Re: Suck because you're Looping ?

[Tim Nelson <psychle62@yahoo.com>]

--- Terry Blankenship <electricgypsys@yahoo.com>
wrote:
> I seriously doubt that David Torn would be playing
> in bands with people like Bill Bruford and Tony
>Levin, or Terry Bozzio and Mike Karn if he couldn't
>play the guitar well, or if he lacked self confidence
>in his own ability to keep up with them.

Um, I'm not sure, but with that 'self-confidence' part
I think you misunderstood my post, about 180 degrees
worth. Nobody has said dt lacks confidence; what I was
saying is that he is quite modest in describing his
gittarabilities (to the point of self-deprecation
sometimes), and has expressed the opinion (accurately,
I think) that his particular skills encompass a bigger
picture (ie. composition, use of extended equipment,
etc.) than just the guitar. My main point, however,
was that he is an EXTREMELY confident and competant
looper who can and does take chances in live
performances, and when something 'unexpected' happens
in terms of a bum note or feedback mishap or the like,
he will often incorporate it into the loop rather than
undo-ing it. Like sumi brush painting, y'know?

Speaking of Bruford and Karn (MICK Karn, btw) and
varying degrees of 'conventional musicianship',
there's an interesting story about how dt acted as a 
facilitator/mediator kinda guy in rehearsals for
'Cloud About Mercury'; Karn was playing a part
slightly flat and was asked to play it 'higher'. He
moved his hand toward the nut, which to him was
'higher'. Bruford got all pissy, complaining about
Karn's perceived ignorance of theory. The point there
is, as a bandleader, Torn recognises that some people
who may not be able to articulate what they're doing
through conventional music theory terminology can
still play!

-t-

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