Have you ever found yourself caught between the steady beat of work life and the syncopated rhythms of a musical passion? My friend Don Olsen, a savvy electronics manufacturing business owner, joins me for a stroll down memory lane to chat about our earlier days, the laugh-filled experiences with jazz musicians, and the art of juggling careers with the melodies that truly make our hearts sing. We swap tales from the trenches of Dave Ferrin's band, ponder the impact of part-time musicians on the industry, and can't help but chuckle at the memories of musical disputes and the strong bonds formed through shared tunes.
Strumming through life's soundtrack, Don shares how his love for music began with a humble guitar, spurred by the folk era and my brother's own musical ventures. We explore the electric feeling of joining a first band and the deep, almost mystical connection music forges among those who let it steer their souls. From my time with The Majestix to transitioning to bass, it's clear that even as we face the realities of aging and our changing health, the reverberations of a well-played note can sustain us through the years, acting as an unwavering companion to our life's journey.
As we wrap up, Don and I dissect a singer's distinctive vibrato, and though we part ways with laughter, the resonance of our discussion leaves a lasting echo. This talk isn't just about reminiscing; it's about recognizing the evolution of the music scene, confronting the challenges that technology presents to live performers, and saluting those musicians who still manage to dance through the noise. So lean in, lend your ear, and perhaps you'll find a fragment of your own rhythm reflected in our harmonious farewell.
Have you ever found yourself caught between the steady beat of work life and the syncopated rhythms of a musical passion? My friend Don Olsen, a savvy electronics manufacturing business owner, joins me for a stroll down memory lane to chat about our earlier days, the laugh-filled experiences with jazz musicians, and the art of juggling careers with the melodies that truly make our hearts sing. We swap tales from the trenches of Dave Ferrin's band, ponder the impact of part-time musicians on the industry, and can't help but chuckle at the memories of musical disputes and the strong bonds formed through shared tunes.
Strumming through life's soundtrack, Don shares how his love for music began with a humble guitar, spurred by the folk era and my brother's own musical ventures. We explore the electric feeling of joining a first band and the deep, almost mystical connection music forges among those who let it steer their souls. From my time with The Majestix to transitioning to bass, it's clear that even as we face the realities of aging and our changing health, the reverberations of a well-played note can sustain us through the years, acting as an unwavering companion to our life's journey.
As we wrap up, Don and I dissect a singer's distinctive vibrato, and though we part ways with laughter, the resonance of our discussion leaves a lasting echo. This talk isn't just about reminiscing; it's about recognizing the evolution of the music scene, confronting the challenges that technology presents to live performers, and saluting those musicians who still manage to dance through the noise. So lean in, lend your ear, and perhaps you'll find a fragment of your own rhythm reflected in our harmonious farewell.
Grab your partner, here we go. One two, one two. I don't care, this is funny every time.
Speaker 2:Takes you back to college.
Speaker 1:It takes me back yeah, it takes me back to happier days. All right, all right, it fades out.
Speaker 2:I remember you telling me when you played this you played it up at school and some of these guys that were like so they're the jazz heads, oh, wow, like, really. Yeah, the guy's pretty good, you know what I mean Like they took it seriously.
Speaker 1:They were like that tuba player's killing me.
Speaker 2:He should be in Jazz A yeah, All right.
Speaker 1:This is episode 19 of On Drums. I'm John Simeone. I have my friend Don Olson here today. Hi, john, we're going to just be upfront. Don was here last week and I screwed up the audio, so this is probably going to suck. Right, because Don can only be funny one week at a time, right, don?
Speaker 2:I don't even know if I was funny last week. You were funny last week, but it's all gone's all. Yeah, it's over the uh waterfall, so to speak so um don, it's good to see you again, man good to see you too how was your week good uh yeah some, some external things weren't so good for some friends of mine, but we're everybody's okay, so okay good, but other than that, yeah, yeah, fine, good, good.
Speaker 1:All right. So you know I was thinking the reason for this podcast is like me griping about, like. My biggest gripe is like these guys who, like, are accountants and then they go to Sam Ashen and play guitar, play three chords, they learn three chords on YouTube and then they're doing gigs you know for like $10 a night. And then they go back to accounting on Monday. Who gives a shit? Right, right, but that's not you.
Speaker 2:You are a legitimate musician, I think so Sort of Right.
Speaker 1:But you didn't play music full time.
Speaker 2:No, I did not. You had a day gig. Yes, I did Right.
Speaker 1:So let's start with that. How was that for you like doing? You know, like I had that problem I was, I was teaching and you know I'd be made fun of on sunday night gigs because I had to get out of there and these guys could sleep on monday.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, because I was working yeah, no, I understand you know you have to bring in, yeah, revenue and um for the typical musician, at least on a local level. Uh, it's you. It's tough to make enough money on your own to support an income. But I had, as I had said to you, I had an electronics manufacturing business. That was my main gig.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:And making of all things. It had nothing to do with music making. Monitoring equipment for commercial refrigeration applications like walk-in coolers and freezers.
Speaker 1:And actually some of the gigs I've been on lately. That sounds more musical to me than some of the gigs I've been sitting on. I've been playing you know what refrigeration right now would be a lot hipper than what I'm doing right now. I understand, I know what you mean.
Speaker 2:But I always managed, you know, to keep my finger in playing and I really, at that time, I think, as I said to you, I had gone back to school to study and I did get a degree in theory and composition, so I'm not completely oblivious.
Speaker 1:Well, that's what I'm saying. You're the exception, like you're the guy who's actually a musician, who didn't doesn't do it full time.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I, you know, you didn't. You didn't start the refrigeration business Like I want to be a refrigeration guy and then say, no, when I grow up I want to make refrigeration alarms Can't wait, you know no, I, uh, you know, can't wait, you know?
Speaker 2:No, I, you know I was working for somebody else that was making something like that, and we ended up getting into a confrontation and I just decided to start my own thing and it worked out. I mean, you know, and what was good about it was, rather than having a job like yourself, like you're saying, where you were teaching and you had to get up the next morning to get to work, to teach, I didn't you know if I could.
Speaker 1:Because you were the guy.
Speaker 2:It was my business and I had people that were, you know, not a lot, a lot of people, you know. The biggest I got was maybe 15 or 20 people that were working with me in my business.
Speaker 1:But still that's cool get.
Speaker 2:I could get in at 10 o'clock, 10, 30, whatever if I whatever it was, you know and walk into whatever the problems were on that given day and and take care of what needed to be done right but so I had that autonomy. You know, I didn't have the relentless demands of somebody that's got to get up and be at some place at a particular time I had to get up.
