Do Musicians Have Brains?

Earthquakes, Tsunamis and Nuclear Accidents

2011-03-30T20:57:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody. Just wanted to let everybody know what is going on regarding the major catastrophic events that has besieged my second home of Japan. It must hard to get an accurate picture of the whole thing by simply watching CNN, especially since I know many of you have never even been to Japan. As I watch both the international and Japanese news, plus the fact I was in Tokyo at the time of the disaster and still am, maybe I make a decent source of information in regards to this whole mess. This will be a long read by the way (I’m writing it while riding the bullet train to Osaka, a two and a half hour journey so I have plenty of time). It will take a while to get through the whole thing so you might want to get yourself a coffee or beer before you get started.

A lot of you assumed that I was in the middle of the earthquake and tsunami and had water pouring in my fourth floor window. I appreciate your well wishes and worries but besides getting a bit shaken up and not being able to get home because of no running trains and damaged roads, I was never in real danger.

Let me also tell you that I am in no immediate danger from the reactor problems in Fukushima. Although I have been to Fukushima maybe a dozen times in my life, I now keep an apartment in Tokyo about 150 miles south. The earthquake was off the coast of Sendai, where I lived at one time and is a bit north of Fukushima. Sendai is actually the next stop from Fukushima on the bullet train heading north, taking about 90 minutes from Tokyo Station.

The earthquake was simply massive, even in Tokyo. Yes, there was a lot of damage in Tokyo including fires and a few deaths as well but Tokyo fared much better than Miyagi, Fukushima and Iwate. As you have undoubtedly seen on the news, the tsunami that followed shortly washed away whole towns and villages. The Japanese are well rehearsed and therefore prepared for any disaster, including this one, but it proved impossible to get everybody away from the four story wave that engulfed everything for a few miles or so inland. Men who volunteered for ringing the warning bells in their towns died ringing those bells, never giving up their duties. Many people didn’t want to escape, because being the middle of the day, family members were separated and couldn’t leave thinking that their loved ones might be heading back home after the earthquake. Others couldn’t leave their elderly parents. Some people tried escaping in cars and on bicycles but couldn’t outrun the water. Other’s tried to climb to their roofs but the water was too high. One man was found alive in his house floating nine miles out to sea.

As many victims were dragged out to sea as the wave receded, I’m not sure we’ll ever know how many people died but I’m guessing it will be near 30,000. Anyway, it was tragic and there are hundreds of thousands displaced in makeshift evacuation centers with little food and in many cases no electricity while it snows outside.

Unlike you see in most tragedies, the Japanese haven’t turned into thugs, thieves, looters or rapists and I hope that if any good is to come of this disaster, it will come in the form of a lesson on how civilized people behave in the face of dire circumstances. Americans should reflect on our own behavior during the Katrina tragedy and ask ourselves what morals have we been taught and teach our children. The Japanese have showed us that compassion for others and a good moral compass should not be traded for anything in any circumstance.

Unfortunately, the tragedy of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami has been underscored by the reactor problem just south of Sendai in Fukushima. You see, when the electricity was knocked out by the earthquake, the cooling system in four of the six reactors was knocked out as well (the other two had already been in shutdown mode for other reasons before the earthquake). You have to understand that the uranium enriched rods they use to generate steam and consequently electricity have to be kept at a certain temperature and if left unchecked will melt down or burn and create all sorts of nasty byproducts, ones that cause cancer and radiation sickness. These byproducts have very long lasting power, some in the spans of decades and others centuries (maybe millenniums). That’s why 25 years after the Chernobyl Disaster, nobody, still to this day, is allowed within 30 kilometers or the plant and won’t for hundreds or possibly thousands of years unless scientists or engineers figure out some sort of solution. Anyway, when the electricity and cooling system got cut off, these rods began to heat up. Fortunately, TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Co.) was prepared for this problem and had diesel generators set up to take over when electricity failed. Unfortunately, the generators also failed when the tsunami obliterated them. Nobody assumed that a 9.0 magnitude earthquake would ever take place much less a forty foot tsunami. So there you have it, four reactors racing to meltdown, the water surrounding the rods boiling off and once the rods are exposed, will catch fire and basically become poison factories. So with no other choice, TEPCO had to use seawater in place of freshwater, which they couldn’t get anymore. There is some conjecture that TEPCO was slow in coming to this conclusion because saltwater would ruin the reactors making the plant unusable. Who knows what goes on behind closed doors?

As of today, the problem is still not under control. Probably at least one of the reactors is leaking water because the casing around the reactor has probably been damaged and the chemical compound in the leaking water shows that the rods have been damaged as they were assumed to have been uncovered by water for some period of time. They have also found plutonium on the site. Plutonium is a byproduct of nuclear fission and is much nastier than uranium. On top of that, the leaking water is a meter deep in the basement of the reactors and is in danger of overflowing possibly into the ocean or seeping into groundwater.

What is going to happen is anyone’s guess. My guess is that they will eventually cool the rods, get rid of the water (where they will put it, I have no idea), and eventually clean up the area at the cost of billions of dollars. I also think that there won’t be anyone living within ten or twenty miles of the reactor for a while. As I mentioned, nobody lives within 30 kilometers of Chernobyl so I imagine this to be somewhat true of this disaster as well. Unfortunately, Japan is a pretty small country with a pretty large population. On top of that, the majority of Japan’s produce comes from that area. So this could have enormous consequences for Japan.

What does this mean for your pal Chris Juergensen and his life 150 miles south in Tokyo you ask? I’m not sure really. But I can tell you that so far my life is not miserable, more inconvenienced if anything. I hate to say that I’ve learned something at the cost of all the ruined lives and deaths but I have. It is a little lesson really. I’ve learned to appreciate what I have and not to moan and bitch about things. I can’t get milk for my coffee, no yogurt for breakfast, eggs were a challenge for a while. I had to get up pretty early in the morning to get toilet paper. The government has banned milk and many other things like spinach that were produced in that area because of unsafe levels of radiation so farmers are screwed. That’s right, no milk in my coffee but not that bad compared to the farmer who killed himself two days ago. Or the other people within the evacuation zone who refuse to leave their cows, fields or bedridden loved ones. No telling what is going to happen to them.

Should you give money to Japan? I think you should give a little as a symbolic gesture. Why symbolic you ask? Because Japan is a very, very rich country. It is the third wealthiest country in the world by GDP standards and as far as personal wealth, it certainly is wealthier than its number two GDP rich neighbor China. Almost everybody in Japan has money in the bank and if the Japanese people not affected by the disaster reach into their pockets, they can financially take care of this problem themselves. As I’ve earned most of my income over the years from working in Japan, I’ve contributed myself out of a responsibility to the Japanese people and as a role model to other expats living in Japan. But you, as a non-Japanese, as a symbolic gesture, give a little bit but remember that there are people starving all over the world in countries that do not have the resources like Japan to take care of famine or other similar disasters (Haiti comes to mind). If you really want to help someone, donate money to the Red Cross who allocated resources to the most needy.

What Does This Mean For Japan? I can’t be sure. Japan had its fair share of problems before the earthquake. They have enormous debt and an aging population with minus population growth. The Japanese are, or at least were know to be resilient. I mean, they rebuilt a completely ruined country after World War 2 and turned it into a superpower unmatched by only the USA. In all honesty, the Japanese have become quite apathetic over the last two decades so maybe this will wake up the 20 something generation. It could be a wake up call but only time will tell.

Anyway, that’s my take on things here in the land of the rising sun. I hope it was a good read and thanks again to everyone worrying about me.

Victory High-Ball Motorcycle and Chris Juergensen

2011-03-26T19:14:00.000-07:00

Victory Motorcycle is using "Love Dog" from my "Big Bad Sun" CD in their new promotional video. Check out the video below and go to their website to check out their bikes >>>

Harley Davidson - Blue Sky Heaven

2010-10-04T07:00:00.000-07:00

I played at Harley Davidson's annual event at Fuji Speedway in Japan on the 1st. I had a great time and the place was packed with Harley enthusiasts from all over the country. Harley wanted more of an American rock image to match their iconic bikes so my long time friend Keisuke Nishimoto set up the gig. I heard there were 30,000 in attendance and there were certainly thousands there watching my show. We played at a speedway which is obviously outdoors, so the weather is always an issue in rainy Japan for events like this, but the weather was perfect.

To make the whole thing even more interesting, the lighting engineer coincidentally turned out to be a grad from the college I teach at (check the photo album link below).

There is nothing like getting called for a gig that is perfect for you, where you can play what you like, dress like you like and still get paid like a professional. Long live Harley Davidson!

Check the photo album here ＞＞＞

Double Nutty T-Shirts

2010-07-06T01:16:00.000-07:00

A double dose of nutty t-shirts. One on my right:

FAST FOOD

NO BURGER

NO LIFE

HAMBURGERS

FOREVER

And the one on my left:

Legalize Gay

I didn't know it was illegal to be gay.

And More Nutty T-shirts

2010-06-30T23:59:00.000-07:00

I found another nutty t-shirt today. This one says:

AT EVERY TIME AND

IN EVERY WAY IMPOSING

SPEECH WITH THE SPELL

IT THROWS OVER US

PREVAILS OVER THAT

WHICH AIMS AT PERSUASION

& GRATIFICATION

Anybody have a clue?

More Goofy T-Shirts

2010-06-16T05:26:00.000-07:00

Yes another one. This one says:

WONDERFUL

SCENE

YOU HAD

LOOKED IT!

Moving Relaxable Space

2010-06-13T01:48:00.000-07:00

In Japan, we call a bus a:

Moving Relaxable Space

And that's just the way it is!

More Nutty Japanese T-Shirts and other Daily Occurances

2010-05-16T21:10:00.000-07:00

Another good one I found on one of the Japanese students at the college here in Tokyo:

Crystal

Super Haze

With a big pot leaf in the middle. What the 88 and 24 mean, I'm not sure. It cracks me up because even thinking about drugs in Japan is enough to land you in the slammer but a T-shirt like this one you can find on any innocent teenager.

Monster in the Bathroom

2010-05-09T19:11:00.000-07:00

Found this on the bathroom door today. It says:

You cant go in the bathroom because

there is a big monster in the bathroom.

This is my daughter's way of saying: don't take a shower, I want you to play with me.

But it had me thinking. She is just six years old and in Kindergarten. When I was her age, I could hardly write my own name in block letters much less full sentences with abstract meaning.

