The GLF convened last night to play through a few tunes, drink beer, and generally be reminded of how arse-kickingly difficult it is to play jazz even badly. I've also noted that even if I practice something diligently it won't manifest itself in my real-live playing until three months later at the very least. Like "tone suck," "aptitude suck" is a well-known phenomenon amongst musicians (even if they don't use that exactly that phrase, which they probably don't as I just made it up), meaning that when they play gigs or go live with other people, they generally find they can only do about 60-70% of what they can manage when they practice. Presumably, the conscious mind is so preoccupied with "shit! what's next?" that the only things that can be relied upon to come across are those that are so deeply engrained in the muscle memory that they're way beyond thinking.
Which is a roundabout way of saying here's me playing at 60% of my ability: "Just Friends" played by the Great Leap Forward. Talking of "tone suck," apologies for the awful hiss coming out of my amp. I thought it was because none of the outlets in Pete's ghetto flat are grounded, but it turns out I have one incredibly noisy lead. How does that happen? I thought it was just string in there. By the way, I recently bought an ART tube preamp from ebay. It only cost me $35, but I'm really loving it, and if the hiss wasn't so bad, I'd think you'd be able to hear its added warmth and depth. I'm also very excited to have bought an ebony bridge to replace the tune-o-matic on my D'angelico. I'll be hiring a professional for that little modification.
"Enough of this pointless, wife-beating gear talk," you say, "take us to the music!" Well it here it is. To my great embarassment, I completely miss the first note of the head and I never should've taken a third chorus, though if you can make it as far as the end, you'll still be able to hear me congratulating myself. The boundless vanity of the man!