Speaker 1:So yeah, so so we met in what? 79, 78?
Speaker 2:give or take yeah, 79 78, probably 78 in a club.
Speaker 1:They've been right in dave ferren's group and dave ferren's band and I have a lot of funny things memories from of that yeah, no, I remember.
Speaker 2:And what was the guy?
Speaker 1:the sax player's name rich oh no, in Dave's band it was Andy Thaw.
Speaker 2:No, there was a guy named Rich oh no, you're right, Richie. And he was real good, Right, Rich oh my God, you're right.
Speaker 1:I can't think of his last name. Yeah, I know he was killing. He was a tenor player.
Speaker 2:That's right and I can vividly remember that a lot of times over um a minor seven, like a minor chord, he would play major sevens and and dave didn't like that yeah he was like what you know? And and then rich says, well, hey, man, I'm not gonna, and I'm not gonna limit what I do, because of what you know right.
Speaker 2:He was like no, but he was you know, truthfully and with all respect to Dave, because Dave wasn't attuned to that thing, but he was right. I mean and when you're ear-warm to it he used it well and he was a real.
Speaker 1:He was a very musical player, that guy yeah, he really was. But I remember you didn't have a tux for like who, he didn't. You didn't have a tux for like a month or two months or something, and then you had some other, you had a black suit or something and it was like you had to wear a tux and then you show it's like see this how my memory works you showed up one day with the tux and you you had it on a hanger and you held it up to the band to show that you had it and everybody clapped I don't remember that, but I do know how I felt about playing it just wasn't my thing and I used to roll the tux up into a ball and throw it in the corner of the closet and if I had a gig that I had to wear it, I'd take it out put it on and, when I was finished, roll it up in a ball and throw it back in the corner of the closet also you used to drink a lot on the gigs.
Speaker 1:You used to drink a lot on the gigs. You used to drink. I did, but you didn't seem drunk. And then I remember Dave saying to you you know, don, you've been drinking all night but you don't seem drunk. And you said well, I don't seem drunk on the outside, but I'm partying on the inside I'm having a great time in here. That's right. I remember maybe smoking weed or whatever.
Speaker 2:At the same time, probably yeah, that was probably more so than I mean I enjoyed my drinking. I have since stopped completely and uh, which has been an interesting decision yeah, well, I mean, you know you can't do everything forever, right? I mean no no, not at my point especially.
Speaker 1:You realize that, uh, I've had enough, you know yeah I know I've had enough with a lot too yeah um, and the other thing I was going to tell you, the story I remember with the guitar is I remember. Now this is again, I don't know why I remember this. I remember being in some stupid probably the townhouse I think probably was a townhouse where we were. We all jammed in that stupid elevator with all the equipment, all of us going down to the stupid parking ramp. Remember the ramp?
Speaker 2:Vaguely. Yes, you had to go out the back, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and it was like a five gig weekend or something. We were exhausted. I remember just being in the elevator with my eyes closed and I was awoken by you I guess you had like a ukulele or something and spoken by you. I guess you had like a ukulele or something and you were singing something and playing a ukulele in the elevator, like some song See, I have.
Speaker 2:no, I can't believe you remember these things.
Speaker 1:I remember I thought it was the funniest thing, like where'd this? I mean, I didn't know why you had that guitar with you.
Speaker 2:Me neither. You know, it was just funny. I don't well, you know, I think with you, I remember that same guy Richie said. He says you're his mentor. I mean you know, because whatever it was, no matter what I said, you thought it was funny because I had predated it with things like this tuba, square dance, all this other stuff, and I was just, you know, like picking on your sense of humor.
Speaker 1:But see, that's why okay so so the story is I took all of your and we're going to get to your history and all that stuff, but I took all the funny stuff with me to college.
Speaker 2:And it really was funny, it was.
Speaker 1:I told you my friend Joel was here and he remembers what a guy which was. You started me with what a guy and what a gal. And I had a shirt made, or somebody got me a shirt that said what a guy on it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and again, that was Mike Mattia. That was his own saying about himself.
Speaker 1:Right, which was fine. What's the story about that? You guys are good. Okay, that happened to you, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that happened to me and that was. You know, as I said before, that was a story where we had our high school band and it was uh, the band was called the majestics and that alone is funny.
Speaker 1:Yeah, with an x.
Speaker 2:It had to be with an x, but but, and we played at everything when I went to high school. You know I mean I'm an old fart and that was back in in, you know, 1963 64, 65, yeah that's why I graduated in 65 from my school and we played at every dance and everything, and two of the guys that I played with were Ramsey and Freddie Dabby.
Speaker 1:And both.
Speaker 2:You know, as I told you, they're both Arabic shoes and they were both born in Baghdad and came to this country, you know, when they were like, you know, young kids, four, five, six years old, something like that and they were both you know young kids four, five, six years old, something like that and they were both.
Speaker 2:One was a guitar player and one was the keyboard player, and we had a four-piece band and that was what it was. And there was another guy that we went to school with and his name was actually Arthur Lubitz. I swear these names.
Speaker 1:They sound made up. But his nickname was Buzzy, of course Buzzy Lubitz, but his nickname was Buzzy, of course Buzzy Lubitz.
Speaker 2:Yeah, buzzy Lubitz, and he was a very mild-mannered fellow and a very sweet guy actually, but, you know, a little bit unusual. He's since passed on and he was very big into trains. He loved trains.
Speaker 1:He loved trains. Yeah, he, just you know he had an absolute, I think he.
Speaker 2:You know he had an absolute, I think he when he started working. I think he worked for the Long Island Railroad you know the MTA and you know that kind of a thing and um. But he came up to Ramsey one time and he said on a break, he said boy, you guys are good. Okay. Ramsey was like okay, and then he shared this story with me and I thought it was as funny as you do.
Speaker 1:That is funny, though. You guys are good, okay, yeah, okay. So the guys at UB were all saying using okay after everything.
Speaker 2:After like.
Speaker 1:Merry Christmas, okay. You know, I'll see you tomorrow. Okay, Everything was okay afterwards, you know, and it was just.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. And then what about?
Speaker 1:the other you said there was a gig you won about the guy who wanted to be the lead. Come be a lead singer. He said could you guys?
Speaker 2:Yeah, he said I can sing high and I can sing low, and he said that to the guy Jimmy.
Speaker 1:Oh, your friend Jimmy, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:The guy Jimmy, who was a very funny guy, but Jimmy Rosalino but.
