will just have to work those songs out to where they sound right when I play them alone, and maybe I can have some other picking friends to join me sometimes too.
When I played solo before, it took me a while to get to the point that I felt as good about my show alone as I did as a duo. I first tried to replicate our duo show by myself. It did not work. I finally figured out what worked best for me to do alone, and then worked on new songs to add and improve my show. I am hoping, and believe, it will not take as long to get back to that point as it did the first time. I do have set lists from before to work from, and have put together a list of more songs I want to add. Now to work out the arrangements and instrumentation that best works for me and the audience.
October 16th at Unicoi will be the final Buck and Nelson Performance. David has taken time off periodically since he first started picking. I have a feeling that he may really be retiring this time. I will miss him, and I will enjoy continuing to perform. We have been friends since high school and will continue to be friends. I wish him all the best in whatever he does, and hope he finds a way he enjoys to share the talent he has on musical instruments. And I hope I may occasionally have the welcome surprise I had at several programs I played solo before and look out in the audience to see him sitting there.
I want to get back to writing more songs again. I have put that in the back and stopped doing it as much. I have several ideas for songs and need to get them on paper and add music.
I also need to get back to marketing, promoting, and booking shows. I have 3 programs to play solo between now and the end of November. I have been thinking back and remember that I set up more shows solo that I did as a duo. Part of that was because I liked to be performing regularly to keep myself sharp, and partly because I enjoy traveling more than David does. I need to pull out my list of venues, start making calls and writing letters or e-mails, then add to the list of venues I already have. I also want to start targeting places I would like to go and perform. I am thinking of taking a week or so this winter and doing a small tour through Florida. I have joined the Friends of Florida Folk and have a list of many places that have music throughout the year. So we will see.
Of course, I really need to finish my CD and have it available to sell at shows, and especially if I am to take a tour of anything out of my usual area. I do have a list of songs I plan to include and may add or take away as I see how they sound when played back to me.
I appreciate those of you who have followed me enough to find this blog. Thank you for your support, your encouragement, and for coming out to my performances. If you know of a place I could perform near you, please let me know and I will check it out.
See you down the road,
Nelson
It is sinking in that I am about to be a solo act again. As I have said before, there are things that I look forward to about that, and other things, not so much. I do know that I have a lot of work to do to be where I want to be for performing solo.
This weekend I was working on recording some for a CD. I listened to a song I had written that David and I had recorded last year while working toward a duo CD and realized that there was nothing I could do alone that would sound as good as what we did together. It made me realize how much I would miss his picking and singing beside me. There are things I can do to sound good ( I almost said good enough, but remembered that good enough seldom is), just not as good as it is with two. Kind of like Doc Watson. I have gone to see him many times in the last 35 years. I have heard him with Jack Lawrence, his Grandson Richard, with David Holt and others. He always sounds great, but has never sounded quite at great as he did with Merle and T. Michael Coleman. I will just have to work those songs out to where they sound right when I play them alone, and maybe I can have some other picking friends to join me sometimes too.
When I played solo before, it took me a while to get to the point that I felt as good about my show alone as I did as a duo. I first tried to replicate our duo show by myself. It did not work. I finally figured out what worked best for me to do alone, and then worked on new songs to add and improve my show. I am hoping, and believe, it will not take as long to get back to that point as it did the first time. I do have set lists from before to work from, and have put together a list of more songs I want to add. Now to work out the arrangements and instrumentation that best works for me and the audience.
October 16th at Unicoi will be the final Buck and Nelson Performance. David has taken time off periodically since he first started picking. I have a feeling that he may really be retiring this time. I will miss him, and I will enjoy continuing to perform. We have been friends since high school and will continue to be friends. I wish him all the best in whatever he does, and hope he finds a way he enjoys to share the talent he has on musical instruments. And I hope I may occasionally have the welcome surprise I had at several programs I played solo before and look out in the audience to see him sitting there.
I want to get back to writing more songs again. I have put that in the back and stopped doing it as much. I have several ideas for songs and need to get them on paper and add music.
I also need to get back to marketing, promoting, and booking shows. I have 3 programs to play solo between now and the end of November. I have been thinking back and remember that I set up more shows solo that I did as a duo. Part of that was because I liked to be performing regularly to keep myself sharp, and partly because I enjoy traveling more than David does. I need to pull out my list of venues, start making calls and writing letters or e-mails, then add to the list of venues I already have. I also want to start targeting places I would like to go and perform. I am thinking of taking a week or so this winter and doing a small tour through Florida. I have joined the Friends of Florida Folk and have a list of many places that have music throughout the year. So we will see.
Of course, I really need to finish my CD and have it available to sell at shows, and especially if I am to take a tour of anything out of my usual area. I do have a list of songs I plan to include and may add or take away as I see how they sound when played back to me.
I appreciate those of you who have followed me enough to find this blog. Thank you for your support, your encouragement, and for coming out to my performances. If you know of a place I could perform near you, please let me know and I will check it out.
See you down the road,
Nelson
Friday, September 10, 2010
Moving on Down the Road
So now what? Playing solo again. Did not ask for this, but am fine with it also. As I said in the previous post, I will miss having David at the performances. Though I also look forward to some aspects of performing solo.
I think that maybe I was needing a change too, though I did not realize it. My mind has been much more active in the last few days as I start preparing for the solo road. Working on songs, thinking of where to play, and even recording some for a CD. Getting a little excited about it.
Financially, it can be good. I can make less from the venues and still make more personally. There will be places that I cannot play, either because they only book bands, or the type of music does not fit. So what type music will I fit into? Not bluegrass, not new grass, or even crabgrass as David and I often joked about. I would say I am more Folk than anything as I like a wide variety of music, even some more modern songs. As I thought about bluegrass and bluegrass festivals, I got to thinking that maybe I was playing grass seed music. That is more of the music that Bluegrass was developed from. I know Bluegrass festivals have welcomed Doc Watson and Jim Hurst, but I am certainly not the picker either of those guys are. So I guess I will look more at Folk festivals when searching for festivals to play at. They are more welcoming to solo acts than a Bluegrass festival is.
