Well, in working through my own terror, I got all those feelings back again watching this thing. What’s funny is, it was the next morning that I received a major learning that has nothing to do with mountain climbing or cheating death. I learned a valuable lesson in managing time in order to achieve a goal.

I am philosophical to a fault. Even in trying to execute a simple to-do list, I’m constantly asking, Why? Why am I taking out the trash right now? Will Crystal love me any more if I pick up that box and put it away? Why is a person like me relegated to cleaning my own backyard? Stuff like that. I’m crazy and I can’t focus on inanimate lists without trying to outsmart them. But it’s the best thing I’ve got because word of mouth makes it even worse for me. I take into account the relationship I have with someone asking for a favor. Will this enhance the relationship? Should I be doing this? Why am I having such a hard time with this?  It takes me at least twice as long to do anything that a normal person should do. Impossible, right?

Well, once you are out of all options, completely alone with no hope of humanity, and without any dignity, all those questions are meaningless. That’s the jam that Joe was in. He had broken his leg on a two man climb in the Andes. That spells sure death once. Survived a fall into a gaping crevice during a botched descent. Death twice. And was completely dehydrated, frostbitten, and delirious, while having to hobble over miles of rocks with a broken leg. He was a week past his own expiration date. But somehow he made it on sheer nerve.

The men are narrating this event, so you know that they made it from the start. He said that he had to just keep making decisions, whether good or bad. That’s what keeps you going. So he would spot a point at which he thought he could get to and give himself 20 minutes to get there. If he made it with two minutes to spare, he was ecstatic. If not, he was demoralized. This went on for 2 days. Dragging himself across snow. In storms. Over rocks. Joe eventually made it back to base camp 20 minutes at a time. The last little bit he barely remembers because he was in and out of consciousness-which was geniusly reproduced in the film.

Completely depleted of soul, strength, and will, he found himself right where he intended. Base camp.

Wow. Here’s a guy who shouldn’t even have been alive, but had the wits about him to listen to an emotionless voice in his head. “Get up. Do it again. Now get up. Now do it agian.” Over and over. Like walking. Huge steps that required 20 minutes of pain, will, and resolve.

Funny. That’s exactly how I feel when I’m trying to figure out what I’m supposed to be accomplishing for the day. Except, I don’t have an excuse. But if I could take anything from this movie, it would be that tasks are to be strategic to your goal, easy to attain, and swiftly put down. 

It’s amazing what you can do in 20 minutes. 45 minutes. 90 minutes. At a time.

I really can’t remember exactly how we got off that rock in Joshua Tree. I do know that I wrapped up my hand in a shirt, got something to eat, and saw “Quiggly Down Under.” Thank you Tom Sellick. A great way to end a day of unintelligent rock climbing. Except for that part when they throw aborigines off a cliff. That kind of stuck with me.

Here’s the experiment. Get some little kids together (with permission) and play them some music of any kind and watch what happens. Go ahead. I’ll wait….

Well? I’ll bet they moved, danced, started play acting, stopped and listened…at least, that’s what I observe. Now, get some school aged kid who hasn’t crossed over into rebeledom yet and has either chores or homework to do. Play music! I’ll bet it becomes infinitely more enjoyable. What’s that all about? Now do it for yourself.

If you do this already, than you’re already a fan, but I’m talking to people who have forgotten that they actually love music. Those kids are going to be adults someday. How many do you think will remember how much they love the music?

Flip it around. We were those kids years ago. Where’s the music? Where is the love? I challenge you to change the station and change your world; spend time getting something from out of the ordinary because you might love it. Play it for your kids, play it for your family, play it for yourself. Sing it together, dance to it together, and live by it together.

Nothing better.

I think some of this info is relevant for anyone having to work with any number of musicians for an upcoming performance. It’s a first draft and I’m sure lots of footnotes could be added later.

CB—-

Well, thanks for thinking of me.

