Fate of Can Jam?

[bradm]

That was fun at izzy's when mr.ss did the march from there camp sit onto stage.. I was just hangin out listening to these dudes play there sax's and then they started marching down that path. everyone joined in the march. Pretty cool.

"I love a parade!" They do often do that when they play The Rainbow in Ottawa. The Rainbow is one flight up from street level, and has both a dance floor and a balcony, with staircases at the front and back of the balcony, so they start at street level, come up the stairs to the main part of the bar, across the dance floor, up the front staircase, across/around the balcony, down the back staircase, then under the balcony, back across the dance floor, then up to the stage, playing all the way. I almost wish I could tag along with them as they go, recording all the way, but logistically, it just wouldn't work...

Aloha,

Brad

[boiler]

That was fun at izzy's when mr.ss did the march from there camp sit onto stage.. I was just hangin out listening to these dudes play there sax's and then they started marching down that path. everyone joined in the march. Pretty cool.

They started that march from our campsite if I remember correctly.

That's definatley one of their trademarks, they do the same thing when they begin their shows in bars. I believe it is an afro tradition, where they would literally walk through the village to drum up support and announce the begiing of the nights festivities.

I believe their drummer spent some time in Africa studying african music and drumming. Don't quote me on that, I herd it through the grapevine.

[nattyMatty]

When i get back. I wanna seriously try and start or get in a band doing some singing. I can play guitar a tad. But i really love sing'in I think id like to try somthing like being all crazy on stage and havn some wildmoves and wierd homeade freaky insurments. kinda be like dude from the flamming lips and jim morrison and cab calloway mixed inta one.

[nattyMatty]

Really Thats Cool man!... I probly know who you are.. all these code names on here kinda decive me..hhehe

[boiler]

I don't know if it does justice for recognition, but it's my favorite picture of me (Chris Wylde) and my fiance (Sara Comer soon Comer~Wylde) and my buddy (best man) Doctor (in background)

....hold on that didn't work

...ahhh there we go learn something new everyday

Edited August 16, 2006 by Guest

[edger]

that's a big part of how the whole family scene around the Fat Cats developed. They played the old La Luna in Hamilton weekly for years.

I've seen this method work 'cos I was right in the thick of it!!

Damn,talk about reminiscing. Almost all of my dearest friends, and my future hubby and some of the best memories of my life all stemmed from those days. A very special time indeed...

There has been talk at times about the Fatties churning up a weekly gig again. Most likely pie in the sky type dreams... but it would be pretty damn difficult to make it viable.

Like 'ersh mentioned previously, it's not just the bands that "age" (to use the evil word), or who's life priorities, pressures, ventures, attachments, etc. change. The fans move on as well. It would be pretty damn difficult to rely on the usual heads ot keep it viable. But yeah, I always love seeing unfamiliar, young faces in the crowd diggin it.

Difficult to do the school thing, be financially dependent, own a home, pump out new tunes, and maintain relative sobriety. But hey, I'm game...

Todd always said that the band never used to have to practice, because their regular weekly jams were enough inspiration and glue in and of themselves.

My "supportive arm" can generally be twisted in either direction....

Hey Drawbar, maybe you need to quit your day job and kick my old man's ass back into action...

[\/\/illy]

'Ersh; you're brilliant. That was very insightful. Thanks for everything you've contributed to this scene both on the stage and off the stage. We're all richer to have had you around.

[\/\/illy]

Weirdly I am very calculated when it comes to our repetoire. I think it comes from listening to people around here and their likes and dislikes. I figure writing tunes is coming fairly easyish right now so why not try to get people some sounds I know their looking for.

I'm looking for something that sounds like Jaco Pastorius on bass, John McLaughlin on guitar, Al Di Meola on guitar, John Paul Jones on keyboards, and Neil Peart on drums with Cyro Batista on percussion. Oh, and something like Joni Mitchell and Shelby Kerr on vocals.

When can I come see it?

[Deeps]

Difficult to do the school thing, be financially dependent, own a home, pump out new tunes, and maintain relative sobriety. But hey, I'm game...

Difficult, yes. Makes for an interesting person, definitely.

I'm in for all of the above except school...that place is irritating.

[Deeps]

Weirdly I am very calculated when it comes to our repetoire. I think it comes from listening to people around here and their likes and dislikes. I figure writing tunes is coming fairly easyish right now so why not try to get people some sounds I know their looking for.

