I got a call from my good friend Donovan a couple weeks ago inviting me to the Cosmic Creek surf event and benefit concert. It sounded like a good cause, a good time and I was actually able to make it work schedule wise. Billabong flew us out and put us up at a fancy hotel and we just had an amazing weekend. The event raised over $20,000 for AIDS and cancer research.

Last night we had an amazing jam at the famous Coach House in San Juan Capistrano. It was a pretty weird bill but I have to say it really worked in a crazy way. The line up included: Jackson Browne, Pennywise, Sugar Ray, Honk, a kids band comprised of 10 year olds called Fart Knockers (classic), Ken Garcia, Donovan Frankenreiter and yours truly.

I played “Super Hero Brother”, “Hot Cooking” and jammed with DF on his song “Whatcha Know”. At the end of the show all the artists performed “The Weight”. It was surely classic harmonizing on stage with Jackson.

Jackson Browne continues to be an amazing artist. How many hits does he have!!???!  I really admire how he is using his music as an activist to oppose the war in Iraq as well as supporting and aiding progressive politicians to get into office. Go JB! I hope to do more of this as my career progresses.

It was great hanging with Donovan and catching up with friends like Mark McGrath, Jim and Byron from Pennywise.  We had some good jams and kicked it too late! I had a tough time waking up and I almost missed my noon heat at the contest. I ended up just making the heat and I made it to the final round where I placed 4th. There were some retired pros in my heat so I felt pretty good about the 4th place. Philly represent!

We all surfed on old single or twin fin boards from the 60’s-80”s. All in all it was a classic weekend. Big ups to DF for having me out to support research to find elusive cures to AIDS and cancer. Next year I’m going for the W.

Thanks Peace G

Chris D and I have been in session for a couple days now, lacing the tracks we cut in July. Shit is sounding good. I have to say, I think Chris has been improving big time as producer. I played him a bunch of new songs I’ve written since July and the response was good. We will look to cut about 10 more tracks at the end of October. We are going to set up the session by doing a mini tour in New England. We will be playing VT, NH to name a few so come out. During these shows we will be trying to focus on performing the new material.

The more I tour and make records I realize what I want a record or a show to achieve. When I record a song I want it to be something that not only makes me feel good (which is everything I write) but something that will connect with the band and the crowd. To record songs that don’t hit live is something that I try to stay away from these days.  That doesn’t mean we don’t get freaky and experimental in the studio because we do. Its just that 13 years deep into making records and having blown large budgets over the years trying to catch a buzz in the studio, I know how to catch a vibe and be efficient. It’s called band practice!  Imagine that…you can actually prepare for the studio by working shit out ahead of time. It was a very expensive lesson to learn though.

Back in the day, I made 5 records for Sony Music and this was during a different time in the music industry. This was when the industry was actually making money.  This was before the internet basically destroyed the potency of the major label. We had budgets, real budgets and like any good aspiring rock star, I squandered many fat budgets away by taking too much time in the studio. At one or two thousand dollars a day, you can see how hanging in the studio can get real expensive real quick. Well, now we smartened up and have our own studio in Philly plus we go to the studio to work! We go to the bar to party.  We go to the basement to jam and we go on tour to play. 

Bringing the vibe ain’t no thing either. Music is something that’s completely ethereal. You can’t touch it you can’t hold it. It goes in you and right through. One thing is for sure though, music never lies. The more you put into it the more you get back and that’s how you get the vibe. You have to cultivate the feeling. You’re a farmer sowing the seeds of songs and every time you practice your instrument you plant another seed. So what are you waiting for? Stop reading this and go practice.

I gotta cut a vocal

That’s real!

Did you ever take a second to consider the food behind the music?
I mean what musicians eat while they are in studio. Bunkered down in the basement or lounging in some fancy hi tech studio, we have to eat. 

When we made our second record Coast to Coast motel in New Orleans, my producer Keith Keller, rest his soul, told me, “G, its not a race, it’s a marathon”. And with those words of wisdom he proceeded to show me the wonders of Louisiana cooking and eating. We would have big pots of greens or cabbage and good ole andouille sausage. When we tired of that, it was poboys…shrimp, catfish or my favorite, fried oyster. Fully dressed of course!

Philly recording sessions relied heavily on the chicken cheese steak with provolone, onions and hot peppers on the side.

Once, while doing a session with legendary bluesman Little Milton, rest his soul, we ordered fried seafood in Mussle Shoals, Alabama. I distinctly remember watching Little Milton eating his fried shrimp salad.

We are going into a session this month at a wonderful studio in New England called Long View Farm. They have a couple cooks on staff that makes delicious, country, home-cooked meals twice a day. You just can’t beat that cooking!