Yikes..

2010-04-15T17:28:00.000-07:00

Sushi is Japanese for "vinegar(ed) rice." Of course most people associate Sushi with fish but not all Sushi has fish on it. Sashimi is the fish or other thing without the rice. A dab of soy sauce and maybe a dab of wasabi and in it goes. One Japanese delicacy is Basashi, see it over there? It is raw horse meat Sashimi. Raw garlic, ginger and green onions go on top, a little soy sauce and its ready to eat. Sorry Mr. Ed.

NAMM 2010 Report

2010-01-17T22:20:00.000-08:00

Well, the NAMM Show is done. If you didn't know, NAMM is the acronym for National Association of Musical Merchants. Basically it is a trade show where equipment makers sell their stuff to music stores. Endorsers are expected to show up at the booths for signings, performances and demos. So you get to see everybody from Steve Vai and Joe Satriani to just about everyone. And you get to see all the new products for the year. Unfortunately it also draws crowds of crazy people who have no interest in doing any business and wannabees. It is inescapable for professional musicians and as usual I was there for three of the four days. It is pretty much my image of what hell is like. I imagine when I die, god will send me the a NAMM show where all the doors are locked from the outside and it runs 24 hours a day for all eternity. So basically I will have to spend infinity listening to crappy, loud guitarists playing various versions of "Smoke on the Water," "Sweet Child of Mine" and "Stairway to Heaven" and sweep licks coming from everywhere played on out of tune guitars. Anyway, here is my top five impressions of the 2010 NAMM Show (with photos as well, just so you will get the full imagery):

Fat, 40 something, tattooed, long haired guys everywhere.
Basses with more strings and frets than guitars
Butts
Cheap girly guitars
Giant crowds of people with nothing better to do.

Tea for Professionals

2010-01-09T23:46:00.000-08:00

Is this funny? I was trying to make myself a cup of tea at a college I was doing a seminar at and gave myself a good laugh. It's not just any tea bag, it's a:

Professional Tea Bag

-CJ

Played at the Japanese Marijuana Smokers Convention

2009-11-17T20:55:00.000-08:00

Just kidding, I really played at a giant high school here in Tokyo last week. It was funny because that big gold leaf, which is the official school leaf, next to the Japanese flag looks exactly like a marijuana leaf to me (take a good look at the photo). It was hanging up behind the auditorium stage. Japanese schools all have an official leaf (go figure). I wonder what they would think if they found out theirs looks like a pot leaf. Maybe it is. It would be more fitting for my old high school really...

One of Those Days

2009-11-15T22:06:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had one of those days when you show up to work and the guy who sits next to you has the exact same look going on? I showed up to teach my classes at college here in Tokyo and the music business guy was my twin.

Guitar Tools pt.2

2009-09-26T22:43:00.000-07:00

My second installment of the column I write for guitartools.co.uk. This one is dedicated to treble boosters and especially the most famous one, the Rangemaster.

Treble Boosters – As we learned in part 1 of this column, guitarists in their quest for rock and roll tone often turned to fuzzes to push their amps to the breaking point, but another group of guitarists used a different device. To add some sparkle to the dark British amps in the sixties, many guitar players turned to treble boosters. In addition to adding more high frequencies, they also helped drive their amps with a dbl boost and some added distortion. Although a very 60s sound, the treble booster sounds completely different than the fuzz but if you want and need a varied classic type sound, having one of these in your bag is a must. More >>>

More Nutty English in Korea

2009-09-25T23:32:00.000-07:00

I recently played a show in Korea and look what I found on the door in front of the bathrooms:

LAD

MEN

Does this mean you have two bathrooms, one for grown men and one for boys? Pretty funny..

-CJ

A T-Shirt With a Message

2009-09-16T06:08:00.000-07:00

This is a lot of message for one small T-shirt. Pretty funny. It even has a title:

Everything that
1975
Irritates us

and then goes on:

Everything that

Irritates us

About Others

Can Lead us

To a Better

Understanding

Of Ourselves

Don't Push my Buttons

2009-09-16T01:16:00.000-07:00

I don't know, is this funny? It sort of cracks me up. I mean it sort suggests that you choose the button you like best rather then the coffee:

Please Push Your Favorite Button

More Nutty Japanese (English) T-shirts

2009-08-20T00:51:00.000-07:00

Hmm... A young girl with a Despot shirt on. If you didn't know, a despot is:

des·pot n

1. a tyrant or ruler with absolute powers

2. somebody who acts in a tyrannical way towards people

3. a minor emperor or prince of the later Roman, Byzantine, or Ottoman empires

Makes you wonder....

New Column on GuitarTools

2009-08-18T19:06:00.000-07:00

I've started writing a monthly column on guitartools.co.uk focusing on guitar effects. I write about how they work, the history behind them, the ground-breakers and new ones that I like. It should be a lot of fun and it gives me an opportunity to showcase some of the manufacturers that deserve more recognition.

Link:

effects on guitartools.co.uk

Hershey Park

2009-08-07T03:04:00.000-07:00

I know this is a real T-shirt because there is a Hersheypark PA. But I can't help it. It's sort of funny. How can I say this without insulting anyone. Well, let's just say the word Hershey sort of gets used in a lot of gay jokes, so HERSHEYPARK IS FOR LOVERS with the hearts and that thing I'm pointing to that, well, um, sort of reminds me of a butt hole, gives me the crack-ups. Plus, his face is also making me laugh. This photo was taken backstage at a show we did, the Hersheypark lover guy is Kenichi Fujisawa, the bass player in my band.

Podcast Interview

2009-08-05T04:28:00.000-07:00

I did another interview on the "One Minute How To" podcast. If you'll recall, the last one I did was on how to eat Sushi. This one is on how to avoid jet lag, obviously something I've learned to do considering I fly about 100,000 miles a year. The "One Minute How To" podcast is a fun way to get the word out about my music and books and I get to talk about something other than music (barf). Anyway, it is sort of goofy so have a listen if you have a chance but especially if you are going to be doing some traveling.

Link: "One Minute How To" Podcast

Kei Akagi

2009-07-21T04:12:00.000-07:00

Kei Akagi came to the college to do a seminar today. I was thrilled to meet him (2nd time) and it was a pleasure to hear what he had to say about playing with some of my heroes, like Miles Davis and Allan Holdsworth. I originally saw him play with Allan years ago in Hollywood. He is a complete genius. For those of you who aren't familiar with who he is, he was born in Japan but grew up in the states. He has played piano with Miles, Joe Farrell, Al DiMeola, Airto Moreira, Art Pepper, Blue Mitchell, Freddie Hubbard, Ron Carter, Charlie Haden, Charnett Moffett, Tom Harrell, Bobby Shew, Eddie Harris, Slide Hampton, Steve Turre, Robin Eubanks, Jean-Luc Ponty, Jeff Watts, Allan Holdsworth, and others. He is currently the Chancellor Professor of Music at the University of California, Irvine. It was a very exciting day and I usually don't get very excited about things like this, last time was when I met Jeff Beck.

Even More Nutty Japanese (English) T-shirts

2009-07-13T05:17:00.000-07:00

I think they got the message wrong with this one:

Drugs Not Hugs

Probably backwards....

Dedication to my Father

2009-07-10T03:42:00.000-07:00

Dear Dad,

Sorry to be late again. I had actually forgotten Father’s Day this year. Since I became a father myself, I don’t particularly like Father’s Day, matter of fact I hate it. I love being a father, but during this time of the year, I’m in Tokyo and being separated on Father’s Day from my daughter is especially difficult for me. While all the other fathers in Japan are getting cards and presents from their kids, I’m stuck by myself. So I was actually trying to forget about Father’s Day.

But a few days ago, one of my old highschool friends, told me that he had gotten the guitar book I wrote as a present for Father’s Day and it reminded me once again of you.

I did a lot of soul searching over this and wanted to tell you something, something I probably never said before. Although you never talked much about it, I know you grew up in way worse times than me. You were fourteen when World War II ended and having grown up in Hamburg, probably the most bombed city in Europe, had your share of tragedies. I remember you told me once that your home got bombed while you were out during the day, and you told me of the sirens going off in the middle of the night and rushing to the basement of your building to put on gas masks. And you told me that you would go up to the roof of your apartment building after the air raids were over each night to count the fires in the city. I recall you once told me that you had no place to live and lived on a boat for a while.

But usually these stories only came when I asked you about your childhood, you never once gave me that; “You kids have it too easy, you know, when I was a kid we….” type of talks. I remember a story you told me about the war, how you kept a goat for milk and cheese and how it got stolen. And that the thieves were decent enough to leave the head behind so at least you could make soup. I never knew till Mom told me that your father had been away in the war for years and years and your family thought he had died till he finally came back after the war was over.

You never got the chance to go to college and become an architect like you wanted but because of you I had the chance to become anything I wanted. Sorry I became a musician, even you never complained about that either. You never said you had a miserable childhood and never complained about the bad set of cards you got dealt in life. I know you had your demons to deal with and unlike so many people, you kept it a private battle.

When you got in your twenties, you packed your bags and looked for a new life in America. You came on a boat from Europe with a couple hundred bucks and a German/English dictionary, landed a job, got married to a beautiful American woman and raised a family. You took good care of us and your spirit of adventure rubbed off on me. Because of what you did; leaving home to find new opportunities, I could find the courage to do it too. First Los Angeles, then Tokyo.

I suppose you never wanted us to have the kind of life you did and we didn’t, we grew up never knowing of such things. Matter of fact we were spoiled, we never wanted for anything. We never knew what it was like to not have three meals a day, to not have new clothes when we needed them. You worked six days a week, gone before I got up to go to school and back home at nine or ten at night. You were never out drinkin’ it up with the boys like I do. You had only Sunday off and you never failed to take us somewhere, to the beach or to the car races. We had a nice family vacation every year in Ocean City. You taught me how to tell time and to tie my shoes. You bought me my first guitar. And I never said thanks for anything. Even though I spent the last few days of your life with you in the Hospital, I didn’t even tell you then.

So let me take this chance to say thanks to you Dad. I’m so sorry I didn’t say it while you were alive. And I’m sorry I had to post it on the internet, but considering Heaven must have an internet connection, it is the only way I figured you’d be able to read it. I can’t help but wonder if your goat that they stole got to heaven too?

