Cloudy Day

[VikingBlues]

More Strat'y noodling. It's a bit melancholy, but it was recorded in a half hour window before going to work - now isn't that enough to give an edge of melancholy!
This one's a work in progress - because there's passages in it where I really don't know what key / scale is appropriate so I'm just winging it by ear.
But I'm really please with the Strat's easy-Jazzy sound on this and I liked the mood of the piece where I did manage to get the right sort of notes.

Home made Strat - middle/bridge setting - Nano Holy Grail Reverb - Artec Blues Pedal - Vox AC4TV - Alesis IO2 Interface - Samplitude Music Studio DAW (tweaked just for a tad of delay and the EQ balance of the whole piece). I do like the results I'm getting from this set-up.
download/file.php?id=460

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=9745210

[The backing track is from GuitarBackingTrack.com and is called "cloudy".]

I hope you like it.

[Blindboy]

Very nice! Lovely tones you're getting out of the Vikingstrat. I can hear a difference in your playing. The Strat seems to have inspired you and kicked your playing up a notch.

[HalfBlindLefty]

VB, you better get some good insurance on that strat.... Oh man.....
Sweet music, and your playing... well cling on to the strat my friend, you found yourself a real buddy, awesome.

[VikingBlues]

Thanks guys! I'm enjoying this guitar.

Quite why I'm getting these tones? ..... the pickups plus the pickguard plus the controls and wiring were only £50. That's less than one Seymour Duncan pup would have been along the road in Edinburgh. She loves to sing sweet clear tones and doesn't seem to like to get aggressive - but that's fine - I have the humbucker girls for that.

Blindboy - you mention "inspired" by. I've been thinking I've had 6 inspirational kicks in the last year:-
1) Learning the trick of hearing notes in my head and playing them on the fretboard (Rob Chapman and his intervallic CD)
2) Finding the on-line blues lessons of Michael "Hawkeye" Herman. A man of great integrity, enthisiasm, and extensive blues knowledge.
3) Getting a nice sounding Tube/Valve amp to play through. And brushing up my playing technique when it showed up the flaws.
4) At last getting an understanding of modes (David Wallimann explaining them in a way that cleared very muddy waters).
5) and ... As you said Blindboy - the Vikingstrat.
Finally and really very important:-
6) Joining 12bar.de towards the end of last year - for all your knowledge, enthusiasm, help, example, friendship - a great inspiration indeed.
If my internet connection was taken away I'd be devestated - I really cannot believe it's been less than 12 months since I joined - you've become a big part of my life here.

HBL - this strat guitar and my amp, pedals, and fingers just seem to work together in a way I did not expect and do not understand. The total is more than the sum of the parts. Priceless. It's a great encouragement to keep on trying to learn more (particularly playing real blues to a standard closer to that which I hear on the posts here) and get better on this long road with no ending. I do love the views on this road.

Sorry - too much yackety yack - it's Friday at the end of a loooooooong week and my enthusiasm runs away with me.

[vancouverois]

This is a pretty good one, well played

[Blindboy]

Finally and really very important:-
6) Joining 12bar.de towards the end of last year - for all your knowledge, enthusiasm, help, example, friendship - a great inspiration indeed.
If my internet connection was taken away I'd be devestated - I really cannot believe it's been less than 12 months since I joined - you've become a big part of my life here.

I quite agree. The 12bar community has helped me regain my love of playing, and as a result, I am playing out more than I have in years. I had pretty much hung the guitar up except for very occasional campfire parties. Now I am playing a couple of times a week and loving it. Even taking the plunge and attempting to sing. None of which would have happened without the crowd at 12bar.

[12bar]

Your progress is frightening... building a guitar, learning how to play to this NOT EASY BT and outperforming it - that's fantastic.
Your strat truly sings. It has a soul.

[VikingBlues]

Thank you 12bar.

She (must find a name that suits her before too long) does "sing" - I love the long clear pure notes I managed to produce with her on this one. I do feel an affinity with the strat (no pun is meant there ) that I know I will never know the reason for. I just need to ry and enjoy the happy coincidences that have made it happen.

As far as my progress goes I am very happy with the last 12 months improvements. The 12bar site is great for prodding and encouraging me into trying to learn new things and improve how I deal with what I already know. For example just in the last week there's been (1)Blindboy playing with a major-minor BT with great fluidity and melody, (2)BadBluesPlayer with an awe inspiring cover of "The Thrill is Gone" and (3)HalfBlindLefty with such beautiful emotional playing and melody on "Will You Ever Be" playing in a way that made me think Jan Akkerman had arrived at 12bar. And it's a pretty normal week for this site too! That gives me a great incentive to learn and progress and also helps to keep my feet firmly on the ground. Keep it all going guys - feed me!

I wish you were able to get to play more 12bar - I enjoy your playing - always sounds very well judged and with an real blues integrity. If I could play to that standard could I devote what I am sure is a LOT of time to unselfishly give a boatload of other players a website like 12bar. I would like to think I could but I fear I am just kidding myself. So - if you see improvements in my playing you can give yourself a big, big chunk of the credit for that.

[12bar]

I wish you were able to get to play more 12bar

Me, too - right now I'm switching between preparing lunch, playing with my kids (wife is at work), playing some notes and looking here
I'm still trying to record something useful for the last collab - then I hear something new here (the minor/major thing) and try to include it. So it never gets ready...