Sunday, June 30, 2002

Funk Finger Madness!

        Ladies and Gentlemen, I am proud to announce that I have just crafted my very own pair of Funk Fingers!  After a year of procrastination, I finally got off my ass and did it.  For those of you who aren't familiar, Funk Fingers were invented so that part of the bass line in Peter Gabriel's song "Big Time" could be played live.  During the recording of the song, bassist Tony Levin came up with the idea to have Jerry Marotta (drummer) drum on his bass strings while Tony played the left-hand fingering.  While that was all well and good in the studio, it was hard to reproduce live with the drummer busy playing the drums.  So, Tony and his bass tech developed a pair of chopped off drum sticks with elastic bandages to attach one to each finger.  And lo, the birth of Funk Fingers!

        My design was simple and required a minimal supply list: a 3' wooden dowel, rubberizing tool handle grip and Velcro.  There was a slight problem in apprehending the dowel material--Home Depot was out!  So, I settled for 1/2" PVC tubing with push-on rubber ends.  It turned out that the PVC was a waste of time and money (a whopping $3 or so).  The material was entirely too dense and extremely heavy.  I had to use 2 strips of Velcro to hold each one on!

        Last year, I had acquired a pair of drum sticks from one of the drummers that came over to jam.  He left them in my basement, so I threw them in my gig bag with intent of making them into Funk Fingers at a later date.  Since my creative juices were already flowing, out they came to be sawed in half and dipped into the toxic rubber solution.  After dipping the tips a couple times, they required 4 hours to dry.

        Velcro was attached half way around the base of each stick.  That way, my fingers would rest atop the smooth wooden surface instead of coarse Velcro.  I wrapped a piece of fuzzy Velcro around both my finger and the stick.  And then, came the moment of truth.

Tuesday, June 25, 2002

        Practice with John and Michael went exceptionally well yesterday.  A future show date is scheduled for July 20 at the Sweet Dreams Cafe in Madison, NJ.  I added a new link to the site to make show-going a little easier for everyone.  We appreciate the support of our site visitors and friends and look forward to putting on a show that you will be sure to remember.  See you there!

        After practice we all went to see Star Wars II.  It was my first time seeing the movie since it hit the box office and Michael's 7th.  I'm going to have quite a few more viewings before I understand that movie as well as he does!  Anyway, it's a good movie and was a great means for the band to hang out and do something that wasn't just music.  Needless to say, this trio is definitely going to be a fun venture.

Sunday, June 23, 2002

        As much as I'd like to rave about today, I just woke up and nothing too exciting has happened yet.  So, I'll move right on to tomorrow's list of events.  Tomorrow, I'll be auditioning with John Mazzarella, a friend of Michael's.  They have been working together on and off for a number of years playing various folk venues and coffee houses.  It wasn't until recently that Michael had mentioned that I could audition and play with them.  When he did, I knew it would definitely be something cool to check out.

        I received a copy of John's songs a couple days ago and have been working on them since.  His material is fun to play and Michael and I are going to have a blast holding down the fort.  We'll be working on various cover songs by Dave Matthews, Led Zeppelin and Peter Gabriel among others.  I took the time to learn Dave Matthews Satellite intro riff on bass so that John can play the lead guitar part.  It should be an experimentally interesting cover!

Monday, June 17, 2002

        I decided to change the default font for the site. Writing in a smaller, more spaced out font was easier on my eyes.  As for playing. . .

        We held another jam session with the same guitarist from last week.  While everyone seemed to be a bit off schedule, Michael and I were more than on par as a rhythm section.  Our "auditionee" was most comfortable with a simple drum beat and walking rock bass line.  Playing in keys other than "E" or "A" were a little challenging for him.  Suffice to say, we're going to have to close the door on that little venture.

        On a more pleasant note, Michael had mentioned working with one of his friends who is a singer/songwriter with a few steady gigs every month.  So, like the saying, "when one door closes, another opens."  I'll be eager to hear back from him regarding this exciting opportunity.  Not only will it help Michael and I to develop some live playing chops, but it may be a possible means for us to perform some of our own material in between sets.

Saturday, June 8, 2002

        Michael and I held an audition for a guitarist this past Wednesday.  It has been a long time since I jammed with a guitarist!  There is nothing more exciting than an evening of improv!   Even though improv is all that Michael and I play, it's always interesting to add another person to the mix.  We're going to get together with our "auditionee" a few more times before making any permanent decisions about an additional band member.

        In the meantime--more recording and developing of ideas for a future lead bass & drum/percussion disc.  And as if enough weren't already happening under the Toltec logo, an ambient/trance disc will likely make an appearance in the distant future.  Lots of musical energy floating about has us all in high spirits.  Between that and beautiful, clear skies, I think we can all sit back and appreciate how much life really has to offer.

Be well,

Jim