Your Loving Son,
Chris

Curry In Japan

2009-07-08T07:08:00.001-07:00

This is one of my new goofy Japanese adventures involving Indian Curry. Let me start from the beginning by introducing my friend Hiro, he's the guy down there wiping his face with a towel. Hiro and I live in the same area of Tokyo, Monzen Nakacho to be exact. We have been on this mission, like a lot of middle aged men, to become real men. So we started by going to the gym every other day and running 5K followed by a weight training regiment. Needless to say we are getting buff. After our training sessions, we make way to the local Indian Curry restaurant, Binita. The first time, we ordered our curry, vegetable curry if you really need all the details, and started at level 4 out of a possible 10 (look at the poster on the wall) because we were scared. And it was pretty hot. We agreed that we would try to work our way up to the highest level, 10. Now our motivations were quite simple, we imagined that we would train ourselves to be able to eat the level 10 atomic curry and then go out to dinner with some young girls and when they ordered their curry at girly level 3 or 4 and we would order ours at 10 and eat without even breaking a sweat. And of course the girls would think us manly men. Today we reached the pinacle, level 10. It was a fun journey. The Indian man who runs the place and all the other Indian people working there, learned of our amitions and instead of the usual "Irashaimase," meaning welcome in Japanese, when we entered their fine establishment, they would say; "Today is number 9, right?" We would drink our complimentary beer and partake in our atomic curry. When we got to about 8, the waiters would peak out at us to make sure we were OK. Hiro would sweat more at the curry place than at the gym, bringing an extra towel with him everytime.

Yes, More Nutty Japanese (English) T-shirts

2009-07-06T22:11:00.001-07:00

Not that crazy, but still a little nutty:

I (love) Smile Again & Girl

More Nutty Japanese (English) T-shirts

2009-06-27T02:49:00.000-07:00

I don't know, not really outrageous or anything, but still made me laugh a little bit:

WHAT'S THE HELL

My Japanese Bathtub

2009-06-17T05:17:00.000-07:00

I'm used to the whole thing but if you don't know about taking a bath in Japan, I'm going to explain it real slow. This is my bathroom in Japan. I mean Bath-Room, because in Japan a toilet and bathtub do not go together, they are separate. As a Japanese person would say, why would you want something dirty like a toilet next to your bathtub? You get clean in one place and relieve your bladder in another. Anyways, one of the things I miss when I'm back in America is my bathroom. As you discovered in one of my previous posts, my toilet, with all its buttons and butt cleaning gadgets is missed as well.

Anyways, here is how it goes: After I get back from a long day of playing guitar and Sushi out on the town, I'm ready for my nightly bath. I open the door and push the "fill up bathtub button" and my bathtub fills up with water. It is set to fill up with as many liters as I want, so if I was a big fat guy, I could set it so it fills up with less water. The Bath-Room is a separate room with a bathtub and shower all contained in there. So you could go in there and spray water all over the place, up on the ceiling, down on the floor, on the walls, it doesn't matter. Their ain't no toilet in there so you can't get the toilet paper wet, basically the whole thing is a waterproof compartment.

But I'm not in there yet, because I'm checking my email as it is filling up at my desired temperature of 42 Celsius. 42 Celsius is 107.6 Fahrenheit and if you didn't know, 42 Celsius is the generally accepted bathwater temperature in Japan. It feels a little too hot if you aren't used to it but after years in Japan it feels normal to me. You could set it a little lower if you are a big baby and can't deal with it.

After about ten minutes a speaker on the wall tells me the bath is done with Pachabel's Cannon in the key of C and an announcement in Japanese saying: "Your Bath is Now Ready!" You can probably change the song but I haven't figured it out yet. Now I'm ready to get clean. Now here is the deal: You can't get in the bath without washing yourself real good. Japanese don't go for any soap in the bathtub. A Japanese bath equals a shower with vigorous scrubbing with a painful nylon cloth and soap and a good rinse before climbing in there. You also get a groovy plastic chair to sit on if you like taking your time. There is a mirror so you can sit there all you want and shave or whatever. If you spend an hour or two in there and the bath gets cold, there is a reheat button that will bring the temperature back up the standard 42 C. Click on the photo over there for a close-up!

The Infinite Guitar

2009-06-13T17:57:00.000-07:00

I've entered a sales contest sponsored by the publisher of my 266 page book "The Infinite Guitar." The book is somewhat popular and has moved from about 40,000 on their top sellers list to number 164 this month. If I win I get a lot of exposure and some financing for a new book. It is a guitar instructional book and is basically an encyclopedia of what I have taught over the last twenty years, pretty much covering every topic you can imagine, from scales and modes to chords, composition, ear training and composition. Only physical book sales count and not e-books. If you know someone who might want this book or you want it for yourself or a guitarist friend, a 10% discount is offered as well with this code: JUNECONTEST10. You can find the book here:

http://www.lulu.com/content/253095

Regrets

2009-06-06T18:38:00.000-07:00

The opening number from my second CD, "Sweet Melissa" was used in Australian filmmaker Sean King's newest short film, "Regrets." Pretty exciting and I'm listed in the credits as well.

More info can be found here: seankingonline.com

More Crazy Japanese (English) T-Shirts!

2009-05-12T01:44:00.000-07:00

This is one of the strangest ones I have seen yet. I actually had to open up a dictionary to find out what it means. Anyway, here it is in all its glory. It says:

R&S MASTER, THE 3 REVOLUTION

Realism

Perdition

and............................................ Semen for you

I wasn't quite sure what Perdition was, I knew it was something religious regarding Hell or something so I looked it up to be sure: Perdition: a state of eternal punishment and damnation into which a sinful and unpenitent person passes after death. But the "Semen for you" had me laughing and laughing, especially because the font is so cute. I want one of these for sure but I don't think I could wear it anywhere.

Sushi Podcast

2009-05-05T18:27:00.000-07:00

I completely forgot about this. Last year I did a radio interview on the "One Minute How To" podcast on the proper way to eat Japanese food. For those of you who enjoy eating Sushi, you might find this fun and informative and maybe a little goofy! Link:

http://oneminutehowto.com/Shows/Shows.asp?How_To_Eat_Japanese_Food

Wacky English on me!

2009-04-26T23:58:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist buying it. I mean, who could blame me? It says:

RESPECT

BENEFIT

THANK U!

Playing in a brothel is my favorite

That's what it says, I'll have to think about what this means exactly.

-CJ

My New Pad and Japanese Scientific Advances

2009-04-16T06:56:00.000-07:00

I've been renting a pad here in Japan, in the Monzen Nakacho area of Tokyo to be exact. It is three stops from Tokyo station. I thought I would let everyone in on Japanese technology and the way people live here. We should have these things in other parts of the world really. Anyway, I'm starting with my toilet. Click on the photo over there to see the features up close but I'll fill you in anyways. First off, it has a heated toilet seat that you can time. I guess this comes in handy if you are real regular and know what time you'll be sitting down everyday. It has a butt washer too and you can move the nozzle back and forth. I guess in testing they found out that the spray nozzle doesn't match everybody's butt so you can move it to your butt hole location. It has another butt washer that doesn't have such a narrow stream, I guess more of a general butt wash rather than an intensive directional spray. It also has a washer for other areas, it has "Bidet" written for this button but basically it is for chicks. And it has a smell sucker intake fan so you don't smell up the bathroom. So you don't need one of those pine forest sprays after you go because the fan in the toilet takes care of unwanted odors. There are some more buttons too but I haven't figured them out yet. I'll let you know when I do. Stay tunes for my bathtub.

It's Everywhere

2009-03-31T16:54:00.000-07:00

Yes it is everywhere, strange Engrish. On my never ending search for it, I ran across this one by the elevator in my hotel: "The emergency steiroase is automatically locked." I get the meaning but the word "Steiroase" sort of made me giggle. I found another one at breakfast but couldn't take a photo. You see, Japanese cell phones make a noise when you take a photo. The reason is because, Japanese perverts, unlike their American counterparts, are sort of juvenile by nature. Japanese perverts are more likely to take a photo with their cell phone up a girl's skirt and for that reason they all make noises making it harder to get away with it. For that reason it was difficult for me to take the breakfast Engrish photo in the quiet room. Everyone would have looked at me and wondered why the "Gaijin" (foreigner) was taking a photo of the macaroni salad. I'll see if I can pull it off tomorrow.

Strange English Already

2009-03-23T04:01:00.000-07:00

I've only been in Japan a few days but it doesn't take long to find strange English even when you aren't looking. I found this one on my way to a gig here in Tokyo. I've heard of petty theft or petty cash but "Petty Dining" is a first for me. I wonder what they were thinking.

CoreX2 Cables

2009-01-31T16:12:00.000-08:00

I recorded some tracks demonstrating the different cables made by Core One. It was fun playing some of the famous riffs from the songs I grew up listening to. The cables made by Core One are really top notch by the way, great sounding and durable. Besides the CoreX2 cables that I use, they also make Bullet Cables featuring some wacky designs including a retro coil cable that reminds me of when I was 12 and first started playing. As well as the CoreX2 instrument cable, I also use the do it yourself kit that comes with 20 foot of cable, a cutter blade and ten connectors so I can make custom length cables for my pedal board. I was recorded through an Orange Tiny Terror amp, great sound..

YouTube link for the tracks>>>

You Should Watch This

2008-10-24T23:41:00.000-07:00

This guy went on a month long McDonalds diet. The results are surprising and will change the way you think about food. Watch it if you are concerned about your health or the health of someone you care about.

More Nutty Japanese T-Shirts

2008-09-16T02:49:00.001-07:00

Another nutty Japanese T-Shirt. This one says; "GOD SAVE THE Flexible ideas." Who comes up with these things? I want one.

What Does it Mean?

2008-09-08T04:10:00.001-07:00

What does it mean? It says; "Live, and it not to be because it dies but to connect it." Very strange, but I sort of want one for my own.

How the Whole Thing Started

2008-09-03T18:54:00.001-07:00

My old childhood pal Guy Bee (who is now a TV director in LA) sent me this photo of us dressed up like Paul Stanley and Ace Frehley from Kiss. We were about twelve years old and infatuated with Kiss at the time. Check out my fro!

World Domination - I'm so Happy!

