Scientist Creates Life. That's a Good Thing, Right?

Here's some interesting food for debate...
Would something like this be beneficial for, say, cleaning up environmental disasters like the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico or are the prospects of 'what could go wrong' to horrible to imagine? Read on and you decide.

Scientist Creates Life. That's a Good Thing, Right?

The Quintessential Zombie ♫ ♪

Dave and I had an interesting discussion about leads and melody tonight. A composition is a multifaceted creation that lives and breathes. It is a whole that is greater than the sum of it's parts. And speaking of parts, there are many parts to a composition. Some have more than others. There are elements such as rhythm, harmony, counterpoint, introductions, endings, etc... However, the most important element of any composition is undoubtedly the melody. With out a melody, compositions would be a cacophony of noise and beat. Interesting-maybe...for a bit..., but eventually pretty dull and not very enjoyable. The melody is the identity, the DNA or life of a composition. With out melody, a comp(...OK, I am going to start using the word song instead of composition. Too much typing...) a song would be a mere shell of art. An empty plastic mold of musical interest on a cardboard backing.

The quintessential zombie of the grand staff, it is song bereft of life. -nuff said.

Melody breathes life, color and character into a song and should not be taken for granted.

The most basic, freely obtainable and emminently relevant trait of music and song is melody.

The melody should be reflected or referenced throughout the song. Other elements exist and have roles, but none so important or primary. From the melody, all other elements thrive. The rythmn embelishes and accents. The harmony lifts and complements. The bass drives and supports. All theses are important, but secondary and left listing without melody. Then there is the 'solo' or feature element that adds flair and gives musicians a chance to flex their creativity. Of course, different styles demand different technique and approach, but one vital element is already on hand.

The melody of the song is a primary and perfectly elegible theme for the soloist. As a matter of fact, any soloist worth their salt should be able to play leads using the song's melody.

It is not only relevant to the song, but reasonable as a choice and has been shown time and time again to be the perfect choice for the theme of the solo. Of course, as an improvisition, a soloist should take liberties and excercise the muse for a few bars. But I think you will find that starting, revisiting and/or returning to the melody throughout the solo is a perfect use of the element and makes for a very satisfying jaunt.

Here I am, head in hand

I dared to live a dream today. On my way to a gig last night, I stopped by Guitar Center to pick up a new microphone cable. While there, I stopped in to the acoustic guitar room and to what does my wondering eyes appear but a 1990 Martin J-40 for sale at an exceptional price. Well, I've never been a Martin guy, but let me tell you, this baby sings! After playing it for a few minutes and hearing it, I was in love with this thing. Now, there was a gig to go to and I had some thinking to do!

Today, I learned that what we perceive to be is not always what others perceive. I called Guitar Center and discussed a few options with them. Being cash poor and credit wise, I decided to offer for trade some fairly valuable, but not often used gear lying around my studio. To be specific, my 1980 Marshall 2204 JMP MKII 50 watt amp and a Marshall model 1960A 4x12 speaker cabinet. In my brain they were close to equivalent in value and perhaps I might even walk out of there with a couple of clams on account. (hehehe!) But alas, the so called appraisal was not so cooperative with my cunning plan!

After the Guitar Center appraiser and a few other staff ogled my gear and played it up at stadium level volumes (well within it's capacity), they decided that the amp was 'vintage' aged and they had to photograph and document the amp and send everything to a remote location in California where the economy is even worse and I had no power whatsoever to influence the decision makers with my winning charm and boy-ish smile. At the end of it all, they low-balled me by almost 50% claiming the economy, the market, the weather, somebody's cranky kids and undergarments that were two sizes too small.

Well, I took my toys and went home. Did I mention that the thing is heavy? I was distraught. So, there I was, mulling it all over and it occurred to me that the solution was a different piece of gear I have that was definitely worth more than enough even by their own evaluation standards. So, excited by the new prospect, I rang the store and talked to one of the guys I had been dealing with. Before I could finish describing this wonderful PRS Custom 22 electric guitar with Artist Package and gold hardware and leather case, the guy cut me off.

"Which guitar were you interested in?"

"The Martin J40. It's setting behind the counter. I was just at your shop an hour ago, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. Look man, I'm sorry. We just sold that guitar 10 minutes ago!"
"You're kidding?!?"

"Nope. This guy was drooling over it and I told him that someone else was asking about it, so if he wanted it.........."

.........It didn't matter what else he said at that point. It was all a drone. My heart was now broken and here I am, head in hand.