SamuelBLupowitz

This is an interesting suggestion! I think you're right that this would end up being higher value, and certainly make the works more widely accessible. But it might be a hard sell -- as a consumer, my kneejerk reaction is that the idea of having to constantly assent to little transactions sounds *incredibly* annoying. Not as frustrating as the big-picture of subscribing to multiple services with increasing amounts of ads and higher cost for gradually worse versions of the original product, but, more frequent. I think I'd probably take it, ultimately, but one of the big apparent conveniences that the current streaming model offers over the Legal Download model of my teen years is the set-it-and-forget-it aspect of the transaction. It's not "do I want to pay for this particular TV show/album, or save it for something else?" It's "now I have access to all of this as much as I want this month and I don't have to think about it anymore!" It's way more of a dopamine hit, and way less stress (because having to think about your bank account is stressful!) than a la carte would be. Zooming out, though, I think the real problems with streaming platforms stem from, simply, greed. They make enough to pay the creators better, these six different corporations don't HAVE to all be in competition with each other, years of creative work doesn't have to be shuffled into the abyss just for tax writeoff purposes. The power of the technology means we could have a magnificent, accessible digital library of television, film, and recorded music for all of humanity. And everyone still gets paid for their contribution to creating the work and maintaining the interface. But resolving those issues would involve some larger *ahem* structural overhauls on a government/social level, so... it's not like I see my approach being implemented as an alternative to the current model at this moment...

I mean, I wouldn't say no to Freddie Mercury's piano if I were the kind of person who could afford to buy music legends' instruments. Which, I'm not. I'm not that kind of person.

My condolences, friend. The weather has really been disconcerting and disruptive to my outdoor gigs this summer, between the erratic thunderstorms and the wildfire smoke. I played a big outdoor show opening for a Moderately Famous Band earlier this month; pro stage, crew, production, the whole bit. Showers forecasted for close to set time. What was not in the forecast was a torrential thunderstorm that kicked in right as we were starting to soundcheck (hours before it was predicted), blowing over tents, drenching the stage, calling the whole event into question. We were able to get a lot of our equipment covered and/or out of the way, and things cleared up in time for the show to go on less than half an hour later than scheduled, but I was drying out cases (for once wishing I had heavier road cases instead of padded soft ones) and accessories for a couple of days afterward. The bandleader, already anxious about the show going well (because he has had a LOT of weather-related issues with gigs this summer, which has been translating as "lots of lost income and damaged gear"), was exclaiming to no one in particular, "how did none of the weather reports see this coming AT ALL?" An older gentleman on the crew leaned over and said "well, the temperature and moisture in the atmosphere are very different than they were even ten years ago. They just can't predict these intense storms anymore." So much to look forward to as a gigging musician! Anyway, this is one reason I have a whole-house industrial dehumidifier installed in my home.

It's tricky! And I don't want to dwell on the social issues/politics on this forum and keep things light and gear-oriented, but I did want to offer my perspective that for me, learning about what makes my favorite (and less favorite) artists tick, the positive and the negative, helps provide insight to me about what makes the art happen. Human beings are full of hope and flaws and inconsistencies, and I find all of that very compelling. John Bonham was apparently a very kind, caring, loving family man as well as, at times, an out-of-control monster. There are countless stories of bad behavior and ego and self-destruction violence from people who also have reputations of being full of integrity and commitment and kindness. The demands of being a touring artist (or public creative figure of any kind) in our society don't necessary bring out the best in people, and I find the underlying humanity that produces the art to be a fascinating element of a complex picture. Of course, sometimes I just want to dance to Billie Jean and not think too hard about any of that other stuff. It's allowed!

My younger brother was a huge Styx fan in his teens, so I wound up listening to them a lot sort of by proxy. Some great, great songs, terrific vocals, and killer arrangements, especially once Tommy Shaw came on board after the first four records. Years ago, I read bassist Chuck Panozzo's memoir, and he was diplomatic but firm about the falling out between Dennis DeYoung and the rest of the band in the 90s. While Chuck didn't point any specific fingers, he made clear that there was an atmosphere of homophobia within the band that kept him closeted for many years (I've always wondered if the quiet drummer in Almost Famous was a reference to this). I'm sure that was commonplace in many rock bands of the period, but it's an interesting facet of a band that seemed to straddle a line between "all-American arena band" in the vein of Boston or REO Speedwagon, and "over-the-top theatrical rock act" a la Elton or Queen or even ELP. It seems like Dennis, increasingly to the rest of the band's chagrin, was the driving force between the theatrical side. All that's to say, very cool to learn more about the gear that Dennis used to craft all those layered keyboard arrangements! That Fooling Yourself lead line is probably one of my earliest inklings that synthesizers could be more than just a boring, mushy pad underpinning my favorite 60s and 70s artists as they dragged themselves through the 80s.

