Dave Bryce Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Okay, so in the 80s, I had a project we called Funky Young Monks. We made a bunch of recordings. Some fun stuff - would have been nice if we had better gear...and sucked less at recording... Fast forward a bunch of years. In looking for material to record so I could try to improve my skills, I started redoing some of these tunes. Several friends have played on them. Steve Nathan, Marino, Jeff Lorber, Tim Pierce, Matt Bissonette....folks way more talented than I. I've even released a few as EPs. I have no expectations for these - I just enjoy doing them. Anyway, I have enough of these tunes to press an album (vinyl time, baby!), which I just finished having mastered...but I believe I have an odd problem: because the name of the band is Funky Young Monks, I wanna call the record Grumpy Old Monkthology. The old for young thing is obvious....and, sadly, the best word to substitute for funky that will make the most sense with old is grumpy. Sorta rhymes, closest funny word with most opposite meaning. Now, none of this would be a problem if Rick Wakeman didn't have books and tours built on the Grumpy Old Rock Star thing...but he does. I obviously have no wish to even slightly look like I'm riffing on or copying that...but Grumpy Old makes the most sense coming off the Funky Young thing. Realistically, none of this should matter from a legal POV - there's little to no chance of any critical success for my record, it's just a vanity project...but stilll...it's bugging me. I've tried coming up with another name...but I feel like this one - absent the Rick Wakeman thing - is perfect. Am I overthinking this? dB Quote ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doerfler Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Short answer is yes. (overthinking this) As I've posted elsewhere, I saw him twice on the "Grumpy Old Rock Star Tour". Hoping I will see him in October on the "Even Grumpier Old Rock Star Tour" if it happens. Don't see any connection between your music and his. It's not like he's gonna say, "this guy interviewed me once for Keyboard magazine and now he's ripping me off". Bet if he does, he'll make a joke of it. He is so frigging funny. And tall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KuruPrionz Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 The funnest thing to do is to have your people contact his people or however that works these days. Anyway, briefly explain and ask him for permission. There's got to be a way to get a message through. What's the worst thing that could happen? Quote It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doerfler Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Anyway, briefly explain and ask him for permission. Ask him for permission for what? Last I checked he doesn't own the English language. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Real MC Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Am I overthinking this? Most definitely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcgoo Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Anyway, briefly explain and ask him for permission. Ask him for permission for what? Last I checked he doesn't own the English language. True, but I think the idea has merit. You could send him a note explaining your dilemma almost the same way you explained it here. You don't need his permission, but you don't want to burn a bridge. He'll either give you his blessing or he'll be a little uncomfortable with it and will say so. And your conscious will be clear. Either way is a win. He'll appreciate the ask. Quote Custom Music, Audio Post Production, Location Audio www.gmma.biz https://www.facebook.com/gmmamusic/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KuruPrionz Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Anyway, briefly explain and ask him for permission. Ask him for permission for what? Last I checked he doesn't own the English language. I don't thin that isn't what Dave is worried about. It sound to me like he feels like he wants this to be OK with Rick Wakeman. I could be wrong, if not - do it!!! Quote It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analogika Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Explain your thoughts in a three-sentence foreword, with tongue-in-cheek apologies to Rick Wakeman, and send him a copy when it's published. Quote "The Angels of Libra are in the European vanguard of the [retro soul] movement" (Bill Buckley, Soul and Jazz and Funk) The Drawbars | off jazz organ trio Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamuelBLupowitz Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 I am appalled that you would so blatantly rip off a Jack Lemmon / Walter Matthau comedy from the 1990s! Quote Samuel B. Lupowitz Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajstan Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 I didn"t see anything in the USPTO word mark search for 'grumpy old' in any field of music, but you can check trademark registrations for yourself here: https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=login&p_lang=english&p_d=trmk Quote Nord Stage 3 HA88, Nord Stage 3 Compact, Casio CT-S1, Radial Key Largo, Westone AM Pro 30, Rolls PM55P, K&M 18880 + 18881, Bose S1 Pro, JBL 305p MKII, Zoom Q2n-4K Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunaman Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 I like the idea of reaching out to him as a courtesy⦠may get to have a conversation with him, which would be cool and likely good for a bunch of laughs I would guess. Then you could compose the foreword as suggested and include a tongue-in-cheek tip of the hat to Rick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Paxton Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 +1 for "Yes, you're overthinking this non-issue." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wjwilcox Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Of course you're overthinking it. As any of us would. Heck, you interviewed him on video once.....send him a message and explain. the worst he can do is laugh and say "Dave who?". Quote www.wjwcreative.com www.linkedin.com/in/wjwilcox Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BbAltered Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Thesaurus.com is your friend. Grumpy = cantankerous, crotchety, grouchy, irritable, sullen, surly, testy, crabby, cross, disgruntled, grumbling, sulky, truculent, etc. Quote J.S. Bach Well Tempered Klavier The collected works of Scott Joplin Ray Charles Genius plus Soul Charlie Parker Omnibook Stevie Wonder Songs in the Key of Life Weather Report Mr. Gone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboKeys Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Or you could just bypass the issue with a different first word -- Chunky Old Monks? Cranky Old Monks? - Jimbo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tusker Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Or you could just bypass the issue with a different first word -- Chunky Old Monks? Cranky Old Monks? - Jimbo Monky Old Funks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timwat Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Blue Pill Monkthology Quote .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irena Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 crusty? Quote B/Midiboard/VirusKC/Matrix12/EX5/Maschine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KuruPrionz Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 crusty? Ewww... Perfect! Quote It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harmonizer Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 How about "Funky Old Monkthology" ? Are the new recordings any less funky than what the younger musicians played? (edited after re-reading) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nursers Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Funky Old Monkthology. The music did not get any less funky by sitting in a can for 25 years. I think you did overthink something - the name itself. Agreed, I'd even go shorter: Funky Monkthology.... Quote The Keyboard Chronicles Podcast Check out your fellow forumites in an Apple Music playlist Check out your fellow forumites in a Spotify playlist My Music: Stainless Fields Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polychrest Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 These may not be quite what you had in mind, butâ¦. Frumpy Old Monks Skunky Old Monks Drunky Old Monks Punky Old Monks Gunky Old Monks Hunky Old Monks Junkie Old Monks Quote “For 50 years, it was like being chained to a lunatic.” -- Kingsley Amis on the eventual loss of his libido Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted July 31, 2021 Author Share Posted July 31, 2021 Thanks for all the replies, gents - greatly appreciated! Honestly, I'm not worried about Rick himself at all. I don't think he'd care one way or the other regardless of whether he remembers me, and kinda feel like it would be goofy for me to even ask him - like I said, this is just a vanity project. I'm a marketing guy though, so I can't help but look at it from the point of a large part of my target audience for this project - my keyboard playing/musician friends who don't know the back story. I imagine if I saw one of my keyboard buddies putting out a Grumpy Old etc anything with Rick getting ready to go on tour, I'd almost certainly wonder if they couldn't have avoided it. Like I said - large possibility I'm over thinking...but hey - this sort of market awareness is supposed to be part of my day gig, so it's really just me exercising a well used set of muscles in a perfectly reasonable application. The idea of putting something in the liner notes is a good one...but of course the only folks who'll see that are the ones who get the record and read said notes. However, I'm thinking that maybe a note in some of the social media annoucement the record might help/be good for a grin. Polychrest - been there on some of those (Hunky? Not even when I was in decent shape ). None make me smile as much as grumpy. dB Quote ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marzzz Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Yes, you are overthinking it. Considering the Grumpy Old Men movies pre-dated Rick Wakeman's books by more than a decade or two⦠Or as Mel Brooks said, 'it"s 1874! You can sue herâ¦!' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
o0Ampy0o Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Okay, so in the 80s, I had a project we called Funky Young Monks..... I wanna call the record Grumpy Old Monkthology. The old for young thing is obvious....and, sadly, the best word to substitute for funky that will make the most sense with old is grumpy. Sorta rhymes, closest funny word with most opposite meaning..... A. Fuddy-duddy Monks of Funkology "Fuddy-duddy" = old devoted staunch faithful traditional "Monks" => religious devotees Monks of what? = Funk "ology" = a scientific branch of knowledge. or "thology" = emphasizing the collection aspect as in anthology with funkthology as you may have alluded to with "monkthology" B. Fuddy-duddy Monk's Funkthology ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyRude Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 Funky Old Punks Quote Some music I've recorded and played over the years with a few different bands Tommy Rude Soundcloud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MotiDave Posted July 31, 2021 Share Posted July 31, 2021 I"d just do it. Don"t ask, send a message to Rick that you"re throwing out this project thing, and it reminded you of him. Wish him well, hope to see him come through these parts again soon blah blah done. I don"t think there are enough normal people out there in the real world that will make any connection whatsoever. odds are 1000% greater they will think of the movie, actually. But what do i know ⦠you"ll decide what feels right for you Quote The baiting I do is purely for entertainment value. Please feel free to ignore it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CowboyNQ Posted August 1, 2021 Share Posted August 1, 2021 I think you have zero to worry about Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Bryce Posted August 1, 2021 Author Share Posted August 1, 2021 Cool. You guys rock. Thank you... dB Quote ==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <== Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KuruPrionz Posted August 1, 2021 Share Posted August 1, 2021 Cool. You guys rock. Thank you... dB Go all Elmer Fudd on them - Gwouchy Owed Funky Monks. Quote It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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