The recently announced win by Led Zeppelin over 70s cult faves Spirit in the Stairway to Heaven vs Taurus lawsuit underscored perfectly the topic for this week’s blog.

If this topic creates a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now. I will take the bull by the horns.

I recently blogged about a new song I wrote called Exposure Bucks Boogie. I have attached it for your listening pleasure. No doubt, many will say it pays more than a passing resemblance to ZZ Top’s La Grange. Yup! Similar feel and dynamics for sure! I do not mind standing on the shoulders of giants (not just Billy Gibbons, more below).

For the record, my starting point was actually Slim Harpo’s Shake Your Hips as covered on the Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main Street. 

The debate as to who originated the boogie riff is well documented (just Google it) and pretty much all agree that John Lee Hooker was the first to popularize it with Boogie Chillen, whose approach to spelling had a big impact on 70s British glam rockers Slade.

Here’s what is said about La Grange, which in turn could be extended to cover other hits like Canned Heat’s On the Road Again and Norman Greenbaum’s Spirit in the Sky. 

“The initial groove of the song is based on a traditional boogie blues rhythm used by John Lee Hooker in Boogie Chillen’ and by Slim Harpo in Shake Your Hips. A failed lawsuit by the copyright holder of “Boogie Chillen'” resulted in the court ruling that the rhythm was in the public domain.^[6]“

There you have it. Public domain! Like the so-called 50s Progression (I-vi-IV-V) used in a gazillion doo-wop songs. Like the I-IV-V 12-bar progressions in innumerable blues, rock and roll and country tunes. And don’t get me started on sampling…

So, yeah, on a superficial level, Exposure Bucks Boogie is an homage to Gibbons/Harpo/Hooker’s boogie rhythm, which I dig. But if you listen closely, there’s a lot that is not, and I like that too. It’s good to build from a solid foundation.

By the way, did I mention I got the idea for the lyrics from a Facebook post by Pat Kelly?

Exposure Bucks Boogie ©  2016 Félix and the Cats/R. Pelletier.

 

 

 

Kinda busy right now with the kids I love, so try again next week!

Ok, so I complain a lot. What’s not to complain about. Last night, some unhinged intolerant shot a barful of guys just because he freaked that two men would love each other.

Still, well before that event, many of my songs had a “ranty” quality. I am not a “happy song” writer, for the most part. I may try later. Not that I am not a happy person. Perhaps that is the problem. The best blues singer sang from pain. I sing from outrage.

It’s a noble tradition. Many protest songs have resonated over the ages, dusing the 60s against the Vietnam war, and more recently in some rap against social inequity.

There is a universality about things that piss us off. It may not be the same irritant, but we all know the feeling.

And it’s a prerogative of my “golden years”. So I guess you have to deal with it until I learn to do something else.

Wish me luck.

Félix

Since getting back into the fray, I’ve noticed an emerging trend among the musicians I know. Compared to my younger days, quite a few have quit drinking completely.

At issue here is not whether playing sober is better than playing drunk (or stoned). Few would argue convincingly to the latter. Even if we accept (despite studies to the contrary) that being “loose” helps a musician be more creative, there is still plenty of parts of a song where being focused is just as important, and focus is easier when our brains are at full capacity. I recall one gig in Québec City a long time ago where a bandmate was particularly drunk, to the point where the club owner noticed a fixed a complaint with the agent. We all literally paid a price for that by having our fee trimmed.

I wonder whether the bar scene specifically is the concern: the constant exposure to alcohol, and the social acceptance in that context of being a few over the line. Perhaps for some musicians, the temptation is too great, and it’s better to entirely swear off?

I have yet to make that commitment, but I have been thinking about it.

What do you think? Does abstinence make the band play better? Please feel free to respond to this blog.

Thanks!

 

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the origins of one of my earliest songs, Mr. Juicy Fruit. A song that actually predates that one in being written (but recorded later) is Compromise. It was penned around the same time Mr. JF was up to his antics on stage with our iteration of the Jeanine Mackie Band, and ended up being one of the few originals NeMo and I performed with her, Sam (her husband) on keyboards, and Greg Woods on drums.

By the way, she has a new website just launched, which you can check out. NeMo and I are the “couple of neighbours” mentioned in paragraph 9 on the bio page. Greg didn’t live nearby but worked with Jeanine.

