Monday, February 21, 2011

I've Started Playing My Guitar Again

And like any child of the eighties, I draw every bit of my inspiration from the insanely technical sweep picking of Joe Stump. I must say, it's difficult translating that inspiration into the slow and soulful guitar crooning appropriate to someone of my age, a person so mired in the grinding ennui of mid-life, so broken by the decades that he has lost the capacity to form even the simplest fantasy beyond the vague visualization of being the one roadie charged with sanitizing John Mayer's microphone every night. It doesn't matter what my inspiration is or how I employ it, though, because me learning to play sweep arpeggios is about as likely as me learning to speak or otherwise utter lyrics like, "I survive on the breath you are finished with." Both are equally impossible, so I guess I am wasting my time.

10 comments:

Rod's Duck Farm said...

sing ....
sing yore song ....
make it simple - to last yore whole life long.
Don't worry that its not good enough for anyone else to hear.
Just sing.
Sing yore song.
(Besides, they are PAYING John Mayer. When they start paying YOU, then they will deserve to hear the notes you play.)

Carl Duewall said...

Reminds me of Jeff Healey a little.

Dave Renfro said...

Yeah Rod, that's a nice one! I will definitely go outside early in the morning and record a video of myself next time it snows twenty inches. Just like you!

I hadn't thought of that, but I think John Mayer did listen to a lot of Jeff Healey records as a child. Plus Healey was a Torontonian, which Mayer will never be. Hi, Carl!

bulletholes said...

"Sanitize J.M.'s microphone"
You ought to be writing for the Rolling Stone.

Dave Renfro said...

Gee, you think? I guess I've just seen John and his microphone about town too often and they're always draped all over each other. I'm like, "Dude, get a room!"

Anonymous said...

Shitterdeshitshitshit! I wrote a fine & wonderful comment (no I didn't, I wrote a long and boring one)... but now it's gone! It wouldn't accept my google code. Hell. The jist/gist [?] of it was that I applaud your guitar playing endevours. I play mine for 20 years and suck at it and will suck at it forever, but I care not one jota. It's a fabulous way to rock out and stay out of trouble.

Martijn

Anonymous said...

I admire your pluck. And I too enjoyed the line about sanitizing John Mayers' microphones. I wish I had what it takes to pick up a guitar, or play one rather. I'm really quite good at picking them up.

UF Mike

Anonymous said...

Dave! How's the guitar play going? You've been quiet lately... I do hope you're fine. Have you struck gold again in some multibillion page book cycle perhaps? Do tell us. Hoi,

Martijn

Dave Renfro said...

Thanks everyone for checking in. Everything's fine here, but the Leafs' being three points out of a playoff spot has left me dumbstruck. My world has been turned upside-down! I'll try to post something sometime.

Anonymous said...

I suppose hockey is very important for some. Here in Europe it's football (you say socker) of course. Some clever type, I forgot who it was, once said the immortal words about football: 'It's not a matter of life & death... it's MUCH more important!'

I wish I could still be enthusiastic about any sport but I just can't anymore. I've grown into a grumpy old -it-used-to-be-better-in-the-past kind of guy. But it is true: our socker sucks nowadays, and car racing has been turned into a racing car display run since nobody dies anymore, cycling (my favorite sport) is still fun, but hmmm, staying at home for it isn't my thing anymore. Et cetera. I need more heroes in my life!

Go Leafs! Hey Dave.

Martijn