Re: Guitar good, keyboards bad

[improv@peak.org (Dave Trenkel)]

At 3:46 PM 8/12/97, Kim Corbet wrote:
>Phalluses good, desks bad...
>
>what I mean is...as a keyboardist, I consider Jan Hammer's work with Beck
>and John McLaughlin definitely on par with the giant cohorts.
>
Oh, yeah, in a previous incarnation I wanted to BE Jan Hammer, his stuff
with Mahavishnu, and on Bolly Cobham's Spectrum record totally kills me.

>However, for me (the bassist & tightly budding guitarist), I'm sorry, but
>PLAYING the keyboard is boring to watch and not that exciting to DO
>compared to those beautifully vibrating strings over a wonderfully
>sculpted, smooth wood neck.  It's a whole lot more fun than sitting
>behind what amounts to a big hunk of furniture or, worse, a heavy chunk
>of plastic and cheap metal parts.

Try sitting over McCoy Tyner's right shoulder, then tell me that "PLAYING
the keyboard is boring", like all other things, it's the musician not
instrument. Besides, maybe I'm just funny this way, but I *listen* to
musicians, and could generally give a fuck about how they look when
playing...

>
>I love my Nord keyboard, but for sheer playing pleasure, I'd much rather
>PLAY my strat or P-bass or Modulus 5-string.  It just feeeels good, man.

But what is your main instrument? I mean, soloing, and doing it the level
of Jan Hammer or Van Halen or whatever, takes a certain level of
accomplishment on the instrument. I'm a combination bassist/keyboardist
also, started on keys, played 12 years of classical lessons and a jazz
piano performance degree, and I'm much more comfortable soloing on keys
than bass, though I've played bass for 14 years also. Could it be that the
strat or modulus (I'm jealous, man, I love modulus basses) feels better
because you play it better?

________________________________________________________
Dave Trenkel : improv@peak.org  : www.peak.org/~improv/

"...there will come a day when you won't have to use
gasoline. You'd simply take a cassette and put it in
your car, let it run. You'd have to have the proper
type of music. Like you take two sticks, put 'em
together, make fire. You take some notes and rub 'em
together - dum, dum, dum, dum - fire, cosmic fire."
                                            -Sun Ra
________________________________________________________