Coffeehouses, parks, folk societies, restaurants, house concerts and other musical venues will be hearing from me for next year. If you have suggestions, please let me know. First I need to update my promo materials, get new solo photos, finish a CD to have available, set up my solo website, and update MySpace, also will add a Reverbnation site as a solo. Of to do all that, I need to be working hard on the music, so when I do get booked, I will be ready.
nelsonthomas.com is not available. Set up as www.nelsontmusic.com and also set up a musician facebook page as nelson T Music. And it begins.
Life is good. See you down the road.
Nelson
I think that maybe I was needing a change too, though I did not realize it. My mind has been much more active in the last few days as I start preparing for the solo road. Working on songs, thinking of where to play, and even recording some for a CD. Getting a little excited about it.
Financially, it can be good. I can make less from the venues and still make more personally. There will be places that I cannot play, either because they only book bands, or the type of music does not fit. So what type music will I fit into? Not bluegrass, not new grass, or even crabgrass as David and I often joked about. I would say I am more Folk than anything as I like a wide variety of music, even some more modern songs. As I thought about bluegrass and bluegrass festivals, I got to thinking that maybe I was playing grass seed music. That is more of the music that Bluegrass was developed from. I know Bluegrass festivals have welcomed Doc Watson and Jim Hurst, but I am certainly not the picker either of those guys are. So I guess I will look more at Folk festivals when searching for festivals to play at. They are more welcoming to solo acts than a Bluegrass festival is.
Coffeehouses, parks, folk societies, restaurants, house concerts and other musical venues will be hearing from me for next year. If you have suggestions, please let me know. First I need to update my promo materials, get new solo photos, finish a CD to have available, set up my solo website, and update MySpace, also will add a Reverbnation site as a solo. Of to do all that, I need to be working hard on the music, so when I do get booked, I will be ready.
nelsonthomas.com is not available. Set up as www.nelsontmusic.com and also set up a musician facebook page as nelson T Music. And it begins.
Life is good. See you down the road.
Nelson
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Deja Vu all over again
I love that saying by Yogi Berra. It is both amusing and accurate, as it repeats the meaning of the first part. It is a little appropriate for me right now because of my performing situation. Around 1996 David decided to stop performing, and did not perform with me for about 2 years. This year he has made the decision to retire from performing and has been telling me of the plan all year. As it stands we have a few more performances together, concluding with the Oct. 16th show at Unicoi State Park.
I will miss him standing on stage beside me. I will miss his help in creating a good performance. I will miss his excellent musicianship and instrumental ability. I will miss having him to share a rundown of how the show went. I do thank him for all years and time we have spent to get as far as we have. Thank him for his drive to be as good as possible before putting anything in the show. Thank him for pulling me above what I might have first thought possible. I have enjoyed the friendship, the comraderie, and all the music. Thank you David for 38 years along this musical road.
We started on this musical journey together in 1972. Practicing in my parents basement for a couple of years. Then getting with some other friends and beginning to perform as the Blood Mountain Boys in 1974. Later we were in a trio with Jimmy Waters called the Morningstar String Ensemble. Then around 1983 we began performing as a duo, which we continued until now, except for a couple of years in the late 1990's as I said before.
I have a job in front of me to get my shows back to a suitable level as a solo act. That requires choosing material, working on instruments and arrangements, learning new songs, writing new songs, and being ready to entertain an audience and keep them involved. I look forward to this in many ways and there are things I enjoy about performing solo. It is easy to get together to practice. If presented with an offer to play, I need only check my family's calendar for availability. I can do whatever music I feel lead to play. There are definitely more limitations to performing alone, but there are also some opportunities that go along with that. One opportunity I may work on is to travel more widely to perform. I enjoy traveling and seeing other parts of the country and world a little more than David does. So, I may work toward having some small tours at times, at least try to have enough programs to pay for some gas and maybe a camping spot.
That said, I will always welcome the opportunity to perform with David (Buck) at anytime in the future. I do not know what tomorrow will hold. I was certainly surprised last year when I had a stroke. I was blessed that it did not affect me more than it did. I do know that it has affected me though. I see that more now than I did at the time it happened. Often before when I was playing solo, I would look up in the middle of a show and see David sitting in the audience. I hope he will surprise me that way again. I appreciated his support, and the chance to do some picking together after a show as well. While we were not performing together, he was continuing to practice, and even to play at his church on occasion.
You can never have too many friends. And a good friend is not easy to come by. I have always considered David a good friend, above everything else. And that is a very good thing.
So as I begin down this road again, I hope you will watch for me and come out to encourage me, and if needed, to make some constructive comments for improvements to make. The last time I was playing solo, I started a newsletter which I named Nelson's Notes (yes that is the name of this blog now). I may see if I can make an electronic newsletter to send out now. The newsletter was a way for me to communicate things I found interesting, as well as sharing thoughts of what was on my mind, as well as interesting stories, jokes, and other things that caught my fancy.
Already, I have 2 programs for this fall as a solo act. One in September and one in November. Starting to work on next year also. I have a MySpace account already set up, though I need to add some more content, esp. music. Next I need to set up a solo website. I am searching that out now and hope to have it underway very soon. Until then you can keep an eye on our http://www.buckandnelson.com/ site for updates. I will do my best to continue to send out some e-mail blasts as well. Now, as I so often say in these posts, I will see you down the road. Be sure to stop by and say hello.
Nelson
I will miss him standing on stage beside me. I will miss his help in creating a good performance. I will miss his excellent musicianship and instrumental ability. I will miss having him to share a rundown of how the show went. I do thank him for all years and time we have spent to get as far as we have. Thank him for his drive to be as good as possible before putting anything in the show. Thank him for pulling me above what I might have first thought possible. I have enjoyed the friendship, the comraderie, and all the music. Thank you David for 38 years along this musical road.
We started on this musical journey together in 1972. Practicing in my parents basement for a couple of years. Then getting with some other friends and beginning to perform as the Blood Mountain Boys in 1974. Later we were in a trio with Jimmy Waters called the Morningstar String Ensemble. Then around 1983 we began performing as a duo, which we continued until now, except for a couple of years in the late 1990's as I said before.
I have a job in front of me to get my shows back to a suitable level as a solo act. That requires choosing material, working on instruments and arrangements, learning new songs, writing new songs, and being ready to entertain an audience and keep them involved. I look forward to this in many ways and there are things I enjoy about performing solo. It is easy to get together to practice. If presented with an offer to play, I need only check my family's calendar for availability. I can do whatever music I feel lead to play. There are definitely more limitations to performing alone, but there are also some opportunities that go along with that. One opportunity I may work on is to travel more widely to perform. I enjoy traveling and seeing other parts of the country and world a little more than David does. So, I may work toward having some small tours at times, at least try to have enough programs to pay for some gas and maybe a camping spot.
