Hello out there! This time around we thought it would be fun to share some wisdom and fun from the world of pop-culture, who says America has no history to draw upon? We may be a new country but we have been very busy little babies! Todays submission is chock full o fun so be sure to stick around for the whole show!
This time around we start with some words of wisdom for the guitar player from the musical sage Don Van Vliet, otherwise known as Captain Beefheart. I found these posted at WFMU and I'm sure they have been posted many times before but we thought they were great and wanted to make sure that our friends saw them so we have brought them hear for your to consume on your quest for guitar diety status!
Captain Beefheart's 10 Commandments of Guitar Playing
Beefheart 1. Listen to the birds.
That's where all the music comes from. Birds know everything about how it should sound and where that sound should come from. And watch hummingbirds. They fly really fast, but a lot of times they aren't going anywhere.
2. Your guitar is not really a guitar Your guitar is a divining rod
Use it to find spirits in the other world and bring them over. A guitar is also a fishing rod. If you're good, you'll land a big one.
3. Practice in front of a bush
Wait until the moon is out, then go outside, eat a multi-grained bread and play your guitar to a bush. If the bush dosen't shake, eat another piece of bread.
4. Walk with the devil
Old Delta blues players referred to guitar amplifiers as the "devil box." And they were right. You have to be an equal opportunity employer in terms of who you're bringing over from the other side. Electricity attracts devils and demons. Other instruments attract other spirits. An acoustic guitar attracts Casper. A mandolin attracts Wendy. But an electric guitar attracts Beelzebub.
5. If you're guilty of thinking, you're out
If your brain is part of the process, you're missing it. You should play like a drowning man, struggling to reach shore. If you can trap that feeling, then you have something that is fur bearing.
6. Never point your guitar at anyone
Your instrument has more clout than lightning. Just hit a big chord then run outside to hear it. But make sure you are not standing in an open field.
7. Always carry a church key
That's your key-man clause. Like One String Sam. He's one. He was a Detroit street musician who played in the fifties on a homemade instrument. His song "I Need a Hundred Dollars" is warm pie. Another key to the church is Hubert Sumlin, Howlin' Wolf's guitar player. He just stands there like the Statue of Liberty-making you want to look up her dress the whole time to see how he's doing it.
8. Don't wipe the sweat off your instrument
You need that stink on there. Then you have to get that stink onto your music.
9. Keep your guitar in a dark place
When you're not playing your guitar, cover it and keep it in a dark place. If you don't play your guitar for more than a day, be sure you put a saucer of water in with it.
10. You gotta have a hood for your engine
Keep that hat on. A hat is a pressure cooker. If you have a roof on your house, the hot air can't escape. Even a lima bean has to have a piece of wet paper around it to make it grow.
Next we have a movie trailer for a film forgotten by many but loved by millions and featuring none other than that buxom babe of the b-movie set, Tura Satana. Immortalized in NJ horror/camp outfit The Misfits song of the same name, Astro Zombies!
Moving along, we wanted to do a couple of tributes to a couple of bands that are no longer with us that have had a profound affect on our music.
First off, this short lived Michigan band was so cool I don't even want to try to give them too much of an explanation. They are not a huge influence on what we do directly but rather how we listen to music and our attitudes about creating it. In our opinion the infamous Michigan garage scene would not have existed without: The Gories!
L to R: Mick Collins, Margaret Ann "Peggy" O'Neill, Dan Kroha.
Video of one of our favorite Gories Tunes - Thunderbird ESQ
A song about a real drive -in diner that still exists in Ypsi - Chick-Inn
Finally we get to the crux of the biscuit! Certainly one of the biggest musical influences on Eric B. and Lam-Yam Ying over the past 20 or more odd years (yes we are old!) are the indescribable Sun City Girls! Founded in the punk rock scene of 1980's Phoenix, AZ the Sun City Girls have for years created some of the most amazing and perplexing music to come round the bend. Sadly with the untimely 2007 death of Charles Gocher, the Sun City Girls are no more but the Bishops are still churning out unique and creative music for those of us left in this world to enjoy.
L to R: Sir Richard Bishop, Charles Gocher, Alan Bishop.
Video featuring the late Charles Gocher - Cloaven Theater
One of our favorite tracks from the first full length SCG release - Uncle Jim
We hope you have enjoyed this most recent installment of "notes on a dirty napkin" please do check back soon to see what goodies we bring you from the land of plenty and beyond!