This can be really easy. You are really carrying the brunt of the music. If your drummer plays a great groove, then, depending on how intricate the songs are, that may be all you need. Here’s a small checklist of things to figure out and have ready to go:

1. The set list
2. The keys and tempos.
3. Bring the metronome, if not to play to it, just to help the drummer or yourself count off the song at the right tempo.
4. Recordings or demos of the songs:
If these are cover songs, then you can edit the songs in a laptop using Garage Band, Cubase, Digital Performer, or favorite audio platform.
If these are originals, always record them no matter how crude you think your recording will be. Play guitar and sing into your phone. This always helps. And don’t forget to record the song forms/tempos how you think you will perform them to the best of your ability. I like to record demos in Pro Tools with minimal instrumentation. Then, I go back and retrack a vocal giving cues and notes as the music goes by. I have even resorted to beat boxing the song for a drummer who was going to record at his house. He loved it.

5. Send him #1 and #2. Also, email, send CD, post MP3s-So your musicians can hear the music ahead of time. There’s no guess work. Let them do their homework before the sound check. Of course, you will also have to do your homework and remember how you recorded/edited the music. This is a must since you don’t have time to “work it out.”

#5 gives you and others the ability to rehearse by yourselves. Technology is wonderful.

6. Make sure you give a call time that accounts for setting up instruments and sound checking to maximize the time you do have together.
7. On the day, ask your drummer if he listened to the songs you posted or sent him. If the answer is yes, buy him a coffee and a sweet treat. If the answer is No, then ask him for his stick bag. Choose the thickest stick and baptize him over the head with it.

FYI- I am not a “worship leader.” I am a music director. My points of view are very results oriented and focused on the performance of the music. So as a catch all, remember to pray for The Spirit to do work regardless of the music, teaching, or any other human interface. That should free you up to put everything you have into it for the fun of producing some good music in the midst of good work being done.

I hope this is the kind of stuff you were looking for. I may have to blog this info since I’ve never actually written this stuff down before.

All the best,

CB.

It never ceases to amaze me the power of writing shit down the way you mean it; as I just did. However, you don’t necessarily have to publish it; as I just did.

Here’s some criteria to work with:

If it causes you to leave the planet

even for an instant

write about it

If it causes involuntary hand motions

while telling someone about it

write about it

If it causes you to cry

write about it

If it causes you to repeat yourself

over and over and over

and over again

to yourself

write about it

If it means that you need to have

a come to Jesus moment

with a friend

write about it

If you find that

you have been standing in the same spot

for more than 17 minutes

write about it

If scares the shit out of you

write about it

If it makes your eyes dart

looking for some sort of physical manifestation

of what it is you are envisioning

so that you can wrap it up in tangible form

write about it

If it makes your heart pump

faster

write about it

If it is impossible

write about it

(See PS at bottom)

You know, stuff like that. I can’t tell you how many times a huge issue that seemed to invade every thought seemed to fade into the background to be dealt with by my minions of the subconscious to patiently whittle out the  details once I wrote it out the way I saw it, wrote out the next thought, then the next…Are you following me?

It actually seemed as though I had completely dealt with the issue. I documented it, I said what I had to say, and miraculously, if I was listening, the beginnings to solutions actually made themselves known. There have even been times when I did not even need to talk to a person about a problem I had with them because I had fully worked it out on my own. It didn’t change anything but my own perspective, and that’s all I needed. And if in the future I did need to revisit that issue with a friend, I could speak with complete rationality and control. It’s pretty crazy.

So, when I say, “For the sake of humanity,” I mean it. You will be changed for the better and we will all be better off. I promise. I can make that promise because I am not the creator or imagineer of what I espouse, I am a benefactor.

Happy New Year to all. Get yourself a damn notebook or something. Don’t be the next thing I’ll need to write about.

Love

CB.

PS. I realize that I have imported syntax from the great Charles Bukowski‘s “So You Want To Be A Writer.”  I assure you this was not a conscious effort at the start. I wasn’t even sure from where it came until the end.  *However, I find it very ironic in it’s usage. Had this been a concerted effort on anyone’s part, I would think ill of it, assume that the person put themselves higher than necessary thinking of himself as cute or twisty,  and I would probably disrespect that person for being a leach. But, since this kind of just happened without thinking and I have gone into great detail to minimize it, I’m just hoping that the point got across.

*Not patting myself on the back.