That said, I will always welcome the opportunity to perform with David (Buck) at anytime in the future. I do not know what tomorrow will hold. I was certainly surprised last year when I had a stroke. I was blessed that it did not affect me more than it did. I do know that it has affected me though. I see that more now than I did at the time it happened. Often before when I was playing solo, I would look up in the middle of a show and see David sitting in the audience. I hope he will surprise me that way again. I appreciated his support, and the chance to do some picking together after a show as well. While we were not performing together, he was continuing to practice, and even to play at his church on occasion.
You can never have too many friends. And a good friend is not easy to come by. I have always considered David a good friend, above everything else. And that is a very good thing.
So as I begin down this road again, I hope you will watch for me and come out to encourage me, and if needed, to make some constructive comments for improvements to make. The last time I was playing solo, I started a newsletter which I named Nelson's Notes (yes that is the name of this blog now). I may see if I can make an electronic newsletter to send out now. The newsletter was a way for me to communicate things I found interesting, as well as sharing thoughts of what was on my mind, as well as interesting stories, jokes, and other things that caught my fancy.
Already, I have 2 programs for this fall as a solo act. One in September and one in November. Starting to work on next year also. I have a MySpace account already set up, though I need to add some more content, esp. music. Next I need to set up a solo website. I am searching that out now and hope to have it underway very soon. Until then you can keep an eye on our http://www.buckandnelson.com/ site for updates. I will do my best to continue to send out some e-mail blasts as well. Now, as I so often say in these posts, I will see you down the road. Be sure to stop by and say hello.
Nelson
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Canoe
Well, it seems my mind has gotten away from backpacking and back to canoeing again. I have hope that I will have another canoe very soon. I have talked to a couple of people about good canoes at a reasonable price. I can hardly wait. I want to get back on the water - lakes and rivers. I want to take Vincent with me and teach him the joys of canoeing and I hope that Patrick will find time to join us as well.
It has been several years since I last had a canoe, but I haven't forgotten the joy I had while paddling. I hope that I can still find that joy and not feel too out of shape and weak. As I told Vincent though, at least we would have the river flow to help and he would not be having to stop and wait on me to catch up so often.
When I owned my first canoe, I did mostly day or afternoon trips. Sometimes on the lake and often on a local river. I always wanted to do some canoe tripping though. A time to go down some longer rivers and eventually even get on some of the western and northern rivers, historical and otherwise. That desire remains and it is my hope to be able to share that with my family.
I came along when the canoe was king and in my heart it still is. It is the most versatile in my mind and the best for all around use. In recent years though, the Kayak has taken over the rivers. It is the most maneuverable and can go places that even a canoe cannot, thanks to design that has it covered so it doesn't swamp. I do appreciate the kayak and what it is capable of. It is a beautiful boat and I have often though I would enjoy sea kayaking, especially up in Alaska. Maybe someday. But as I said, the canoe is my boat of choice. Speaking of Alaska, I used to dream of canoeing down the Yukon River, about a 2,000 mile trip. Similar to hiking the entire AT, another dream I once had.
Tomorrow we play for Ebeneezer Baptist Church in Toccoa. I know this has nothing to do with canoe trips, but it is about my lifetime love of picking and performing. We do need to finish our CD also. I have recently been working toward that and have hopes that it will soon be done. Stay tuned and I will let you know.
I love hiking, backpacking, canoeing, snow skiing, and many other outdoor activities. The outdoors are restorative for my insides. I think if more people would spend time in the wild places, they would be more inclined to want to protect our environment.
I do hope that I am able to report soon on a new canoe in my possession. Then I need to have some pictures of my trips to put up to share.
See you down the road, or maybe down the river. Just not up the creek!
Nelson
It has been several years since I last had a canoe, but I haven't forgotten the joy I had while paddling. I hope that I can still find that joy and not feel too out of shape and weak. As I told Vincent though, at least we would have the river flow to help and he would not be having to stop and wait on me to catch up so often.
When I owned my first canoe, I did mostly day or afternoon trips. Sometimes on the lake and often on a local river. I always wanted to do some canoe tripping though. A time to go down some longer rivers and eventually even get on some of the western and northern rivers, historical and otherwise. That desire remains and it is my hope to be able to share that with my family.
I came along when the canoe was king and in my heart it still is. It is the most versatile in my mind and the best for all around use. In recent years though, the Kayak has taken over the rivers. It is the most maneuverable and can go places that even a canoe cannot, thanks to design that has it covered so it doesn't swamp. I do appreciate the kayak and what it is capable of. It is a beautiful boat and I have often though I would enjoy sea kayaking, especially up in Alaska. Maybe someday. But as I said, the canoe is my boat of choice. Speaking of Alaska, I used to dream of canoeing down the Yukon River, about a 2,000 mile trip. Similar to hiking the entire AT, another dream I once had.
Tomorrow we play for Ebeneezer Baptist Church in Toccoa. I know this has nothing to do with canoe trips, but it is about my lifetime love of picking and performing. We do need to finish our CD also. I have recently been working toward that and have hopes that it will soon be done. Stay tuned and I will let you know.
I love hiking, backpacking, canoeing, snow skiing, and many other outdoor activities. The outdoors are restorative for my insides. I think if more people would spend time in the wild places, they would be more inclined to want to protect our environment.
I do hope that I am able to report soon on a new canoe in my possession. Then I need to have some pictures of my trips to put up to share.
See you down the road, or maybe down the river. Just not up the creek!
Nelson
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Picking Time
I love it when it comes back to picking time. There are times of the year when you just feel like you need to be picking, probably because it is the time you have historically done a lot of picking, or maybe the time you were first learning. Both those are usually the same times for me. Spring through Fall is the normal times. Spring and Fall are my favorites as the temperatures are more moderate, and the cool evenings just feel good for sitting around a picking.