2008-08-30T05:19:00.000-07:00

This might sound silly, but I'm elated. I sold a CD to someone in Russia. Of course I have no way of knowing who buys my CDs through retail stores, but sales through internet retailers usually get reported back to me with the purchasing customer's location. It might seem trivial, I mean, the one sale pays for 1/10th of 1 percent of the production costs, but it means I am a giant step closer to turning the map completely red (red countries have reported sales). Looking at the map, it would be nice to get a sale in India or Greenland. Even Mexico or a few African countries would look good but I can't complain, people have bought my music all over the world.

Take a look at the list: Albania, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovak Republic, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam

By the way, if your country is not on the list, you can get one of my CDs half price, that's $7.00. Contact me if you are interested: info(at)chrisjuergensen(dot)com

It's done: Devilstone/Chris Juergensen Model

2008-08-21T20:07:00.000-07:00

I finally got the Devilstone/Chris Juergensen model guitar from Kurosawa in Japan yesterday. I like it, it sounds good and its got all the things I like: KTS saddles on a Goto bridge, Sperzel locking tuners, jumbo frets, etc. I'm not sure when it goes on sale and promotions start. They told me that it will be priced reasonably.

More photos >>>

Musicians Cooler Interview

2008-08-12T03:12:00.000-07:00

I was interviewed by "Musicians Cooler." I talk about my new book, my career and embarrassing moments. Check it out here: musicians cooler

We're all the Same

2008-08-08T02:39:00.000-07:00

This is one of them videos that makes you feel good. That's all I have to say.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

Strange Phenomena

2008-08-01T20:49:00.000-07:00

Strange Phenomena - Finally on CDbaby!

Al Green - Let's Stay Together

2008-07-31T07:00:00.000-07:00

This is a real classic number by one of my favorites, Al Green. "Let's Stay Together" was originally released on Al Green's 1971 release by the same name and soon climbed to number 1 on Billboard's R&B charts. It showed up again in the 1994 film Pulp Fiction. Al Green was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and was awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievment Award in 2002. I sing this tune from time to time and never get tired of doing it. This 1978 live clip of the song shows Al at his best.

Festival In Fukuoka

2008-07-28T19:17:00.000-07:00

Played a festival on the beach in Fukuoka. You can see the Sea Hawk Hotel in the background. Playing bass is Atsuko Watanabe from the 90s all girl band "Princess Princess" (the biggest selling all-girl band worldwide). And old friend Keisuke Umemoto on the drums. It was 96 degrees that day but still a pretty good time.

All Photos Here

Finally Pressed

2008-07-28T06:34:00.000-07:00

Yes, by popular demand, the new CD STRANGE PHENOMENA is now available as a CD as well as a download. The only place it can be purchased for the time being is from kunaki.com for $12.00.

Link: Chris Juergensen - Strange Phenomena

Good One!

2008-07-19T01:39:00.000-07:00

My daughter's rendition of her old man. She used my promo shot to do it (click here to compare it). Check out the beard and the rosy cheeks. Where did the big old sun-flower come from?

The Empowered Musician

2008-07-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

Finally published! I've been working on this book for so long that I can't even imagine looking at it again. My first book, THE INFINITE GUITAR was easy compared to this one. Guitar hasn't really changed over the last twenty years but the music business, especially the independent market, is changing everyday. And since that's what this new book THE EMPOWERED MUSICIAN is about, I found myself in constant edit mode. Basically I describe what I have done over my twenty year career as a musician and educator. I also owe thanks to my friends who helped me get it done: Doug Ross, Phil Nobo, Joey Carbone and George Smyth.

Fuck Off Celeb!

2008-07-04T00:34:00.000-07:00

Ha! You gotta love it, the Japanese English t-shirt! "Fuck Off Celeb" Hey, wait a minute, does she mean me?

The Empowered Musician

2008-06-24T17:09:00.000-07:00

I have a new book ready to be published in July. It will be called The Empowered Musician and unlike my last one, The Infinite Guitar (this week ranking at 229 on the lulu.com best seller's list), rather than dealing with how to play the guitar, this one deals with making a living as a musician. It is basically how I have been doing it over the last 25 years. The cover was designed by Phil Nobo at Kore Creative, he also did the cover for my newest CD, Strange Phenomena.

New Guitar in the Making

2008-05-27T01:51:00.001-07:00

Kurowsawa here in Japan is putting together a Chris Juergensen signature model. The new brand is called "Devilstone Guitars." Get it? Devil's Tone. This photo is of the headstock for the prototype model with my name under the logo and my signature under the e-string tuning peg. It is going to be a "more bang for the buck" instrument with all the things I like: Sperzels, KTS titanium saddles, a floating Gotoh tremolo, three single coils and jumbo frets all at a price tag that won't break the bank. I've been playing the test model for a month and after a few changes, it will be ready to go to the manufacturing stage. I'm not sure where you will be able to find them yet, but I'll post more info including photos when it gets done.

"Sweet Melissa" in new Film

2008-05-18T04:46:00.000-07:00

The song "Sweet Melissa" from the "Big Bad Sun" CD will be featured in the new short film "Regrets" written and directed by Australian filmmaker Sean King. Synopsis;

“An eye for an eye, a life for a life. When the drunk driver who murdered Jules walks from court without charge her husband Andy takes it upon himself to administer a law of his own kind. Once achieved, Andy returns to the place they met, accepting his fate without Regrets.”

"Sweet Melissa" will be used in the opening scene. Pretty cool.

Links:

Filmmaker Sean King
His movie in pre-production: A Nun a Gun and a Prostitute

Simulcast Interview

2008-05-13T04:28:00.000-07:00

Simulcast Interview - I had the pleasure to be interviewed by both Eban Crawford from Reaching For Lucidity and Brent Bradley from Mevio Radio, a three way conversation between Tampa Florida, Raleigh North Carolina, and Tokyo Japan with the help of Skype. We talked about my music, music education, the music business and the independent market. It's a pretty good interview even if I do say; "You Know" every 30 seconds. They also were kind enough to feature songs from all three of my solo CDs. Thanks guys for the great promotion! Tune in and have a listen.

Interview Links:

Reaching for Lucidity

Mevio Radio

Top Ten Nutty Thinks About Traveling

2008-05-03T07:22:00.000-07:00

I flew back to Los Angeles for three days and, as usual, the traveling makes me completely nuts. Here is the top ten list for things that make me crazy. Some of them are things that slightly bother but amuse me and others, make me debate flying:

1. Having to take your shoes off at the security check - It's gross man. I lived in Japan for years and as you know, Japanese people couldn't imagine wearing their shoes in the house. It is nasty, walkin' around outside steppin' on garbage and God knows what and then tracking it back on your living room floor where your kids crawl around. But it works opposite too. Walking around in your socks where people wear shoes is just as gross. I hate taking my shoes off before you go through that metal detector. I'm lookin' around at everybody's stinky, athlete's foot infested, ugly ass toes and have to walk where they walked. I don't care, let Al Qaida try to bring shoe bombs on planes, I still don't want to take my shoes off.

2. People who can't speak even a tiny bit of English - I think travelers should have to take a language test before they travel. I'm not trying to say that everybody in the world should speak English but they should at least be able to say and understand enough to keep me from going crazy. It doesn't even have to be English, but the language of the country they are traveling to. Even me for example, if I had to go to Italy I should be able to say and understand enough to keep me from being a pain in the ass. On the way back from the States, the Korean lady in front of me couldn't understand anything and it makes everything take longer because the flight attendant has to go through the motions every time he wants to feed her. Things I think that you should be required to say to get an airplane ticket; "Orange Juice," "Coffee," "Water," "Chicken," "Beef," and "Excuse Me." And things you should be able to understand; "What would you like to eat?," "What would you like to drink?," "Fasten your seatbelt," "Bring your seatback up." I had to listen to the flight attendant say each of these things about 50 times to the same person.

3. People who talk constantly on airplanes - The only time I don't really mind this is when the person sitting next to me is a young, fine woman. Otherwise give me a break. The lady sitting next to me was from Laos and it had been 30 years since she had flown anywhere. She had a twelve hour flight to Tokyo, before having to fly to Bangkok and then another flight to Laos. I don't know how long it takes to get to her house after that. You would figure that she would try to get a nap but she was talking away the whole time. Granted she was mostly talking to her husband who like her was in his 60s but still it is rough to fall asleep when someone is blabbing away in Laotian next to you.

4. People who don't know how anything works on airplanes - This is about the Laotian lady again. When the "Fasten Seat Belts" light came on and the pilot told everybody that we will be experiencing some turbulence, rather than fastening her seatbelt, she managed to actually unhook the whole seatbelt from her seat. I didn't even know you can do that, but she managed. So she's got the detached seatbelt in her hands, both ends not connected to anything. So it becomes my job to try to figure out how to attach it to her chair again. So she rolls her butt off to the side a little and I have the cushion off her seat and figure out how to hook it back on. There is a clip on the end of the belt that that goes under the seat cushion that you clip on to a steel link looking thing under there.

5. People who play footsie with me on airplanes - Again, if you are a babe, I don't mind, I actually might like it. But, once again the Laotian lady kept puttin' her foot on mine. Considering that she had to take off her shoes at the check point and probably got some of them Athlete's Foot germs on her foot makes the whole thing unbearable.

6. Pissed off Flight Attendants - I know the job sucks and flying sucks too, so the arrangement is a recipe for disaster. Let's just try to get along better.

7. Passports made at Embassies - My stupid passport was made at the American embassy in Tokyo and I guess they don't have the technology to have one of them magnetic strips put in there. This means that checking in is a major pain in the ass. Everyone else swipes their passports while I have to wait in line to show it to a pissed off person behind the counter.

8. People that sit on their asses for 12 hours on an airplane and then wait in line to ride that stupid Jetson's escalator thing at the airport - I know this doesn't really have much to do with me. It is more of an amusement more than anything else. I don't know about you, but my legs are screaming for some exercise after sitting there for what feels like a year, and it just gives me a good crack up to imagine people are too tired to walk. It actually means that I can run up or down the stairs and beat everyone to immigration.

9. People who stand up and try to get their shit out of the overhead bin while the plane is cruising down the runway after landing at a hundred miles an hour - This makes me crazy because they always say as the plane lands; "Please remain seated with your seatbelt on until the plane has come to a complete stop at the gate" and you get the lady who unbuckles herself and tries to get something out of the overhead bin. Then the flight attendant yells at her and she sits back down. I know it doesn't really effect me but some people's stupidity amazes me. I mean would you stand up in a car going a hundred miles an hour on the freeway? I remember one time a man stood up in his chair and the pilot for some reason tapped the brakes and he flew into the seat in front of him. It gave me a laugh but if he had been in the aisle, he would have really learned his lesson.

