Thursday, September 27, 2018
Southwest flying to Chicago, layerover, eventual destination Cleveland
Headed for Ohio to pay tribute to Jack Petersen, first chairman of the Berklee Guitar Department and my teacher and friend when I was working on my Masters at North Texas in the mid-1980s. More about that later. I’m not going back to Austin this week but to Ohio then back to Boston on Sunday to teach my regular Berklee Mon-Wed week. Long layover in Chicago Midway but I’ve got no responsibilities on this trip – as far as I know I’m not even playing for anything. Got a bagged tele in my carry on and the neck in a tube resting by my feet in the window seat 13F. I’m thinking about the Bill Pierce tribute concert I heard at Berklee last night. Some beautiful music was made. Especially impressed with Billy, David Gilmore, Terry Lynn Carrington and Mark Turner but everyone sounded great. Melissa Aldana sounded a lot like Sonny, Antonio Hart was impressive, Ron Savage had a really nice touch and a great sounding ride, Ira Coleman, Jake Sherman…all good. David Gilmore was getting a beautiful sound and played his ass off. It’s really hard to tell what it sounded like on stage in the Berklee Performance Center (“the BPC” for the few people in the world who didn’t go to Berklee. World domination, yeah?) and the sound people could have been having an especially hard time since there were so many musicians. They all played great despite what was probably not the greatest sound on stage and Bill Pierce is still tearing it up!!
That being said, I’m considering my own retirement almost daily. This trip has been especially tiring and I feel like my energy reserves are not holding much of a charge anymore. I’ve got to break it down into sections: if I can make it through this flight I can rest in Chicago, if I make it through today I can rest after we check into the hotel tomorrow (I don’t know where I’m sleeping tonight but it seems like I get a maximum of three nights in the same bed or floor), if I can make it through until next Wednesday night I’ll be back home, if I make it home I can teach next Thursday and prepare for my boston trip on FUCK! Sunday, Oct. 7. Now that I think about it I’ll only be home a couple of days before I’m leaving again and then I’m staying in Boston for an extra day because of the Abercrombie tribute. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck me. Fuck me I’m taking a week off after that. Fuck.
Wednesday, October 3, 2018
Flight 2179 headed for Austin
Had a great time in Ohio at Jack Petersens clinic and concert. Jack sounded wonderful and looked healthy and happy, his clinic was full of a lot of great information that I’m still trying to figure out 30 years later. The student ensembles who played his 5 and 10 guitar charts were full of talented and motivated students and while the titles of the his charts sound a bit dated the arrangements and tunes were still hip and well written years later. Joe Eggers, Chris Buzzelli, Rick Peckham and I were there to represent some of Jacks UNT students and it was great hanging out with them and catching up a bit. Ricks mom was incredibly gracious and funny and we got to have a couple of meals with her. Oh yeah, Mike Stern played on Saturday night with the BGSU faculty and David Bixler was playing alto. The whole band sounded great but it was so nice to hear Bix tear it up and to talk to him briefly afterward. Dan Piccolo played drums and Jeff Halsey bass and both did an amazing job. On the trip back I was due to cool my heels in BWI for a couple of hours but a very nice Southwest ticket agent was able to put me on a slightly earlier flight so I made it back to Berklee about 9:30 (with the drive from Bowling Green to Cleveland making it another 12 hour travel day). On Monday, with makeup lessons, online chats and online private lessons I taught 9 ½ hours straight, Tuesday another 9 hours now I’m on the early direct flight back to Austin and I cannot fucking wait to be at home. For 2 ½ days. Another couple of hours in this seat though.