Speaker 1:Yeah, see, that's, yeah, that's, that's, that's, yeah. I can't believe you don't.
Speaker 2:If you knew him and you had gotten to know him, you would have you know. I mean, he just yeah, he was. He was like uh funny yeah yeah, I mean, uh, this won't, uh, it won't be funny well, you know it's funny.
Speaker 1:My friend Joel, who I was just talking about, he used to tell me in college and this is like I just met joel, it was like 1980 or something and I was, I guess I was funny. I mean I was, they thought I was funny, whatever yeah, well, you are, and well, not, not like I don't think no, well whatever there's levels of funny.
Speaker 1:Anyway, joel said to me and at the time joel was you know, it's 20, we're all young and um, he was a great, he is a great drummer and he was a good looking guy and you know girls everywhere and and I remember having this conversation where he said I was talking to him about that, you know, you know, you get these girls whatever. And he'd say well, you know what, you know what girls really like, they prefer a funny guy, like. That's what he said to me. So, yeah, well, that's really not working out for me, because at the time it wasn't. You know, I was like 120 pounds. I used to take my shirt off in my room and my roommate would say, please put your shirt on, you're making me sick. You know, I just looked like Biafran. You know I did. I was just a really thin, a funny guy.
Speaker 2:Okay, no, that does seem to work, but I'm usually funnier like five minutes afterwards when I go damn, I should have said so and so Right, you know. But I'm not as spontaneous as some others I'm more of a pondering.
Speaker 1:Pondering comic. Yeah, that happens, I guess. Well, we're off the track here. Let's go with what like. When you started, you didn't start on bass. What'd you start on?
Speaker 2:um, I started on guitar again. I, you know, I, my brother, and this is literally going back to like, say, 1960 or 61 my older brother, who was older than me by about seven years, wanted to to get a guitar, an acoustic guitar. It was in the time of, you know, peter Paul and Mary, and folk singers and very early, dylan.
Speaker 1:If you don't know, peter Paul and Mary, just look it up, google it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and you know it was that kind of music. It was very popular and he wanted to get a guitar and so we went over to Hempstead and bought a guitar at uh, hemstead music, which was a small local store. We didn't go to sam ash and um a little acoustic guitar for 15 and brought it home and then I just took it and took it away and I started learning.
Speaker 2:you know, just basic chords, and six months later I was, I was in a band, I played with this guy, alex DeZuba, who taught he was a Russian guy D-Z-U-B-A.
Speaker 1:Don't you know any American people yet? No, no. What kind of school did you go to? It was like all foreigners.
Speaker 2:No, I went to Baldwin High School and that was where I really got my start. He had an electric guitar and he taught me a few chords and then, the next thing you knew, I was playing rhythm guitar in the band that they had and that he was with with some other guys, and I had also had that moment I that I referred to, where first time I got to play with a drummer was this guy, kazi Pasalakwa, that we went over to his house.
Speaker 1:Yeah, kazi Buzzy.
Speaker 2:Everybody knows Kazi Buzzy. Yeah, and it was just an incredible experience and it probably sounded horrendous, but it was three of us just strumming away and playing, and playing with a drummer and I just broke out in a grin that I couldn't get off of my face ever since then I've just had something to do with playing. Whether it's better or worse, I just love you know, I'm just really passionate about it.
Speaker 1:What's funny this is kind of my point with all this is that it's like I don't know of any profession. Maybe I don't know I shouldn't say that, because I don't know them all but I don't know of any other profession where it's like inside you and you can't not do it. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Like music right? No, you're right, it's not something you'd ever want to retire from.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I remember distinctly this happening to me. I was like I might have been 10 years old. My grandfather played piano and I remember being asleep somewhere in the house where he was playing and the piano playing woke me up and I started. I started to cry yeah and I never could figure that out. Why? Now I know why, but yeah you know it's like it's just it's it was.
Speaker 2:I had no choice and your choice but to do something to do with music, you know well, you know, I think my feeling about music is it's there's something else going on. It's so organic and so central to being alive. It's almost like you could almost it's its own, god, I agree.
Speaker 2:It's its own God, in a way, because music existed billions of years ago. It was just waiting for somebody to play it, but it was always there. It's eternal and there's something tapping into the vibration and the energy of it that I think is essential to life and existence that it touches. And the thing that I think is so special about being a musician, or being able to do it at any level, if you're doing it for the right reason, is that you're hotwired to the source.
Speaker 2:You can go and get it for yourself. People who are not musicians need musicians to get the buzz, but if you're a musician, you are hot-wired, you're connected and you can get high all by yourself, and that's a remarkable gift and a blessing.
Speaker 1:It is. I agree with that, and that's one of the and a blessing it is. I agree with that.
Speaker 2:And that's one of the reasons why I love the guitar and I don't consider myself a particularly competent guitar player. I mean, I think about it and I lament the fact that I haven't studied formally a lot more than I did. As far as actually playing the guitar is concerned, actually playing the guitar is concerned, but, um, the thing that's so special about guitar is you can take it wherever you are and you hold it right, you know you hold it, it's not like a, and I I mean, I love keyboards and that kind of thing, but you have to go to the keyboard right and you have to go to where it is.
Speaker 2:You know for the most part, but with a guitar you know like I can take it on an elevator in Huntington Townhouse.
Speaker 1:There you go and play With an open vat of tomato sauce. Exactly, yeah.
Speaker 2:But you know, I mean it's a portable thing and it's you know I can't think of the right word right now but it's an instrument that's multi. What is it? You know I can't keyboard and guitar, as opposed to, say, saxophone, which is a monophonic.
Speaker 1:Oh right, monophonic. Yeah, it's a chordal.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a chordal instrument and so you can accompany yourself with it and you can. You know, there's just so much personal that you can do and the fact that you're holding it like you're holding a woman or something.
Speaker 1:There's something intimate, except it doesn't complain About it. Yeah, yeah, just like a woman, except it doesn't complain.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and it's like a dog it always feels the way you do.
Speaker 1:Right, you know, and that's the way, the guitar is and there's just something special about it. I never even thought about that before. Right, Because drums are a little bit different. They're not.
Speaker 2:Yeah, drums you have to go to and drums are a different. You know, you have a different focal point and every bit is valid, um, and every bit is necessary, but it's just different. But there's something about you know, I can sit out in the den with an unplugged electric guitar and just play, and very softly, and there's something intimate about that and and I can't, I can't do that no no, you can't, you know. And and that's something unique about a stringed instrument like that, that's very special.
Speaker 1:It's funny when I was I don't know, I think I was 12.