10. People who wake you up for stupid things - Once again the lady next to me woke me up for everything. Like water for example. You know how the flight attendant carries around a water pitcher to give you a drink if you are thirsty? The lady sitting next to me would wake me up to ask me if I wanted some. Maybe in Laos water is a commodity that can't be refused but I rather sleep than get some free water.

By the way, I'm not making fun of people from Laos, she was actually very nice and unlike the lady in front of me both her and her husband spoke English.

-CJ

Shawn Harris

2008-04-26T00:16:00.000-07:00

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.

Links:

Shawn Harris on iTunes

And on cdbaby

-CJ

Check out the Doo!

2008-04-04T02:31:00.001-07:00

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.

Easter Joy

2008-03-22T20:49:00.000-07:00

I spent Easter with my beautiful daughter Melissa. We went to the annual Easter egg hunt on the spectacular grounds of the "Neighborhood Church" here in Palos Verdes Estates. It gave me a chance to reflect on life and Joy, what makes us feel Joy sometimes and what prevents us from having it other times in our lives.

When are we happiest? I realize now that it is when good things coincide in our lives and where they overlap, we find joy, happiness, peace and comfort.

When the things we love to do and have to do find common ground. I know Joy when I play guitar and can pay my way because of it. I feel truly lucky to be a musician and to be paid for my work.

When what we want, have and need overlap. That is why rich people don't really have a better chance at being happier than the rest of us. Finding satisfaction in what we have worked so hard for is more important than continuously striving to get more. Being a simple man is a good thing.

When love coincides we find Joy. When the people we love, love us. Being loved by one's family is Joy and loving God and being loved by him is Joy as well. I find utter bliss in my daughters smile and embrace.

Strange Phenomena - frettunes.com

2008-03-21T11:36:00.000-07:00

Strange Phenomena on frettunes.com - My newest release is up only on frettunes.com. Still waiting for magnatune, iTunes and the rest to list it. This CD is only available for download for the time being. Some reviews are in:

"Again, Chris makes the art of guitar playing seem effortless. A no holds barred, in your face, work of art. And that just describes my least favorite track on the CD. Think 'Texas Flood' meets 'Second Winter'." -Brent Bradley, Podshow Radio

"Listening to Chris Juergensen play brings a smile to my face, it makes me feel good. So much so, I have trouble calling it 'Blues', I prefer to call it near audio perfection." -Eban Crawford, Reaching For Lucidity

"Re-energising the genre, Juergensen's newest release is a typhoon of raw energy, pure and honest blues rock at it's finest. Just what 11 on the dial was waiting for." -Colin Meeks, Indie Launchpad

Concert/Seminar Featuring Arion Chorus Pedal

2008-03-04T14:14:00.001-08:00

I managed to squeeze in a concert in the early afternoon today. We had a great time. I opened with "Row Row Row Your Boat" in E and followed up with "Bah Bah Black Sheep", "ABC Song" and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" medley. After that "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" with that finger stuff included. For and encore they brought me back for "The Wheels On the Bus" They were interested in what kind of gear I used so I did a demonstration of the Arion SCH-1 chorus pedal for them. The response was that the pedal made the guitar sound "Squishy" and possibly "Juicy." I explained to their astonishment that the pedal had been modded by the nice people at EXOTiC to be made true bypass. They seemed to be impressed by the concept. My daughter Melissa is standing behind me (looking the other way with her mouth open).

Trying out the modded Arion Chorus. Basically makes the guitar sound "Squishy" and "Juicy!"

Strange Phenomena Jacket

2008-02-06T23:57:00.000-08:00

Here it is in all its glory, the jacket cover for my newest release, "Strange Phenomena." It was designed by my friend Phil, the proprieter of Kore Creative, one of the most inovative advertising/design companies in the world and located in England. I like it; It looks a little mysterious (perfect considering the title) and for once it isn't a big photo of me! Soon to be released so be on the lookout.

NAMM 2008

2008-02-02T19:30:00.001-08:00

Spent January 17th through the 20th working at the NAMM show in Anaheim. I was demonstrating at the KTS/Xotic booth. KTS was showing their new tremolo blocks and saddles and Xotic, their guitars and brand new BB Plus pre-amp. A bunch of people came by to hang out and check out the new stuff; here I am with Andy Timmons (ex: Danger Danger) and Vinnie Moore (UFO). A lot of noise but it is always good to catch up with old friends and new gear.

My take on the gear shown: Vintage (type) guitars, effects and amps are in as well as seven and eight string basses. Kind of funny I thought, bassists are going for more and guitarists are shooting for less. Low watt amps are the rage now and everything for guitar is labeled as new-old, new-vintage and/or relic. Bass is over the top, meaning loud, long and strung with nothing less than seven strings. Bassists must be going through the stage guitarists went through in the 80's which tells me that within the next ten years vintage (type) basses will be back in style (meaning four stringed) and guitar will be back to shred (yikes). As usual, Drums are the same.

Shichigosan

2007-12-09T13:58:00.000-08:00

Shi-Chi-Go-San - The Shi-Chi-Go-San festival is celebrated on November 15th in Japan. Shi-Chi-Go-San literally means 7-5-3. You celebrate when your kids turn each of these ages (actually girls at 3 and 7 and boys at 3 and 5). They (and you) get dressed up and go to the Shinto shrine and ask for a long and prosperous life and whatnot. Sort of a Shinto version of a Christening I suppose. Anyway, we found a Shinto Shrine here in Los Angeles and went down. Melissa enjoyed getting dressed up but had ants in her pants sitting around inside the Shrine.

Shi-Chi-Go-San Link

Turmeric and Apple Vinegar Soy Milk!

2007-09-25T01:53:00.000-07:00

Hmm.. I couldn't resist buying and drinking this one: Turmeric and Apple Vinegar Soy Milk! And I love the quote up on top, it says; "Drinking is work too!." You see, turmeric is supposed to be good for your liver and as Japanese men are expected to go out drinking with their workmates every night, somebody came up with this idea for a soy drink. I actually like it. Turmeric is also supposed to have something in it that cancer doesn't like as well. I'm not sure if it is true but I have heard that Indians have less occurrences of certain cancers because of the turmeric in curries. Now that I think of it, soy products are also supposed to inhibit certain cancers as well. And apple vinegar is good for lowering cholesterol and all sorts of things. Hey, this the ultimate drink for you!

Link:
Turmeric and Cancer
Soy and Cancer
Apple Vinegar

G&L Poster

2007-09-18T05:33:00.000-07:00

Guitar maker G&L has made me the poster boy for their ASAT Classic Bluesboy model. The Japanese distributor asked me last year to perform at a concert in Tokyo using a G&L guitar. I had never played one before so I didn't know what to expect. When I received the guitar, I was pleasantly surprised and have become a fan as well as user of the ASAT model. I've always liked Telecasters but this one may be even better. It has a great tone and is easy to play. I use it on several cuts on my upcoming CD.

-CJ

Guitar and Vocal Tracks

2007-08-23T05:48:00.001-07:00

I Finished up recording the final tracks on the upcoming "Strange Phenomenon" release. I threw out the scratch guitar tracks that I originally played with the rhythm section on "Nothing's Got Me," and "Living the Lie" and re-recorded them. I had my hands full with the "Nothing's Got Me" solo which took me about five takes to get right. I also blew up a Soldano 50 watt head in the process and had to switch over to a 100 watt Marshall head. My fingers are sore and I don't feel like playing guitar for a week but I have a show to do the day after tomorrow (Joke: How do you get a musican to complain? Give him a job).

It was a good day and I'm pretty satisfied with the way everything got recorded. I also recorded the vocal tracks for both those songs and two others, "The Spirit" and "Blood on the Streets." It took me about four hours which ain't bad I suppose. "Strange Phenomenon" will be a half live, half studio release and should be out year end. It has been fun recording it.

Ahh.. The Japanese Pizza!

2007-08-15T21:32:00.000-07:00

In my never ending pursuit of culinary delights, I bring you the world famous Japanese Pizza. Here it is, brought to you by "Strawberry Cones," the Japanese pizzeria of choice, the "Natsu" (Summer) pizza, divided into four separate tasty zones:

Top Right: Chili Con Carne

Bottom Right: Shrimp and mayonnaise

Bottom Left: Squid rings and Basil Sauce

Top Left: Teriyaki Chicken

There are stranger ones yet, I'll be on the lookout.

-CJ

Mixing the new CD

2007-08-14T23:24:00.001-07:00

It is a hundred degrees here in Japan today and even though I'm not at college teaching (it is the Obon vacation in Japan so school is out) , I can't bare the heat outside. So I'm in the air conditioned studio mixing my next CD. Yes, there is an engineer who is supposed to do these things but I figure I can get it in shape as much as possible and have him work out the fine details. The CD will be called "Strange Phenomenon" and has five live tracks and five studio tracks.

The five live tracks were recorded at a concert I did in Tokyo late last year. The venue is wired to an SSL studio so I hired an engineer to record the show. I am playing so loud that my guitar is bleeding in every channel. It is even in the bass track. Go figure, the bass is recorded direct and not with a mic so I'm playing so loud that his pickup is picking me up. Pretty funny. No escaping from Chris Juergensen's guitar!

Basically this means that unlike all live albums, I can't edit out anything. If you didn't know, most live recordings are completely re-recorded after the fact, they re-record almost everything and even double the audience track to make it sound like a million people are at the show. Not so with mine, it is a genuine live recorded concert that you'll get if you happen to buy it. Anyway, you'll finally get to know the truth, can I play the same way live as in a recording studio?

Three of the live tracks were originally recorded on my last CD "Big Bad Sun:" "Sweet Melissa," "Tell me a Story," and "House on the Hill." The other two tracks are "Born to Love You" about something I can't talk about without getting myself in trouble, and "Boot Hill" which is the only cover on the record (once before recorded by Johnny Winter and Stevie Ray Vaughn.

The other five tracks were recorded in the studio and cover a wide variety of genres from Rock to Blues and Gospel. I recorded all the tunes during a very complicated time in my life so there is some pretty good story telling going on. Should be ready for release by year end.

