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Robert Johnson On Speed?

By Steve “Red” Lasner

Much controversy has arisen about whether or not the recordings of Robert Johnson we have been listening to for years were speed altered. Some musicologists are convinced Johnson’s released recordings are 20% faster than those he performed in two solo sessions in 1936 and 1937, and they wonder how this happened, when it happened, and why it happened.

Many blame advances in technology, some claim it to be a conscious decision made during the mastering process, and others claim that there actually is no speed alteration. If the recordings indeed were sped up by 20%, slowing them down would result in a significant change in pitch and tempo that would have a serious impact on the history of the blues and all of the music and musicians influenced by Johnson. Is it possible that we have never heard what this very influential singer-guitarist truly sounded like?

You be the judge:

“Crossroad Blues” – Fast (original):

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“Crossroad Blues” – Slow (revised):

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Steve “Red” Lasner has rubbed elbows and performed with many great and famous musicians including Buddy Miles, John Sebastian, Derek Trucks, Robben Ford and many more. In 2009 TrueFire released Red’s first instructional guitar course Blues Expose. Red continues to perform locally, nationally and internationally and continues to produce instructional material.

Tagged: blues, buddies, combinations, fame, ford, greatness, guitar, guitarist, guitarists, guitars, listener, live, master, mastering, music, musician, musicians, performance, phrase, phrases, phrasing, producer, producers, producing, recording, rock, sessions, songwriter, songwriting, talents, technology, tempos, truefire

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August 26th 2011

Taking Notes

by Rich Maloof

We recently heard Quincy Jones recall a saying from back in the day: “Keep your music pad and pencil out, because if God knocks you’d better get it before he takes it down the street to Mancini!”

In one sense the Q quote is a tip of the hat to those uncommon talents, such as Henry Mancini, who seem to be granted more than their fair share of creative gifts. But the core message is that you better be ready to catch musical ideas when they come your way or brother, they’re gone.

Now, far be it from me to question anything that comes from Quincy Jones. My best work is something he’d scrape off his shoe. I would mug my own grandmother for his talent, and she’s not well.

But I’m not convinced we have to keep a net ready for every idea that flies through the creative jetstream. In fact, I think that prevents more ideas from flowing.

Tagged: guitar, music, musicians, taking notes

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August 23rd 2011

Frank Zappa on the Decline of the Music Business

Frank Zappa gives his take on the decline and fall of the music business. He comes to a surprising conclusion that the older generation was better for pushing new wave music that they didn’t understand than the supposedly younger/hipper music executives. What do you think?

Tagged: business, frank zappa, music

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August 18th 2011

The Last 30 Years in Music Delivery

Over the past 30 years, we’ve seen music delivery evolve from vinyls and 8 tracks to cassettes and CDs to digital downloads and streaming. Here’s a cool illustration of that music delivery evolution:

What’s next!?

Tagged: delivery, music, music biz, music business

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July 18th 2011

7 Deadly Sins of Rehearsing

by Rich Maloof

1. No agenda
Make the most of the band’s time together by knowing what you plan to accomplish. Is it a writing session or a performance rehearsal? Do you need to tighten up a few tunes that were sloppy at the last gig? Plan it out in advance. If the group has vocal harmonies or dual guitar parts to work out, you might want to set up separate rehearsal times for just those band members.

2. Inviting friends and fans
Don’t invite anyone to your rehearsal other than bandmates. It’s fine if you need a manager or other business associate to hear what you’re doing, but keep your legions of fans out. Most musicians just don’t tend to work as productively, or even act normally, when there are other eyes and ears on them. If that many people are dying to hear you play, here’s a crazy idea: book a gig.

3. Free-for-all
It’s one thing to take a moment to adjust your tone or get a new riff under your fingers; it’s another to run a dozen lead lines when everyone else is ready to start working. If your band is populated with aimless, endless noodlers, try setting a new rule for rehearsal: Each player signals that he/she is ready to rehearse by not playing.