I'm looking for something that sounds like Jaco Pastorius on bass' date=' John McLaughlin on guitar, Al Di Meola on guitar, John Paul Jones on keyboards, and Neil Peart on drums with Cyro Batista on percussion. Oh, and something like Joni Mitchell and Shelby Kerr on vocals.

When can I come see it? [/quote']

I smell and interpretative piece on autoharp for you.

Called ode to the funny notes.

Deeps

[nattyMatty]

Hey Willy have you ever seen cindi loper totally Reck joni mitchells Carey? Its on youtube.

[nattyMatty]

autoharp..hehhehe my grade 2 teacher played on of them i used to think it was the coolest thing. Id like one for tripping thru the woods now that i think about it.

[MarcO]

Steve, my friend, when it comes to writing new material and moving forward musically, don't listen to a damn thing anything has to say around here, or anywhere else for that matter (except this uber-insightful post, lol!). You gotta be ruthless and ignore the very public you are trying to reach. Sounds contradictory doesn't it?

When it comes to original material, it's not about giving the people what they want, it's about showing them something they didn't even know they wanted in the first place, but now, having heard, they need it oh so bad.

Don't worry about the sounds people want to hear. Deep down, they want to be challenged and to be able to surprise themselves. That is what live music is all about. Otherwise, your future is limited. Your only point of influence should be yourself and your bandmates.

WTTS is developing it's own path and people are starting to notice. Some will join you, others not so much.

Keep your eyes ahead of you, don't worry about the scenery on the sidelines.

[\/\/illy]

There has been talk at times about the Fatties churning up a weekly gig again. Most likely pie in the sky type dreams... but it would be pretty damn difficult to make it viable.

I would like to offer my livingroom or attic as the venue.

[Booche]

**laughing my ass off at Willy's brilliantly quotable Deep's quote and reply to said quote**

Awesome. Now THAT is a Willy people should listen to! He done gone did it up real good. Good eye my man. Good eye.

[\/\/illy]

Hey Willy have you ever seen cindi loper totally Reck joni mitchells Carey? Its on youtube.

[[[[[[[[[[sHUDDER]]]]]]]]]]]

No, I haven't, and no, I don't plan to.

[\/\/illy]

Keep your eyes ahead of you, don't worry about the scenery on the sidelines.

What if they're topless?

[\/\/illy]

Awesome. Now THAT is a Willy people should listen to! He done gone did it up real good. Good eye my man. Good eye.

Which one was that? I've been blathering away on here all day. I also assume you meant that to be in purple font.

[bradm]

Awesome. Now THAT is a Willy people should listen to! He done gone did it up real good. Good eye my man. Good eye.

Which one was that? I've been blathering away on here all day. I also assume you meant that to be in purple font.

No' date=' he didn't. Now that he's abandoned his infatuation with dimafleck, you appear to be his next [strike']target object of desire. But be careful: he's fickle.

Aloha,

Brad

[Booche]

I am totally serious.

[\/\/illy]

No, he didn't. Now that he's abandoned his infatuation with dimafleck, you appear to be his next target object of desire. But be careful: he's fickle.

Oh GOD NO!

[nattyMatty]

When i found cindi loper doing that tune i was trying to find joni's... so a friend could here it..She claims to never have heard the song.. I can't find it on the net. So i played cindis... Man i had to turn it off.. cuz it was soo bad. And i had been telling my friend ohh your gonna love this tune. Its Right Onn.. and im not at my house or anywhere near there to grab a copy.. anyways im just nanner'ing

[afro poppa]

Keep your eyes ahead of you' date=' don't worry about the scenery on the sidelines.[/quote']

What if they're topless?

[zero]

guess it's that time of year where this discussion is had yet again. Luke I don't know why you keep bringing it up when the responses are either the same, or the "state of the scene" is declared worse than the previous year.

Either you have a serious bone to pick or are in a major case of denial. Look up. Look way up to the url in that little window. See how it says JAMBAND. See how the community that means so much to us and the diverse network of music and relationships we covet is reduced in the greater populace's mind to a running joke. The responses in this thread have been anything but staid and clearly from the storm tide of impassioned responses people feel something is afoot. You're not a total loss though because clearly you have excellent taste vis a vis the Slip, Jackson Browne and Prince.

Oddly, as eloquent as Heisholt was and I agree with most everything he says, I think the little choda may be right.

the biggest problem with Jam...and canjam in perticular is that the fans/artists aren't good looking enough and aren't image oriented.

and i'm not joking or poking fun this time..

i'm being dead serious.

its true.

people that go to shows are usually trendy these days....and there is nothign trendy about jambands....

