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Unsatisfying Jam is Like Bad Sex before/after Then Sunday I had a jam session. As I pulled my guitars in and played a few songs to warm up, a local television news person tried to name drop some band he played in...IN THE SEVENTIES. So I mocked up an answer he didn't understand, but a blues man would have, and he went with it. I kinda' blew him off a little bit. I guess I just didn't think he was as great as he thought he was. Or something. The violinist didnt show up, but I jammed with a music theory student, who incidentally plays banjo. We communed pretty well. Sometimes, a journey to the excruciatingly sensitive side of music is a lot of fun. Subtle. Then I played a Jimi Hendrix tune, and out of nowhere a kid wants to jump into the jam, coincidentally having a guitar out in the car, for some reason. Which is fine. But. He jumps in, and walks all over the rythym. At first he played the hendrix solo note for note, which is fine and everything, but I've never been a believer in that style of playing. It makes for fine cover tunes. My thought is simply this: that is how mr. hendrix would play it. What's in your soul? He has some great speed and decent licks. But he just doesnt fit in to the song. And I'm holding down the rythym, trying to pull these two disparate players together, much like trying to catch two cats that are bolting off into different directions. Somehow I manage it, and also manage to sing a little bit. And I thought I sung well. But this kid never tried to take the rythym and let me play off a little bit. He never added. And he competed with the over all sound. Which is soul draining. Every musician at some point in his musician ship has to come to grips with his talent, and the fact that everyone must do what they can to make the mix sound good. You have to work together, you have to make the song sound good. A prima donna act will only take you so far. And while I've got the swagger and style, and a whole lot more talent than that kid (he didn't know how to play slide, nor twelve), I've always tried to either hear the mix, or feel the flow. And so I left feeling unfulfilled. The coffee shop girl was there, looking cute. We spoke a little bit, she was really nice, and almost worshipful to me. But I got the feeling when I talked to her, that she didnt know what to say. And outside of my usual locquaciousness, I couldn't help her. And I wandered out into the night, feeling unsatisfied, and wondering what was it about me of late that has made it diffcult to talk to me.
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