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Wow, it was 40 years ago today 3/25/86 I did my very first solo act. Old school MIDI two hour gig in front of a little over 500 people. I spent two months getting the show ready and it went through with out a hitch. Got 10 gigs after that.

jookeyman wrote:RG-

You've aged quite well. I've always looked older than I am. Don't know why.

I know my parents had a picture of my first personal performance back in 73(?). It was a crowd of over 100 persons. I'll have to dig through the old pictures @ my parents and see if I can find it. I know there once was an old shoebox there that was full of photos from the 60s-70s but I'll have to find it. I'm quite sure they don't remember what happened to it.

Happy Easter!!

I aged well because my hair loss started at age 18 so I look 80 back then just like I do now

You got to find those pictures. Old pictures from early gig's are very cool and fun to see again. I had some old pictures of me on stage with the Rolling Stones and Billy Preston at a sound check however they are now at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean along with my prize stereo, Crown/Empire/ESS/ortofon ect...

Happy Easter to you, woke up to 2 1/2" of new snow on the resorts beach......UGH!

Um, RG. That's 30 years. Trust me. It's better that way.

impressive amt of equip to haul around and setup/breakdown for a gig there, RG.

no photos of my first gig...it was a HS folk concert. and the photo that did make it to the yearbook has my two buddies but doesn't include me.

here a cpl of photos tho... not quite 40 yrs dif. more like 36.

i couldn't help myself and had to grab a "G" chord in the more recent one! not looking to beef w you...but just the opposite as i'm hoping you'll appreciate the humor of it.

RGMixProject wrote:Wow, it was 40 years ago today 3/25/86

Not sure where you went to school, but even in Texas that's only 30 years. Bummer that you lost hair that early!?



https://www.flickr.com/photos/21895064@N05/25981528072


Here is 40 years ago....


I have lost hair....but gained weight.

jookeyman wrote:Hey Mark-

Is that an old Marantz or Akai reel-to-reel to the right??
My old buddy's wife offered me his old Akai deck after he passed away but I couldn't bring myself to take it. She did let me go through his album collection and I took a few albums as mementos.

you're 0 for 2 there, jook. it's a 4 trk TEAC 3440. it could have been in that "before photo" from back in the day...i've had it that long! i got it out of mothballs last wk and plan on going thru some old reels to see if there's any old tunes i want to resurect or just mess w.

if i find anything presentable that's not too rough i'll share. (be afraid)

No pictures from my first gig - high school band in 72 or 73. We borrowed amps from anyone in town that would loan us something so we could hook them up in parallel (jumpers from the 2nd input jacks - remember when all amps had them?) Our drummer worked for a local lumber company and borrowed their flat-bed delivery truck to move everything.
Our "PA" was an old Bogen 2-input amp (tubes!) and two old Fender cabinets. One had been in a fire and all the Tolex had been burnt off, and it had been painted black and a black grill cloth added - 2x12, and an old Showman cabinet with 2x15s.

jookeyman wrote:
I like your old fusion stuff a lot. Full of piss & vinegar!! Knockin' it out, man!!
Edgy, In your face, butt-kicking stuff!! Me likes!!
Upload some of that min.6#9 stuff you have in the vault!!

well, since you and the schmedster have both requested some more of that...i'll get some more instrumental stuff up from PENTAZZ. give me a sec or two cos' i really wanna find some of the (slightly) earlier recordings from when we had this absolutely RIDICULOUS sax player in the lineup.

we were all in our late 20's and early 30's and Todd the sax man was the youngster at about 20. this guy was maybe THE best MUSICIAN i've ever worked with. he had THE best tone on alto, tenor, and penny whistle (yeah, PENNY whistle! he made that thing sound like $10K flute...w a tone that was a cross between Hubert Laws and Herbie Mann!)

Todd's intonation from the bottom of the horns to way up in the stratosphere was ALWAYS spot on. then there was his ideas, phrasing, and BALLS! this from a tall, gangly, quiet, and laid back super white looking midwesterner! he always sounded like some 70 yr old black man who'd seen much and let it come out thru his horn. i'd often scratch my head at the disconnect!

he was with us a little over a yr from when i joined the band before he graduated and split. we worked quite a bit and prct'd weekly. in all that time i never..not ONCE heard him miss a note or hit a clam!

RGMixProject wrote:Wow, it was 40 years ago today 3/25/86 I did my very first solo act. Old school MIDI two hour gig in front of a little over 500 people. I spent two months getting the show ready and it went through with out a hitch. Got 10 gigs after that.

First Solo.jpg

The day before your big gig I attended my 1st Grateful Dead concert
10 gigs over 40 years ?

Deadguitars wrote:

RGMixProject wrote:Wow, it was 40 years ago today 3/25/86 I did my very first solo act. Old school MIDI two hour gig in front of a little over 500 people. I spent two months getting the show ready and it went through with out a hitch. Got 10 gigs after that.

First Solo.jpg

The day before your big gig I attended my 1st Grateful Dead concert
10 gigs over 40 years ?

did the G.D. ever let anyone from the crowed come up a jam with them?

RGMixProject wrote:
did the G.D. ever let anyone from the crowed come up a jam with them?

from the crowd ?
not sure