Signed up for King of the Blues at GC

[birv2]

I was doing my usual Saturday noodling at GC, checking out amps, etc., playing the blues as always, and a couple of GC employees asked me if I had signed up for the contest. What contest, I says. The King of the Blues contest. Fabulous prizes, etc.

They both felt I had the tone and chops to do it, but I had to think about it. Why? Because I'm kinda new at this performance thing and am just starting to build confidence. However, after thinking about it, I decided to jump into the deep end. I felt pretty comfortable till I started thinking about it, and now my stomach is doing flips.

I have 3 weeks to get ready -- it's on August 20th. Would love to get any and all advice anyone has. The whole competitive aspect weirds me out a little.

Bob

[Robert]

Awesome! Go for for it! Just stick what you know best. I'm not familiar with the details of this contest, but I'd suggest stick to good solid lines and licks that you know well. Make some good guitar faces as you are soloing, and you'll be all set. :)

[marnold]

I don't have any advice since I've never played guitar in front of others (at least not people who know how guitar is supposed to be played). Nevertheless, I'll be pulling for ya!

[sumitomo]

Ah come on now briv2,wasn't that you in the windy city who rented an axe,forgot the strap but was playing up on stage still?I know you can do it brother,give it your best shot you will do great.Sumi:D

[BluesHowler]

I say good for it! Stick with some basic solos and chops done with feeling and little pedal effects.

Somewhere I saw comments from some blues contest that the best player used no effects at all while some of the other players used as much as twelve pedals while playing and did not win.

[birv2]

Ah come on now briv2,wasn't that you in the windy city who rented an axe,forgot the strap but was playing up on stage still?I know you can do it brother,give it your best shot you will do great.Sumi:D

Yup, that was me, alright. Almost forgot! Thanks for the reminder, Sumi, to just tear it up.

As far as pedals go, I'm planning at the moment to go with only a Jekyll and Hyde. It'll be through a Twin, so I want to have some dirt.

Bob

[bigoldron]

Good luck Birv! We'll be pulling for you! :AOK: :dude:

[tot_Ou_tard]

Way to go for it Birv.

Think of it this way, no matter what happens you'll have gained experience.

[birv2]

Thanks to all for the good wishes and advice. I knew I could count on the Fretters. I'll post after August 20 with a report.

And it is true that it will be good experience no matter what. I keep telling myself that if I played at the jam at Buddy Guy's, the Lancaster Guitar Center is a LOT less scary.

Now to decide which guitar to use: the Squier Affinity strat with the 70's Japanese pickups (Sister Rosetta), or the Jimmie Vaughan with the CS 54's (Layla)? Fortunately, I only have 2 guitars to choose from!

:rockon:

Bob

[Robert]

Use the JV strat! Those pickups I have too, and they are great for blues.

[birv2]

The only Fender they have available is a Twin RI. I know these are pretty bright. I like a middy sound, and I'm wondering if using the Jekyll and Hyde will help me get that.

Anybody have any experience with this amp or pedal?

I'll probably go with the JV. I agree, Robert, those 54's are great blues pickups. But I do enjoy playing the Squier because it's fun to surprise people who expect it to sound terrible.

[jpfeifer]

Hi birv2,

I also signed up for the same GC contest here in my area. I tried this contest a few years ago and it was a really good experience for me.

You will find that the other players are pretty supportive of each other. You will see everyone from young teenagers to old guys playing in this contest. It's a great way to motivate yourself to practice really hard and work on your blues playing.

My advice, having done it before, is to relax and play from your heart. Just play what you know and find a track that you really connect with.

Also, they do look for stage presence, which is kind of tough when you're up there all by yourself with no band playing with you, so it helps to move around and make a bit of a show out of it (this is the part that I'm the least comfortable with. I just like to play :-) But the guy who won at our store competition a few years ago was not really the best blues player of the bunch, but he did know how to put on a good guitar face and move around.