Books that helped this to happen:

The War Of Art-Steven Pressfield

The Artist’s Way-Julia Cameron

Sifting Through The Madness for the Word, The Line, The Way-Charles Bukowski

Psalms-David

#2. If you are going to seek a government grant to start a business/educational type venture, you better make the hell sure that Americans will get what they payed for.

#3. Children only care about one thing, feeling loved.

i.e. They don’t care about feeling clean, disciplined, educated, or stimulated. Maybe fed, but definitely not well rested.

And last, but not least:

#4. Joy surpasses all fear and self examination.

I hope this helped somebody today.

The other option for me is the Apple Mainstage. This is pretty amazing. It also hosts your favorite plug-ins while sporting pretty competitive basic sounds, but I’m assuming from what I learnt that it uses up processing power to do so, begging the question-”How much power do I need in a laptop?”  There are a lot of possibilities here. I can use it as plug-in player or as the most awesome effects rack and pedal board anyone could concieve. Thanks to Andy Prickett for this one.

More to come on my proceedings….

CB.

However, this is a blog about me disguised as a plea for help from anyone who cares enough to comment on my little collection. My goal is to inspire those who know stuff to share their inspiration on how to integrate all this stuff into a snazzy rig without spending my dimes. Comment here, or hit me back on FB or Twitter if you please. I will keep updating as things transpire. Thanks in advance to anyone who plays along. I promise to update on the proceedings.

Synthesizers

•    Yamaha Motif 7- 1st version
•    Kurzweil PC 88- No add-ons. Needs to go to the shop. Start-up problems
•    Roland JD-800- The pink glue that holds the metal supports under each key has melted and it’s a mess. But still works.
•    Roland JV-2080 Rack with Orch and Keys expansion
•    Yamaha TG-77 Rack-Great old FM sounds.

Computer

•    Powerbook G4 2 GB memory
•    Digital Performer
•    Pro Tools, but no interface at the moment. Digi 002 unit in the studio
•    MOTU Mach V with a crap load of Sample libraries. http://www.motu.com/products/software/machfive
•    Spectrasonics Stylus RMX

•    Spectrasonics Atmospheres and Omnisphere (not installed yet).

•    Vangaurd Synth http://www.kvraudio.com/get/907.html

•    I have no audio/midi interface as of yet, but I have software installed for the M-Audio Fast Track

Wish List

Kontact/Kompact $399 Bundle.

August 13, 2006

Trying to help my friend with his dilemma.

You’re an artist who finds yourself wanting great things while building someone else’s dream. If you are just doing what is in front of you, then you are not doing what you need to do. You need to build your own house.

Being a guest, visitor, or worker in someone else’s home poses many obstacles and limitations. You feel the need to do great things like add a utility room or build a second floor, or paint the couch red. If the homeowner likes your idea, then you’ve done fine. You’ve realized your potential for their home. Hopefully, another homeowner will want you to express your genius for them as well, and so on, and so forth. But at the end of a life, what do you have to show for it, but a bunch of happy homeowners who now possess the fruits of your labor. Yes, that is gratifying in and of itself to some degree, but if you have no home of your own, there is no legacy that your genius leaves. There is no home for you to fill with love and genius; there is no house for your family to sleep in at night. With that being said, chances are the homeowner doesn’t even need a utility room, or can’t afford to add a story. If you are going to have any impact at all, you need to stick to things like, “let’s fix the door knobs,” or “Do you mind if I clean the windows?”

If you spend any more energy than that, you are wasting time and resources that could be put into your own house. The only limitations to building your own house would be relegated to whatever you are not willing to sacrifice. There is no right or wrong if you are listening to the true voice. There are just decisions that bring about consequences. Can you live with those consequences? What are the benefits vs. costs in trying to attain greatness? How many resources are available to you right now? Could you obtain more in time?

Let’s talk about your resources. Your greatest resource is time and energy. With those, you and your talent can have a hay day. But, we have a limited amount of time on this earth. If you are living and working in someone else’s house, don’t use it up with trying to force your greatness upon these walls that you do not own. Don’t fall prey to the myth that if you disengage, acquiesce, or distance yourself from the big picture, then there will be people who suffer because of your lack of interest; there are guests of this house who will not benefit from your great work; you didn’t fight the good fight. Well, there is no good fight in this particular house. It’s not yours.