Speaker 1:I didn't you know they start kids in elementary school on instruments like fourth grade or something, and I missed all that. In school, fourth, fifth, sixth, I didn't take an instrument. I didn't even know what was going on. And then I was like I guess I was sixth grade, I was 11. That's sixth grade and we were in music class and the music teacher called up this kid. I'll never forget it again. His name is chucky muller and chucky played, snared him in the band, whatever he did, and he went up to the drum. He just played like a rough. He played like on the on the snare drum and I was like what the fuck I? I gotta I gotta learn this thing immediately.
Speaker 1:I went home. I told my parents that day I got I want to play drums, yeah, and then they set me up with a family member who was teaching me all the wrong shit.
Speaker 2:But his heart was in the right place. But I did it. Didn't your back then, didn't your father drive you to some gigs?
Speaker 1:when I first met you, he drove me to your gigs. He drove me to those gigs.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I remember him and you know and obviously I see the resemblance in you, in my memory of him. He I see the resemblance in you and my memory of him.
Speaker 1:He was a, he was a nice guy.
Speaker 2:Yep yeah, he he was all into it, man. Yeah, no, he was very supportive of you.
Speaker 1:Except he started me on the club date route which kind of ruined my life. You know, I back then all he knew was weddings, and you know, he didn't know you, you know what. I mean, and then I started getting into these really busy bands. There was really no room for anything else. Once you get into a busy club, they band you start making you know a couple thousand a weekend.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm sorry, man, I'm busy, you know Wow.
Speaker 2:And that's what happened to me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know, even with Dave's band.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Like I said last, $80 a gig, we a gig. Yeah, that was a lot of money. Yeah, I was making. My friends were like eating macaroni and cheese and I was coming home with like $160 from weekends work.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know. Yeah, no, I remember, you know, when I was in high school and we played in our band. At that time we made $100 for the band and I would have $25. And in 1964, 65, that was that was a lot of money.
Speaker 1:It's not bad yeah.
Speaker 2:You know I mean you'd go out and go into a gas station and say give me two bucks worth, and you'd end up with, you know, gas was 30 cents a gallon.
Speaker 1:Yep.
Speaker 2:And you know, and so it was a whole other frame of reference. I got 50 bucks in my pocket, Holy shit.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:That's big time.
Speaker 1:And there are some guys playing for 25 bucks right now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, tonight yeah.
Speaker 1:You know some guy who you know cuts bread during the week.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Is playing guitar Anyway, no, I know a lot of bands, like you know, or I don't know a lot, but I know of you know I mean blues bands that say play. They play in local bars and they're a four-piece band and they're making 400 bucks and everybody gets $100. And I made that in the 80s and it hasn't changed.
Speaker 1:I know.
Speaker 2:You know. That's why, you know again, I do a single mostly. It's just more lucrative in earlier hours and you know all the other benefits that come with it.
Speaker 1:You call your own breaks yeah.
Speaker 2:I don't have to. You know, I don't have to get together to rehearse. Yeah, I don't have to get together to rehearse. I don't have to try to track down everybody or anything. It's just so few moving parts, it's just me and that works out well. So after you started playing guitar and then you were in a couple of local bands, what got you to Dave's band? Because you were older, you were old, you were like 30.
Speaker 1:Well, I started playing bass when I was, but I mean when you got to Dave's Band, I remember you were in your 30s and I thought that was yeah, I was 32, and you were like 17. 18, 17, 18,.
Speaker 2:yeah, yeah, that was a big difference.
Speaker 1:I mean it's still a big difference.
Speaker 2:I mean, believe me, I was actually. I just had the thought last night, oddly enough, because there was some medical issues that a few of my friends had. And you know, as I told you, I mean I'm 76 years old now, which blows me away, but there it is, and I realized, like, and this is nothing profound, but I had the thought that, like last night, you have 20 years to grow up and then you have about 50 years of living and then, if you're lucky, you have 20 years to fall apart. Right, and you know.
Speaker 2:so you live from 20 to 70. Yep, you're an adult and you know you're through your 60s and everything. And then when you hit 70, then things start to disassemble, I know and issues start coming up and you're meeting new doctors, Yep, and you know all that kind of thing. I met a new doctor yesterday.
Speaker 1:Oh, cool and stuff starts to. That's when shit starts happening. I know, yeah, yeah, all my friends. When I was in high school, whatever. I remember my father being on the phone with his friends all the time and all they talked about was who died and who's getting an arm taken off, and I was like what's wrong with? These people? All they talk about is sickness and dying. And now? Now that's what I do with my friends. Oh yeah, that's all we talk about. It's like what hurts.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, you're right I mean. That's why I say I had a friend that was hospitalized for 10 days. Fortunately he got out and just shit happens you know and, and, and out of the blue shit can happen, I know, you know, that's why my line is. You know? Uh, somebody asked me how are you doing? I'm all right as far as I know you know, because you just don't know what the surprises might be.
Speaker 2:And, um, you know and I've got another friend who talks about, as a matter of fact, ramsey's brother, freddie His line now is in terms of something, if you want to do something, he says if not now, when, when, right you?
Speaker 1:know, and that's his, you know. So let me ask you this so then, the time between, like when you were in high school, what was your progression? You went, you did. Would you just like local bands, or what was it?
Speaker 2:well, the progress for me. What happened was I? I was playing with uh, this was this guy, alex, and that was a band called the majestics.
Speaker 2:Uh because that's where we stole the name from, but they, they were with an X they were with a CS and I remember the drummer had a great big banner that said the Majestic, huge, beautiful banner, and it was just two guitars and I was one of them, just strumming away because I didn't know much. I knew E and A and C, but I was strumming away and the other guy played you know, more of the lead guitar and that kind of a thing and and and a drummer and a lead singer, and that was it. There was no bass player.
Speaker 1:No bass.
Speaker 2:And then no, no, I mean, but back in those days.
Speaker 1:That's like a Steven Scott gig. No bass player.
Speaker 2:And we and we played at uh, you know, there was no keyboard player to play keyboard bass, there was nothing. But we would play at dances and they would get things booked at different schools and that kind of a thing, and it was fine.
Speaker 1:I mean, we're talking you know 61, 62, before the Beatles hit yeah, yeah, yeah, it was a different time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it really was. And then I was at some sort of thing and there was this guy, charlie Frazier, and he had a Dan Electro bass. That was there and I tried it and I went, oh this is really cool. And for whatever reason, I became interested in playing bass and I started to become a bass player.
Speaker 1:See, that's interesting, because you're such a good bass player, it's weird to me that you didn't start on bass.
Speaker 2:Well, no, the first thing I started on was the harmonic instrument and that's what was around. I didn't know anybody that played bass, but I knew a few people that played guitar, and then, when I saw this bass, I played that. And then, when I saw this bass, I played that. And then there was another guy in our high school that before I got my own bass, and his name was Lonnie Finkelstein, of course, lonnie Buzzy, it's always something, yeah, and he had a Zimgar bass and a Magnatone amp.
Speaker 2:Yeah, zimgar was sort of you know, a Fender kind of copy and I would borrow that if I was going to play, because I met these guys, ramsey and Freddie, in high school and then I started playing some with them and then that's how that band got started playing in high school and it was actually a pretty good little band. I mean, you know, we were very popular and we played at a lot of things. As I had said to you, we still to this day if there's a high school reunion, we play at it and everybody. It's a big part of what everybody remembers.
Speaker 1:So this day you play at it, you guys, now you play at it. Oh yeah, Does anybody show up? Is everybody there? Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 2:No, you know, you might get 100 people at a reunion and we were going to do the last one in in 2020 and then or 2020, and then the the pandemic hit and and it ended up not happening. But, um, you know, prior to that I guess you know, five years before or four years before um, we, we had done that one and, yeah, we always, we always played at reunion. We don't play the whole thing, you know, they'd have a DJ and then we would do a set, maybe a second set, and that was it, and playing all the music that we used to do from way back when, and everybody, just, you know, we did a lot of harmonies Because at that time it really was a turning point, coming out of the 50s with doo-wop right and that kind of a thing, and so we would you know, and we would do a lot of stuff by the earls with three-part harmony.
Speaker 2:You know, like uh, remember then and you know, remember, remember, remember.
Speaker 1:You know that kind of stuff and uh that was good and it was that sounded good right there, that was it, and it was fun.
Speaker 2:I mean, you know, and it was really a fun band and ramsey and freddie, oddly enough, were very, very popular. Freddie was like the class president when he graduated, because he graduated in 66. Ramsey was most popular in 1965. And so everybody loved those two guys.
Speaker 1:At your school.
Speaker 2:You mean yeah at our school and so we just played at everything. We were just everybody's band band from our class, and so we're still a part of that and if there's a reunion, it's just a part of the experience of when we were in high school. That's cool and oddly enough, I mean, we still sound legitimately good okay, that's good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm proud of it because it's like you know, boy, you guys were good, you guys are good. Okay, you guys are good, exactly Okay.
Speaker 2:And you know, and then like after we got into it that time, you know, obviously when the Beatles broke, then we started doing a lot of Beatles stuff and then the Young Rascals and we ate up the Rascals. That was huge, you know. Back in, you know 66, 67, you don't realize just how big that was in the whole organ thing, everybody that had a Hammond B3 and that's where, like you know, the Vagrants and the Hassles, which was Billy Joel's band, and you know, there was just a bunch of bands that were around, and the Bare Feet, a number of them, and they all had Hammond B3 and that was more real.
Speaker 2:It was an intense time. I still listen to the Rascals and I'm just like wow. Listen to that B3.
Speaker 1:I mean, it's just something about it that just kills me because it's connected to when I was that age and at that time I'll tell you the way I feel about it now is I feel almost depressed about the way music is now. There's no records anymore.
Speaker 2:I don't know.
Speaker 1:I mean there's no, I don't know. You buy an album and listen to the whole album, that kind of thing. Now it's just not that anymore and I lose faith once in a while. And then once in a while this happened to me last week I heard some new guy who no one's ever heard of. I heard it on like I heard it. This is what my life is. I was in pm pediatrics with one of my kids yeah, and on the whatever music station I had.
Speaker 1:On this somebody was playing and I put shazam on and I found this guy and I love his stuff and it's like it renews my hope that there's some people still writing you know kind of nice stuff or whatever, orchestrating, whatever it is. You know it's like yeah, you know it made me feel better. Anyway, it makes me feel better, you know no, a lot of that stuff.
Speaker 2:I mean it's just, it's it's always going to be a generational thing oh yeah, I mean yeah, uh, it's like I don't know if you remember, and I don't even remember who did this song, but do you remember that version of Blue Moon? Oh yeah. You know the bop, bop, bop, bop, bop, bop, bop, bop, bop bop, that thing, yep, and the guy that wrote that I mean it was a beautiful standard, and I can't remember the guy's name, he's a well-known songwriter from that wrote the original version.
Speaker 1:Wasn't it like Chubby Checker or somebody? Oh no.
Speaker 2:No, I can't remember the name. It was a group and it was, you know, blue Moon. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and the guy that wrote that and unfortunately I don't know his name, but he was well-known, well-known and popular songwriter from the 50s, 40s, that kind of a thing, and he took out an ad in uh, in, billboard magazine, you know, like expressing his contempt or something like that, for I can't believe that this version has been made of my song.
Speaker 2:You know, he was deeply offended really and and that's, you know, that's and I I get like, if you think about the, the orchestrations and the level of of musical knowledge that the people had in the 40s and the big band era and all that kind of thing going on, and the complexity, the arrangements and the density of the music and the movement of it and how important melody was to songs from that time, and then you get into all of a sudden you're in the 50s and you got doo-wop and it's the same four chord progression for song after song after song, which is the way it is again right now a lot, but it was the same sort of progressions and the same sort of structure to songs and the musicality of it was completely different and and I can understand why people in and you know, from that 40s and 50s would have an issue with it.
Speaker 2:Uh, even though it was, you know, to us, because ever to me, particularly because I was there at that time and you being young, I thought it was great, you know. But, um, that's just the way it goes. And then, moving into any of the music into the future, and right now, you know, young people think that the, the stuff that they listen to, is probably great and I, you know I, I don't even my kids listen to stuff I've never doesn't even sound like music to me.
Speaker 1:It sounds like I don't know what it's, I don't know well, you know, I mean, I I was listening to a.
Speaker 2:There was a track, some guy and I, I just you know, I don't know anything about the names of different artists and uh, that are contemporary or rap artists or hip-hop or whatever, but the song was a track that was taken from something else and done is the background and then the guy's doing his thing over the top of that, that song, what is it? The Commissar Dun, dun, dun, dun, yeah Dun dun, dun dun.
Speaker 1:And I said even the music wasn't written by them song.
Speaker 2:What is it? The commissar? Don't, don't, don't, don't, yeah, don't right, don't, don't, yep. And I said you know, even the music wasn't written by them. And yet they come out, do this rearrangement of it and and then do a thing over it, whatever it is right, and I mean obviously they're enjoying success.