Lately, I have been doing a lot more banjo picking. When I first started in 1972, I started on guitar. Then about a year later, I got my first banjo. I worked a lot on banjo and became the banjo player for our first group, The Blood Mountain Boys. For a few years, I played mostly banjo, though still did some rhythm guitar practice. Then in the early 1980's as we got down to three in our group, and especially when we went to the duo we still are, I played more guitar than Banjo. Now I have gotten the banjo bug again, and am working on some new and some different banjo tunes and songs. Even got a couple of new DVD's to help, including John Hartford - makes me miss his musical presense and spirit even more.
Just like my guitar picking, I have a long way to go to where I want to be, but I am enjoying the journey and will try to share some of that as we perform. I don't have quite as many programs set up this year as I have the last couple of years, but may add more as time goes on.
The end of April, first of May, we played for the BMW Motorcycle Owners of Georgia's Mountain Rally in Hiawassee. Then we Played Unicoi on June 5th and had a great time. This Friday, June 25th we are at the Old Union County Courthouse at 7:00 pm. We always look forward to our concert at the old courthouse. The rest of our schedule is on our website, www.buckandnelson.com , though I may need to update it a little bit.
As always, we hope to see some of you at our shows. We have a good time and hope you will also. But at least if we have a good time, then we know 2 people will.
See you down the trail.
Nelson
Lately, I have been doing a lot more banjo picking. When I first started in 1972, I started on guitar. Then about a year later, I got my first banjo. I worked a lot on banjo and became the banjo player for our first group, The Blood Mountain Boys. For a few years, I played mostly banjo, though still did some rhythm guitar practice. Then in the early 1980's as we got down to three in our group, and especially when we went to the duo we still are, I played more guitar than Banjo. Now I have gotten the banjo bug again, and am working on some new and some different banjo tunes and songs. Even got a couple of new DVD's to help, including John Hartford - makes me miss his musical presense and spirit even more.
Just like my guitar picking, I have a long way to go to where I want to be, but I am enjoying the journey and will try to share some of that as we perform. I don't have quite as many programs set up this year as I have the last couple of years, but may add more as time goes on.
The end of April, first of May, we played for the BMW Motorcycle Owners of Georgia's Mountain Rally in Hiawassee. Then we Played Unicoi on June 5th and had a great time. This Friday, June 25th we are at the Old Union County Courthouse at 7:00 pm. We always look forward to our concert at the old courthouse. The rest of our schedule is on our website, www.buckandnelson.com , though I may need to update it a little bit.
As always, we hope to see some of you at our shows. We have a good time and hope you will also. But at least if we have a good time, then we know 2 people will.
See you down the trail.
Nelson
Friday, March 12, 2010
Shining Times
The old time mountain men of the Rocky Mountains had a saying for good times. They would refer to them as shining times. I have had some shining times in my life and look forward to more days that will shine in my memory once they are over.
I have decided that while our lives are measured in years, we remember them in moments. I remember moments of great joy, moments of great sadness, moments of embarrassment, and moments of stupidity. I can remember how I felt in those moments and in many cases the words I said or that were said to me. However, I cannot recall what happened just before or after those moments. I guess I don't have enough gigs in my memory to remember everything, just those that deeply impress me in some way.
Those that do come back may times involve close friends, girlfriend(s) or wish were girlfriend(s), my wife, my children, my pets, my family (parents, grandparents, cousins), hiking, camping, skiing, canoing, riding motorcycles, driving, and more. I guess they are just things that happened in my life and effected me more deeply than I may have thought at the time.
I also remember missed chances to tell someone how important they were to me. Sometimes it may have been the last chance to do so, and I missed it. We all should be careful to avoid that.
In every part of my life, friendships, business, jobs, activities, music, theater, travel, politics, etc., it seems there are people that stand out and touch me more than the average person I meet in any of those endeavors. While I cannot name each one here, I am enormously appreciative of their being a part of my life, whether for a short time or for a long time.
My best friend all through grammar school, now called elementary and middle school, was Alan Tipton. He died while I was in college and I still miss him. I did go see him in the hospital a short time before he died and his mother said it was a good day for him. He knew me and we talked about school. After that they said he went downhill quickly and seldom knew much of what was going on. When I heard he had died, I felt bad that I had not gone back one more time. After much prayer, I decided it was not meant to be. I still think of him and appreciate the times we had growing up together.
Today I was practicing my guitar. Picking and singing and getting ready to record. While singing I was looking out the window in my guest bedroom/office/recording studio and saw a deer browsing on the hillside across the road. I may not remember that for a long time, but I am thankful that it happened all the same.
Playing a performing music has been one of the shining events in my life. It has been a pleasure to spend years picking with David, as we have complemented one another in our styles and attitudes. I hope we have many more years of performing together. We recently went once again to see Doc Watson perform. Many times we have driven to a Doc Watson Concert since around 1977, usually about 100 miles one way. Doc is great no matter who he is performing with. For my tastes, I think his very best music was the years we first started seeing him in person, as he was performing with Merle Watson (his son), and T. Michael Coleman on bass and harmony vocals. I know he still misses Merle and we do too. Doc recently (March 3rd) turned 87 years old. I commented to David that for us to keep up with Doc we would be playing at least another 31 years. I think I may have been more enthusiastic in this possibility than David was.
Playing with Doc this time was David Holt. We have followed David almost as long as we have Doc, beginning with his show on The Nashville Network, Fire on the Mountain. Then through recordings, concerts, radio and TV shows that he has done. David is an excellent musician and entertainer and we have tried to emulate parts of his performance techniques, believing that entertaining is important along with the music.
Raising my children was shining times also. I loved having small children and babies. I miss them being small, though I enjoy the people they have become. Someday I may have grandchildren to spoil, but not yet, and I am in no particular hurry. Those will be shining times too, I just know it.
I have great memories, a good life, and lots of dreams. I have not made a Bucket or Life list, though there are things that I hope to accomplish and am working toward several of them. Whatever it is that makes your life more enjoyable, I hope you are able to find it, to do it, to accomplish it. May you have shining memories, days, and dreams.
See you down the road.
Nelson
I have decided that while our lives are measured in years, we remember them in moments. I remember moments of great joy, moments of great sadness, moments of embarrassment, and moments of stupidity. I can remember how I felt in those moments and in many cases the words I said or that were said to me. However, I cannot recall what happened just before or after those moments. I guess I don't have enough gigs in my memory to remember everything, just those that deeply impress me in some way.
