Freedom

Freedom is what makes me wake up each morning with child like zest for a brand new day. I am happy because I'm free. I am about to turn 50 and I feel younger than I did at 25. I've finally learned that the joy of living all about enjoying the journey. I don't expect to live to be 100 but I plan on living the next fifty years as if I will. :-)

Stealth Van

I found the coolest website called "Van Dwellers" http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/VanDwellers/messages/1801?viscount=100
while surfing the net. It's a group of people who live in their vans whether for pleasure or necessity. They share tips on survival like where to buy a high volume spray bottle for sponge baths or how to make your vehicle blend in so as not to be discovered by local authorites.

I've entertained thoughts of living on the road at various times in my life. I even tried over the road trucking for a short stint but that wasn't enjoyable at all. I did see the western portion of the United States though and would love to one day wander that way again at leisure this time.

I bought a Dodge Ram Van when I sold my house and even had it outfitted with caging since it was to be used for hauling band equipment. It looks just like a county van with it's Hunter Green color and the caging. It would work perfect as a "stealth" vehicle. I could probably have "Jones Electric" or something painted on the side and put a flashing yellow light on top and park it and sleep anywhere in the country without arousing suspicion. Just some guy somewhere doing an emergency electric repair.

Just having the van gives me a feeling of security knowing that it's there if I need it to survive. It gives me a sense of freedom and freedom is one of my favorite things. That's why the Dodge Van is on my list of "favorite things".

Martin

In 1976 I casually mentioned to a coworker that since I was a child I had always wanted a Hofner Beatle bass, the violin shaped bass that Paul McCartney played and he said, "I have one at the house I'll sell you for $50. I bought it and it stayed mostly in it's case until I sold it last year for almost $1500 to buy a Martin acoustic electric that I play all of the time. I have a photograph of the Hofner that I intend on glueing into the soundhole of the Martin. The story of the Hofner is so long and complicated that I will not have the time to go into it at any length for now so I think I'll just thread its story into the following blogs until the story is finally told but this enty isn't about the Hofner ... it's about the Martin. The story of the Martin is complicated too so I'll weave that one in as well. I really never thought of the fact that the stories of both the Hofner and the Martin are both long and complicated until I began this entry. I will say that the Martin guitar is one of my favorite things because it is a top notch quality product. The Hofner bass isn't really what you could call top notch quality. It's a beautiful instrument. It's fine and delicate. It's the guitar my all time musical hero played in the first half of his career but even he will tell you he bought it for two reasons. I was affordable and symetrical. I like affordable and I like symetrical but that's not what an electric bass needs to be. I've been playing bass for over thirty-five years and I know that a bass needs to be solid and dependable. The Martin isn't a bass but it's solid and dependable.
http://pub125.ezboard.com/btheunofficialmartinguitarforum

http://www.hofners.co.uk/viewforum.php?f=6&sid=30d3ca446b000fafb0f13078b0c5d6e8

Gretsch

When I was eight years old my dad brought home a Gretsch Country Gentleman guitar, a Fender Twin Reverb amplifier, a mic, and mic stand. He was an accomplished guitarist already, having spent countless hours working out Chet Atkins playing style. I remember the day he brought all of this gear home like it was yesterday. He set up the mic and stand and accompanied me and all of my neighborhood friends as we sang Puff the Magic Dragon and other "cool" songs of that day. He gave me his old Les Paul Jr. and Silvertone amplifier. He told me I would one day inherit the Gretsch. That was in 1964.

In 1967 my Uncle Vernon borrowed the Les Paul Jr. because he had broken a string and was playing a gig at The Wagon Wheel bar with my dad and some friends. My uncle and his wife were hit by a speeding car as they were leaving the bar at the end of the evening and were killed instantly leaving six children. The Les Paul Jr. was destroyed in the wreck as well.

My uncle Vernon was my dad's brother and my aunt Giula was my mom's sister. That made their children double first cousins and we of course shared the same maternal and paternal grandparents. They actually had five children and were the legal guardians of Roger Creech, another cousin, the son of my dad's sister Ada. My parents took in all six children, so now there were nine children in our family since there was already me, my sister, and my brother.

With all of these new additions to our family, the Gretsch and amp are probably the last big ticket items my dad ever bought for himself. He worked swing shift at a paper mill and lots of overtime just to pay the bills and provide for all of us.

When dad died about seven years ago, I inherited the Gretsch. The neck is well worn from countless hours of playing. I play guitar now and so does my cousin Roger. We have lots of cousins who play guitar as well and it can all be traced back to dad and his influence not to mention at least four of his brothers who also used to gather for family jams. Family jam sessions are a huge part of our lives. Now my son is learning guitar, Rogers's daughter is learning guitar, and cousin Vernon's son is already headed toward becoming an accomplished guitarist. The three of them are planning on starting a band in the coming weeks. The torch has been passed.

I've determined to become a well rounded guitarist myself. I've spent years dabbling with the guitar having concentrating on bass primarly. I've purchased a Martin acoustic/ electric guitar that I hope will have a neck every bit as worn as the Gretsch country Gentleman's neck by the time I pass it on to my son.

The Gretsch is the guitar I like to bring along to the family jams because it reminds us all of dad. Mostly though, the Gretsch is important to me because it reminds me of dad's dogged determination to master the guitar. It doesn't hurt at all that it's the same guitar George used when The Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964.

The Gretsch Pages discussion forum http://www.gretschpages.com/discus/index.php?sid=2371775f528ea5cb78e12cd43b323d71