For once I'm not talking about myself too much in this post. I'm going to talk about an old friend, his name, Shawn Harris. Before I moved out to Los Angeles in the mid eighties, I was teaching at a small studio in Orlando. That's where I first met Shawn. Another teacher gave him to me saying that Shawn had drained him of everything he knew and asked if I would take over. So I did. Shawn was going to electrical engineering school but was really only interested in guitar. I would show him some scales and chords and we would jam during our lessons. I really wasn't much of a teacher back then, it took me another 15 years to become the kind of teacher somebody could make good use of. I became restless with my career and headed out to Los Angeles saying goodbye to Shawn and lost track. You can't really blame me though, this was the eightees, no email, facebook or myspace. Last week, after twenty years, we ran in to each other on myspace. Surprise, suprise! And he has a new CD out, "Temptation" which he sent me a copy of. I took a listen and liked the material. But the more I listen, the more I like it, so much so that I listen to it everyday. It is the kind of music that really grows on you. Shawn sings and plays mostly acoustic guitar with a rhythm section. The music is broody but uplifting. My favorite cuts are "Promised Land" and "Memories." I usually relentlessly promote my own music, but I have to suggest you have a listen to Shawn. I'll get back to myself later.Saturday, April 26, 2008
Shawn Harris
For once I'm not talking about myself too much in this post. I'm going to talk about an old friend, his name, Shawn Harris. Before I moved out to Los Angeles in the mid eighties, I was teaching at a small studio in Orlando. That's where I first met Shawn. Another teacher gave him to me saying that Shawn had drained him of everything he knew and asked if I would take over. So I did. Shawn was going to electrical engineering school but was really only interested in guitar. I would show him some scales and chords and we would jam during our lessons. I really wasn't much of a teacher back then, it took me another 15 years to become the kind of teacher somebody could make good use of. I became restless with my career and headed out to Los Angeles saying goodbye to Shawn and lost track. You can't really blame me though, this was the eightees, no email, facebook or myspace. Last week, after twenty years, we ran in to each other on myspace. Surprise, suprise! And he has a new CD out, "Temptation" which he sent me a copy of. I took a listen and liked the material. But the more I listen, the more I like it, so much so that I listen to it everyday. It is the kind of music that really grows on you. Shawn sings and plays mostly acoustic guitar with a rhythm section. The music is broody but uplifting. My favorite cuts are "Promised Land" and "Memories." I usually relentlessly promote my own music, but I have to suggest you have a listen to Shawn. I'll get back to myself later.
Friday, April 04, 2008
Check out the Doo!
Ha, ha, ha! Found this photo here in Japan. It's me, eighteen years old and in my first traveling band "Stryker." We meandered around the southern B circuit for a few years before fading away. I have pretty good memories of those times, especially playing spring break in Daytona Beach. Check out my hair, a Fro! I'm all the way on the left if you haven't figured it out yet. I've been looking for the other guitarist in the band for years. If anybody knows the whereabouts of Harvey Holten, let me know.
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