Those that do come back may times involve close friends, girlfriend(s) or wish were girlfriend(s), my wife, my children, my pets, my family (parents, grandparents, cousins), hiking, camping, skiing, canoing, riding motorcycles, driving, and more. I guess they are just things that happened in my life and effected me more deeply than I may have thought at the time.
I also remember missed chances to tell someone how important they were to me. Sometimes it may have been the last chance to do so, and I missed it. We all should be careful to avoid that.
In every part of my life, friendships, business, jobs, activities, music, theater, travel, politics, etc., it seems there are people that stand out and touch me more than the average person I meet in any of those endeavors. While I cannot name each one here, I am enormously appreciative of their being a part of my life, whether for a short time or for a long time.
My best friend all through grammar school, now called elementary and middle school, was Alan Tipton. He died while I was in college and I still miss him. I did go see him in the hospital a short time before he died and his mother said it was a good day for him. He knew me and we talked about school. After that they said he went downhill quickly and seldom knew much of what was going on. When I heard he had died, I felt bad that I had not gone back one more time. After much prayer, I decided it was not meant to be. I still think of him and appreciate the times we had growing up together.
Today I was practicing my guitar. Picking and singing and getting ready to record. While singing I was looking out the window in my guest bedroom/office/recording studio and saw a deer browsing on the hillside across the road. I may not remember that for a long time, but I am thankful that it happened all the same.
Playing a performing music has been one of the shining events in my life. It has been a pleasure to spend years picking with David, as we have complemented one another in our styles and attitudes. I hope we have many more years of performing together. We recently went once again to see Doc Watson perform. Many times we have driven to a Doc Watson Concert since around 1977, usually about 100 miles one way. Doc is great no matter who he is performing with. For my tastes, I think his very best music was the years we first started seeing him in person, as he was performing with Merle Watson (his son), and T. Michael Coleman on bass and harmony vocals. I know he still misses Merle and we do too. Doc recently (March 3rd) turned 87 years old. I commented to David that for us to keep up with Doc we would be playing at least another 31 years. I think I may have been more enthusiastic in this possibility than David was.
Playing with Doc this time was David Holt. We have followed David almost as long as we have Doc, beginning with his show on The Nashville Network, Fire on the Mountain. Then through recordings, concerts, radio and TV shows that he has done. David is an excellent musician and entertainer and we have tried to emulate parts of his performance techniques, believing that entertaining is important along with the music.
Raising my children was shining times also. I loved having small children and babies. I miss them being small, though I enjoy the people they have become. Someday I may have grandchildren to spoil, but not yet, and I am in no particular hurry. Those will be shining times too, I just know it.
I have great memories, a good life, and lots of dreams. I have not made a Bucket or Life list, though there are things that I hope to accomplish and am working toward several of them. Whatever it is that makes your life more enjoyable, I hope you are able to find it, to do it, to accomplish it. May you have shining memories, days, and dreams.
See you down the road.
Nelson
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Getting back on track/trail
October and November I was doing very well. I was walking every day and was also increasing the length of my walks as well as the amount of weight in my packs. I was also watching my diet much better to make sure my blood sugar stayed low.
Since Christmas I have not done as well, unfortunately. I have not eaten as healthy as I know I should, though I have managed to keep my blood sugar in check. The worst part is that I have not been walking regularly, and that has been the result of several factors. First is by not eating as well, I did not feel as well. Second, after being so hot natured for most of my life, I found myself feeling cold in December. My daughter reminded me that it was likely a result of the blood thinning medicine I was having to take. She is probably right, but I still did not like it. Then the first 2 weeks of January were bitterly cold, with nights in the single digits and several days that did not get above freezing. I stopped walking during this time, other than some short walks on the treadmill in the house. As I have said before, it is much harder to walk on the treadmill, and I do not have a lot of patience for it.
With this change, my weight goals have been affected. When I started I was at 234 pounds, the highest of my life - though I was weighed at the doctors office at 242, but that was fully clothed, with boots and jacket on. That was when I bought the new scales for the house to allow me to keep up with just my weight, not the weight of my clothes.
I had gotten down to 227. This morning I was at 231.2, below my high point, but farther away from my target weight of 185. Time to get back on my 5 word diet - eat less and exercise more. Part of the eating problem was all the nice folks at Branan Lodge that kept bringing me goodies to eat, along with rich foods for the staff during the holidays. While I have good will power, there are times that I do not adequately exercise it, especially when it concerns food.
My goal of hiking all of the AT in Georgia before June is in jeopardy if I don't get back on track very soon. I was disappointed with how tired I got on our short 5.2 mile hike for my birthday. So now I am even worse than I was then. I have started back though and am already feeling more energy.
Part of this is physical and part is psychological. Thinking you can and being enthusiastic about doing it, makes up for a lot of physical unpreparedness, but not all of it. The psychological will help push me to get ready physically though. I am not as thrilled about the prospect of backpacking when the weather is in the teens and twenties right now. So I may be doing more of the day hikes for the next month and a half or two months, then getting going on the overnights. Though we are about to run into Vincent's soccer season. They are doing conditioning this week and tryouts are next week. The first game is Feb. 22.
I do have his game schedule though and can start to plan for weekends around all our schedules now. I guess we need to adopt trail names to use while on the AT (Appalachian Trail). BTW, I shared on Facebook about 2 shirts that I found on the Appalachian Trail Conservancy website and liked. Need to let you know too. One said "Allergic to cities". I love that. The other was really good for hiking, "Same shirt, different day". Been there, done that.
Hiking and backpacking is a real help in the exercise area and for keeping blood sugar low. I also love eating what is cooked outdoors. The flavor is always so good, and after a big day of hiking, the stomach is very much ready for some nourishment. Talking about it is getting me to wanting to hit the trail. Gotta keep that frame of mind.
It would be nice to upgrade my camera also. The one I have takes pretty good pictures, but not the kind of photography my old Minolta SLR would take. Maybe I will use the old Minolta some until I can upgrade my digital.
The other thing I am doing is regrowing my beard, which feels better in the cold weather and in the woods. I got a wild hair and shaved it off about a week and half ago. Why I would do that in the middle of January is a mystery. I immediately wished I had left it on and have now started the regrowth. The worst part of it is having about 3 weeks of looking grubby and unkempt.
I love the winter woods, however I am looking forward to spring and seeing the new growth and to watch the wildlife become more abundant.
