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Comment by dogfinger steve on January 31, 2010 at 4:51am

i will be out there with mine as soon as i finish building it... not far to go now :0)

Comment by Wichita Sam on January 31, 2010 at 3:37am

corky,

You certainly are full of.... enthusiasem.... ;-).... ahem... since you found that ZZ Top shuffle, you gotta get "She Loves My Automobile" in the rotation... it is made for slide CBG....

Where the heck are you? I'll take the left over County fair gigs....

the best,

Wichita Sam

Comment by Corky Hesler on January 30, 2010 at 8:40pm

I joined the Nation specifically to begin performing in an genre that didn't require the participation of anyone else. The information gleaned at the Nation has been very helpful. I know nothing about frets and such, so the fretless 3-string diddly bow was right for me. I have no intention of building CBGs for sale. Building a few as gifts for my sons and best friend to refine a design that will let me do what I need to make it work as a one-man-band performer, though. When I managed to simulate a chuggy ZZ Top shuffle using only a slide, it instantly widened my repertoire. I have been referring to the performance process with the diddly bow as "guitar Wrestling' when talking to talent bookers. It fulfills my need for out-front recognition and allows me to indulge my penchant for storytelling and tales of growing up on a farm when Ike was president (usually while a song is put on simmer). Maybe women will throw undergarments at me like they did when my son and I had a bluesrock band back in the 90s. I left the nation for a while, but came back because I enjoy the folks here. Advertising turned me off.

As far as venues to gig in, I've been having some luck with arts councils and small town celebrations because of my primitive approach. Not much milling, but lots of hammer and chisel shaping. Part of my pitch is that I will employ a segment of porch railing with a wire and piezo already attached to the post that will allow me to construct a diddly bow right in front of the audience. Our small town has been re-energizing the downtown area with a performance stage and greenspaces after disparaging it for thirty years. The hope is that I can convince Mayor Chuck to proclaim me the Official Street Musician. A very nice fiddle player friend of my father's from Muskogee told me one time that there are more fair and event shows each week that pay $ 300 for one hour than there are bars which pay $ 300 for four hours. I have actually set the phone down and played for wrong number callers who happened to call when I was rehearsing. Wallflower, I'm not. Our town enjoyed a barber shop that had wednsday night bluegrass jams. The owner passed away and that stopped. The sidewalk is now mine. That, and the artsy downtown diner around the corner are becoming my base of operations. A woman called today to ask me to play a wedding reception in Omaha (240 miles) in October. The first gig is in March and I am ready now, but am adding harp and keyboard parts to break the monotony. My vocal coach says I already sing better than the first two weeks of American Idol. Be sure to check out the the Sweet Potato Shuffle by the "Hat Lady" on a 2-string rezo diddly bow on YouTube. I am totally enchanted by her voice.

SET LIST FOR FIRST SHOW

Baby Please Don't Go- Miss Fred McDowell
Down the Road Apiece- Amos Milburn
I got my Mojo Workin'- Muddy
Baby Whatcha Want Me to Do- Willie Dixon'
Turn on Your Lovelight- Bobby " Blue" Bland
Bo Diddly- Bo
I'm a Roadrunner Baby- Gants
Hard Drivin' Man- J Geils
Born on the Bayou- Creedence
Dinin', Dancin', Live Bait- Original
Sittin' in That Downtown Houston Bus Station- Orginal
Ain't That a Shame- Fats
Walkin' the Dog- Rufus Thomas

Comment by Josh Gayou (SmokehouseGuitars) on January 30, 2010 at 6:50am

Heh, that's the way it is with my son as well. He just turned three a couple of weeks ago. I bought him his first drum kit last x-mas and he loves it. Bangs the hell out of it, smacks a symbol, and then puts his sticks in the air like "ROCK HANDS!!!"

Comment by Josh Gayou (SmokehouseGuitars) on January 30, 2010 at 6:34am

Joker, it happens, man. I hit a rough spot about a year ago or so and stopped completely for a while. Got back in slowly as things got better.

We're always here to BS with you and do whatever we can but if you feel like you need to go into lurk mode for a while to get things back in order don't feel like you're letting us down or anything. Sometimes we just have to disconnect for a bit to fix things. We'll always be here waiting for you when you come back.

Comment by Joker on January 30, 2010 at 3:18am

I have not built a CBG since I the "Time Bomb" back last spring. My last onstage cbg performance was at the extravaganza in Huntsville. Been going through a rough patch personally but I hope to get back out and perform this spring. I have been working on a practicing an all gospel set to perform for my church

Comment by Matthew Borczon on January 30, 2010 at 2:46am

Hoe great must it be to play live with your own kin. Congratulations on the whole event. Anyone get any video?

Comment by Josh Gayou (SmokehouseGuitars) on January 29, 2010 at 5:56pm

I'm so glad to hear that your kid is getting in on the action. What an awesome freaking thing to do with your son. I think he might need a Smokehouse as well...

Comment by Matthew Borczon on January 29, 2010 at 2:30pm

I ACTUALLY PLAY WAY MORE THAN I BUILD. i ALSO UTILIZE THE ACIDPLANET SITE TO POST A LOT OF MUSIC. iF YOU GO TO THE DOOMTOWN JUG SLUGGER PAGE YOU WILL FIND A TON OF MY STUFF. THE NEWEST POST I HAVE ON THERE IS A HALF HOUR LIVE SET THROUGH ONE MIKE, JUST ME AND A 3 STRING COOKIE TIN BANJO. YOU CAN DOWNLOAD IT FREE IF YOU GO THERE TO LOOK. http://www.acidplanet.com/artist.asp?songs=135052&T=9997 ANYWAY I AM GLAD TO SEE MORE EMPHASIS ON PLAYING. SHANE BREAK A LEG TONIGHT

Comment by joe cerroni on January 29, 2010 at 2:16pm

help finding an open mike in your area: openmikes.org just type in your zip code and miles radius and you'll probably find a few places to play!

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