Good luck in the contest. I have my first round on the 27th. I don't know if I'll make it the the next round but I'll give it my best.

-- Jim

[birv2]

Jim, thanks for the advice! It was very helpful.

Yes, part of the difficulty is that it's just you and a backing track. So you can't do fills around the vocals, and you can't trade solos with anyone. I'm thinking of varying tones with a pedal and different pickup positions just to break it up.

[jpfeifer]

birv2,

Another thing that I would reccomend (which helped me last time) is to go to GC with your own guitar a few days before the contest and try your guitar, and any effects that you plan to use, with their selection of amps. Pick out an amp that gives you the tone you want. Bring a piece of paper and write down your settings so that you know exactly how you want to setup your amp for the contest.

Also, it's a good idea to video tape yourself playing to your selected track. Then you can watch your own performance and decide what's working, what's not, etc.

I hope this helps.
Good luck in the contest, -- Jim

[sunvalleylaw]

Good luck guys on the contest! I hope you have a ton of fun with it!

[Jimi75]

The only Fender they have available is a Twin RI. I know these are pretty bright. I like a middy sound, and I'm wondering if using the Jekyll and Hyde will help me get that.

Anybody have any experience with this amp or pedal?

I'll probably go with the JV. I agree, Robert, those 54's are great blues pickups. But I do enjoy playing the Squier because it's fun to surprise people who expect it to sound terrible.

Good luck!!!!
Make sure to bring your J&H pedal! the Twin RI need a lot of fire to sound good.

[kiteman]

Good going birv. Just relax and get into the zone. :)

[birv2]

Well, I'm scheduled to play at the KOTB tomorrow night. I had to reschedule it, which gave me an extra 2 weeks to get ready, not that I used it of course.

I went in a couple of nights ago to try out a couple other pedals on the Twin. No Twin there, they had sold it. In its place was a Hot Rod Deluxe, which I'm not really familiar with. So I played through it with my TS9DX and my Barber Direct Drive. A friend of mine listened to me and said he didn't think either of the pedals really made any difference in my sound. Since he fronts a blues band and has a good ear and lots of experience, I trust his judgment. So I think I'll try playing without a pedal and just crank the amp.

I also demoed both my guitars, and I'm going with the Squier. It just sounds and feels right for this. I re-read everyone's advice and good wishes here for good luck and practiced tonight. I worked on some lines and stuff, but I'm just going to play from the heart as best I can. There will no doubt be people more technically proficient, but that's not what the blues is about, is it?

I'll give a full report after it's over. Fingers crossed!

[pes_laul]

I wanted to sign up really bad but I'm not very good at the blues.

But best of luck to you:master:

[Rampant]

Be lucky, matey.

But most of all, just enjoy the moment :D

[Perfect Stranger]

No need to be nervous just coz everyone in the WHOLE world will be listening and watching. They won't laugh at you very long when you mess up. And I'm sure your significant other won't be too ashamed of you when you blow it.

Just keedin', man. You'll do fine.....and even if you lose you win. Coz you'll get valuable experience and exposure. Go for it...:dude:

[birv2]

First, thanks for all the good wishes and advice.

It went really well. There were 8 of us, and though I wasn't picked as one of the top 2 (only the top 2 go on), I got lots of positive comments from other guitarists, audience and judges. In fact, I think I got the loudest applause!

One of the judges told me that I was the best blues guitarist there. He said I played pure blues. I told him that was about the highest compliment he could have given me. There were other guitarists there who were technically much more proficient than me, but I just tried to maximize the feeling, which is really what the blues is about. Not putting down technique, but I've seen that lots of feeling with less technique is usually better than lots of technique with little feeling.

Anyway, I was very happy with how I played, regardless of the results. Woohoo!

Bob:rockon:

[sunvalleylaw]

Congrats! That is an excellent, excellent report! I trust you are well satisfied with your efforts, and that you had a great time.