-CJ

Back in Japan - Wacky English

2007-07-22T22:33:00.000-07:00

Ha, ha... You can curry the chicken or curry the Beef (as long as you are not Indian). You can even curry the beans. But can you actually curry the HOUSE? Found this curry restaurant near the music college here in Japan. There is plenty of this kind of creative English going on all over the place. I'll keep you up to date..

-CJ

Yes, More Strange Food

2007-07-12T20:54:00.000-07:00

Another strange food from Japan. "Shrimp Fries!" Or maybe "Shrimp Chips!" Sprinkled with savory Korean seaweed or so it says right on the package. These are actually very popular in Japan and can be had for a mere 137 yen or about a buck twenty. I had to take a photo of them with my cell phone when I was shopping at the super market yesterday. I wasn't about to buy them much less take them home with me. I have tried them before but I don't particularly like them enough to actually pay real money for them. So I tool a photo at the grocery store and got a few strange looks because of my behavior.

-CJ

Back in Japan - Strange Food

2007-07-10T18:40:00.000-07:00

Although Japanese cuisine is great, the Japanese version of Western food gives me a good crack up. Here is one example.... A Fruit Sandwich, I'll repeat it a little louder.... a FRUIT SANDWICH! Between two slices of earless white bread you will find whipped cream and slices of oranges, pineapples and kiwis! For 245 yen, about two bucks.

-CJ

Creepy Crawlers

2007-07-07T08:15:00.000-07:00

Do you remember "Creepy Crawlers?" I completely forgot that this thing ever existed. My Mother bought one for my daughter Melissa for Christmas. It's funny because your parents sometimes remember the fun things you did when you were kids more so that even you do.

So she got the "Creepy Crawler" bug oven for her grandchild and I got the added pleasure of reliving the fun again. I'll tell you though, they make the "Creepy Crawler" bug maker a lot better now than when I was a kid. Of course we are talking 35 years ago. I remember living in Greenwich Village and making the bugs with my sister. The new "Creepy Crawler" is made safe so you can't burn yourself.

Now it is 2007 and my daughter had a great time making the bugs, picking the colors and putting them in the oven to cook for the three or four minutes it takes. I suggest "Creepy Crawlers" for your kids as well, especially if you want to have some fun making some bugs, worms and spiders yourself.

Links:

Creepy Crawlers

Back In Japan - America's Lame Health Care

2007-05-30T21:17:00.000-07:00

I'm back in Japan for a few months and have had a little time to reflect back on our relocation to the states all all things involved with becoming American again. There has been a lot of good things but also a lot of disappointments as well. One, is the American health care system. I would agree that America has great doctors and cutting edge technology but the truth is that only rich people can afford it. The insurance system is the worst of all the developed countries.

I was reading an article yesterday in a Japanese English language newspaper about it. In Japan by the way, everybody has health insurance, yes everybody. When I mention to people here that in America 16 percent of people (46 million) do not have health insurance, they react like it was the weirdest thing they had ever heard. All people living in Japan have coverage regardless of pre-existing conditions and the deductible is maybe ten percent at most. They deduct from my check every month the premium. It is grouped together with the Japanese version of social security and equals about ten percent of your monthly paycheck. So if you were making four grand a month, you would have to fork over 400 bucks. Pretty good deal I think, considering that when you go to the doctor, you only have to pay maybe seven or eight bucks. It is a better deal for someone making half of that.

Now lets compare that to what the same person in the states would pay. Keep in mind that what you earn doesn't effect anything. A five thousand deductible PPO (meaning that just like Japan, you can go to any doctor you want) costs about four hundred dollars a month. I'll say it again just to make sure you heard me: FIVE THOUSAND DOLLAR DEDUCTIBLE! That means that if I get sick I'll have to pay the first five grand out of my pocket, on top of this, I'm already paying about five grand a year in premiums. This makes America's health care system the world's most expensive. And if you are sickly, you can't get insurance anyways.

The government should pass a law that makes it against the law to decline people with health problems. Premiums should be tax deductible. And health insurance should be available at a discounted premium for people in lower income brackets.

The Death of Internet Radio?

2007-05-05T18:07:00.000-07:00

It is five minutes to midnight on internet radio's digital clock. Time is ripening to its doom it would seem. I'll give you the short version and let you decide for yourselves what you want to do about it. First let me give you a short marketing lesson. The general formula for selling records (for the commercial music business) traditionally goes like this: Make a bunch of CDs, distribute them everywhere, use financial leverage to get commercial radio to play them nonstop and the result is that brainwashed (or earwashed) consumers will buy them by the truckload. But something happened and changed everything. The digital revolution happened.

First of all the digital revolution made it easy for independent artists to record their own music. They no longer needed financing from the record industry. Next it gave them a method to sell their music. As you know, independent music gets sold from artist websites (like chrisjuergensen.com), internet retailers (like cdbaby.com) and download sites (like iTunes or magnatune.com). No need for carpet bombing methods of distribution anymore.

The digital revolution also gave artists a way to promote themselves through internet radio and podcasts. As we speak (or as I write this) less than 10 percent of music played on FM/AM radio is independent music while internet radio plays close to 40 percent and I imagine if you looked at the statistics for podcasts, you would find that at least 90 percent of the music played is Indie music. This is about all the record industry could take and have come up with a plan to crush us like grapes. To make it worse, they claim that they are trying to protect artists but this is a big facade.

At the request of the Recording Industry Association of America, the Copyright Royalty Board (CRB), which oversees sound recording royalties paid by Internet radio services, increased Internet radio's royalty burden between 300 and 1200 percent and is thereby jeopardizing the industry’s future.

The rate is only increasing from 7/100 of a penny per song streamed to 19/100 of a penny per song streamed over a 5-year period which may not seem like much but take a look at the other conditions:

No Revenue based Royalty Option - Prior to this decision all small webcasters and some large webcasters had the choice of paying royalties based on a percentage of their revenue that typically equaled 10-12%. But the CRB decision did not offer a revenue-based royalty option for any webcasters.

Retroactive Impact - The CRB decision is effective as of January 2006, so if it actually becomes effective for only one day its impact will be immediate as the past due royalties alone will be enough to bankrupt virtually all small and mid-sized webcasters.

Per Station Minimum - The CRB piled on even more, by imposing a $500 per channel minimum royalty that for many services will far exceed the annual royalties that would otherwise be due even after the CRB decision. One advantage of Internet radio is that it is not limited by spectrum capacity or bandwidth capacity, which enables several services literally to offer 10,000 or 100,000 stations and more. By penalizing this innovation and creativity the CRB further ensures that Internet radio will become less creative, less dynamic, less of an opportunity for non-mainstream artists and genres, and will look more like broadcast radio in the future.

Internet radio is like FM radio fifty years ago, DJs pick and play what they like with little regard for what big business has to say. It is refreshing to say the least, honest radio, it sounds like an oxymoron. With revenues shrinking for the big labels they have their sites on internet radio and claim that it is for me, the artist who deserves more money. It will mean less money for me because most of the radio stations that play me will be out of business. They can not be allowed to do it.

What you can do:

Save Net Radio

Back in the US

2007-01-15T01:50:00.000-08:00

Thats right, back in Los Angeles after fifteen years in Japan. Feels strange to say the least, like I never really left. Getting back into th music scene a little at a time but I am mostly just letting my family get used to their new lives in a new country. My daughter loved the beach and can't get enough of it. The warm southern California weather keeps us there a few times a week. Anyone who will be at the NAMM show next week, let me know. I'll be demonstrating at the K-T-S booth.

Links:

Top Ten Japanese Misconceptions

2006-11-28T23:20:00.000-08:00

I've been living here in Japan for 15 years now and I always get a good crack up when I talk to my fellow Americans about Japanese culture and customs. I've written up a top ten list of Japanese misconceptions:

10. Japanese people are worried about "saving face" - I have never even heard a Japanese person use that expression. Japanese people are just like the rest of us and pretty much want to get ahead and could give a flying crap about how people perceive them. The Japanese do however hate to be embarrassed and try to avoid situations that may lead the an embarrassing outcome. Still, the concept that the Japanese are more concerned than the rest of us about how they are perceived is news to me.

9. Japanese women are submissive. Ha! My wife would kick my ass if I tried to make her do some kind of mystical oriental sex technique on me. 99.9 percent of married women do the finances and make the decisions around the house. Granted most married Japanese women don't work but they don't take orders from anyone. Submissive? Don't make me laugh.

8. Japanese guys all know Karate. Ha! I've never even met a Japanese cat who knows Karate. Judo is definitely a better bet because they have a Judo team in high school. Kung Fu is Chinese by the way as well as Bruce Lee.

7. Japanese people have a better appreciation of nature - Oh yeah right! You couldn't find a blade of grass anywhere in this country. Or a natural beach for that matter. Japan is completely paved over. Japanese people like to tell you that they have a special appreciation of nature but it is a bunch of crap. I will say however that Japanese people do keep the place clean. You would be pretty hard pressed to find any garbage anywhere in this country but everything has to be paved over first. Safe and clean, but far from natural.

6. Most people in Japan speak and understand English - No way. Japanese and white Americans are similar in this way. Neither speak a language other than their native tongue. I hear it a lot; "It must have been a big adjustment living in Japan. But most Japanese people speak English right?" Wrong. Although it is true that all Japanese kids start studying English in middle school, they never learn how to speak it. They don't have any desire to do so. The reason is pretty simple: they don't need to, every expensive hotel anywhere in the world caters to the Japanese and has someone who speaks Japanese for them. English and Japanese would seem to be the international hotel language. When you have a bunch of cash, you don't need to be bilingual. Go to Taiwan for example and it seems most everybody speaks a few languages.

5. Japanese, Chinese and Koreans are all pretty much the same - If you believe this you deserve a slap in the head. Geographically, spiritually, culturally completely different. The only thing Japanese have in common with the Chinese is that they borrowed the Chinese characters (known in Japanese as Kanji) ages ago and not until the Heian period (794-1185) did they start developing their own written language. Even though they borrowed Chinese characters a few thousand years ago, the spoken language is completely different. Japan, compared to their Chinese neighbor is tiny, a tiny island or actuall a series of islands, and completely safe and clean. If I had only one thing to say about Japan and nothing else, I would tell you the it is the only place in Asia where it is safe to drink the water. The Chinese and Koreans hate the Japanese for the most part because they have yet to make amends for World War II where China and Korea paid the price for Japanese aggression. Japanese culture was outlawed in Korea until recently but have been enjoying cross cultural exchanges lately. There is a decent sized hall inside the Japanese embassy in Seoul because that was the only place you could hear live Japanese music in Korea at one time (I know because I played there once as a guest of Japan). Although the Japanese love Chinese and Korean food, Japanese food is completely different. Delicate I suppose with the lack garlic and strong spices. Different in every way, don't confuse Japan with its neighbors.