I have a Morley wah pedal (actually a "distortion wah volume") that the drummer in my high school band bought me as a gift when he got an unexpected bonus at work. I have gotten a ton of use out of it over the years, beyond its initial "I wanna be Cliff Burton" application as a bass player (though I have played in a couple of bands where I've paired it with a Big Muff, and boy does it make the Metallica happen). The little bit of grit the wah alone gives makes it awesome on clavinet; I love a snarly, bitey wah tone for that. I've messed around with flange on the clav as well, and even a Digitech Polara reverb pedal with some out there "shimmer" and "reverse" effects. I've used phaser pedals on my Wurlitzer, and even used the fuzz on that once -- not a ton of definition, but great for a really over-the-top sonic punch in the face. And of course, if anything can be sent through a Leslie, it will be sent through a Leslie. That is, of course, even more unwieldy than an effects pedal, but it's one of the fun parts of having a home studio.

I'm going to re-share this from a similar thread over at the Keyboard Corner, because I just love telling this story. My #1 "surprisingly good" show was Weird Al Yankovic. I'd been a casual fan for years (because what's not to like about Weird Al?) but not a diehard or anything. But the summer of 2010, I was home on break from college, and the local newspaper was doing a mail-in sweepstakes for free tickets to see Weird Al at the theater downtown. First prize was two front row tickets and a meet-and-greet. Second prize was two second row tickets and a meet-and-greet; this went all the way back to about the tenth row. I thought to myself, "how many people who read the newspaper in Reading, PA are going to actually bother to mail in for tickets to a Weird Al concert?" So I wound up in the fifth or sixth row with a buddy, and let me tell you: I never would have gone to that show if I had to buy the tickets, but after seeing Al once, I will go see him any time he comes around. He sings like an angel, he plays the hell out of the accordion, his band is absolute fire, and they put on SUCH a performance (costumes! acrobatics! video screens!). After the show, we did get a quick hello and photo op with Al, who is very polite but very quiet and shy. My friend did wind up talking shop with Al's longtime guitarist, Jim West, for about half an hour. What a great night!

Neo Instruments, Dynacord Electrical Engineering, and Los Pollos Hermanos: all divisions of Madrigal Electromotive GmbH. 😉

Thanks man! One of those things is definitely *tempos* -- I really got to come to an intimate understanding of how wordy some of my songs are when we took them a feeeew clicks too fast, hahaha.

Just responding to the notes about presentation: we were opening for a touring band (which I was also playing keys for) and the staging reflects that. I normally turn the piano in, but I had the organ set up facing in on this gig. Similarly, that’s the headliner’s kit — tuned for loud guitars and with a WAY bigger kick drum than my guy usually uses. He drove three hours from a wedding gig to play this one with me, so he didn’t even swap out snare and cymbals. If we were headlining, or not sharing gear, I completely agree that setting up closer together, with better sight lines (especially to work through the open improv sections; we had one or two missed cues in the thick of it) would be ideal. I think if it were up to me, I’d set up with the piano and drums stage right and left, angled inward, with bass in the middle. And yeah, I definitely wouldn’t trust the phone recording to tell the truth about the sonic profile of the ensemble as delivered by the venue’s sound guy in the shoebox-shaped room after our brief soundcheck. 😉