Do what you are there to do. Once you find out the truth of what your job really is, then you can put 100% into that which you control. If you have great ideas, but don’t speak up because the boss doesn’t see you as an equal contributor, then you’re ahead of the game; you didn’t waste your breath. If your suggestions are genius, however, and the homeowner does not agree with you, the truth will eventually float to the top with time. Let time be your ally. Even if your genius idea is never realized, then think about putting that idea into you’re your own home. Whatever idea ends up sticking, it will either be that the homeowner will live with the consequence, you will hear about it and have the opportunity to improve it (there’s nothing to lose, it wasn’t’ your idea anyway), or you will never hear about it because it has satisfied the boss. In the meantime, cash the checks.

I know this sounds like apathy. It sounds like I’m telling you to shut up and do your job. This is correct and is the opposite of what the artist in you wants to hear. Well, apathy hasn’t entered the picture yet. All we have here is truth: you know what to do, you can do it, it doesn’t waste resources, you get paid, you and your family are taken care of, and the boss is happy. Apathy is more a reaction to truth. It sets in when you can’t draw the line between caring for another’s home and caring for your own home. If you were to allow this scenario to make you feel worthless, keep you from being optimistic about your own life, then, and only then, will you have become apathetic by disengaging. This is not what I am suggesting. I am saying make a distinction between investing in your own house, and investing is someone else’s house.

The optimist takes this scenario as a blessing. You’ve revealed the truth about how much input you are allowed to have in a given situation. That doesn’t reflect on you as a person or an artist, it reflects on how different your ideas are from someone else’s ideas. News flash: Everyone has different ideas. Now that you know this, you don’t have to waste your breath trying to convince someone else how to decorate because that’s what you feel is affective or beautiful, because it will be even more effective in your own house. Save the energy and invest it into your own home.  Build your own house. Leave a legacy.

“What are you doing?”

“Well, I’ve got this band called Brightlive. We’re recording and everybody digs us and we’re touring……blah blah blah”

Now, wouldn’t I have loved to pull that answer right out of my arse when that question was asked of me by my beloved cousin a couple years ago? Unfortunately, it went more like-

“Uhhh, well I’m still playing at Steamers Cafe with the Banda Bros. once a month, which you’ve known about for years. Um, I’m doing these choir arrangement recording things that aren’t quite albums and you’ll never here them, but they help choirs learn parts to music that I re-arrange and make sound current and stuff. You know, it’s not touring with a name artist or on the radio or anything…..”

“But you’re making a living,” my Aunt’s husband, Bob, kindly offered into the mix as he patted me on the back and continued in to the kitchen to refill his coffee or something. It was a life raft that he rightly assumed I needed right at that moment. I was dying.

I echoed it back into the conversation, “I’m making a living.” It felt more like a confession than a proclamation.

Now let’s get something straight. Working with the Bandas is no embarrassment to me. Playing with the likes of Ramon Banda – one of the most versatile  Latin percussionists and straight ahead drummers who kicks ass at both genres equally-  and Tony Banda- the second half of the backbone that helped to create the sound of the legendary Poncho Sanchez – opened up some very wonderful creative avenues for me. Because of that whole situation I was able to work with other greats in that world, like all the hombres in the Jazz On The Latin Side All Stars, Poncho, Ry Cooder, and other various recording projects. And let me take this opportunity to give props to my boy, Francisco Torres,  for making this all happen. I mean, crap, I’m almost regularly featured on KJAZZ because of these guys.

Well, needless to say, this conversation was one of those wake up calls that said, “Hey, get up. You’ve been asleep for 10 years.” I had just come off of a year of scoring my first full length feature, which was more like an experiment, and ended up finally airing recently on a bunch of PBS stations. But, a totally fun project had ended and back out on the streets I went. (It wasn’t that bad, but that sure sounded dramatic). It was a huge chunk of change that we couldn’t count on anymore and it seemed so devastating that I actually became excited about something. It was one of those I Know I Shouldn’t Feel Like This When My Wife Is So Worried kind of feeling. But, I think I was helping Crystal a bit with my pensive brainstormy attitude. I think it helped her relax a little bit.

