Thoughts on Thanksgiving

It is Thanksgiving Day and I have been busily at work on a cover of "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" as an offering for this season's holidays. But as it is Thanksgiving, I am certainly thankful for all the same basic, essential things everyone else is. And since this is a music blog, I am particularly thankful for all music gear I have and have had and the abilities I have been blessed with to make music. Music has always been an escape for me from the cold, hard realities of this world into another dimension where I am completely absorbed and untroubled.

I remember growing up and wanting to have real instruments to play. Instead, I had to make do with homemade devices that were so much better than having nothing at all. I have yet to locate some of those pieces. I know I still have them because I would not throw away such things. I'm much too sentimental to dispose of things like that.

There was a church I went to as a child that lent us an acoustic guitar for a week. A nice big dreadnought. I don't know what brand it was. I have a couple of photos of myself with that guitar in hand. At that time though, I had no idea how to play it. A few years later I would have my first electronic keyboard--a tiny, monophonic, cream-colored Casio keyboard which I used on many of my earliest recordings.

As a sophomore in high school. I had a music/piano class that allowed us to take a full-size keyboard home with us to practice on over the weekend. I think it was a 61-key model. I know they came in 76 keys and 88 keys but there's no way it was an 88. I walked that thing home under my arm for about 1.5 miles. It was heavy as heck and I couldn't feel my arm for a while after that. But my intention with that keyboard was to use it for a weekend of recordings. Never before had I access to a keyboard with such authentic piano, organ, bass, drums & vibes sounds! I would happily publish my recordings here were they not so error-laden and simple-sounding. Back in those days I was recording with very cheap microphones--the kind used for tape recorders--and very cheap cassette tapes. Any mistakes made during recording would mean having to start all over from the beginning; none of this wonderful punching in/out editing of the modern digital recording age. And during those days I didn't have all the opportunities and abilities I would have liked in order to keep re-recording to perfection.

A few years after that is when I got my first acoustic guitar and a Casio keyboard similar to the one from high school although it was much lighter in weight! That was the genesis of what has become my music gear. I am really thankful for all that stuff and the ability to make music at home. This would have been impossible to do 25-30 years ago without having to spend a small fortune. Eventually I would still love to have my own studio with state of the art equipment. But for now I'll count my blessings and be grateful for what I am able to do with what I have.