4. Japanese people are all spiritual - You're killing me here. It is pretty much standard behavior for a Japanese person to have a Christian wedding and a Buddhist or Shinto funeral. Japanese people all generally have a formal religion (actually two of them) but are by nature Atheists. But, one thing I will give credit to the Japanese for is that for a bunch of Atheists they have managed to keep their country relatively safe and as a whole the Japanese are pretty scrupulous people. Americans tend to believe in God more and live by his rules less. Japanese tend to follow the rules of their religions and both Buddhism and Shinto do play a part in society but it is more of a tradition more so than a spiritual belief and most Japanese do not believe in a God or spirit or afterlife, heaven or hell. Regardless, I have traveled all over the world and can say honestly that Japan is the safest country I have ever been to. So much for Religion.

3. Japanese chicks are hot for foreign guys - Nope. Sorry, there are some women who like foreign guys but most of them would never marry you. The Japanese women who would marry a foreign guy usually are the ones who want to have careers of their own. Most Japanese women have little interest in working after they are married and most parents would forbid their daughters to marry a gaijin or foreigner anyways. Also, Japanese women hate hairy men. Second, they hate muscles, they prefer men that pluck their eyebrows. Granted they do enjoy the manners of Western men who tend to pull out chairs and open doors for them unlike their Japanese boyfriends. But all and all they find foreign men more of a nuisance than anything else.

2. Japan is too expensive to live a normal life - This has changed in the last fifteen years that I have been here. True, it isn't an inexpensive country but take it from someone who lives in both Tokyo and Los Angeles, Los Angeles is more expensive. Japan has gone through deflation for as long as I have been here and I have slowly watched prices come down. I remember thinking American guitars were out of hand back when I first got here but now it is about the same. Rent is expensive but so is the rent in LA. Both Tokyo and Los Angeles sport about $2,000 a month price tags for a two bedroom in a good area. Rent is cheap in the suburbs, maybe an hour out of Tokyo. Food will set you back a little more here in Tokyo, especially the price of produce but you can still find a health Japanese lunch for about four bucks. You also have to remember that you don't need a car to get around in Tokyo and most companies pay your transportation fees. Also, everybody is on the national health care system so health care is cheap. Property is more expensive in Los Angeles thanks to the Fed. Granted it is safe to assume that per square meter, Japan is more expensive but considering that a condo in LA is 500 grand you have to be making some cash to buy your own place. A slightly smaller place in Tokyo would set you back less. I'm not sure what the statistics are but take it from someone living in both cities, Los Angeles is a money black hole, especially considering that you can make more money in Tokyo and you a guaranteed a bonus two times a year and severance whether you quit or get fired.

1. Japanese put soy sauce on everything - This is one of my pet peeves regarding Americans. Anytime I go out to eat Japanese cuisine in the states, I always get grossed out by the way Americans insist on putting soy sauce in their rice. In Japan I have never seen any Japanese people do this. I think the only reason they put soy sauce on the table on Japanese restaurants in the states is because Americans keep asking for it. The trick with eating Japanese food is balancing out the rich flavor of certain foods with the white rice. Even with Sushi, you are supposed to sort of brush the fish side of the Sushi in the soy sauce, not the rice side. And Sushi and Sashimi, is one of the few foods that you actually put soy sauce on. Japanese tend to cook with soy sauce but it doesn't get too much attention other wise. So see if you can lay off the soy sauce or at least refrain from drowning your rice in it, the cook is peaking out of the kitchen laughing.

Links

Recording Using the new SSL Board

2006-11-04T18:21:00.000-08:00

Got the chance to record using the new "Duality" console made by Solid State Logic. It is probably the first commercial recording done using the board, so I sort of made recording history yesterday. SSL consoles are pretty much the standard mixing consoles since the early 90s, they are in just about every commercial recording studio. They became popular because of the advanced automation feature I suppose, in other words, the board remembers the mix and recalls it. The boards are analog and the new one was designed to interact seamlessly with Pro-Tools. I wrote the song for my old flame and Joey Carbone (legendary Los Angeles producer, song writer) came in to play the keyboards and did the perfect arrangement for the tune. There is some stuff I still want to fix (my guitar especially) but it came out pretty good I think. Have a listen but keep in mind it isn't mastered. Takashi Fujimura did the mix. We're a bunch of goofballs so after the session someone said; "Let's all take a photo in front of the SSL console to commemorate the the first ever recording using it!" We took a look at the photo and discovered you can't even see the console because we are blocking it. If you want a good look, check the link below.

Links:

Saying Goodbye to Japan - Crime

2006-10-16T23:37:00.000-07:00

I'm going to miss not having to worry about violent crime and robbery. You don't realize it living in the states because it is a daily thing, but it is a drag having to deal with danger. I realize it everytime I get into LA, it starts when you get out of the airport. You have to think to yourself; "Where is my suitcase?" and "Where should I lean my guitar while I take a piss?" and "Maybe I shouldn't be carrying this much cash on me." I have never once been concerned for my personal belongings or for my safety for that matter here in Japan. America could take a lesson from the Japanese on scruples and morals.

I remember once while in LA I sat down and had a slice of pizza in a restaurant with my guitar sitting next to me in its gig bag. I got up and took 10 steps from where I was sitting and realized I left my guitar back at my seat. I went back and got it and caught a bit of the conversation the guys sitting at the next table were having. One guy said to the other guy; "Shit, he remembered his guitar." They where waiting to steal it. On the other hand, one time here in Japan, I was trying to catch my train one morning to go to the college where I teach guitar. It was a hot summer day with a hundred percent humidity. I was rushing to get my ticket and all of a sudden someone tapped me on my shoulder. I looked behind me and it was this guy in a suit and tie who was sweating and breathing like he had just ran the marathon. He had obviously been chasing me. He told me I dropped some money on the ground and gave it to me, about fifty bucks. Imagine that. In the States it would have been long gone.

It is a cultural difference I guess. I mean, think about it for a minute, we as kids say that stupid saying; "Finders keepers, losers weepers" which basically means that if you find something it is yours and who ever lost it is shit out of luck. In Japan, for the most part nobody would want something that belongs to someone else... Sure to bring you bad luck.

Something that you could not imagine in the sates, shop keepers sometimes have their goods out on the sidewalk in front of their stores. Customers take a look, find what they want and bring it inside to pay for it.

I'm an American patriot but I wish America was a safer place for my family. It could be if we all wanted it to be so.

Links:

Crime in Japan

Saying Goodbye to Japan - Toilets

2006-10-15T19:34:00.000-07:00

As many of you may know, I'm relocating my family back to Los Angeles. I'll still be coming back to Japan to teach and play but I will move my home base to the South Bay. I've been living in Japan for 15 years and the Japanese way of thinking and life style has become a part of me and I've decided to post a few memoirs of my life in Japan here on this blog.

I came over from Los Angeles in 1990. I had been to Japan before and have always liked the country, its modern conveniences and love for gadgets contrasting with its Buddhist and Shinto roots. The first thing I recall is the urinals at Narita Airport in Tokyo and the way they automatically flush, once while you are doing your business to prevent any embarrassment and once again when you are done with your business. The Japanese can't imagine actually touching the little lever that flushes the urinal and try to keep things as "touchless" as possible. Not too keen on germs. I've almost never seen a urinal in Japan that doesn't flush itself. Matter of fact, a lot of the toilets are automatic too and are wired to keep your butt warmed. You can control the temperature with a little lever. There is also a button that sends a stream of warm water to clean your nether eye. Go figure... an automatic bidet. American toilets leave a lot to be desired compared to their Japanese cousins. The public toilet stalls are also much better in Japan than in the States. The little room with your heated toilet and automatic bidet has walls that go from the floor to the ceiling so you can escape from reality and don't have to worry about anybody peaking up under the door like in an American stall. In America if you made the stalls like that you would have people living in there or at least having sex. In you home the toilet is in a separate room from your bath tub. Again the Japanese could not imagine something dirty like a toilet could get put in the same room as a bathtub where you want to get yourself clean. I'm going to miss going to the bathroom.

Links:

Chambolle-Musigny

2006-10-10T02:11:00.000-07:00

Although I don't consider myself an expert on fine wines, I still enjoy a good glass of wine from time to time. My pal from Toshiba EMI took me out to a wine bar to introduce me to this Chambolle-Musigny. You see the chalky soil at Le Musigny restrict the yield and is responsible for a very delicate wine. Chambolle Musigny is a charming village in the Cote de Nuits, north of Clos Vougeot that is famous for some of the finest red wines in the world today. If you are looking for a great wine (that will set you back a little) this is the one for you.

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Joey Carbone

2006-09-28T03:24:00.000-07:00

My pal Joey Carbone was back in Japan for a visit this month. Let me tell you a little about him if you don't know who he is. Joey is originally from New York (like yours truly) and lives in LA. He was the Music Director for the show "Star Search" back in the days. The interesting thing about Joey is that he writes a ton of music for some of the biggest artists in Japan. One of his songs was recently number one on the Japanese version of the billboard charts. He is probably the premier composer for the Japanese music industry. He knows how to write for the Japanese masses but that is not the only key to his success. Some pointers from Joey for those of you who want to become successful composers:

Your demo - No matter how great your songs are, if your demo isn't happening it doesn't mean very much. You see, directors and producers are getting spoiled these days because the quality of demos are getting better and better. Writers are using software like Pro-Tools, Logic, Digital Performer and/or Q-Base to get almost perfect sounding recordings. They don't want to listen to poorly recorded music anymore and many of them don't have the imagination to visualize what a song would sound like recorded in the hands of professional arrangers and recording engineers. They don't want to listen to flat vocal tracks. That's why it is important to digitally fix any pitch problems before you shop your song around. If you are not a singer, see if you can get a qualified vocalist to do the track for you. Make the demo sound like a "real" recording.

Don't give up - Just because your song gets rejected by one director doesn't mean the next one won't bite. According to Joey, you would actually be surprised how often a song gets rejected before turning into a hit. Sometimes it may even get picked up by the same director who rejected it a year before.

