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I was a
teenager in the later 60's, listening to the protest songs of
the Vietnam War era as well as the pop culture of that
time. I began playing guitar around 1970 on a cheap
black Harmony guitar, learning simple chords and the popular
songs of the times like "Georgie Girl" and
"House of the Rising Sun."
There was
a calming affect in playing the guitar, though my parents
would shut my bedroom door. Must have sounded pretty bad
at that time! In my early college years, I would bring
my guitar and sit around with my painting professor and his
friends and learned more about playing bluegrass music than I
did about painting. This was a time when I began writing
more of my own music, and gained enough confidence to play a
few coffeehouse style gigs.
I
eventually ended up in Uncle Sam's navy during the early to
mid 70's, and bought a nice Fender Strat and amp while
stationed in California. One day I received noticed I
was shipping out...and was given a whopping 15 minutes to get
my gear together. I would be heading out to the
Mediterranean Sea to meet a ship where no space for a guitar
and amp would be found. No time to crate things up and
send home, I sold that guitar and amp for a quick $50 to a
lucky sailor!
Limited
space aboard the AS16-Howard W. Gilmore ( a nuclear submarine
ship tender ) gave opportunity only to carry and learn to play
the blues harmonica. For some reason, bending notes and
playing cross harp came easy to me. I've been told how
difficult the harp is to play, and how well I play it.
Perhaps playing the harmonica then is the only thing ever to
have come easy for me in my life!
Here you
see me with one of my favorite guitars yet today. A
handmade Alvarez Yairi acoustic cutaway that came with its own
birth certificate papers. A guitar I would have to spend
a great deal of money to buy today. Very sweet warm
tone, and extremely playable.
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