New to Music - a stranger in a strange land

Originally Posted by: TobesMusique

@TwoHoot @DavesGuitarJourney

Thanks for the suggestions and the potted life history - I'd heard of him as an actor, but not as a songwriter so will check out your suggestions.

I'm enjoying listening to a bit of Martha Tilston at the moment - folk - she's done a few free/donation facebook sessions from her cottage in Cornwall which are still available to watch :-)

See http://www.marthatilston.co.uk/

She also made a great documentary featuring some really interesting artists and lovely music which can be accessed through her website (pay donation to view).

Hey, thanks for the recommendation there for Martha Tilston. Totally new to me, she's really good. I'll watch the documentary when I get a chance, the trailer looks good.

Originally Posted by: TwoHoot

My personal Kristofferson favorite is certainly "The Pilgrim - Chapter 33".

Followed by "Darby's Castle" or "Help Me Make It Through The Night"

Yeah, I think "The Pilgrim - Chapter 33" has one of my all-time favorite lyrics: "He's a walkin' contradiction, partly truth and partly fiction" and also "Never knowin' if believin' is a blessing or a curse". Hell, every word of that song is just about perfect.

Then "Help Me Make it Through the Night" - "Let the devil take tomorrow, but tonight I need a friend." Man, have we all been there? I know I have and that line spoke to me the first time I heard it.

TwoHoot, we've hijacked your thread and turned into the Kris K. fan club here. Sorry mate!

Originally Posted by: faith83

I have a special place in my heart for To Beat the Devil (esp right now) - a brilliant piece of songwriting that shows mastery of the form in the breaking of its rules, and also Junkie the Juiceman and Me.

I love his voice and generally speaking prefer his versions of his songs to anyone else's (except Janis' Me and Bobby McGee). He doesn't have a perfect voice, but as Emmylou pointed out, your limitations define your style, and there is a special power in hearing the writer of a song sing it the way they hear it in their heads. Help Me Make It Through the Night and Sunday Morning Coming Down.. no one IMO communicated the pain better than Kris did (though Johnny Cash got pretty close on SMCD).

I already commented too much on specific lyrics, but yeah, I'm with you on To Beat the Devil. I just checked out The Junkie & the Juicehead - somehow I don't think I've ever heard that one. Semi-autobiographical, eh?

I really like his own versions of his songs best, too. It's been a little painful seeing him perform for the last few years with his health issues, brought on by Lyme disease and misdiagnosed as Alzheimers.

@TwoHoot

Thanks for sharing your story - it's very moving. I'm older and new to this and just wanted to let you know that you're never alone because you now have all of us fellow beginners - on a our new musical path in this strange land. Looking forward to sharing the journey with you and all our new friends.

I do look forward to recieving your video of the cowbell dance! I KNOW you will get there!

Most people don't know whether the cowbell dance is a promise or a threat. No video - live performance only.

Your lessons are great so far. I am trying to get the warm-up in Chapter 2, Lesson 8 perfected. So far, I can ring clear on the fretted string but not always on the adjacent strings.

I noticed I tend to pick up tempo as I go through the exercise so I set the Metronome in the tool box to 60 with emphasis on the first beat to keep it steady. Is that OK?

The pick is foreign to my right hand and I am always dropping it. Old dry hands I guess. It feels a lot more natural with my thumb or index finger. I still can't find the correct string without looking. Any suggestions?