It paid off for the time being. I had worked out a deal with the “Heidi” gang to ship myself over to the Nashville camp of the organization to see if they needed my services over there for about 4 weeks. Me, in a 2 story empty house with no car most of the time. Sitting in front of my studio rig with little work to actually do. So I wrote songs. I recorded them. I came up with movie score ideas. I basically opened up the mind to whatever should grace the doorsteps of my fingertips. I even blogged to help a friend of mine while I was there. Little did I know that I was preaching to myself. It was a first attempt at helping to inspire others. Maybe a little rambly, but I was in some kind of spin at the time.

It amounted to me coming home with some material that I loved. I sort of proved to myself that I enjoyed myself and my creations. That was a new one. It had always been so much work up until then. Some opportunities were created that never left the ground, but it got me spinning. For about a year; spinning. There was something up and I couldn’t put my finger on it. All I know is that every time I saw the picture of my future in the hands of someone else I got more and more pissed off. I needed to take control of my future somehow. It was in that year that I realized that I needed to build my own dream. And that dream took a  form that was so drastically alien to the path I had laid for years, yet, it had such a rich and familiar aroma that I recognized from my childhood; a memory of a loved one whom I’d totally forgotten about.

I needed to start a rock band and it would need to be of high grade talent and I would need to be the lead singer and I would have to kick ass.

Weird.

So, that’s what I’m doing.

Join Chris here at about the first potty stop on this trip to Nirvana-as there will be many. This is a good place to get in. He’s just started the first DVD for the kids, wifey’s got her shoeless feet up on the dash,  and the first snacks have been passed out. It may not be the quickest way there, but at least it’s stressful….

If this actually happens, he may be able to write the next book titled, “How To Be Awesome Even At Your Age.” If not, then we will have all had a good laugh, a good beer, a bad beer, and several self-defining experiences with Brightlive. <gasp> What’s that?

And now, please allow myself to introduce….myself. Please welcome, Chris Barron.

Thank you, thank you. Here’s the skinny. I grew up playing the piano, showing everybody my Gene Simmons tongue, riding my bike, listening to Billy Joel (42nd Street, The Stranger), Elton (Yellow Brick Road), Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock-my all-time favorite all-around artist, Journey, Rod Stewart on my faux denim record player, Van Halen-I was playing the “Jump” solo in J.High, Supertramp, ELO, all the “yacht rock,” Weather Report, The Beatles (mostly “breakfast with…” on Sundays), Led Zep, The Police, Miles Davis, etc., letting myself in the back door, wasting miles of tape (that’s the old way of recording things you listen to) recording whatever, not doing homework, getting decent grades, and generally wasting time.

After being inspired by my step-dad to pursue the jazz ( I don’t think he knows this), and a mother who has remained to this day my number one fan,  I found myself playing for amazing talent in the L.A. area as a pianist/keyboardist and swearing to live the life of a bohemian fusion jazz artist-slash- a successful sideman. I made sure to take lessons from the great Terry Trotter, get the gigs done, and sound great doing it. Well, years later after somehow staying alive-and married- doing what I love, I had gained experience in this thing called the music business, but never quite landed in anything I was doing. I firmly believe that this was because I never actually wanted to do what I was trying to do………not in that way. My head and hands were way ahead of my heart. Don’t be mistaken, however, I love all of the people I have worked with and value the friendships that I still have, and gained a crap load of skill and mileage. But, it took way too long to figure out what I was all about. Like, this is recent, people.

So, long story short-crowd: “Too late!”- I vow to make up for lost time while using the knowledge and experience I have gained from all the years it took to get here. That’s having your cake and jumping out of it, too. Ta Da! If I can make this happen, then I’m sure lots of you can too. I plan to carve the back way to this promised land (whatever that may be-a time, a place, a journey) and remain Chris Barron in the process. My hope is to deliver a real-life cross-section of the life of an up and coming artist who bears the titles Husband, Daddy, Keyboardist, Composer, Lead Singer, fellow member, fork lift steampunker, etc. and reveal that it is possible to Live The Dream, even today. I encourage everybody to Live The Dream. Find a way to do it. Take the time to figure it out. That’s all I’m doing. Take the hugest dudes of the day whom we all admire. That’s what they’re doing. Let’s all do it….together.