People used to kid me about not getting my Blainletter out until the day before the gig - well, this time it's coming to you on the same day as the gig - and the gig is my 2pm ET Facebook Live Basement Blaincast, episode 4 in my weekly series since the coronary. If you're not on Facebook, you can replay it here at www.torontobluesdiary.com
Tonight, I'm coming to you from my shotgun shack on Woodfield Road, hunkered down like everybody. watching the Thursday streaming concert (from Feb) of Tedeschi Trucks. This is not "live from a living room" like most of the corona-programming but 2 sets of their terrific band - still in their stride. Like I said to Derek's daddy when the band was playing the jazz festival here, I said "that boy of yours! Every time he takes a solo he really goes someplace with it," ...and, as I write this, he's launching into another great solo. "Scuse me while I kiss this guy"
Next Day - Good Friday! It was not a good day for Jesus and one remaining artifact of my Catholic upbringing (by the Salesian Brothers) was a special moment at 3pm on Good Friday, the moment Jesus breathed his last breath on earth. I always tried to make that a moment to reflect and it never left me - even many decades into my Buddhist practice. This time, I had just finished doing my Qigong session with Michael Herring. Every day at 2pm he does a Facebook Live session and I've been joining in every chance I get. Check it out on his Facebook Page.
And speaking of live streams, I will be going live again on Sunday at 2pm with Episode 4 of the self-isolated socially-distanced Basement Blaincast (though one of these days I'm going to move it out onto the patio). This edition will feature "Songs of the Townships" - prompted by a request for "The Big Fire" (my "exit music" from the Townships and the only tune I've ever had covered). Some of you may remember my pioneering attempts at livestreaming from the back yard. Who would have thunk that these things would become the main outlet for musicians...
Not everybody is on Facebook but you can always catch a replay on YouTube or on the blog. I'll put the links to the first 3 right here:
Episode 1 (World Water Day - Launch of my "Water Song" plus my "Mother Trilogy"): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl9f62HLBmI
Episode 2 (the Maple Blues, You Are Also His Son and "Have a Toke" and a little preview of the remix: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fag6mXNq414
Episode 3 (songs and stories about Prof Piano, Kathi MvDonald and Lenny Breau plus my rendition of the "poem of the times", And The People Stayed Home):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqd-DbzriL0&t=251s
Hopefully as we go along, the production values will improve. Production values seem to be optional in these days of just trying to put out some songs for the fans. I'm reminded of a quote from David Lee Roth when I saw him being interviewed way back in the early days of Much Music and he said "it comes down to what can you deliver with just you and your guitar" (or something to that effect).
I've been watching a lot of great streams - just now I started watching Julian Taylor and it was sounding great. Julian is making his mark - good for him. I'm discovering new sounds and making the best of a bad situation, and I hope you are too!
If you watch those Blaincasts, you'll see a virtual "tip jar" and I'll leave it here, too.
paypal.me/brianblain
e-trans brianblain@brianblain.ca
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