Speaker 2:But that's the way it's put together now. And the top liner that writes a melody, and if they, they have these conventions where, uh, they'll have a bunch of songwriters that get together that have tracks, and then they have other people that have top liners and then they, well, let's try this one with that one, and they'll go oh yeah. I like that, and that's how a song is created.
Speaker 1:But what about, like the fucking Ozempic commercial? Did you hear that? I'm not sure that I have Remember that song from the oh, oh, oh, it's magic, that's Ozempic. It's a drug company. Now they're using that and my kids sing the song and they're singing oh, oh Ozempic. It's not Ozempic, it's magic. It's from the 70s.
Speaker 1:It was a great song that they ruined for this commercial. You know what I mean. Those are the songs that I liked and my kids will also walk around the house. The other day, my son Joseph is singing what you Won't Do for Love. Yeah, who's that? Who did that song? I don't know, I don't know. Anyway, I said, where did you hear that song? And he's like it's on a meme or something Like. That's how they watch these little clips on YouTube and these guys are using songs from 20 years ago more than 20 years ago.
Speaker 2:No, it's a different time, you know it's a different time.
Speaker 1:Hey, it's hard to me.
Speaker 2:But you know, and I feel, actually, you know, fortunate that you know, we managed to catch, you know, and everybody feels this way, I guess, but for me, managed to catch the best you know, for me, like, say, to have been around when the Beatles broke, and I was, you know, in high school, that must have been something it was I managed to see and never bought a ticket once, but I managed to see the Beatles perform three times.
Speaker 1:You told this story where they flew into.
Speaker 2:You saw them at Shea Stadium or something. No, the first time that I saw them, the first performance that they did in the new york area, was at forest hills forest hills stadium and murray the k was there, who was a dj, for those who don't know.
Speaker 1:Back on on on 10, 10 wins I think, which was a a rock and roll, you know music station oh 10, 10 wins was because it was a traffic station when I was going to school. No, it was, it was a. It's a new station. Oh, 1010 Winds was Because it was a traffic station when I was going to school.
Speaker 2:No, it's a news station now, but back then Murray the K was Murray the K and the Swingin' Soiree and that was the name of his, and he called himself the Fifth Beatle.
Speaker 1:The Fifth Beatle yeah.
Speaker 2:And he was the host of, you know, at the show, if I remember right unless my memories are getting twisted around and there were opening bands and the place was packed, obviously, and then a helicopter started circling around and then came, you know, it was coming down and all of a sudden everybody realized what it was. It was the Beatles. It was the Beatles arriving at the concert, and it was just so intense and then the place erupted and then you couldn't hear anything.
Speaker 1:You couldn't hear anything, right you?
Speaker 2:could hear them. But I mean, they were just. You know the idea of playing music in a big venue. They just weren't ready for it, you know.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And they didn't have the sound system to support them.
Speaker 2:But there they were and they all walked off and like holy shit, it's the Beatles you know, and then I saw them twice at Shea Stadium and they even for that, I mean they had a bunch of column speakers all around the perimeter of where the stage was, out in the middle of the field and and that was the sound system, big count, big column speakers. Man I'm talking about, you know, maybe I don't know six feet six feet tall column speakers yeah, right, yeah, and that was the sound system and did that work.
Speaker 2:Did you hear them Barely? Yeah, you know that's crazy, but it was still, you know, but it was just being there for the energy. Yeah, I got to see those concerts, those three, and I also got to see the famous concert, and I think it was also at Forest Hills, when Dylan played and then started doing the electric and I didn't realize who was in the band at the time but it was people from the band because it was before the band was the band Right? And I hope people know who the band was. And I think Harvey Brooks played bass and Harvey Brooks was a great bass player that played in the electric flag back in the later 60s, 67, 68. And just incredible players for that type of music. And at that time and Dylan came out and did his acoustic set and then he came out with electric guitar and started playing and everybody was booing.
Speaker 1:Oh, so because he was playing, I didn't even realize he was just like vocal and acoustic guitar and then he just switched.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he played a vocal and acoustic and a harmonica and he was doing his songs and being a folk singer. And then he came out and did an electric thing and everybody was deeply offended and were booing Because it was not. He was like getting away from what everybody wanted him to be.
Speaker 1:Really it was not.
Speaker 2:He was like getting away from what everybody wanted him to be really, and you know. And yet, to his credit, I mean, he stuck by his guns and and did whatever he wanted because he's a consummate artist, you know and uh, but it was just interesting that I you know by circumstance. I was at those concerts that were kind of legendary, you yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean because who could say that Saw the Beatles three times?
Speaker 2:No, I actually was at all of those.
Speaker 1:What year did they break up? It was 71?.
Speaker 2:It might have been a little earlier than that but I'm not sure 70?.
Speaker 1:I'm not sure exactly what year it was, but you know late 60s, early 70s't even I didn't even I don't even remember them as being a thing, really I mean because that's.
Speaker 2:I was 10 years old in 71 but when I, you know, when I started the beatles had not happened yet, there was a lot of bands played instrumentals like, like the, the ventures the ventures.
Speaker 1:Oh, you got me on that one. You don't know the ventures. No, oh, you're kidding the ventures.
Speaker 2:I mean like they had a huge instrumental hit called Walk Don't Run and you've probably heard it. It's like the guitar goes and then the lead guitar. You don't know that, I don't know that.
Speaker 2:no, oh my goodness, I mean I used to and and they had fender guitars. When they first started they had fender guitars and that was the first time that I ever saw a fender guitar and they had one guy had a strat, one guy had a jazz master and the other guy had a precision bass. And I have a cover of an album at home still and I used to just stare at it just look at the pictures of these instruments because it was, and and a lot of bands played instrumentals yeah that was a very big thing for bands back in that time I didn't even realize that oh yeah, back in the uh, you know, early to mid 60s, there was a lot of records.
Speaker 1:Wipe out was a you know that was an instrumental.
Speaker 2:I mean, there was a lot of wild weekend, you know, and that was a sax song. You know there's a lot of Wild Weekend, you know, and that was a sax song, you know there's a lot of it's just before your time.
Speaker 1:Well, you know, I only heard about Wipeout because I was a drummer and every asshole would go.
Speaker 2:Hey, can you play Wipeout you know I've got some Wipeouts. But you, you know when we're done with this thing, check out. You probably have heard Walk Don't.
Speaker 1:Run.