Using in-ear monitors regularly has drastically improved my live singing, and that's part of the reason I'm feeling so confident in this lineup. And since my wife is an absolutely crushing lead vocalist (she did sit in on one tune in the set, how can I resist?), I need all the confidence I can get! But technological assistance aside, the minimal distraction -- and frequency competition -- of only having keys, bass, and drums onstage makes it *so* much easier for me to sing accurately than when I'm unintentionally shouting over guitars and/or horns. It's part of the reason I'm trying to resist the temptation to get my first-call guitarist on board, as sensitive and dynamic a player as he is. Maybe for some gigs that merit a larger ensemble every now and then, but the stripped-down arrangements absolutely help me think more about *delivering the songs* rather than being distracted by too many nuances of the arrangement, or too much going on in my ears to really hear the tonal center accurately. "Okay, cool, the guitar is taking this solo, it's going to cover the rhythm after the drum break, I should ask for less guitar in my mix, and then... oh shoot I forgot the words and I'm a quarter tone flat." This is a good thought, because I go back and forth about whether I should embrace the patch diversity of a modern digital stage piano, or really approach the gig like I'm playing an acoustic grand and find my creativity through that limitation! One of the tunes I shared above is predominantly Wurli-driven with an AP solo on the recording; I've performed it that way, but this gig I was feeling the piano-purist approach for it. Conversely, there's a tune we performed that I originally tracked a live-in-the-room trio for when we made the record -- we were going for a Physical Graffiti vibe, and so I conjured Jimmy Page via John Paul Jones by slamming my clavinet through a wah pedal into an overdriven tube amp. When it came time to play the tune live, I just went with the clav patch (with a healthy dose of not-as-cool-as-a-real-tube-amp overdrive and pedal wah) on my Yamaha, as sacreligious as it feels to play clav on a weighted hammer action. I think that song *could* work with a piano-driven arrangement, but we were already opening for a Rock Band with a capital R, so I wanted to bring some crunch. I imagine I'll keep experimenting, maybe bring some of the onboard effects (particularly tape delay) into my solos so I don't start feeling like I'm running out of ideas halfway through the set. Best wardrobe purchase of my music career, bar none.

I've attempted the "singer-songwriter piano power trio" thing on many occasions over the years, inspired by early Elton John and Ben Folds. It's a lot of fun, but it never stuck. My own limitations as a player, plus negotiating the arrangements in an impactful, varied way with so few textures, plus my compulsive desire to bring into the fold any musician who wants to play with me, always led to me expanding the band or moving on to other things. But I had a date I needed to fill, and a willing rhythm section who had played a show with me before (albeit as part of a larger lineup), so I booked what I figured would be a one-off Samuel B. Lupowitz Trio gig, and trusted that folks would do their homework and be fine with 1-2 rehearsals, given everyone's very busy schedules. Thing is, two songs into the first rehearsal, the rhythm section was adamant that this needs to be more than a one-off. So... I'm here in part to brag, in part for thoughts, tips, and feedback from anyone else who has had success with booking instrumentation like this (or generally small ensemble original music -- too loud for the corner of a coffeehouse, probably, but also, you know, a guitar-less band). Now that it's looking like we may be booking at least a few times a year with this ensemble, I'm trying to think how to best develop it. It certainly helps me get around how difficult it's been to schedule around the availability of the younger parents in my larger projects. Some three part harmonies would really make the whole thing. The bass player has worked with me a lot, and took initiative for this to sing as much as he could manage while playing some very complicated bass parts. The drummer has a nice voice and is open to singing, though I'm not sure if it will stick to start working out really specific background vocals if we're not rehearsing regularly. And while I did play both piano and organ on this gig (because I was also playing keys with the headlining act), I think I'd want to keep my rig more spare, generally speaking -- if not just a piano, maybe a small synth rather than a dual manual organ. So just thinking about ways to fill the space and expand the palette while keeping things stripped down (read: easy to load in and out, also ... fewer people to divide the money between). On that note, it was nice to have such an encouraging musical success on the first performance, because from a financial perspective, this was a rough gig. An old friend touring from out of town set this show up with me months ago, and I promoted harder than I've promoted anything this year (most of my gigs have been sideman work or small local festivals that have a built-in crowd). But between the holiday weekend, the smoke in the air only recently dropping down to an acceptable level, a general lack of walk-in traffic, the venue being probably two or three weeks behind where they would have been helpful with their end of promotion (which, might I add, they took a cut of the door to pay for) and, I guess, the algorithm failing me, it was a pretty humiliating turnout. But I certainly need some things to get excited about and look forward to, so ... here's hoping! Certainly interested in thoughts any of y'all have. Oh, and, here are a few clips from the show. Forgive the non-embedded links; they're not all clips that I'd share publicly, but they're too big to embed and I just thought y'all would appreciate the reference point for what I'm working on (and the caliber of the rhythm section players; I still can't believe I get to work with these dudes). https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NqYAe1NzvxYd5SZPlFfdqtU9ObuSUyXY/view?usp=sharing - "Dancing on the Ocean Floor," full song from my 2021 solo album. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QPe2f4brJVF_rTwyFZpEKrj9Z5REpYEH/view?usp=sharing - trading solos in 5/8! The drummer notices that the bass player and I do, indeed, get lost at one point ... and gives us a big crash on 1 to help us out. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lezYNDnP-lqt4KuRis_-NJzNKCZdejLV/view?usp=sharing - clip of "Verses and Choruses" from my 2012 solo album. Playing two keyboards and singing! https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-88rsr0-S74v_6yiK6fX-BovdhqQWTqK/view?usp=sharing - outro tag/jam of "Can I Put You On," an Elton John deep cut the bass player and I learned for the 17-11-70 anniversary livestream in 2020.