Research - Check the charts and see which artists are writing their own music and which ones have songs written for them. It doesn't make much sense to write for someone who doesn't need a song. See who is moving up and who is moving down. Can you figure out who is the next rising star?

Become an expert salesman - Know who represents who. If you don't know anyone in the business, you may have a tough time meeting people. Use an agency that shops music for composers until you get a name for yourself. Joey makes his rounds with a two CD set of around forty songs that he brings around to various contacts. These contacts could be at record labels, agencies that represent artists, publishers or actual artists.

Be persistent - Nobody is going to come to you. Even someone like Joey Carbone who has a number one hit on the charts has to keep making the rounds. He says that you would figure everyone would want one of your tunes once you write a number one but it isn't the case, you have to keep asking.

The Infinite Guitar

2006-09-19T18:29:00.000-07:00

I started adding a new lesson every month to my site. I guess it was just my way of spreading my knowlege of the electric guitar around. After all, I've had the opportunity and good fortune to study and work with some of the best musicians in the world and there are plenty of young aspiring guitarists who haven't had the same chances, either because of financial reasons or other hardships. Let's face it, it takes a lot of money to relocate to Los Angeles or New York to study music if you where born in a far away place. My site is my way of helping out, I added a new lesson every month for free. The response was overwelming, thousands of guitarists subscribed to my newsletter and before long I was getting a thousand hits a day to my "lessons" page.

What ended up happening is that a Japanese publisher asked me to rewrite the lessons for a book that they wanted to publish in Japan in Japanese. I didn't imagine I would get rich or anything but what the hell, sounded like a chance to learn something about the "book" business. I rewrote most of the lessons and added a bunch of other sections too and turned the rewritten 266 page book into them and they had it translated into Japanese and released the book. What I ended up with was an unpublished English version with no place to go. I originally considered searching for an American publisher but desided against it because I knew they would want to shorten it and/or charge too much for it which would make me a hipocrite. After all, I started the whole thing because I wanted aspiring guitarists all over the world to be able to study and grow without having to get themselves into financial ruin. So I desided to publish it myself and offer it for a price that most anyone could afford, $25 for the book and $15 for the PDF. Pretty cheap for a book that I think someone could use for years and years.

Was it easy? Absolutely not, it was an enourmous underaking. It erased all my free time but I'm pretty sure it will be worth it. I wish I had this kind of book when I started out. For those of you who use my site as a resourse, continue to do so. The book will simply offer you the expanded lessons in the form of a book. A book is different than the internet, you can read it while you ride the train, lounge around on the beach or in bed. You can leave it on your coffee table and you can also teach from it. Some of the sections are lifted right from the site but there is plenty of new things too.

The book started off at about number 2,000 on the lulu.com best sellers list but recently moved up to about 820. Still a long way to the top 100 but still pretty cool.

Links:

World Domination - Peru

2006-08-31T08:34:00.000-07:00

In my unwavering attempt at world domination I have hit a milestone by registering a sale in the wonderful country of Peru. As you can see, the red countries in South America are growing. I am still dying for a sale in Russia and India and of course a few African countries would be nice too. If you haven't read the original "World Domination" post, the Abiku Record label is offering the "Big Bad Sun" CD for half price (8 bucks, shipping included) to anyone buying the CD from a country not yet on the list. E-mail me directly for information. Here is the list once again of countries where the CD has been sold: Albania, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, The Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Slovak Republic, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam.

I have also decided that since someone in a far off country has parted with their hard earned pay to support independent music, the least I can do is to learn a little about their country. This is what I have found:

Up until the early 1500's Peru was the homeland to the Inca Empire, which was at the time the most advanced civilization on the American continent. The empire stretched from Ecuador to Chile and by some estimates date back as far as 1,200 AD although agriculture can be traced back 5,000 years earlier. The Spaniards conquered the area and brought with them a campaign of evangelization and doctrinisation, which in the end made Peru an authentic Spanish colony.

Peru is known worldwide for its fascinating Inca ruins, impressive colonial architecture, spectacular mountains, and volcanoes, and lush Amazon rainforest with amazing varieties of flora and fauna.

Links:

The Housing Bubble - Reality Check

2006-08-25T00:38:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, I'm picking up and heading back to Los Angeles around year-end with my wife and daughter in tow. I'll be heading back to Japan for work here and there but want to settle down back in California. I first figured I would buy a nice house for us, but have changed my mind. I remember when I came to Japan 15 years ago, a "normal" house in LA was around three hundred grand, now the same house is rubbing up against a clean million. That's right, three times! Now let me ask you, have salaries gone up three times? Something is out of whack and you better watch out because property prices are beginning to wobble as the news has been telling us.

Last week, the National Association of Realtors said that home sale prices are down from last year's levels in 26 major metropolitan areas. And the Commerce Department reported that housing prices are down by more than 15 percent from their highs and on top of that, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that applications for home purchase mortgages have dropped by more than 20 percent from last year's levels. I've been doing a little research and this is what I have found:

As we speak there is $2.7 trillion worth of adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) that will reset at a higher interest rate in 2006 and 2007. That means that homeowners are going to have to fork out more cash every month for their mortgage. Do you know how much a six hundred thousand-dollar mortgage costs you a month? Around $3,400 and it is going to cost more pretty soon. Inflation has not been tamed and is not going away, there is a good chance that the Fed will raise rates again. You also have to remember here, you can't even get into a decent place in a good area of LA for six-hundred grand, you would have had to put up another hundred grand or so on top of that. Add in insurance, school for the kids, gas, cars and credit cards and you are looking at a nation of people in debt over their head. A time bomb.

You also have to keep in mind that lenders have come up with all these wacky loan inventions to fuel the whole thing. There are these interest only loans, which means that your first loan payments only cover the interest and zero of the actual home. When these buyers have to start covering the equity, they are not going to be happy because they won't be able to make their payments and won't be able to get out of the house because people like me aren't biting. That is right, 10% of homeowners are paying mortgages and have zero equity in their places.

Prices are starting to fall and it has only just begun. There are still people who say things will get back on track next year. I really doubt it. My reasoning is simple: No middle class person can afford a million dollar home unless salaries change (which they haven't, matter of fact they are half of what they should be to justify the price of the average house) or Americans save money (which they haven't). If all construction of new homes stopped today, it would still take six months to sell off all the inventory. Americans have overextended themselves once again and the market is heading for the abyss.

World Domination

2006-08-16T07:25:00.000-07:00

In my never-ending quest for world domination, I have decided to take some new daring steps. Take a good look at the map next to this text, the red countries are where I have sold CDs, the other countries are countries where I have yet to sell a CD. To make the map light up like a Christmas tree I need a sale in Russia. India and a few African countries would also be nice. I get played on a lot of Spanish language podcasts but have never sold a CD in Mexico or any other Central American countries yet either. How about Greenland, it used to be part of Denmark (where I have sold many CDs) but now is an independent country of its own. It would be cool to sell some CDs there too. I've been doing some thinking here and have come to the conclusion that it is not that people don't like me in those places but the cost of my CD, around 16 bucks (including shipping) may be a little more than the average person can swing, so this is what I'm going to do: I will sell it for half price to the first person in a country not yet painted red (on the list). Yes that's right, $8.00 including shipping. I won't make much but what the hell, I'm not in the game to be rich, I'm after world domination. The only rule is that you have to buy it directly from chrisjuergensen.com through paypal. E-mail me directly for details. Here is the list of where I have sold CDs, if your country is not listed, you are eligible for the discount. CDs have been sold in: Albania, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Slovak Republic, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam...

Podcasting - Radio Reinvented

2006-08-13T09:29:00.000-07:00

The commercial music business is getting it again, this time from the podcasters. Podcasts have only been around for a few years yet millions of people have heard one. Basically podcasters create a thirty-minute to one-hour internet radio program that can be downloaded and listened to at the listener's leisure. A constant internet connection is not necessary. A podcast can be listened to directly from ones computer or from his or hers iPod. Podcasters are looking for podsafe music, music that can be broadcast without having to pay a royalty. One would assume that both the paperwork and the financial obligations of playing music that is not royalty free is a hindrance. Regardless, podcasters are not looking for typical commercial music. They are looking for new music, music that their listeners have not heard before. Let's face it; if the listener wanted to hear platinum selling hits, they would prefer FM radio. Podcasts are a blessing to independent artists like myself.

Unlike commercial radio, there is no real money trading hands. This means that podcasters are free to play what they like (as long as it is podsafe). If you are older than me, you are saying to yourself; "That is what commercial radio was doing half a century ago, DJs played what they believed in." But those days are gone for commercial radio, the decisions about what is played is made behind closed doors after the money is counted.

Podcasts are fun, like old time radio. You get to hear music you never heard before in combinations FM radio could never do (for example the podcast Eclectic Mix recently featured me along with "American Baroque" performing a Mozart Oboe quartet). Listeners are growing and that is trouble for the record industry. Music buyers are becoming more and more likely to listen to a podcast, go to the artist's site and buy some music, cutting out the record industry, CD retailers and distributors in the process. FM's crowd is shrinking and with it CD sales. Independent labels like magnatune have been offering their music to podcasters for a long time and I have begun to notice some mainstream record labels jumping in on the action by offering their catalog royalty free to podcasters, fair I guess. God bless podcasters and independent music for making things fun and interesting again.

Podcasts I like:

Article I've Written:

Podcasts and Internet Radio

Washing Away Blood With Blood

2006-08-11T07:22:00.000-07:00

When will it end? I look at my sleeping daughter's face and can't help but think about the children dying in Lebanon, Iraq, Israel and everywhere else where there is conflict. Missles falling to them in the silent night, awakening them from their innocent dreams and bringing them home to a compassionate God where they can finally find peace. They are called martyrs only because it sounds better than "dead." The children are the ones paying the terrible price for the hatred and ignorance of governments and their tailor-made philosophies and ideologies. The rest of us say; "It doesn't have anything to do with us, it is their fight." Yet the bombs are made not by them, and the money is not theirs. The aggression has its financiers. We are the silent cogs in the war machine, gas for its engine, part of the plan. It doesn't have to be so, you can be heard. If we truly love our children it is our duty to stand up against violence, in whatever form it comes. Regardless of ideology, of religious beliefs and political convictions, bloodshed must be condemned. It will be our children next if we refuse to look, if we do not stop it now. Do you understand the Middle East Conflict? Use your brain and then use your voice.

Links that will shine some light on the Middle East Conflict: