Shinybass journal entry 09/25/2022

How’s it going so far?

There was a hilarious skit on SNL years back that was a parody about the US invasion of Grenada in 1983. The ‘commercial’ was based on the Time-Life book series that they used to promote, oh, every commercial break when we were kids (John Wesley Hardin was so mean, he once shot a man just for snoring too loud!).

Anyhow, the war didn’t last long, nor did much happen, so the joke was that they had to fill 24 volumes with stories. There’s a line my brother and I use all the time from that skit that kind of sums up slow times. ‘You’ll get your first volume : ‘Breakfast, Day 2’ shipped to your door with no obligation.’

That’s how I felt the first week after deciding to slow down my musical touring life a little. I love to write, but I felt like my first entires would be ‘Breakfast, Day 2, 3, and 4.’ How much oatmeal and avocado toast can we write about? How much laundry can these kids pile up? Or me, for that matter? I had no idea I burned through so many clothes.

On the road, I notoriously overpacked. Then I started figuring out that I can just use the same pair of pants for a few shows in a row, throw on a jacket, and boom. Show. I did find myself needed a lot of extra ‘stuff’ in the summer, especially after a bike ride. And very rarely did I ever pack the correct coat.

I remember a run where I brought all summer stuff, because, well, it was 100 degrees at home. It should be 100 everywhere, right? Nope. 50’s and wet. And nary a sleeve nor pant leg in my suitcase. And I have 25 jackets at home. Was one of them in my bunk? Nope. I survived, mostly on sheer will and determination. Let that be a lesson, kids. Always pack a pullover.

Our cat is ramping up the ‘I love you’ portion of his summer by bringing us many local species of creatures, some with heartbeats, some not so lucky. The latest was an adolescent squirrel (now known as Lucky) who I had to pull from my garage. I hear you, people, the fun and excitement never stop around here.

I’m playing in town, which in Music City could mean anything. But the phone is ringing, and that’s a good thing. And if it stops ringing, then I’ll start my own band and make it ring again. Music will always be life.

I am full on soccer Dad now. Last Saturday I spent from 8:30 AM until 2:30 ‘at the pitch’, then I had to hightail it to a gig south of town. I was a water-bottlin’, EZ-uppin’, kid snackin’, team coachin’ fool. Goal total for the day: Miles 1, Henry with the hat trick. It’s pretty cool to watch the kids move from barely knowing the rules to actually making pro soccer moves.

My video cameras have been rolling lately as well. I just shot and edited two fun songs for Jen Bostic, a fantastic artist here in Nashville. She recorded two songs at East End Studio in Mount Juliet, and I captured her performance, which was live. That sounds so silly to even type, but yes, she tracked these two songs with no overdubs and it was crushing.

Which brings me to another point. You know, in our music world, so much is heaped on appearance, and very little on performance. Just sing. Just play. There will be mistakes. It may be ‘off’. Then you know what? You practice more. You work on this craft of yours until you don’t make so many mistakes.

The first thing producers do to a vocal track is what’s called ‘auto tune’. It’s a fixer that magically puts singers in the right place pitch-wise. It’s been a huge debate for decades on whether or not it should be used. I don’t mind it in small doses. We are not all Freddie Mercury, and that song you are recording needs to be right. But you damn sure better be able to sing it when you get in front of people. Everyone needs a little help. BUT there’s a difference between help and crutch.

You need to figure out how to stand on your own. Once you can do that, then you bring in people to stand with you. Then walk, then run! And you know what? You will stumble, you will fall. You will then have people to help you up and keep going. But you can’t just hang out and rely on everyone else. You have to bring it, or else the news will get out fast and you’ll be left with no people.

Hi, Steve? I have a question.

Yes, you in the back.

Um, we were talking about jackets and laundry and then I showed up at a self-help seminar. What gives?

Well, I told you all that this journal is my therapy, right? That last paragraph is something I think we all need to understand. We get stuck in our circles, then that circle doesn’t move forward or backward, so there we are. So I write things down to help sort them out, and hopefully someone else starts to sort things out as well.

Speaking of sorting out new things, I have to give a big shout out to my wife, who is really finding her way as a realtor. She changed gears and started down this new path last year. Being a self-starter is tough, and she is finding the opportunities out there. It’s pretty cool to watch unfold. Wanna move to or from Nashville? Hit me up! Shameful plug. But she really does a tremendous job.

So as you can see, life isn’t really just hanging out. I’ll leave that for others. Even in the wake of a lottery windfall I wouldn’t be the ‘lay around’ kind of human. There’s much too much to do.

Enjoy your day, week, whatever you want to cut it into. Baby bites, baby steps. Go eat that elephant. Not really, because they are awesome and endangered. But tackle that ‘big thing’ a step or a word or a note at a time. Or, in my case, one kid-sock-left-all-over-this-damn-house-why-won’t-they-pick-up-after-themselves-I-just-stepped-on-a-Hot-Wheel-now-I’m-hopping-mad-literally-on-one-foot-someone-get-Dad-a-BandAid-and-an-ibuprofen-I’ll-be-on-the-couch-why-are-thereHot-Wheels-and-a-sock-on-the-couch-too? at a time.

See you on the road soon!