Compromise has gone through a lot of permutations: at least 3 key changes, and a rewrite as a blues shuffle eventually scrapped. I still think there are things to do with it, so consider it a work in progress (a duo would be nice, perhaps).

The premise is utterly simple: two different people with divergent tastes, yet one compromising for the other for love. Pretty universal stuff. The fun was coming up with the contrasting bits.

Compromise ©  1997 Félix and the Cats/R. Pelletier.
All rights reserved. [SOCAN/ASCAP]

verse 1
I like it black
You like it white
You say I’m wrong,
I know I’m right
You like caviar,
I can’t stand the stuff
You like it gentle,
I like it rough

verse 2
You make the bed,
I mess it up
You want a mug,
Give me a cup
I drink scotch whiskey,
You prefer wine
What’s yours is yours,
And what’s mine is mine

chorus
Every day is a new surprise
Our love may fall, or it may rise
But when I look into your eyes
I know that it’s worth some compromise

verse 3
You don’t like gamblin’,
I love the thrill
You say you can’t dance,
You know I will
You like to garden,
I kill your plants
I’m way too fast
And you want romance

chorus
Every day is a new surprise
Our love may fall, or it may rise
But when I look into your eyes
I know that it’s worth some compromise

verse out
Compromise, compromise, compromise… (repeat)

This week, just a short one…

One of the objectives for this blog is to, once in a while, talk about how some of the songs we play originated. I did that recently with Mister Juicy Fruit.

I never expected the reverse to happen, meaning that the blog was the inspiration to the song.

 

Last week’s post got me thinking of a new tune which I hope to première at the Stir It Up Sundays session at Relish tonight. Since tomorrow is a holiday (thank you Vicky), I hope many more of you can make it there and stick around for all the regulars and the newbies that are likely to play.

 

What is too much of a good thing?

I’ve been thinking a lot about the difficult state of affairs for live music in Toronto.

Sure, there are places to play, and plenty of talented people out there, but the opportunities to make a decent living at live performance are thin, to say the least. Part-timers like me with a decent day job can manage, if we accept that we are paying/playing for the pleasure, or “exposure bucks” as Pat Kelly has shared. Doesn’t help much with food and shelter though, or even the price of replacement guitar strings.

Many clubs I have approached for shows have given up on the idea that they have some responsibility for attracting and retaining clientele by offering a great ambience, food and service. These clubs (not all) rely too much on the entertainment to fill the vacuum of their non-marketing. Of course, the reverse is almost unthinkable (see image). I know people in service industry work long and hard, but they need to get better at promoting their venues and curating the supporting entertainment as an added value, not a sine qua non.

But it’s not all their fault, and the more interesting question is, how did it get this way?

Music used to be something rare and special, and marked an event in people’s lives. The only way to hear it came through live performers: drummers in African villages, minstrels travelling from village to castle in the middle ages, buskers, troubadours, singing in the fields, and live bands of every description playing in parks, parades and dance halls through the 20th century. Live was the ONLY way to hear music.

The advent of recorded music made it more available, but still, the equipment required still limited the listening to radio (the only place where it was free — albeit sponsored), jukeboxes and gatherings at people houses around the turntable. Yes, there was a time we would invite friends over to hear the brand new album we just bought! Music was still something special.

Since the arrival of portable music players (Walkman/Diskman, iPod), cheap or illegal downloads, access to music is considerably easier. Ubiquitous and free elevator/mall music, tipped things over the edge. Music has become a commodity (just Google that one!) that is much too often taken entirely for granted, much like air-conditioning (I’m of an age where I remember signs like this one).

I believe that when something is taken for granted, it loses perceived value. As a performer, I have to accept that some of my audience may have lost sight of the specialness of music because it’s hyper-ambient. It seems like an imposition to ask for payment as many listeners may feel it should be free, whether it comes from a piped-in music service, or a band on a stage. I sometimes almost feel guilty about that, but I do have a band to pay.

I hope that my songs being original make them special enough.

Now, don’t get started on illegal downloads.

First, of all just some new shows confirmed: Saturday, July 30 back at the Black Swan, and Friday, August 12 at Relish again. More updates as we receive confirmation of pending gigs.