[Lev]

Well done Bob, I'm sure the experience will inspire you on to greater things in the future.

[bigG]

Way to go, Bob! Great report! :D :bravo: :beer:

You done good!

[Robert]

Great to hear it went well! The best blues guitarist there should have moved on!

[kiteman]

First, thanks for all the good wishes and advice.

It went really well. There were 8 of us, and though I wasn't picked as one of the top 2 (only the top 2 go on), I got lots of positive comments from other guitarists, audience and judges. In fact, I think I got the loudest applause!

One of the judges told me that I was the best blues guitarist there. He said I played pure blues. I told him that was about the highest compliment he could have given me. There were other guitarists there who were technically much more proficient than me, but I just tried to maximize the feeling, which is really what the blues is about. Not putting down technique, but I've seen that lots of feeling with less technique is usually better than lots of technique with little feeling.

Anyway, I was very happy with how I played, regardless of the results. Woohoo!

Bob:rockon:

You got it right Bob. :beer:

When I get in the mood (zone?) there's no chords, scales, pents on my mind. Just feelings and if I did good I get chills. I can't tell if I'm playing blues but just what I'm hearing coming from my pick.

Too bad I can't do that at the drop of the hat. :)

[jpfeifer]

birv2,

That's one of the best compliments that you could have received! Hats off to you for going for it!

-- Jim

[birv2]

You got it right Bob. :beer:

When I get in the mood (zone?) there's no chords, scales, pents on my mind. Just feelings and if I did good I get chills. I can't tell if I'm playing blues but just what I'm hearing coming from my pick.

Too bad I can't do that at the drop of the hat. :)

You got that right! If only...

I always think of what Jimmie Vaughan said about his brother: that if you're an artist, you can "tune in" to whatever that source of inspiration is, and then it just flows through you. Jimmie said Stevie Ray could get on stage, hit a chord, and almost instantly tune in. Not that I'm in that guitar league, but I think all of us can become "vehicles" for whatever it is. So maybe that's the key.

Many thanks to everyone here for all the encouragement, good wishes, etc. It meant a lot.

Bob:AOK:

[kiteman]

What it is, inspirations. When I'm jammin' I get a story in my head maybe a past experience in my life then go with the flow.

Maybe I go into a trance I don't know but whatever it is sure is fun. :)

[aeolian]

I got lots of positive comments from other guitarists, audience and judges. In fact, I think I got the loudest applause!

One of the judges told me that I was the best blues guitarist there. He said I played pure blues. I told him that was about the highest compliment he could have given me. There were other guitarists there who were technically much more proficient than me, but I just tried to maximize the feeling, which is really what the blues is about. Not putting down technique, but I've seen that lots of feeling with less technique is usually better than lots of technique with little feeling.

Anyway, I was very happy with how I played, regardless of the results. Woohoo!

Bob:rockon:

Bob, that is really cool, specially because you enjoyed doing it. Any thoughts on what you will try next?

I played in front of people a few times almost 30 years ago, and although I've been playing off and on since then, have not played for an audience since the early 1980s. Then, all of a sudden, the hobby band I've been with played for an audience 3 weekends in a row. I was actually less nervous than I thought I would be, I think being just one person in a band makes it easier. 3 weeks ago we played an open mic, 2 weeks ago we played a neighborhood event, and last weekend we played a private party.

[peachhead]

Don't know how I missed this thread, but it sounds like you did great. Wish I could have been there to see it!

[birv2]

Bob, that is really cool, specially because you enjoyed doing it. Any thoughts on what you will try next?


I would like to play in an actual blues band. So far, I've just done jams and such. One of my hopes was that this experience would help me connect with other musicians with similar goals. We'll see!

[Trailer Park Casanova]

We were in GC Thursday nite and they were haveing the contest.
Even if you're not entered in the contest, it's really excellent to hang out at GC and watch the players in action.