Favorite bands :
Beatles, Allmans, The Fray, Gavin DeGraw, Lynyrd Skynyrd...anything that's musical. If the guitars sound like guitars, I'm in. If the guitars sound like bees in a jar, I'm out...
Favorite guitarists :
Jeff Beck, Larry Carlton, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Derek Trucks, Duane Allman, Joe Pass, Pat Martino, Pat Metheny, Carlos Santana, John Mayer
Favorite bassists :
Carl Radle, Alan Ransom, Ron Morgan, James Jamerson
Favorite books :
The Bible
Favorite tv :
...oh, maybe Poker After Dark. I hardly watch TV unless A) there's poker on TV. B) NFL, occasionally. C) can't sleep.
Favorite movies :
The Game, Forrest Gump - don't see many movies...
I started playing guitar at age 9. My older brother was into Dylan, so I got into him. Played mostly folk style guitar until high school. Started rockin' in high school and never looked back.
My first club gig was at the Keg Saloon, in Tulsa. We were all 16 years old, so the owner said we had to bring notes from our parents to play.
After 2 years of college I got a road gig with an "outlaw" country group. Six nights a week, generally. It was a grind, but I made great money. I didn't really want to be the leader of a band, I just wanted to play. So I hired on with various rock, country and show bands. Managed to avoid having a real job for alot of my life. LOL. I did some calculating recently and figured I have played at least 6,000 shows, and maybe as many as 9,000. So many of those years are still a bit fuzzy...
Started teaching about 10 years ago. I had a few students many years ago, but never tried it full-time. I love it. It's the only job where I go in early and stay late. And, as it turns out, I have managed to be the leader of the band in recent years. Staying in one place requires more control over the work environment, and being the boss is the easiest way to do that.
I have served as Musical Director for a few productions, and enjoy that quite a bit. It is generally stressful, but the rewards are great. I am currently working on a guitar instruction website, which I hope to have up by August '09. We'll see.
I have a strategy for guitar development that makes sense. Two of my students are on their way to Belmont College, and two others are playing gigs with bands around town. So, I think my system has been effective.
A few years ago I got "honorable Mention" in the Billboard Songwriting Contest. That was cool. I enjoy writing and recording. I know I will need to get some pro gear one day, but my little BR-1180 is as good a piece of gear as I am a producer. It is about ears anyway. Most of the songs on my profile are done on that machine.
I enjoy sailing, poker and philosophy. They seem to all work together....
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revtfunk profile, last updated : August 5, 2009
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