Speaker 2:Maybe I have my rendition didn't mean much, but that's how so much of it started, and so much of it was Leo Fender and all of the incredible instruments that he invented. I don't know if you've ever seen that little meme that they have, if that's the right word for it but there's Zuckerberg, or whatever. I started Facebook. And there's Steve Jobs and he says I started Apple and somebody else had started Twitter or something like that. And then there's a picture of Leo Fender sitting there with like a 59 precision and he's underneath it and he says that's nice.
Speaker 2:You know, and how can you diminish? I mean, you think about, yeah, those things were. You know, I don't know how important Facebook was, and I don't know how important Twitter was, but Apple was you know obviously really important. But how important was Leo Fender in the world that we still live in right now? Right, and the creations that he had and the impact that it had on the music that we listen to.
Speaker 2:Right, you know and the intertwining of technology and music, which always has been and always will be. As a music evolves, technology evolves right along with it. Musicians, well, let's try this. Oh, wow, we can do this now. You know, we got this synthesizer. We can generate new noises and new sounds and you know, and it all, yeah, moves along together. But he was instrumental.
Speaker 1:Literally and figuratively, you know. I'm just thinking now because if I met you in 78, because you made fun of me twice in the band, I did. Specifically yeah, so I must have okay. So if I see you in high, school. I must have offended you, I'm sorry, no, no you made fun of me twice and then you made the whole band laugh. But one of them was and you're going to remember this too One of them was you're talking about R&B and I said what's R&B?
Speaker 2:Oh my.
Speaker 1:And you wouldn't let that go. You're like what's R&B?
Speaker 2:And the next one was who's Isaac Hayes?
Speaker 1:Who's what Isaac Hayes?
Speaker 2:Oh, you didn't know it.
Speaker 1:You were talking about Isaac Hayes and I was like who's Isaac Hayes?
Speaker 2:And then that was another like six months of torture and then the following September.
Speaker 1:I figured I learned all the stuff at college like R&B and I knew everything at that point, but I didn't know anything those years before, but I didn't know anything those years before. I remember you going. Who's Isaac Hayes?
Speaker 2:Who's Isaac?
Speaker 1:Hayes and probably people listening right now are like well, who is Isaac Hayes?
Speaker 2:Yeah, might be.
Speaker 1:Definitely For sure. That's absolutely happening yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, again, you know what I mean. I remember talking to a kid in some situation. I was in a music store and listening to some speakers for a sound system for the house and that kind of a thing, and I said, can you play any Sting? And I'd like to hear something by Sting. And he was like who's Sting?
Speaker 1:Who's Sting? That's ridiculous, though. Who's Sting?
Speaker 2:And I was like you don't know who Sting is. You never heard of the police. He says no. And I was like wow, I said you don't realize. I mean, because to me sting is like, you know, he's just an incredible writer and an incredible and it's not even like he's like you know, he's like unknown.
Speaker 1:I mean, sting is pretty well known oh yeah.
Speaker 2:How could you not know roxanne or any of the great songs?
Speaker 1:that he did.
Speaker 2:I mean, I guess, if you're born in 2012 or something, I don't know- well, this kid was maybe 18 years old and maybe it was 10 years ago, but you know, sting for God's sakes, I mean you know, it's like saying no, I never heard of the Beatles, or I never heard of Bruce Springsteen, or I never heard of you know this or that or the other thing.
Speaker 1:It's a different world right now, for sure, and that's part of what bothers me. I don't know. It's sort of like I feel like being a musician Was more of a thing than it is now. Everybody is one. If you like music, it's not taken seriously, I don't think as a profession, unless you're famous Well, you know like.
Speaker 2:Unless you're, you know, famous well you know, if you're a, if you're doing club date thing, you've got to compete with djs, which way back when you didn't, because they didn't exist yet and now you've got to compete with that and like if you're doing a uh, a solo thing.
Speaker 2:You see lots of guys that are out there and they've got an ipad on their mic stand and they're reading the lyrics and they're, you know, maybe even looking at the chords and they're basically only playing cowboy chords, and you know just not, and it's sequenced or something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:And there are.
Speaker 1:They're playing with tracks and you know there's a lot of that going on.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, and so it's. It's a different level of what it takes and yet a club owner, you know if you're playing with tracks and it sounds good they don't care how it gets there. You know and I've seen you know, these guys just strumming along the tracks are playing a full band and they're singing the song and there's background harmonies and everything and it's just a track.
Speaker 1:I know. And you know what are you going to do? I don't know what to say about it.
Speaker 2:The technology allows it, so you know there's people. The barrier of entry is lower than it used to be. You don't have to be as accomplished to be able to do something with some credibility.
Speaker 1:And that's the thing it used to be like more I don't know, more respect, I think, as you were a musician doing gigs, whatever I mean, it used to be like when I'd go to bars. When I was at that age where I was going to bars, every live band I heard, wherever I was, were guys I knew because they were all musicians. They were like there doing gigs and I would know people in the band, whatever, and now I feel like it's these people I'm talking about who are not really dentists during the week.
Speaker 2:There's some good people out there, I mean there definitely are. I think you're the exception where, but no, even now, like younger people that are out and playing in there.
Speaker 1:Oh, there's a couple good ones.
Speaker 2:And I know some people like you know, I think I told you I go to this jam sometimes on Wednesdays in Padshog at BBQ, and so you know there's a young kid that's Dave Farrow and he's a real good guitar player, good singer and does a project with another guy and good songwriter.
Speaker 1:I mean they're good, it's an open jam.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know you can go down there, and I mean, if you ever feel the need to want to go down and just get out and play a little bit. They got a kid up there and you get up and you can play. You know half a dozen songs and play drums on them and I go down there just for an opportunity to play some bass, cause I don't get to play bass out that much.
Speaker 1:I may actually be interested in that. I did a gig, um, you know this guy named Ken Talvey who's a great guitar player and he always has good musicians. It's just a trio, like a fusion thing. I did it like two weeks ago and after I got off the stage a bunch of people came up to me who said I know you but I don't know them.
Speaker 1:You know somehow, like you know through Facebook or whatever, and it's kind of like a weird like I sort of remember seeing their band on Facebook or whatever you know. That's the weird thing about it. It's like you know it used to be if you knew somebody, you knew them.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Right, you knew not that you sort of recognize them from some other medium. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Like that's weird too. I think, yeah, you know. And the other thing is that's the other thing I hate about Facebook. This is what's great about Facebook and bands, like I've gotten really good at you know. You scroll through and it's video after video after video of their gigs, and I can watch the video for like 10 seconds and know if they suck or not Just by watching.
Speaker 2:Oh, I know what you mean and I'm always right.