Since Christmas I have not done as well, unfortunately. I have not eaten as healthy as I know I should, though I have managed to keep my blood sugar in check. The worst part is that I have not been walking regularly, and that has been the result of several factors. First is by not eating as well, I did not feel as well. Second, after being so hot natured for most of my life, I found myself feeling cold in December. My daughter reminded me that it was likely a result of the blood thinning medicine I was having to take. She is probably right, but I still did not like it. Then the first 2 weeks of January were bitterly cold, with nights in the single digits and several days that did not get above freezing. I stopped walking during this time, other than some short walks on the treadmill in the house. As I have said before, it is much harder to walk on the treadmill, and I do not have a lot of patience for it.
With this change, my weight goals have been affected. When I started I was at 234 pounds, the highest of my life - though I was weighed at the doctors office at 242, but that was fully clothed, with boots and jacket on. That was when I bought the new scales for the house to allow me to keep up with just my weight, not the weight of my clothes.
I had gotten down to 227. This morning I was at 231.2, below my high point, but farther away from my target weight of 185. Time to get back on my 5 word diet - eat less and exercise more. Part of the eating problem was all the nice folks at Branan Lodge that kept bringing me goodies to eat, along with rich foods for the staff during the holidays. While I have good will power, there are times that I do not adequately exercise it, especially when it concerns food.
My goal of hiking all of the AT in Georgia before June is in jeopardy if I don't get back on track very soon. I was disappointed with how tired I got on our short 5.2 mile hike for my birthday. So now I am even worse than I was then. I have started back though and am already feeling more energy.
Part of this is physical and part is psychological. Thinking you can and being enthusiastic about doing it, makes up for a lot of physical unpreparedness, but not all of it. The psychological will help push me to get ready physically though. I am not as thrilled about the prospect of backpacking when the weather is in the teens and twenties right now. So I may be doing more of the day hikes for the next month and a half or two months, then getting going on the overnights. Though we are about to run into Vincent's soccer season. They are doing conditioning this week and tryouts are next week. The first game is Feb. 22.
I do have his game schedule though and can start to plan for weekends around all our schedules now. I guess we need to adopt trail names to use while on the AT (Appalachian Trail). BTW, I shared on Facebook about 2 shirts that I found on the Appalachian Trail Conservancy website and liked. Need to let you know too. One said "Allergic to cities". I love that. The other was really good for hiking, "Same shirt, different day". Been there, done that.
Hiking and backpacking is a real help in the exercise area and for keeping blood sugar low. I also love eating what is cooked outdoors. The flavor is always so good, and after a big day of hiking, the stomach is very much ready for some nourishment. Talking about it is getting me to wanting to hit the trail. Gotta keep that frame of mind.
It would be nice to upgrade my camera also. The one I have takes pretty good pictures, but not the kind of photography my old Minolta SLR would take. Maybe I will use the old Minolta some until I can upgrade my digital.
The other thing I am doing is regrowing my beard, which feels better in the cold weather and in the woods. I got a wild hair and shaved it off about a week and half ago. Why I would do that in the middle of January is a mystery. I immediately wished I had left it on and have now started the regrowth. The worst part of it is having about 3 weeks of looking grubby and unkempt.
I love the winter woods, however I am looking forward to spring and seeing the new growth and to watch the wildlife become more abundant.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Music - Pursuing and Pursued
After a show a couple of years ago, a gentleman asked David and I if we did this for a living. My answer was that we had to work for a living and we did this for a life.
Music has been around me all my life. My dad's family all played music. He was the only one that did not play an instrument. My Grandpa Thomas would teach gospel singing in the area, one uncle played with a bluegrass group, another uncle had a gospel quartet, and still another had a natural talent for music and was always singing or playing something, though he was not in a group as such. When he was working on the fiddle, he borrowed the bow from my fiddle for a time until he got one to go with his fiddle. He lived directly across the road from us and I remember summer nights hearing him on his front porch playing. No lights on, just enjoying the night and playing on his porch.
Several cousins also played music. Several were piano players and others with guitars or such. One has played with several professional groups over the years. Another helped get money during college by playing at coffeehouses and such.
I remember even when I was small singing and making up songs as I played. My older sister once made a comment to me about that, which I always remembered as I had not noticed it as much as she had. When I was really small, I am told that I would play my toy banjo and sing for everyone that came in. Guess I am just continuing that natural tendency.
As I said in an earlier post, I was always drawn to music and planned to play something. I put that on a back burner until getting the guitar in 1972. Then I went full blast and spent hours a day working on the instrument. After a couple of years on the guitar, I became interested in the banjo. Back to see Cecil Lance an buy and little $80 banjo he had at his store. I also got an instruction book and tapes to get started. I remember a few times going to sleep as I lay on bed doing banjo rolls.
I then played mostly banjo for a few years as we formed a band and we had 3 other guitar players already. Those were fun years and I was able to learn a lot as I listened to different people and also played with these other musicians.
But it is hard to keep a band together and we began to drift on to other things. Next we played as a trio with Jimmy Waters, David, and myself. I still played a good bit of banjo, but began to drift back to more guitar as well. We also traded off playing the upright bass during those years as well. This is the time I began to sing too. Jimmy was an outstanding vocalist and helped me fnd my voice and stay in key. I am so happy this happened as I love to sing. I don't think I am a great singer still, but am much better and truly enjoy singing. The music is great, but it is the songs that covey the message.
As Jimmy moved to other areas, David and I began our career as a duo. There are great things about playing in a full band, though I have found I enjoy playing as a duo or trio most. There are things you can do as a duo that you can't as a band, and vice versa. I enjoy listening to other duos and trios as well. I think it is a more intimate feel to the music, and brings out a little of the personal side of playing music.
It just struck me that I may want to start taking more time with these posts and rereading them to make sure they flow well and are readable. With this I am simply recounting some general things that happened.
The title of this post explains a little of my, and David's, relationship with music. It has pursued us and we have pursued it. When I don't play, there is something missing in my life and I do not feel right until I begin to play again. There is always another song I want to learn, another lick I need to add to my picking, and sometimes another instrument that catches my ear and says, don't you want to play me too.
While I have had to work for a living, I have also worked hard to make sure my schedule allowed me to still play music.
A cap I got from Cecil Lance says "Born to pick, forced to work".
See you down the road.
