[Daryl Jones]

Jacki, Seagull guitars are made in Quebec, mostly hand crafted from Canadian grown and harvested woods. Hardware is all Godin, and the electronics are Godin spec supplied by Fishman. Simon & Patrick, Larivee, Art & Lutherie as we as the actual Godin Brand guitars themselves are all part of the same family. This is my 3rd Seagull in the last 20 years. Banjo intrigues me, but finger picking isn’t my Forte at all…I need to work harder at that. I find my technique (lack?) Just doesn’t bring out the necessary tonal voicing required to sound good. The Twins could certainly take me to school on that…

[Daryl Jones]

New guitar is settled in and fits well with the family. Had a short session with a buddy yesterday afternoon and it sounded pretty good with the two of us jamming a bit. Something about fresh glue and wood aromas that stirs the juices some.

[Daryl Jones]

I have an autographed photo of Don Henley which I treasure.
I used to have a souvenir t-shirt from Colin James <font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”>/National Steel which he was also kind enough to sign for me at the ’93 Grey Cup where he was playing (that is another story for another time) outside the stadium. But some fool wore it too often and the felt pen signature faded out…really stupid on my part.</font>
<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”>Any of you Canadians out there may recall a certain place kicker for the Edmonton Eskimos football team, Dave Cutler. He is an outstanding cartoonist, and he and I played a few charity golf tournaments together some years back. He was kind enough to draw </font>caricatures<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”> of us on our team photo one night after the banquet and signed them. Still have that.</font>

<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”>And of course a certain pair of Twins that signed their Scribbles, cards, and calendars!😍</font>

[Daryl Jones]

Em, anybody know where that gibberish and weird characters comes from in my posts?

[Daryl Jones]

While I wasn’t really a fan, there is little doubt that David’s passing will leave another void in the music world. Given the era that I grew up in, I am very familiar with CSNY and also their individual accomplishments and work, and like it or not, he was a driving force in the world of music.
As I age, it seems more and more of my idols and familiars “climb that stairway”, that is the way of things.
The “day the music died” is an ongoing process, and more will inevitably follow. But thankfully there are Mona and Lisa and hopefully many more that will come along as well. I’m seeing some great young guitarists and talented young people making themselves known. And a lot of them are young ladies. Feelin’ Groovy came out of my formative/impressionable years: the 60’s, but it’s still happening today some 6 decades later. It’s good to see.

[Daryl Jones]

Well, not to early IMO. But certainly an impossibility for me to choose that’s for sure.
They both spark emotional responses in their very obvious love of music, and it goes far beyond technical prowess and instrument skills. They both offer up such feeling and presence in their playing and vocals, which really is what all great performers do. I have been on an emotional rollercoaster since I started following them less than two years ago, first with the clips on FB and Youtube, and now with the club membership and seeing the work side of their efforts and continually building successes. This Christmas definitely pushed me over the top seeing the early days as young children and re-watching the “Alone” recording. If that doesn’t tug at the heart strings, then one must have no soul at all.
And of course, they are both pictures of loveliness personified. To choose one over the other is a total impossibility I think. They are two halves of the whole: Yin and Yang, Day and night…one cannot exist without the other. But neither can one be without the other. If that sounds too deep and weird, my studies of Eastern philosophy and martial arts are to blame, it’s just a part of me that rises to the surface all the time.

And I thank God for the day I discovered them and their incredible talents. They inspire this old, fumbling guitar player wannabe to reach for loftier heights.

[Daryl Jones]

Happy Birthday Jacki! I hope your day is filled with love and joy.

Diana, my condolences as well. I know first hand the loss of parents, but I was fortunate to have parents that lived very happily into their 90’s.

[Daryl Jones]

Isn’t it amazing how so many different music genres manage to seek and find such common ground?
So often in my (long ago) past we had arguments (myself as a stage and concert band player versus my father and his sisters, all classical piano buffs) about how any form of music beyond big band and classical had zero relevance and lacked any form of skill level regardless of the instruments being played. Naturally me being the ripe old age of 16 I countered with Burt Bacharach, Bob Dylan, Elton John, and yes Ian Anderson/Jethro Tull before they refused to listen to my side any longer. WTH did anyone my age and experience know anyway? I even went so far as to sit them down and make them listen to side one of the Jesus Christ Superstar original stage album, and not even Tim Rice and his haunting lyrics coupled with Andrew LLoyd Weber’s brilliant arranging nor Ian Gillan’s astounding vocal range could sway them away from it’s “sacrilegious” properties. Finally I won one of my Aunts over with Elton John’s Funeral For a Friend, albeit grudgingly.