How unplugged are we talking here? Fully acoustic, no PA or amps at all? You could try learning the bass buttons on that accordion. I haven’t progressed much past “occasional drone note” on that, but with experienced players, it’s a marvelous, almost incomprehensible thing. Quite flashy. With mallets you start getting into things like marimbas that have some low register, but I can’t imagine you wheeling one of those around. A lot bigger and heavier than a glockenspiel. if you’re doing a “hybrid” gig (primarily acoustic but with PA and amplification), you could see if you could find one of those old Rhodes piano basses like Ray Manzarek used in the Doors. They’re passive, like a guitar or bass, so it needs amplification, but no AC power (I’ve had one for years, a refugee from the back closet of my middle school’s music room). They have a warm, thunky tone that would be tough to cut through a loud rock band but would provide a nice, warm bottom end for an acoustic act. Might even sit on top of your pump organ without a stand. But if you’d like to avoid the schlep, I don’t imagine you’re ever playing a real acoustic piano at these gigs, yeah? Your Nord with a split program with piano and upright bass (and maybe a tapestry hung over it to make it look “earthy”) would probably keep the vibe just fine without making the “acoustic” gigs a tougher load-in/load-out for you. If you *are* playing a real piano, well, shoot… could you just play the bass parts in your left hand on piano and be done with it? Let me know what direction you try to go with this! Love some creative problem-solving.

This is SO EXCITING! Can’t wait to listen…

Grand baby piano. The son of the son of your father’s piano.

Yeah, supposed to play the downtown concert series in Ithaca tonight and it's definitely going to be rescheduled (second one of the month due to the wildfire smoke). It's not as bad as it was the first time, but definitely not safe to be out for two hours singing, especially given that our lead vocalist (my wife) has asthma. No way. It's hard for it to not feel personal after the last few years of uncontrollable forces interfering with gatherings and music. Anyway I told the boss I wasn't coming into the office today. At least my other show this weekend is indoors... back to the safety of the mouth particles, rather than the fiery tree particles. 🤣

As a fellow Wurli aficionado -- I haven't been quiet around here that I gigged mine hard up until the pandemic -- I really feel this. Even a decade ago when I was lusting after one, the prices felt out of reach, and I was lucky that my now-wife staged a Birthday Expedition to find a good deal on one that was in storage about two hours from me. eBay had them going for above $2k US without legs or pedal; it was incredible in 2015 to find one in quite good shape for $1200 *including* legs, pedal, and a road case! I lucked out. Nearly ten years later, the financial squeeze is on us all for everything, including vintage instruments. I learned from experience the things the older folks have all said: the tuning is fiddly, the electronics are sensitive, the action is complex (which is what makes it perfect), and the sound is unmatched. I'm lucky to have a good tech reasonably close by, but it definitely requires more investment of time, money, and effort to gig than my Nord Electro. So, since assembling a home studio, and reducing my willingness to cause myself physical pain in the service of music, I've mostly retired it from live shows. But I'll tell you what -- I absolutely love playing Rhodes on my CP88, but the Wurli, while it sounds great, is definitely not the real thing. In a perfect world where someone else moves and maintains my shit for me, I'd always have a real one at the ready (next to the B3, clav, Moog, and Yamaha grand, OBVIOUSLY). I'd certainly be interested if a company developed a Vintage Vibe-style modern electromechanical reed piano, cutting down some weight, making the tuning a little simpler, the amp less noisy, basically perfecting the designs that were abandoned in favor of digital tech. I understand this is impractical and expensive in the world we live in, much like purchasing a vintage instrument. Then again, I've acquired some of my most beloved musical toys because some old timer (or their family) looked kindly on me and wanted an unwieldy item to go to someone who would appreciate it. I wish this for you very much!

