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  1. R

    What are you doing today ?

    Best Wishes to all US Guilders!
  2. R

    Happy Canada Day

    Kind of. Both celebrated ordinary events and people. To me, the difference is that Tom's songs were always upbeat & positive, while Wade often described the life of lonely men in places like logging camps (eg Shining Birch Tree) or yearning for a different life (Wild Goose), although...
  3. R

    Happy Canada Day

    Thank you, Brad. A foggy rainy day here - outdoor celebrations will be dampened. G-Cage: Thanks for the post. I'm a big fan of Wade Hemsworth's songs; he was one of the first Canadian songwriters to write about Canadian subjects (Black Fly, Shining Birch Tree, Wild Goose etc). On that theme, a...
  4. R

    For good guitar players only

    I guess that means that I'll have to stop using them.
  5. R

    What Songs Are You Learning Right Now?

    Great version. I like the guitar interplay. I once played "The Fitz" at an open mic on the anniversary of the sinking (November 10). To my pleasant surprise about a dozen folks in the audience joined in - they knew all the words!
  6. R

    What Songs Are You Learning Right Now?

    The Ultimate Guitar website has accurate words to the "Fitz". Be aware that Gord changed some lyrics (in live performances) over time. The phrase "at 7 pm the hatchway caved in...." is now "at 7 pm, when the big wave crashed in...." and "in a dusty old hall in Detroit" became "in a rustic old...
  7. R

    Song suggestions for June gig

    Let us know your final choices, Charlie (we promise not to criticize)
  8. R

    Song suggestions for June gig

    Play really old material, that a younger crowd won't recognize. Keep it all up-tempo and they'll lap it up!
  9. R

    Song suggestions for June gig

    Sorry, Charlie, but as a septagenarian I got nothin' to offer. Break a leg!
  10. R

    The Art Of Songwriting

    This might not be an accurate quote, but it's close: "There are lots of great ideas for songs out there, just floating around in the air. The hard part is to catch them & write them down before Paul Simon does!" - Gordon Lightfoot
  11. R

    The Art Of Songwriting

    Good points. One of my personal favourite songs began while I was learning major 7th chords. I pieced a few together and liked the sequence. I often begin with lyrics. They are definitely the most difficult component for me. Often it's the structure & pronunciation of the words that dictate the...
  12. R

    The Art Of Songwriting

    Agreed. Inspiration can come from anywhere, at any time. Sometimes (rarely) a whole song seems to write itself from the smallest spark. I keep a sloppy, haphazard file of ideas, bits of lyric, notes, chords etc that I occasionally revisit in case they have miraculously transformed into finished...
  13. R

    History Book for Tech and Science Nerds

    These are great recommendations - thanks for posting them. I've read a few books in the same vein by Witold Rybczynski, most about history of technology, architecture and land use. Most recent was "One Good Turn" - the history of screws & screwdrivers.
  14. R

    Electronics, D4 example, etc.

    Interesting discussion - thanks to all who contributed. I learned a lot. Many years ago I installed a Dean Markley passive undersaddle in my ol' reliable D25. Through my venerable Roland Cube bass amp it sounds terrific. Through an electric guitar amp it sounds like an electric guitar. If I...
  15. R

    1989 D-25 SB

    Very nice purchase, mon vieux. I have an '83 D25 SB - it's been my only acoustic for 42 years, and I still smile every time that I play it.
  16. R

    What was it with Dire Straits?

    I was in grad school in Regina, Saskatchewan. There was a pub near the campus where students hung out. It had a jukebox that played 45s. Once a week a technician came to add new releases and remove unpopular discs. After he finished, he'd set the box to play the new records. When Sultans of...
  17. R

    Growing old, not up.

    My wife & I (late 70s & early 80s) enjoy making jokes on each other. She's as sharp and beautiful as when we first met. And it's a pleasure to joke together.
  18. R

    Local Dialects

    I've spent 90% of my life in two big cities, Montreal and Toronto; both are cosmopolitan and multicultural. The most interesting & vibrant areas of these cities was and remain districts with dense populations of apartment dwellers and many small commercial enterprises, occupied and owned by...
  19. R

    Local Dialects

    It's no accident that the best Canadian humour comes from the east coast.
  20. R

    Local Dialects

    A good analysis. The cold weather we're having now reminds me of my grandmother, who grew up in an isolated town in Newfoundland. There was no doctor or clinic; the cure-all was cod liver oil. I remember that any time one of us coughed, she'd say to my mother: "Dem kids needs some caaahhhd...
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