Notes_Norton

Livin' La Vida Loca - Ricky Martin Notes ♫

Livin' In The Future – Bruce Springsteen Notes ♫

Sax, Wind Synth, Guitar, Bass, Drums, Flute, Keyboard Synth/Organ and Vocals Drums were my first instrument, Saxophone/Wind Synth is my primary instrument. I play keys, but not piano (I can play at the piano, but I'm not a pianist) I consider sax and wind synth as one, because depending on the gig, and the audience, I make the choice of either one on many of the songs. l don't need horns to like a band or a song. As long as I like the music, it's OK with me. On the gig I probably play a little more than half on sax or wind synth, a little less than half on guitar, and a few on flute. Vocally, my duo partner is a great singer, I'm an adequate singer, but I sing almost half the songs (I get the easier one). Notes ♫

Day – O (The Banana Boat Song) – Harry Belafonte Notes ♫

But we pleasantly kill some time discussing non-earth shattering things. I've not seen many rock stars in concert. As a working musician, they usually come to town when we are gigging. In my lifetime I got to jam with a lot, Eric Burden, the Motown Funk Brothers, and even a formal Idol, Jr. Walker. Sadly, I never got to jam with any of the Beatles. 😞 nor did I ever have the slightest opportunity to do so.

Happy Jack – The Who Notes ♫https://www.nortonmusic.com/

Teenage Lobotomy – The Ramones Notes ♫

I started playing sax, bass, flute, guitar, drums, and keys, later wind synth. Then I decided to learn how to sing, after all, finding a singer is the hardest part of starting a band. That's when I started to seriously listen to singers, how they get their expression, what nuances do they use and when, and how do they use dynamics. That's also when I started to appreciate Sinatra. After all, he was a singer from the past, not from my generation. Not only did he have great pipes, he worked hard at his craft, had great intonation (don't need no stinkin auto-tune), and knew when not to sing quite in tune for expression. He had very good diction, held out long notes well, and phrased his melodies excellently. I play 8 instruments, including vocals, and voice is absolutely the most difficult one I've ever learned. I don't have the pipes to be a great singer, but I've learned to be a decent singer. As I get older, I realize every generation had its share of excellent music and lousy music, including my own. Of course, that is my personal taste showing. What's lousy to me, might be just right for someone else. Will the Beatles hold up today? How about Elvis? Sinatra? Bobby Darin? Shirley Horn? Buddy Greco? Dusty Springfield? Donna Summer? Aretha Franklin? Buddy Holly? Otis Redding? Muddy Waters? Ella Fitzgerald? David Bowie? Prince? And really, does it matter? Insights and incites by Notes ♫

Lucky you. If you make a living doing what you want to do, you are one of the few truly lucky people. Notes ♫

Wild Horses – Rolling Stones Notes ♫

Back to the girls (intoxicants) When I was a kid, I wanted to play music. My father played violin, trumpet, and ukulele. Later in life, he played a Hammond Organ. I actually wanted to play Baritone Horn (Euphonium) because it has a beautiful voice. But it was a small town back then and all the instruments were rented. So, like all the other overflow musicians, I got a pair of drumsticks and a practice pad. In retrospect, learning to play the drums has been a great asset for me, and I think all pop musicians should learn at least the first dozen rudiments and how to keep time on a drum kit. Eventually, the tenor saxophonist's family moved, and the band director asked who would like to play the saxophone? I guess I was more enthusiastic about it than the others. I just wanted to play anything that could play a melody. At that point in time, (7th grade) I had no idea that some women would be attracted to pop musicians. Well, as I got better, a few of my friends and I formed a rock band. We were terrible, but everybody was terrible back then. We got our first job, playing for a Jr. High School dance. There I was, on stage, with my best friends at the time, doing our best to cover the hit songs of the day. I looked off the stage and much to my surprise, that cute girl who didn't even acknowledge my existence in English class, was 'making eyes' at me!!!!!!!!! I was having one of the best days of my life so far, and at the end of the night, they actually paid me money!!!!!!!!! That's when I said, “This is what I want to do for the rest of my life.” And I've been lucky enough to do just that. I did have two 'day jobs' in my life, still gigging on the weekends, when I was testing out what it was to be normal. I found normal to be quite overrated. Neither one lasted all that long. Now I'm past retirement age, still gigging, married to a fantastic singer who also plays guitar and synth, and still having the best days of my life. Notes ♫

Bela Lugosi's Dead – Bauhaus Notes ♫

When I was on the road, we called them “Band-Aids”. I hope they enjoyed me as much as I enjoyed them. But now I'm married to a wonderful gal, so my Band-Aid days are over. Although I look back fondly on those days, I'm happy now and don't long for them at all. Notes ♫

Over Under Sideways Down – Yardbirds Notes ♫

There are only two kinds of music: Music that I like Music made for someone else's ears And there is no best anything that I can think of.