I was feeling this same way, and I'd been searching for awhile for a rack mixer that would allow me to do exactly what you are talking about. Ultimately I caved, and instead of replacing my three-channel stereo line mixer, I also got a Rolls pm55p to mix down the keyboard stereo submix with the FOH send. And honestly, I love it, and it's much easier to deal with than another large, clunky piece of gear would have been, given my setup -- especially since I don't have to think about "which knob do I adjust" nearly as much as if I had to reach over to a larger, more complicated mixer. Just my two cents, because I totally feel you on "this seems redundant and wasteful," but I'm also very happy with where I wound up given my needs.

I'm just diving into the "Trio" album, and man, I gotta say -- what gorgeous playing and tones (the piano sound is so present and intimate, but also so lively). Beautiful. Thank you for sharing. Excited to check out the synth stuff, too.

I posted some live material a few weeks back, but since it's record release day, I wanted to share! I had the privilege of playing keys (and doing a horn arrangement on one track) for a close musical collaborator's new original music project, Front & Main. Really fun, catchy, old-school rock tunes, with a great bunch of players on board. Side note since I'm among keyboard players: we recorded all the basics live in the room, but on the organ tunes it meant running direct and re-amping through the Leslie afterward. It's really an experience doing those speed changes *later* -- I compared it to driving a car from point A to point B, then deciding where to shift gears after you've arrived. Anyway, hope you enjoy Look Both Ways by Front & Main. https://frontandmain.bandcamp.com/album/look-both-ways [for download/purchase] Or stream:

Yeah, MIDI over bluetooth is quite wonderful, but audio over bluetooth has significant latency (for example, next time you're listening to music off your phone on your car stereo wirelessly, see how far ahead the actual track playback is to what's coming out of your car speakers {but not while you're driving, please}). Could you describe your music room setup for us a little more? Another recent thread had some enticing stereo wireless solutions for live use, but in-studio, wired will almost certainly be more reliable. Understood if you're trying to cut down on cable spaghetti, though!

I think they were using the TONTO system for all the synths on Talking Book. You can find the isolated tracks for that song floating around online pretty freely -- it's wild to hear the isolated bass and realize it is, indeed, Stevie ripping on a synth. Also, props to @Stefan011 for calling out Golden Lady. That song is BEASTLY.

I have done this or been part of gigs like this, and there are a lot of benefits. But I'd also argue that "having the ability to make things happen" is only half the battle here -- it's also having the *time and energy* to spare to make things happen! Generally, I've tried to reserve this type of thing big events like an album release. Even then, organizing PA/sound, ticket sales, facility rentals, etc *and* not having an established venue with its staff and reputation to back you leads to a lot of extra plates to spin. I've had good luck taking the reins, and as my collaborators and our friends and followers age out of the "late night bar show" crowd, putting together our own events has become more and more appealing and beneficial. But ultimately, there are only so many jobs one person can do well. I can play in half a dozen bands if most of the gigs are booked by others and I just have to show up. But being Engaged in the Logistics means you have to focus your efforts a lot more. It's always a tradeoff.

Wow, do I get to be the first person to mention Stevie Wonder? [Edit: nope, I see Yannis did mention a track already...] He played synth bass on a TON of his classic 70s album tracks. Boogie on Reggae Woman is probably the Legendary Mind-Blowing Example, but also Superstition, Love's in Need of Love Today, You and I, and on and on and on...

I'm in Ithaca, NY. It's a funny little scene -- a TON of great musicians and interesting music, to the point where I think the town sort of takes for granted that live music is available to them. A buddy of mine who tours a lot more often than me, based down near NYC, once said to me "dude, how come I can get my band at least a $500 guarantee anywhere in the country, but not in Ithaca?" At this point all I can say is "I wish I knew!" But I've found some lifelong friends and collaborators here, the chosen family kind that goes deeper than just "somebody I'm in a band with." It's a good feeling, even if it feels like a confusing uphill battle sometimes.