I really think there's merit to that remark even from the tossed salad. I do have to say though that I have never to my knowledge met a Canadian jamband that admits they're a jamband- you're all guilty of it Burt, nero, Thunder Said, JSB, Slowcoaster. Whatever I'm sure you don't think of yourself that way and you hang onto the post-rock thing or the 'rocktronica' or groove or whatever. Walks like duck. Quacks like duck. Call it a jamming band if you want. I kind of like the notion of culture jamming or jamming a frequency and that may be the most empathetic way to look at the moniker.

The point is that it's been our failure to market these bands adequitely in the music press and frankly we should just stop using the term whatsoever. I don't know that it can be ressurected, like MarcO said the currency has been spent.

I also almost whole heartedly disagree with comparing bands like Torngat, Bell Orchestre or whatever to jambands. I've got a foot firmly in both those improvisational worlds and like good fences make good neighbours. Mr. Rogers neighborhood it ain't. And those guys are twats.

I never need to hear another Sam Shalabi or Justin Haynes Barnyard Drama poo poo ca ca again. ever. I call that shit playing your guitar with a butter knife (I think that may have come to me cause of Neal McKeeby from Drums and Tuba cause he rocks on the butter knife). I don't know those headspaces are so different, going for the divergent, atrophied, entropied, still, listless or disquieting versus just going for the throat, groove, jam or melody. Like the instrumentation and the fact that their improvising is one of the few similarities. I mean you could make a subtler argument but these people don't respect us. They just don't. Actually you know as I say that strike that, they don't give a shit musician's are musician's and if you can communicate musically that's all that matters. The fucking music press, pompous indy rock guzzlers, promoters, industry hacks who listen to Feist when they make oral sex with a dental dam and think they're cool- they all hate us or just don't even give a shit.

We really have to take a collective giant leap forward as a culture and either reinvent ourself or actually become the cliche everyone thinks we are.

[mark tonin]

This thread has been a very enjoyable read. Thanks to everybody, especially the working musicians, who have taken the time and energy to contribute to this thread.

I have a huge amount of appreciation for anybody who tries to make a living as a musician, particularly a musician who wants to make a living writing and performing original material. From what I've seen and heard, it's an extremely tough path to follow, one that requires dedication, focus, sacrifice, a solid business sense in addition to music ability, and some luck. I can only imagine how tough the road must be, especially as one gets older and comparisons start to get made to friends who chose a different path and have some of the creature comforts and stability that come from a job that has a regular pay cheque.

So what ends up happening? Musicians look to other means to support themselves, while trying to eek out as much time and energy as possible to continue playing. Because playing music feeds the soul. Unfortunately, it often doesn't put enough food on the table. I've been working on a song along this theme, something like:

I don't do it for the money, I do it for my soul

but if the money's not here, I'll be moving on

because my soul can't buy me what I need to eat

put food on the table or shoes on my feet

but I don't do it for the money, I do it for my soul

English majors, is the above situation an example of a paradox? I think so, but I'm not sure.

Hmmm, where was I headed with this? ... I'm not sure. All I know is that I wish I was as old as 30 , I love live music, love the many variations of jam that exist, think that great songs will never go out of fashion, and wish that now that I'm older that some band would try a weekly gig, but one that started at 7 or 8 and went until 10 or 11 p.m. Some people play pickup hockey, some people go to yoga or aerobics classes, some people watch tv, but I'd love to head out to my weekly live music dance class in my home town where I could visit with friends, get some artistic expression out of my system, get some excercise, and still function for work the next day. I must be getting older, but I still love to dance and I still love to play. I dread the day that music doesn't do it for me, because I fear that will be the end.

The state of canjam ... hmmm, I'm not sure, but I feel fortunate that I can go and hear a great band like Burt or Fat Cats, even though they aren't touring relentlessly or playing to huge crowds. I hope that they never stop playing. I love how Pablo is still pushing forward with his musical vision post-nero, and that GM is also still out there playing. It is encouraging to see bands like WTTS and Chameleon Project working hard to bring new music to people. I know that there is no way that I can take it all of the great music that is out there. And I can still head across the border to a kind "in the spirit of the Grateful Dead jam festival" with thousands of others ... time to get ready for GOTV!!!

End of rambling babbling banter.

Peace, Mark