Music has been around me all my life. My dad's family all played music. He was the only one that did not play an instrument. My Grandpa Thomas would teach gospel singing in the area, one uncle played with a bluegrass group, another uncle had a gospel quartet, and still another had a natural talent for music and was always singing or playing something, though he was not in a group as such. When he was working on the fiddle, he borrowed the bow from my fiddle for a time until he got one to go with his fiddle. He lived directly across the road from us and I remember summer nights hearing him on his front porch playing. No lights on, just enjoying the night and playing on his porch.
Several cousins also played music. Several were piano players and others with guitars or such. One has played with several professional groups over the years. Another helped get money during college by playing at coffeehouses and such.
I remember even when I was small singing and making up songs as I played. My older sister once made a comment to me about that, which I always remembered as I had not noticed it as much as she had. When I was really small, I am told that I would play my toy banjo and sing for everyone that came in. Guess I am just continuing that natural tendency.
As I said in an earlier post, I was always drawn to music and planned to play something. I put that on a back burner until getting the guitar in 1972. Then I went full blast and spent hours a day working on the instrument. After a couple of years on the guitar, I became interested in the banjo. Back to see Cecil Lance an buy and little $80 banjo he had at his store. I also got an instruction book and tapes to get started. I remember a few times going to sleep as I lay on bed doing banjo rolls.
I then played mostly banjo for a few years as we formed a band and we had 3 other guitar players already. Those were fun years and I was able to learn a lot as I listened to different people and also played with these other musicians.
But it is hard to keep a band together and we began to drift on to other things. Next we played as a trio with Jimmy Waters, David, and myself. I still played a good bit of banjo, but began to drift back to more guitar as well. We also traded off playing the upright bass during those years as well. This is the time I began to sing too. Jimmy was an outstanding vocalist and helped me fnd my voice and stay in key. I am so happy this happened as I love to sing. I don't think I am a great singer still, but am much better and truly enjoy singing. The music is great, but it is the songs that covey the message.
As Jimmy moved to other areas, David and I began our career as a duo. There are great things about playing in a full band, though I have found I enjoy playing as a duo or trio most. There are things you can do as a duo that you can't as a band, and vice versa. I enjoy listening to other duos and trios as well. I think it is a more intimate feel to the music, and brings out a little of the personal side of playing music.
It just struck me that I may want to start taking more time with these posts and rereading them to make sure they flow well and are readable. With this I am simply recounting some general things that happened.
The title of this post explains a little of my, and David's, relationship with music. It has pursued us and we have pursued it. When I don't play, there is something missing in my life and I do not feel right until I begin to play again. There is always another song I want to learn, another lick I need to add to my picking, and sometimes another instrument that catches my ear and says, don't you want to play me too.
While I have had to work for a living, I have also worked hard to make sure my schedule allowed me to still play music.
A cap I got from Cecil Lance says "Born to pick, forced to work".
See you down the road.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Getting Started
The summer of 1971 I had just graduated high school. A family friend, and man who had bought some properties from my dad, had asked me to check on his two cabins periodically through the summer. The reason for this is that a year before, someone had taken a truck to one of them and taken almost all his furniture and other items from the fairly secluded cabin. In the fall he paid me an amount for the summer. From this pay I kept out about $90 to be used to buy a guitar.
I added another $10.00 in the spring and went to see Cecil Lance at Lance Dry Goods and Music Store. He had a nice little Yamaha FG180, but wanted to get $130 for it and the chipboard case. I went to my dad to see about getting the difference from him. He called Cecil and negotiated it down to $110 and I went to pick up my new guitar.
So the spring quarter of my freshman year at UGA, I began my road to playing music. I listened especially to everything John Denver came out with and tried my best to learn some of his music. Vocally it was way beyond me, and instrumentally was also beyond my abilities at the time. Still I worked on songs such as House of Rising Sun, Blowing in the Wind, Proud Mary, and some folk songs. Some friends would kid me about the 3 songs I knew. This did not bother me as I was working on more songs, was proud to know at least three, and knew that was more than they could do.
For most of my life I had been drawn to music for reasons that I did not understand. But it was pursuing me and now I was pursuing it. My dad had bought a fiddle for me before I started to school. I still have that fiddle and will tell you more about it later. I also had an old Stella guitar. Unfortunately, it had a warped neck and was almost impossible to fret. My new Yamaha allowed me to really start trying to play music.
David Buchanan and I were already friends from high school and our parents house was about 200 yards apart. David worked as a lifeguard at Vogel in the summers. My family put in a swimming pool at our house, mainly for my younger sister. She and her friends would use the pool during the day. I and my friends would use the pool at night, often at 11:00 pm, midnight and even later. The pool was heated, which helped, since the night air was usually around 60 degrees or cooler.
David already new some guitar and had been playing some around church, and school chorus. At that time we decided to work some together on music. This started a musical partnership that has lasted ever since, with several different incarnations, and a few times performing apart as well.
The first incarnation of performing with David came as the Blood Mountain Boys. That began after I had taken up the banjo and he had begun to play the mandolin. We picked up Mike Toms of Warner Robins on guitar and lead vocals, as well as another Blairsville friend Rusty McClure on bass and bass vocals, as well as being all our entertainment with his humor and funny stunts. Later we added Steve Colwell on guitar and vocals, and even later Mike's friend Jay Bryant joined us.
Over the years I have mentally beat myself up for all the time I spent on music, instead of concentrating on working to make more money. The bottom line is that the music has been at least as important to my life as money could ever have been. It would be hard to imagine my life without the music in it. I have been happiest on stage, though I still get a little nervous before going on. Once started, I feel at home.
I have now gone through several instruments and have the best guitar I have ever owned and the one that fits me completely, my Gallagher Doc Watson. I also have a banjo that I expect to stay with from now on as well, a GTR copy of a pre-war Gibson Mastertone. It is wonderful to play on these outstanding instruments. It is like that feeling I got when I first played on that Yamaha and realized a dream to play a guitar. I am a long way from playing as well as I want to still, but a long way from that beginning. If I could have heard how I play now when I started, I would have thought "If I could only play that well, I would be happy". Satisfaction with how you play is a moving line. I am happy to be where I am, but feel a strong desire to continue to improve.
I added another $10.00 in the spring and went to see Cecil Lance at Lance Dry Goods and Music Store. He had a nice little Yamaha FG180, but wanted to get $130 for it and the chipboard case. I went to my dad to see about getting the difference from him. He called Cecil and negotiated it down to $110 and I went to pick up my new guitar.