When my parents attended our stage band’s performance at a music festival on a rather prestigious hall in Edmonton and took second prize, even my father had to give in a bit. Our set of three included nothing but (then) popular compositions of Jimmy Webb, Burt Bacharach and Chicago. Didn’t gain me any time on the living room record player with my Deep Purple and Black Sabbath albums afterward though. At least not when they were home haha.
But it goes to show that all music is related in one way or another. Only our predispositions and prejudices limit the success and popularity of what someone else enjoys.
Staying groovy also means accepting and being able to “hear” Jimmy over and above the revamped chords he made popular with his incredible talents with a guitar.

[Daryl Jones]

Nicely written David!

[Daryl Jones]

So much music on the airwaves from the 60’s (and before) was all mono recording and mono playback. FM wasn’t heard of in my world until well into the 70’s, and later into the 80’s we had a contemporary station that broadcast in AM stereo for a while. The station still exists, but they are a totally different format now, all talk shows and phone-in broadcasts. But they still have a really cool gal as a music director…go figure.
My listening in my pre-teen years was that particular station on a cheap little hand held transistor radio, and all the 60’s Beatles, Stones, Steppenwolf etc songs were played on that feeble little gizmo, unless I was alone in the house and had full control of the big Zenith console in the living room. Then came the 70’s and a driver’s permit and the requisite under-dash 8-track machine…yaaaaassss!
But the old recordings copied into the looped tape format sounded just wild blasting through the rear deck shelf speakers of Dad’s Olds. We didn’t care if it was re-dubbed, re-mastered or original recording format as long as it was ear-bleeding LOUD. Now it’s digital versus analog, and I think maybe (just maybe) some of that old tech magic has fallen away or gotten lost. Something about it was just too good to give up. I would be curious to have some of my old 60’s 45 singles to listen to again, I think it would be rather “enlightening”. But then again, I wouldn’t have anything to play them on either…

[Daryl Jones]

Yes, that would be a hurdle. After Heley’s comment in September at the last Edmonton show, I think the Eagles’ touring days are coming to a close now. Just a feeling I got from the way he said it.

Bonus though, lots of these guys head to Nashville and just drop around clubs and studios to sit in or do sessions on recordings. TBS has done that before, Knopfler has, and many more.

[Daryl Jones]

Calligraphy is so incredibly cool! I can write my name in phonetic Kanji (Japanese) but that is about it. It(calligraphy) is a very difficult art/skill to learn. Masters/adepts can see flaws in the brush strokes that us mere mortals cannot even comprehend.

[Daryl Jones]

That is incredible Michael! I couldn’t tell if Timothy Schmidt was one of the Poco sigs you got?

[Daryl Jones]

That is the exact (although newer) model that I foolishly gave to my nephew 15 (?) years ago. Still kicking myself for letting it go. Satin semi-gloss finish on a cedar top and has great resonance and sustain for a mid entry level acoustic guitar. I’ve played Art & Lutherie, Larivee, and actual
Godins (all the same family) and I actually like the Seagulls best. Sort of like my PRS electrics, they “fit” me perfectly.
Any of the Taylor acoustics and Gibsons I’ve tried don’t feel the same unless I’m into the $2500-$3000 and higher (Cnd) range and I can’t justify that. And there are plenty of Godin products that reach too far into the more stratospheric price range for my tastes.
I have played some Strats, and they are nice, but they don’t feel comfortable like my two PRS machines do. And even the Mexican models are far pricier than I like. The American Strats are just far too much for a non-gigging noodler like myself. I love the sound of Les Pauls, but they are heavy and I don’t like the necks and the headstock angles on them.
I also love the sound of the ES335 and many of the Gretsch hollowbody style guitars, but again, just too big an heavy for my liking. I give Lisa all the credit in the world for wrangling that Gretsch she plays! Of course I can only surmise (never have and likely never will get to stand beside her) that being a lady she’s far smaller than I. And I’m not a huge guy but I’m no lightweight, small dude either. But they are just too much/big machine for me. But y’know, never say never…Don’t even get me started on full tube amplifiers, pedals, loopers, recording/mixing consoles…

I’ll never stop “gassing” for another guitar, but I’m pretty well set up now for instruments. Well, then again, there is a new model PRS (SE DGT) that would really be the bee’s knees…🤔

[Daryl Jones]

Thanks for that. I’ll try I on the ‘puter. Never happens on my phone