In the interim, we will be keeping our heads down a bit more from a performance stand point due to the pressures of the DAY JOB, but also to take the time to finally properly record the songs we have been playing live. For that, I have enrolled in a course in audio recording and will be seeking out a good and reasonable studio. Something good should hopefully come of it.

While there are few Félix and the Cats recording out there in the wild, every song ever played has a corresponding home demo, using Garageband on a Mac computer. On those demos, all the instruments are live except the drums which are built-in loops. The idea was to use these recordings as musical notebooks to share with the rest of the bad and guest sidemen.

Unusually, I will share one of these with you: Mr. Juicy Fruit. When the “proper” recording is done, it may be interesting to compare the two. We’ll see.

Mr. Juicy Fruit was first recorded over 10 years ago on GB, and written even before that. It was a reaction to an individual at a bar on Danforth and Donlands when NeMo and I played for Jeanine Mackie. While the band was playing, this odd and likely very drunk man would dance wildly on his own, do somersaults, then leap onstage and hand out sticks of gum to the band mid-song. He deserved a back-story, so I made one up.

Here it is. Warts and all.

Mister Juicy Fruit © 2005 Félix and the Cats/R. Pelletier.
All rights reserved. [SOCAN/ASCAP]

verse 1
Mister Juicy Fruit likes to leer and cuss
Mister Juicy Fruit ran off to the circus
Mister Juicy Fruit loves his exercise
Mister Juicy Fruit drinks too much to be wise

chorus
Say hello, say hello, hello
Say hello, what do you know?
Say hello, say hello, hello
Say hello, what do you know?
Say hello, say hello, hello
Say hello, what do you know?
Say hello, say hello, hello
Say hello, what do you know?

verse 2
Mister Juicy Fruit is a desperate dancer
Mister Juicy Fruit knows he has the answer
Mister Juicy Fruit rumbles and he tumbles
Mister Juicy Fruit shouts even when he mumbles

chorus

bridge
Mister Juicy Fruit’s soul is full of bile
Mister Juicy Fruit will go out in style
Mister Juicy Fruit, he won’t want your help
Mister Juicy Fruit, he’ll see you in hell

solo over chorus

verse 2
Mister Juicy Fruit ,behind the rough façade
Mister Juicy Fruit, is he truly bad?
Mister Juicy Fruit, behind his liquid eyes
Mister Juicy Fruit, is there a kind surprise?

chorus

My name is Félix and I am a gear-a-holic.

I, like most guitar players, can never have too many guitars/amps/pedals. It’s a well known thing. Just ask any guitar player. Fortunately, I don’t handle the finances in my household, so the urge to procure even more is kept in check by outside scrutiny, and forces me to think long and hard about getting new stuff, rather than act on impulse. It’s all good. Thanks, H!

And while other players are less restrained, the purpose of this current blog is not to denigrate the desire to collect. Rather, I would like to talk about making reasonable choices of what to bring to a show, when there can be so much to choose from when you have a mini-music store in your basement.

This idea stemmed from some recent shows when, in some cases, I went out too light, and in others, a lot of gear should have been left at home. So I made some notes that I thought I’d share with any players interested.

1. Transportation: the vehicle you are using to get to a show may only allow so much. A Vespa vs. a SmartCar vs. a van, for instance. Or even transit. Not a big deal, but worth saying.
2. The room: it’s simple—small room, small amp, big room—bigger amp, or small amp through PA.
3. Set-up time/sound check: the more gear you set up, the more complexities work themselves into it, and the greater chances something technical will go wrong. Just connecting everything up may gobble up all your pre-show time too, time better used reviewing songs, or even chatting with friends who took the time to come out to support you. You don’t want to be stressed out worrying about a late start before hitting the stage. For instance, I have a two-amp setup that sounds awesome when working well, but it takes nearly 45 minutes to put in place, and balancing it requires at least one run-through to balance with itself and the band. Don’t fall in the trap of thinking you HAVE to use the gear because you bought it and spent so much time putting the system together. Its time will come.
4. Same applies to guitars; you don’t need to show off your entire collection. Remember that unless you have a tech tuning them for you before very song, they are likely to need a tweak before the song, which stalls the performance. In some cases, if you are playing some songs in different tunings, a dedicated guitar for that can make sense, but if you can retuned faster than switching, stick to the one. Set breaks can be an opportune time to switch as well. Learn to play your material on any of your instruments and in standard tuning, no just the open ones for specific songs.