So the spring quarter of my freshman year at UGA, I began my road to playing music. I listened especially to everything John Denver came out with and tried my best to learn some of his music. Vocally it was way beyond me, and instrumentally was also beyond my abilities at the time. Still I worked on songs such as House of Rising Sun, Blowing in the Wind, Proud Mary, and some folk songs. Some friends would kid me about the 3 songs I knew. This did not bother me as I was working on more songs, was proud to know at least three, and knew that was more than they could do.
For most of my life I had been drawn to music for reasons that I did not understand. But it was pursuing me and now I was pursuing it. My dad had bought a fiddle for me before I started to school. I still have that fiddle and will tell you more about it later. I also had an old Stella guitar. Unfortunately, it had a warped neck and was almost impossible to fret. My new Yamaha allowed me to really start trying to play music.
David Buchanan and I were already friends from high school and our parents house was about 200 yards apart. David worked as a lifeguard at Vogel in the summers. My family put in a swimming pool at our house, mainly for my younger sister. She and her friends would use the pool during the day. I and my friends would use the pool at night, often at 11:00 pm, midnight and even later. The pool was heated, which helped, since the night air was usually around 60 degrees or cooler.
David already new some guitar and had been playing some around church, and school chorus. At that time we decided to work some together on music. This started a musical partnership that has lasted ever since, with several different incarnations, and a few times performing apart as well.
The first incarnation of performing with David came as the Blood Mountain Boys. That began after I had taken up the banjo and he had begun to play the mandolin. We picked up Mike Toms of Warner Robins on guitar and lead vocals, as well as another Blairsville friend Rusty McClure on bass and bass vocals, as well as being all our entertainment with his humor and funny stunts. Later we added Steve Colwell on guitar and vocals, and even later Mike's friend Jay Bryant joined us.
Over the years I have mentally beat myself up for all the time I spent on music, instead of concentrating on working to make more money. The bottom line is that the music has been at least as important to my life as money could ever have been. It would be hard to imagine my life without the music in it. I have been happiest on stage, though I still get a little nervous before going on. Once started, I feel at home.
I have now gone through several instruments and have the best guitar I have ever owned and the one that fits me completely, my Gallagher Doc Watson. I also have a banjo that I expect to stay with from now on as well, a GTR copy of a pre-war Gibson Mastertone. It is wonderful to play on these outstanding instruments. It is like that feeling I got when I first played on that Yamaha and realized a dream to play a guitar. I am a long way from playing as well as I want to still, but a long way from that beginning. If I could have heard how I play now when I started, I would have thought "If I could only play that well, I would be happy". Satisfaction with how you play is a moving line. I am happy to be where I am, but feel a strong desire to continue to improve.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Welcome to Nelson's Notes
In the fall of 1998, David "Buck" Buchanan decided he did not want to perform music for a while. We had been performing together as a duo for around 16 years at that time. David is the better musician, but I am a bit more of a ham. So I decided that I would continue to perform as a solo act.
David has periodically taken time off from performing. Each time he has spent the time learning more and has always come back stronger than before. This was no different. Many of my solo show, I would look up and see David in the audience. Then we would take time after the show to do some picking together.
As another outlet for me during this time, I started a newsletter called Nelson's Notes. This was a play on musical notes as well as written notes, and flowed well with my name. I mailed several of these newsletters between May of 1999 and Summer of 2005. I had been working on another, that never quite got finished. Yesterday, I decided that I could do a blog to replace that newsletter, and use the same name. There are things I did on the newsletter, that I cannot here, such as various columns and themes. I did have a performance calendar that won't be here, but you can find that at http://www.buckandnelson.com/ There are also things I can do here that I could not on the newsletter, such as photos.
The newsletter had stories, jokes, quotes I liked, copies of e-mails I enjoyed, and some writings I had on things that were on my mind. When I started the newsletter it had several ideas in mind. One was another creative outlet for me. Another was that I had gotten the idea the I might like to try writing, such as essays or articles for magazines, and maybe even a book in the future. I thought this would give me some practice toward that thought and goal I think it was a help, and I enjoyed producing them. I had several positive responses and felt good about that.
The timing of the issues was a little erratic, varying from 3 or 4 times a year to only twice a year. This format may make me write things a little more often, but will not have all the variety that was on a single newsletter. The parts can be put in at different times. I hope you find some things here that you enjoy.
My children are wanting me to write up some of my memories of growing up in the mountains. I may put some of those essays on here as well. I'll see as time goes. I have an idea for this, but not yet a firm plan. If you have suggestions, please leave them as a comment or e-mail me. Thank you for your visit.
David has periodically taken time off from performing. Each time he has spent the time learning more and has always come back stronger than before. This was no different. Many of my solo show, I would look up and see David in the audience. Then we would take time after the show to do some picking together.
As another outlet for me during this time, I started a newsletter called Nelson's Notes. This was a play on musical notes as well as written notes, and flowed well with my name. I mailed several of these newsletters between May of 1999 and Summer of 2005. I had been working on another, that never quite got finished. Yesterday, I decided that I could do a blog to replace that newsletter, and use the same name. There are things I did on the newsletter, that I cannot here, such as various columns and themes. I did have a performance calendar that won't be here, but you can find that at http://www.buckandnelson.com/ There are also things I can do here that I could not on the newsletter, such as photos.
The newsletter had stories, jokes, quotes I liked, copies of e-mails I enjoyed, and some writings I had on things that were on my mind. When I started the newsletter it had several ideas in mind. One was another creative outlet for me. Another was that I had gotten the idea the I might like to try writing, such as essays or articles for magazines, and maybe even a book in the future. I thought this would give me some practice toward that thought and goal I think it was a help, and I enjoyed producing them. I had several positive responses and felt good about that.
The timing of the issues was a little erratic, varying from 3 or 4 times a year to only twice a year. This format may make me write things a little more often, but will not have all the variety that was on a single newsletter. The parts can be put in at different times. I hope you find some things here that you enjoy.
My children are wanting me to write up some of my memories of growing up in the mountains. I may put some of those essays on here as well. I'll see as time goes. I have an idea for this, but not yet a firm plan. If you have suggestions, please leave them as a comment or e-mail me. Thank you for your visit.
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