THINGS AIN´T WHAT THEY USED TO BE

…..I mean the weather.

For many days it´s been hot. It can be “normal”, temporary….or not. Over +30 celsius in these parts, where we have no wild cactus or rattle snakes. Maybe we have some day, soon…, and it would generate new businessmarkets, happy jokes and guaranteed long-summer-partytime f x in this little town.

But, hows it gonna be f x in Africa, somewhere in the borderlines of the equator? Already there are growing problems with dryness, … and who really cares. I´m sure, not too many,… ;and at least not for the moment among the people in electric paradise just one hundered meters from where I´m sitting now. There´s music&festivalarrangements in the park, thundering sounds and screams.

It´s not directly for the Rain Gods, … but maybe a little bit for drinking, I don´t mean just alcohol, I mean anything waterlike, ….. gold in the desert. In the right time, at the right place, ...one glass of water is probably the best demand in the world, it´s higher than the bumping headphones on your head when you are jumping around in the front of your heartshaped mirror.

As a bloomer of fact; Sahara desert is north of the equator.

(Picture; From front cover of "John Fahey visits W
ashington, D.C. - Takoma Records 1979)

BEFORE TOURING in a TEAM

Is everything in the bag?

This pic (and the astonishingly fantastic story) from mid-eighties show how complicated it can be,... me on the left and the multi-man, mr Fiffy Leif Icebring on the right.

Observe three cans of pea-soup in front of the map, an good idea from the military service, their thursday battles. (On the left also the Zoegas-Coffe, loved by swedish southerners.) On this special occasion the coconuts unfortunately were forgotten outside picture.The Ibanez-electric, this was the copy with specially nice soft-jazzy-funky qualities, which was later unfortunately sold to the Colombian, who gave me an offer. The Roland Cube is still in use, one kick and it work. In the middle there is an arabic lute, owned by my busyness companion, Ud (which mean “out” in danish), I´m not sure of the english spelling. And mine, the Ovation-guitar behind the lute has been more in the pawn shop, than home.

One late night in wintertime we had to borrow a car for the exclusive gig next day, in the great town Falkenberg.(It was an arrangement for Kids, sponsored by CitizenSchool). It was a yellow Vauxhall (it´s true, they were still seen in Halmstad then, like Cuba). We got in the car, after the cleaning off the windscreens, free from ice and snow. The key now did not fit, to start the engine. After checked up the problem with the owner of the car, one of mr Fiffy Leif Icebrings three brothers, Lars, we understood; it was the wrong car! Amazingly there was another yellow Vauxhall on the parking lot!

This time we got away (it is still magic how we got in the first car with the key…, maybe snappy fingers…), but, ….we soon found out, ....there was not enough gasoline,... we hade the stop already merely, just dangerously,... far out ...of hometown. From there no one could hear us scream !
It was minus 15 at least and sky was full of stars. We had to pick out so much luggage from the car as possible, and walk through the woods. Lucky for us, it was not too.... many kilometers, just good for the focus for the next day.

This will learn you; before touring in a team; take only the most important with you, Coconuts, the Pea-Soup and maybe pack (500 grams) of Coffe,... it´s about survival, in the desert, you don´t know when you meet civilisation again.
Instruments? Too much trouble. The audience won´t hardly see or hear the diffrence, you can whistle and jump around naked for an hour and get paid, and they will bemore happy than ever!
Good laughs lenghthens any life, it´s good news, even for your competitors.

Mr Fiffys Touring Equipment of Today: http://www.allistrio.com/

BEFORE STARTING UP the NEW BAND

….and before summervacations, some of the usual small tips; if you and your howlin friends are going to set up an orchestra-band-musicalprojectwiththeathre-globalmusicaidteam for the world…..or something else, what in the other end, maybe also, .....Í said maybe, gives you money in the pocket so you can go on eating big hamburgers saturdayafternoons.

First of all, to play together with instruments is one dimension of it, OK, it is good if you at least have seen your instrument before the first rehearsal - but there is another dimension,... talking without instruments, as a mother of fact, most people talk without musical instruments. They walk in the streets. Buy ice-cream. Nod to people who say something philosophycally interesting,.... and get angry if it´s a mess insulting comments.

Learn to talk. Less barking. You must have a plan, it´s about the culture in your band, the band is the miniature society – if you still are up to dogfighting, that´s it. If you can´t talk, have a pencil so you can write down your messages.

JULY´s SHORT-CUT TICKET

Among others, the number of musically related blogs and websites is increasing all the time. As usual I have 000000000,1 % review of all what´s happening. Why don´t check up this one? With highest possible silence Alex(andra) gave me the adress; http://www.myspace.com/queenofhardrock