Keep in mind that for most non-musicians, who generally compose you audience, they neither understand or care about your new rare-bird 1950-something with the PAF humbuckers and the Bigsby vibrato. That’s guitar geek talk for a select group. Regular folk just want to hear and see you having fun and share that feeling.

As Fred Thériault, Senior Vice-President for Long and McQuade told me wisely many years ago, when I worked for Yorkville Sound, “People listen with their eyes.” He did not mean that derogatorily for the audience. It spoke a truth about people’s expectations that I still need to remind myself of from time to time.

A groovy gig at Relish last night. Thanks to friends current and reconnected, family and strangers who stayed for the show.

This week’s topic is the venue where we performed, and the special place it holds for me in my own long, strange trip.

Owned by Joanne Clayton, Relish Bar and Grill opened nearly 11 years ago. Through the years, it has stuck with its slogan: Come for the food, Stay for the music!

The bar is a nexus for original talent, not only on stage where live music plays 7 days a week, but also on staff, as most employees are performers themselves. The most special of these musical nights for me, and led to Félix and the Cats directly, is Stir It Up Sundays, the weekly open mic hosted by my band mate, Paul Brennan, and David MacMichael, who earned his place as an honourary Cat last night, subbing for NEMO on bass.

What distinguishes SIUS from many other jams I’ve been to, is the strong emphasis on original material. To my knowledge, this is unique in Toronto, where the typical open mic features many cover, blues jams and the like. Relish is different, and full credit go to Paul and David, and encouraged by Joanne for curating that development.

Stir It Up Sundays was instrumental (groan!) in encouraging me to write new songs. A complimentary remark from David and Paul about a new tune always made my week. So I kept writing and launching them, polished or half-baked, most every Sunday night. The support, and counsel, of all the musicians that attend the open mic also meant a lot.

Speaking of which, there are so many regular attendees of SIUS that need mentioning, and I hope you will make some time to come out to listen to them. Here are some of my recent favourites (apologies if I missed you…I will do this again for you too!).

David MacMichael: the co-host and an incredible songwriter. David fronts the Danger Bees, plays bass for a variety of bands, including Sam Taylor and the East End Love, and guitar for Jonathan Roy. His songs blend angst, humour and sensitivity over a sophisticated yet approachable musical base (yes, get them on iTunes).

Michael Cuddy: Michael’s lovely phrasings and haunting lyrics stick with you long after hearing. Sink or Swim and Motel Kalifornya are great examples, but he also shows his wry humorous side in Tweet.

Arch Rockefeller: I can imagine playing with Arch is a happy challenge. Great lyrics over sometimes unusual chordal and rhytmic changes show Arch’s virtuosity and imagination. Check out his material here.

Jace Traz: When Paul Brennan is away,  Jace fills in with David. In true renaissance style, Jace is a talented visual artist, a great drummer, also with the above mentioned Sam Taylor and the East end Love, and a clever and gifted songwriter, with such powerfully catchy songs as Pistachio Girl and Start to Cry. I never tire of hearing any of Jace’s songs. A Sunday night without Jace at Relish is incomplete.

Will Meadows: Will’s love of country music is obvious when he is performing traditional bluegrass tunes, singing and playing with taste and intricacy. Will is a superb multi-instrumentalist, and rises to any challenge as a solid and capable sideman.

Tyler Ellis: He makes it look so easy, as every line Tyler sings seems to fall naturally in place, and brings a smile with it. Here he is with Will Meadows on one of the SIUS shows.

Special guests: One never knows who will pop in to Stir It Up Sundays. Some nights, the regular gang is there, and other nights, surprising performers make their way to Relish, such as an all-bassoon group covering popular songs, or even visitors from far-away places like France or Arizona, just passing through. Once in a while, new talents discover SIUS and makes it a regular feature of their week, as it’s such a welcoming and supportive place to try out new ideas.

The long and short of it is this: whether you are a budding songwriter, a musician who wants to network or a fan of original music, there is no better place to go on a Sunday evening. Enjoy!