Speaker 1:And when they suck or not, yeah, just by watching.
Speaker 2:Oh, I know, and I'm always right and when I put the volume on, yep, I was right about that one. Yeah, no, you, you get their interpretation, you get their feel, you get their thing. I just by looking fairly quickly, right and then, and then you could tell.
Speaker 1:Also, if it goes beyond like 35 seconds, then then it's it's, you know. You know they suck because they have to put the whole gig on facebook, because they have to get commentary and feedback on how the band sounds.
Speaker 2:You know that's what it's all about, so some people do it and that also bothers me.
Speaker 1:Some people do it just for that pat on the back, you know, and it's not because they really feel it, it's because they need that. You know that feedback, yeah, about their musicianship or whatever. I don't even know at this point, you know yeah, no, it's, it's.
Speaker 2:It's a different thing, but again, there are some, some talented people out there and uh, but there's just a an abundance of people who are mediocre and are are working and and and that's frustrating, but that's that's my point.
Speaker 1:It's like what other profession can you do that? Yeah? You say I uh, you know, I bought um a scalpel and I do surgeries on the side yeah, you can't.
Speaker 1:I mean I went to school just as as many years as uh, as you know anybody you know I mean, uh, it's still this way in public schools. Like you know, I was a music teacher, but that was always thought of as like a second thing, like you gotta go science first, they can't miss a science class, but you can miss a music class. You know what I mean, and it's shouldn't that. I don't know where that thought process comes from.
Speaker 2:No, I don't either. And music, I think you know, in the study of it, the, the effort that it takes to to learn it, there's something to be gained from it, and they've shown that time and again with any kind of studies. I guess that you know. And it's just so stupid that it gets dismissed as, oh, I don't need music. But what do you put on?
Speaker 1:when you're feeling this or that. That's what I say to my kids. You don't go through a day in your life where you don't hear music.
Speaker 2:Every single day, yeah.
Speaker 1:Till you die, yeah, every single day, yeah till you die yeah right, yeah, I mean, there's not a day that goes by you don't hear music. Yeah, but there is a day it goes by where you're not like trying to figure out equation no, you're right.
Speaker 2:You're right. I mean, it's, it's, it's such a part of life, and yet it gets.
Speaker 1:It gets dismissed, as, uh, you know as unnecessary as as just like the frills, whatever it's, just like you know, entertainment, yeah well, it's the same thing with art, you know, or anything like that.
Speaker 2:I mean you know, one of my sons went to school for, you know, for illustration, and it's the same thing. You know like that would be dismissed, you know, if they were going to cut back the budget. Well, we got to keep that math and we got to keep that. And all those things are important. I don't dismiss that, but it's a but so are the arts.
Speaker 1:But the mind. That mindset is for forever. I mean, I retired eight years ago and for 32 years that was the mindset. We went to open school at my kid's house not my kid's house, my kid's school and I was sitting in the period that was banned because they're both in band, and one parent raised their hand and said what if my son has lessons during science? And the teacher said now, this is a room full of parents, like 65 parents. And the teacher said well, they'd have to miss science and come to lessons. That's when they have lessons. It's only once a month. And she said no, I don't want that to happen. I think it's more important that he be in science and not music. She said that out loud to the band director.
Speaker 1:I was like I got so embarrassed by it that I went up to the teacher and said I'd like to apologize for that person, because that's just. I don't know what to say.
Speaker 2:Like, don't have your kid in music Really let them sit in science. Well, I'll give you an example that I read recently, and I don't know who the people are, but there was somebody that was taking a pottery class and who happened to be a world-class athlete, who was in the olympics and and had to go to participate in the olympics, and the teacher of the pottery class, like, didn't pass them because they missed, because they go to the olympics. So that's the other extreme right, but right.
Speaker 1:But you know, I'm just saying it's, but I like that commitment just the fact that the band teacher has to pull kids out at all, you know what I mean it should be like a dedicated thing.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. I don't know, it's just sure it's never going to change me. I, I don't know, I just uh, I don't know. I just I don't know. It's disheartening. I remember battling that forever when I was a teacher, you know, and just the concept of that got to me, you know. So what's your gig now? Don you playing where?
Speaker 2:Playing just in local restaurants, playing alone. Like where, when were you? Oh well, I'm playing, oddly enough, at Trey Palms again this weekend.
Speaker 1:This weekend you're playing. Yeah, which day are you playing?
Speaker 2:I'm playing there Saturday night oh cool. And I play at this place, tiki Bar, in Patchogue. In the summertime I play at a place called Campaign House in Bethpage A number of different places that I play at that are mostly nicer places. I play at George Martin's Strip Steak, which is not far from here at all, where is that it's in Great River.
Speaker 1:Oh, I know exactly where that is.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it used to be an Italian restaurant or something. Right, it was an Italian restaurant and it's a high-end steakhouse and I play there once or twice a month.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's the cue. Are we getting down to it here?
Speaker 2:All right, what is all the people are going? What is this music?
Speaker 1:This is the night, see, it's always funny. It's always funny.
Speaker 2:Here's the note.
Speaker 1:Yeah, here it comes.
Speaker 2:Here it comes.
Speaker 1:Just for everybody listening Don Olson turned me on to this song 40 years ago.
Speaker 2:That's why I'm here, that's right.
Speaker 1:That's right, it never gets old. Yeah, this is timeless.
Speaker 2:I have to tell you, I don't even know how I got this song.
Speaker 1:I don't know how I got it on here.
Speaker 2:I have no idea. Obviously it's your machine.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the doo-wop I was talking about, here it is.
Speaker 1:Listen to the vibrato in this guy's voice. Yeah, sounds like somebody's shaking him.
Speaker 2:Right. Yes, it sounds like he's being choked.
Speaker 1:Right here, oh God, oh yeah. Well, that was better though.
Speaker 2:That was a lot better.
Speaker 1:That first one is yeah those were the days those were the days, man, so I guess that's the end, because I guess we're coming to the end here yeah, that was our cue that people who listen to this podcast gonna be like they're probably gonna start it and say I must be on the wrong podcast because it never starts with that kind of music it's always like a jazz thing.
Speaker 2:I start with, you know well, yeah, I know I've, I've heard your little intro yeah, yeah, it's always the same.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this is different, so, don, I'm glad you came back yeah I.
Speaker 2:I don't know if it's better or worse, but there it is there, it is, there it is.
Speaker 1:I appreciate you're good, you're good, okay, okay okay thanks for coming, man, I appreciate it. All right, all right, talk to you soon, thank you.