Miss Those Dogs

 

Left me again, this time she took the dogs.

Last time she left, I spent 3 weeks in an awful fog.

She wouldn't even pick up my calls.

Left me again, this time she took the dogs.

Gonna miss those dogs she took away from me.

Won't miss her much, we could never agree.

Kinda nice really, prolly just let it be.

Gonna miss those dogs she took away from me.

I miss their howling.

I miss their chowing.

I miss their wagging.

Won't miss her nagging.

Women, they gonna come, they gonna go.

What's in their minds no man will ever know.

What makes them turn so cold?

Women, they gonna come, they gonna go.

Left me again, this time she took the dogs.

Never would guessed it, she really has some gall.

Something makes me think it's against the law.

Left me again, this time she took the dogs.

FCGx2

FC

FCG

AmCx4

Band Practice 3: An Undetected Sound

 

The melt tune was essentially in the bag, as was blister, as was strange, as was teenage werewolf, as was down under, as was picasso, as was caress, and as was minnesoter by the dandy Dandy Warhols.  Essentially.  Eight tunes in all, a tight set, prolly 45 minutes of music to refine and shine and make whole.  Workshopping, woodshedding, callouses and apathy, fighting through.  To the other side of hate, where performance art glows.  

We didn't create any of these tunes, but we will perform them to Pablo Picasso Project perfection.  An undetected sound from out there to in here.  It will all make sense in the end.  There will be no encores, everything is an encore in a supergroup.  Our processes are tested, the music is right, the hang is tight, it's Wednesday night.

Space is top of mind, adding drums and microphones and obsession and success is another level of commitment.  Any band can wear out a welcome anywhere, it's to be expected.  Even Hunter S. Thompson needed his peace, more than most know from my research.  Space, space, space.  The folks need space, as do the punks.

Pin Prick

 

Bloated egos and lack of humor is expected.  Air gets in the brains, we float on temporary highs.  Suck a little helium for some cheap laughs, it always works.  But the thinning layer of skin will burst, eventually.  It always does.

Maybe it'll burst in a booming, cracking pop.  Or, a pin prick and deflate slowly and obviously.  Like death in a way.  Neither way is good, but the float is ending, slow or fast.  Egos must die, and will.

Humbling will come.  In a heap, by some sort of biological means.  The brain runs this ship, like Eastwood said.  Don't let the old man in, man.  Keep your wit.

Band Practice 2: Pablo Picasso Project

The song list was out there, out there out there.  Amos made sure we had communication and coordination.  He was running with it, chords, lyrics, ideas, his Zappa Minor Scholar street cred was really showing up.  Wednesday night it was, at the Hunter S. Thompson sound room in Frisco, 6-9, hard stop, let's see what we have here.  The Pablo Picasso Project was ready for noise, we have a live performance sometime, somewhere before November 18th, evidently.

I was beat when Amos picked me up for our first practice session.  After 27 holes of extreme heat golf, I had this woozy feeling and the sinking doom of unpreparedness.  Hadn't practiced once, just a quick glance at the tunes, but I had recently acquired a 1964 Gibson J-45, and figured I could wing it or fake it or just add some little extras.  Supergroups are the best, somebody gonna bring something almost always.  Everybody gets to coast a bit, like a ride or a dream.  

Ugly Matt was there when we arrived.  A guitar making, guitar playing, vagabond from L.A., he could do anything and was prepared to rock, punk, pop, or bang.  He was ready for something he told me on a garage break, something to sink his teeth into, timing has its own timing, ya know.  We nailed down 5 tunes easy and without internal angst, Amos was finding our way through, leading from the back, flexible and booming, "Pablo Picasso was never called an asshole!"  The third take was a masterpiece, wish I had it on tape.

Band Practice 1: Spitting Tyrant

Inspired by the late 70s punk scene and lit by a nagging call to music making and band association, Amos set his course.  And ours.  Some sort of execution mandate and mysterious ability to form a thing.  Written down and visioned, willed into existence.  Proposed and agreed to, declared and acknowledged, a done deal.

Every mountain needs a pass, every bird needs wings, and every band needs a bandleader.  A foul-mouthed, demanding, sweating, spitting tyrant.  He was none of those things.  His initial recruitment focused on the leftover husks of the Men From Nantucket, a guitar constructor of wild talent, a young bass prodigy, and a list of possible drummers.  So backwards and unconventional, upfront and invading, outlandish and gutty.  

Any band with an ounce of a drop of a chance to do anything groovy or spastic or clean or dirty must have a name.  Amos immediately voted to dust off Some Dude Named Amos, his cover band of the late teens and early 20s, like voting mattered in a band.  Already been done, no do overs in music, no Jefferson Airplane becoming Starship crap. Mork Square, the lead guitarist, offered Metallic Salmon, Forever In Cream Jeans, and others; I offered up Eye Crust, Squizz, and Pee Cans.  No telling where this whacko band of limping, brain demolished, blind, and deaf bandits land, probably be a big flop, but maybe not, we got bassist Ace Square.

Our Party

The local scene is the epicenter of the edge of the thing.  My county over country approach is now active and in constant alert status.  To spit in the face of 800 citizens and vote 7-0 the other way is a blaring horn.  A certain gesture in a double gesturing manner to the citizens of my great town.  And the predictable double gesturing from the citizens back to the city council, produced a recall petition to sign.

The mayor, a man of little words and smaller ethics, seems befuddled.  The former mayor, full of unfiltered bullshit and goofy glares, seeths at the inquiries.    This house of cards seems flimsy, brokers and builders and busted budgets.  Ramifications are only ramifications 'til the assaults go down, then it's retaliation.  The goons are out, it's a public fight. 

Here comes the chaos, the light, the sledgehammers.  Been happening since time was known, especially when the industrial age hit.  Bandits and robbers, fraudsters and slicksters, interlopers and the weak within.  This is the opposite of peace.  This is our party.

Simple Day

 

This simple day.  Blood pressure spot on, coffee came like I like.  No back ache today, no indigestion, no weird tooth thing or eyeball twitch.  Both feet painless and flexible, both hands gripping tight, no tendon issue or thumb jam.  Spine basically straight.

And the air, the refrigerated air, streaming strong inside through ducts and vents.  Fans swirl the cold throughout.  Essential technologies of last century.  Television is off, as usual, music hits so much better in the morning.  Without the stress and worry, with some truth and telecaster solos.

And the cancers stayed away another day, not everyone is as fortunate.  No scans for me, no regular check ups, we'll wait for the blood to appear, or some collapse or cardiac event.  Been down that road, always made it back.  So far.  Enjoy the simple days, complications ahead.