Live @ Blackbird Tattoo 2016-08-27 (Video)

Thanks to Kevin Reilly from Relative Pitch Records for providing this video -- enjoy!

Playlist Week of 2016-01-23

* Boulez: Répons, etc. (Enemble InterContemporain/Boulez) (DG CD)

* Sonny Clark Trio: The 45 Sessions (Blue Note CD)

* John Abercrombie: Timeless (ECM LP)

* John Abercrombie/Dave Holland/Jack DeJohnette: Gateway (ECM LP)

* Terje Rypdal/Miroslav Vitous/Jack DeJohnette (ECM LP)

* Mary Halvorson Octet: I-Beam, Brooklyn, NY 2015-12-14 (AUD WAV)

* Kris Davis: Massive Threads (Thirsty Ear CD)

* Rodger Coleman & Sam Byrd: Perihelion (master) (WAV)

* Rodger Coleman: Portland Brew 12 South, Nashville, TN 2016-01-20 (AUD WAV)

* Tangerine Dream: Alpha Centauri/Atem (Brain 2LP)

* Tangerine Dream: Tangents 1973-1983 (d.4-5) (Virgin 5CD)

* Klaus Schulze: Live (Brain 2LP)

* Soft Machine: Triple Echo (Harvest 3LP)

* Steve Roach: Structures from Silence (Fortuna CD)

* Steve Roach & Robert Rich: Soma (Hearts of Space CD)

* Robert Rich: Seven Veils (Hearts of Space CD)

* David Sylvian: Gone To Earth (Virgin 2LP)

* Porcupine Tree: Stars Die: The Delirium Years 1991-1997 (KScope 2CD)

* Earth: The Bees Made Honey in the Lion’s Head (Southern Lord 2LP)

* Sunn O))) & Ulver: Terrestrials (Southern Lord LP)

* Ryley Walker: All Kinds of You (Tompkins Square LP)

†=iPod/iTunes

‡=car

Commentary:

Although the day started out snowy and awful, the weather cleared up enough to make it downtown for the gig on Wednesday night. I was more than a little anxious about whether or not I could pull off a solo guitar set -- but it went even better than I could have possibly expected.

Aside from a minor technical glitch which forced me to re-start the second piece, things went smoothly and  I found myself "in the zone" (or "that other, better world") and was amazed at the end to discover that I had easily filled up my allotted time. And, by the time my set was over, the place was pretty well packed with attentive and appreciative listeners, with some folks even coming up to me to compliment my performance. One dude told me, "Man, that's the most creative music I've ever heard played on a Paul Reed Smith guitar!" Haha. I will take that as a compliment here in Guitar Town!

It was delightful to see Susan Alcorn again and her set was, of course, utterly sublime, including an impromptu tribute to the late Paul Bley.  I was truly honored to be sharing the stage with such an amazing musician and her kind, effusive words regarding my music were sincere and deeply inspiring. I do not pretend to be at her level -- but I am encouraged to just keep doing my thing.

Then, to top it all off, Carissa Stolting posted photographs and wrote a fantastically poetical review at the Left Bank blog which, honestly, took my breath away. It is so unbelievably gratifying to know that my music had an effect on someone. Go read the whole thing; it's wonderful! But this line made me laugh out loud: "Coleman for sonic president: let no sound go unemployed!" Right on.

Thanks again to FMRL and Portland Brew 12 South for making this (and so many other wonderful events) happen.

You can hear an audience recording of my set on SoundCloud. Please let me know what you think!

Playlist Week of 2015-11-07

* Nono: Prometeo: Tragedia dell’ascolto (Ensemble Modern/Metzmacher) (EMI 2CD)

* Miles Davis: Pangaea (Sony 2CD)

* Sam Rivers: The Complete Blue Note Sessions (Blue Note/Mosaic 5LP)

* Bobby Hutcherson: Waiting (Blue Note LP)

* Bobby Hutcherson: The View From The Inside (Blue Note LP)

* Bobby Hutcherson: Highway One (Columbia LP)

* John Abercrombie Quartet: 39 Steps (ECM CD)

* Amouar Brahem: The Astounding Eyes of Rita (ECM CD)

* Grateful Dead: Dave’s Picks Vol.16: Springfield, MA 3/28/73 (selections) (GDP/Rhino 3HDCD)

* Frank Zappa: Roxy: The Movie (Zappa/Universal CD/BD)

* Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Ragged Glory (Reprise CD)

* Strawbs: Hero & Heroine (A&M LP)

* Tangerine Dream: Rubycon (Virgin LP)

* Tangerine Dream: Encore: Live (Virgin 2LP)

* PFM: Photos of Ghosts (Manticore LP)

* Pete Bardens: Heart To Heart (Arista LP)

* Galaxy: Nature’s Clear Well (Breeze/Import LP)

* Love And Rockets: Love And Rockets (Beggars Banquet LP)

* Porcupine Tree: The Sky Moves Sideways (d.2) (KScope 2CD)

* Jeff Buckley: Grace (Columbia CD)

* Goldfrapp: Seventh Tree (Mute CD)

* Sleep: “The Clarity” (Praise Iommi 12”)

* Agalloch: The White EP (Agalloch/Bandcamp ALAC) †/‡

†=iPod/iTunes

‡=car

Commentary:

Although my birthday is not until next weekend, I got myself a little present: a limited edition PRS 30th Anniversary Custom 24.

And, holy cow, is she a beauty!

I've been playing guitar (off and on) for over thirty years but have never owned a really nice instrument -- until now. Known for their gorgeous carved maple tops and first-rate finishes, Paul Reed Smith guitars are intended to be not only lovely to look at but also imminently playable. Right out of the box, I wailed away for five hours straight -- which really tells you all you need to know about this guitar.

It's the little things that really add up to an extraordinary instrument. Beyond the aesthetic touches (mother-of-pearl inlays, ivoroid purfling, hybrid gold/nickel hardware, etc.), this guitar is a sheer pleasure to touch. Even unplugged, it resonates and sustains unlike any guitar I've ever played and the two-octave, set neck speaks and intonates like a dream. Plug it in and a world of tones await, with new 85/15 pickups and brilliant five-way switching which allows a highly useful combination of humbucking and single-coil sounds. Add in the silky smooth PRS tremolo system and Phase III locking tuners and this guitar can pretty much do it all.

Now, some folks don't like PRS guitars -- and that's fine. But to denigrate the Custom 24 because it's neither a Fender nor a Gibson misses the point. When Paul Reed Smith built his first guitar back in 1985, his goal was to solve what he perceived as the problems inherent in both designs and his quest for perfection continues to this day. The Custom 24 is its own thing. No, it doesn't sound or feel like a Les Paul or a Stratocaster -- but neither of those instruments sound or feel like this one. And I've certainly never enjoyed playing a Les Paul or Strat nearly as much as I love playing the Custom 24. That is all that really matters to me.

Expensive? No doubt. But the more time I spend playing (hours and hours at a stretch), the more I realize she is worth every penny. Happy Birthday to me!

Birds & Guitars

French sound-artist, Céleste Boursier-Mougenot, has combined two of my very favorite things in this piece: birds and electric guitars. Beautiful!