But, the whole reason I’m writing this now is because the Philadelphonic studios is right by Chinatown in Philly. I eat from Ong’s (formerly Nice Noodle) religiously. I just can’t get enough Vietnamese food down here!  Well whatever you decide, happy eating and remember you can’t live off of coffee and cigarettes, even if you are a professional musician

Peace

G

Greetings and salutations! After a whirlwind of one offs, I’m just about to fly from Beantown to hometown Philly to hit the studio. Due to a number of scheduling conflicts (it’s hard to get everyone on the same page after leaving the tour bus) I will be in studio tonight with Mr. Pete Donnelly. Pete is a friend of mine from Skidmore College. He is also in the infamous Indy band The Figgs and a great producer. We’ve done a bunch of tracks over the years. The most recent was “Ride” from Lemonade. Anyways, I’m looking forward to getting busy tonight in studio on some of the tracks we recorded in July.

I will be doing vocals, guitars and production all week. The rough mixes from the Down and Dirty session sound cool as hell so I would say

Its on.

Its just been and amazing fall here on the east side. I think we need some rain but it sure is beautiful. I’m taking off.

Peace in the Middle East

It’s Saturday morning in sunny San Diego. I’m sitting at the Baja Fresh in down town SD. You know Baja Fresh and In and Out burger is the best fast food joints on the planet right?  That’s one thing the west side has over the east side, fast food. Also freaky transient people. There are so many freaks wandering around the streets of San Diego. Because the weather is so nice all the time, people are just on the streets. There are definitely and unfortunately plenty of homeless people in the east coast cities but there is something clearly different that’s hard to pin down. Maybe the drugs are different out here…more meth.  There are also many more younger homeless drifters in the west.

Back to the subject, Street Scene is today and I’m ready. Yesterday I got to the hotel and marinated. I ran over my set and shedded out for a few hours. Check out the youtube I did last night: Back of Da Bus. I did that joint last night. When we were out on the Summer Haze tour with SS and Ozo, SS was doing this great beatbox breakdown. It reminded me of how we used to break it down in the All Fellas Band. So I was like shit I gotta start busting that beatbox out again. I’ve been sleeping on it!

Tonight is definitely the Haze reunion so it should be dope! I’m ready and I’m going to rock this joint tonight. Rock it tonight, surf in the morning then I’m off to Boston then Philly to kick it in the studio with Chris D.  We gotta finish this new record we are working on. Shit sounds tight. That’s it for now. These fish tacos are the bomb.

Peace out

G

Well I just woke up from a little preshow catnap here in Chicago. We are playing one of my favorite venues: The Vic Theater. We’ve done a lot of shows here over the years. Tonight it’s a private/free show with GLASS and Mofro. Should be wicked.

Jimmy Jazz had a family affair so my good friend, Philly legend and musical cohort, Chuck Treece is going to be on bass. After tonight we head to San Diego for the Street Scene fest. We are on the bill with Slightly Stoopid and Ozo among others...Summer Haze reunion!  Yeah Boyee.

That’s that.  I’ve gotta go get ready to rock but I will write more tomorrow.

Peace out

G

Another perfect day on the east side. Fall is my favorite time of year to be on the East Coast. This week has been amazing. I’m definitely settling nicely into Boston. In October I’m going to look to start creeping out and making the scene a bit....

14 years ago the Boston music scene was going off. Music just seemed to be seeping out of every house, bar and club in the city. There were open mics, jam sessions and a million different places for a struggling musician to get on the stage. There was also a thriving busking community. I still see people playing on the street but it just doesn’t seem the same. A lot of jazz musicians are out there. Mostly Berklee kids, I think, trying to practice and make some change between classes. I don’t see as many of the singer/songwriter types. There were some cool peeps back in the day. I remember this girl Mary Lou Lord, she was hip. She got a record deal and there were rumors that she hooked up with Kurt Cobain...I dunno.  Tracy Chapman got her start in Harvard Sq, and so did I. There were lots of happening bands emerging: Morphine, Jasper and the Prodigal Suns, Grind (all girl Rock and Roll), Powerman 5000, Shockra, The Stubb Junkmen, Chuck, Chuckle Head and a whole lot more too. There was a cool punk rock band called Tree. The Goats used to come up from Philly and kick the shit out of Beantown. Oh yeah, and this band G. Love and Special Sauce they were aiiight.

The cool thing about Boston is that between a very strong roots folk music community, Berklee School of Music, the Boston Conservatory, college radio and lots of venues, Irish pubs and the busking possibilities, it’s possibly the best place in the country to make it as a musician. Also its 3-4 hours from NYC so if you get a chance you can try to play for the record labels....

Anyway, I’m getting all nostalgic about it now. Because of a matter of circumstance I’m up here again. At first I was really salty about it but now I’m totally feeling it. When I practice up here I feel like I’m tapping into a vast musical energy that’s in the air. It comes from the thousands of players up here, shedding, learning, gigging, busking and touring through. I can imagine that if you could stop all the cars, trains, planes and commotion and for a quick moment everyone stopped talking you’d probably hear music rising in the air. Scales, songs, tunings, warm ups, applause, feet stomping and a million notes floating on the fall breeze...How ya like them apples?

Peace in the Middle East

G