People Gotta Move – Gino Vannelli Notes ♫

@DanvillRob I help fund The Wrecking Crew movie with my Kickstarter donation. You can see my name on the credits (along with hundreds of others). Great, versatile musicians, every one of them. --- At one time, stars were icons of the generation; Al Jolson, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles. Every child knew them and listened to them. The Beatles were the last. Disco came, and the market was split, and some youths listened to the rock stations, others the disco stations. And since then it split even more with alt-this-and-that, metal, and a dozen others. Every child in the late 60s and 70s heard every Beatles single release. How many people have heard every Metallica release? Every Radiohead release? Every Taylor Swift release? Sure, they are megastars in their own market, but there are plenty of markets now. I suppose it's technology's “fault”. When there was only AM radio and three network TV stations, there wasn't enough bandwidth for niche markets. But like Jolson, Crosby, Sinatra, and Presley, the Beatles will become a footnote in history, when stars that are not as iconic like Badfinger and The Ides of March will be forgotten when their generation exits the stage. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

She's About A Mover – Sir Douglas Quintet Notes ♫

She's Not There – Zombies lyric association: Well, let me tell you 'bout the way she looked The way she acts and the color of her hair (I always thought it was The way she accents the color of her hair, but the lyrics sites disagree with me)_ Notes ♫

When the Beatles arrived, I was in High School. I didn't think they were bad, and I didn't think they were good either. Their covers of older songs paled in comparison to me, and the musicianship on a lot of their early stuff was mediocre. But I did appreciate some of the song structures, especially the concise B sections. I found the song "Help" interesting as the melody stayed pretty much on the same pitch while the chords change and the roots descended. Then when Rubber Soul came out, I was hooked. IMO if they got rid of half the songs on the White Album, it would have made a very good one disc album. Revolver was nice, and the Abbey Road medley was divine. Their last release, Let It Be showed me just how much George Martin contributed to The Beatles. IMO Phil Spector couldn't save it. Not that the album was bad, it was OK, but it didn't have the George Martin magic. But that's just my own personal taste coming through. If you disagree, your opinion is just as valid as mine. Pop music is by nature disposable. My dad was a Big Band Era fan. But who do we remember out of the hundreds of bands? Perhaps 10? We remember Sintra, Peggy Lee, and a few others. As the years go by, the big names fade, and the lesser names fade away. As I said, it's disposable. Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Ed Sheeran, Nicki Minaj, all have their days in the sun, but their stars will eventually fade. Most people love the music they grew up with the best, and if you grew up with The Kinks, Georgie Fame, Dusty Springfield, The Beatles, The Animals, Lulu, and the rest, you will probably like them until you die. Some newer music will get to you, but won't replace the music of your youth. Of course, as musicians, we should have an open mind and enjoy the music of our parents and our children too, but the music we listened to and played when we were going from childhood to adulthood will always be special. GenX and GenZ, and others will have their songs and stars that aren't going to be the same as the ones the Boomers grew up with. The music of your parents and older siblings will always be old music, and as you age, the newer music will be mostly mediocre at best, if not trashy. And the beat goes on (Thanks Sonny Bono) Insights and incites by Notes ♫

I think the Gibson SG (EB-3) bass is short scale and lightweight. So are the Fender Mustang and Hofner Violin models. If I wanted a short-scale for a youth, I'd probably favor the Gibson, but I'd definitely let them decide. If they like it, they will play it more and better, Insights and incites ♫

For me, interesting classical music starts with Beethoven, not all, but especially Symphonies 3, 4 and 7. Before 3 he was still in the Mozart/Hayden mode, but like the Beatles' Rubber Soul and on, he changed music. Prokofiev, Suk, Dvorak, Shostakovitch, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Seans, and others turned out some of my favorite classical music. I like a lot of jazz too. I lean towards Getz, Turrentine, and Desmond as my main voice is sax, but I also like Jimmy Smith, Miles, Mingus, Kenton, Basie, Corea, Nascimento, Lins and quite a few others. No matter where it comes from, if it hits me the right way, I like it. And I don't know exactly why some songs turn me on, and something else similar may not. I tried to analyze that at one time, but I gave up, and just enjoy what speaks to me. The Beatles were never hard rock, so you can't compare them to Zeppelin, Aerosmith, or Bon Jovi. And remember, Fleetwood Mac did a lot of soft rock like Hypnotized, Over My Head, and Sentimental Lady. On the other hand, I'm Down, I Want You (She's So Heavy), and Revolution, may have been better choices at the concert you attended. I really like I Am The Walrus, but more for the arrangement than the musical value, and that would be difficult to pull off live. Since 1985, I targeted the +55-year-old audience in Florida, it's good, steady work, and I focus on my audience's desires. So I don't listen to a lot of newer music. When I do, I can't stand it if I hear auto-tune artifacts, and since I'm not a word person, rap bores me. I do hear some decent new things from time to time, but I can't always identify the artist. I've heard some Radiohead, Arctic Moneys, Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam, NIN, Van Fleet, Coldplay, and a few others that I like. We just learned some Jethro Tull, Fleetwood Mac, Johnny Winter, Metallica, KC & The Sunshine Band, Johnny Cash, Master KG/Nomcebo, Johnny Rivers, and Adele. They make requests, if the client is steady their requests are important, and if the same request comes from multiple audience members that will also elevate its importance. Since I play music for a living, what I play is chosen by the audience I targeted. It's the compromise, some say sell-out, but IMO, it's not nearly as big a sell-out as working as a wage slave 40 hours a week, so you can play art music on the weekends. https://www.nortonmusic.com/cats/songlist.html My audience wants memories, the music of their lives, so 30-40 year old music hits their sweet spot. 40-50 still works, and newer than 40 works because they didn't stop listening. I just have to be careful what to select. So I guess I'm not the person to ask if anything old still holds up, because that's my bread and butter. When it comes to recreational listening, it's everything from Muddy Waters to Prokofiev. I find songs I like in most eras and genres. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

It's a matter of taste, but I would have the bridge higher or the pickups lower. I use my ear to find the sweet spot for me. Notes ♫

Going To A Go-Go – Smokey Robinson & The Miracles Notes ♫

Pop music is more of an evolution than a static thing. Elvis, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, were not far from the jump blues and boogie-woogie that preceded it. They took the music that came before and evolved it. It's not much different from a lot of Louis Jordan and Louis Prima music. The Beatles did the same thing. Covers of Twist And Shout, You Really Got A Hold On Me, and others showed their roots, and they took it from there. Rubber Soul marked their maturity to me and the place where they ventured pop music into evolved areas. Do I think some of the stars of today will be remembered? Definitely, but only time will tell which ones will last. Someone mentioned the Beatles used the recording studio as an instrument. Les Paul and Mary Ford did that, so did Patti Page and others, but as the recording process became more sophisticated, so did the people using it. The Beatles took full advantage of 4 tracks, and advanced the recording studio as an instrument to new levels. Technology, imagination, and don't forget George Martin who was a wizard of an engineer and music arranger. And what does hold up to modern music mean anyway? Music has evolved past The Beatles, in some good ways, and in some bad ways. Me? I think Count Basie and Frank Sinatra still hold up today. Not as modern music, but with much of their output, as good music. Some day The Beatles will be thought of the way we think of Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, Elvis Presley and so many others today. And sometime in the distant future, they may become just a footnote in history, no more important than Stephen Foster or Al Jolson. And that's OK. It's pop music, it's disposable, it's the voice of a generation. I've been playing the retirement audience here in Florida since 1985. It's a good, steady market. At first, we played Sinatra, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Patti Page, and no rock music was allowed. The older people die off, and the younger people take their place. The first time we played a rock and roll song (Elvis) some people danced, and others had a fit. A couple of years later it was mostly early rock (pre Beatles) and when we played a standard, someone said, “You know, Harry James is dead.” Now we don't play Elvis songs very much, Beatles still work, but not as well as they did 10 years ago, and we're playing a lot of 80s rock. We also do some 2000 pop songs that appeal to the older audience. We just play what they react to and learn more of what they are reacting to. All things must pass (Thanks, George) If you like The Beatles, enjoy them for what they are. If you don't care for them, that's OK, too. Everything isn't for everyone. Plenty of people don't like Prokofiev's music, and I think most of it is delightful. There are only two kinds of music, music I like and music for other people's ears. Insights and incites by Notes ♫