Any One For Tennis

Can't get what tis means. Can someone help?

Twice upon a time in the valley of the tears
An auctioneer is bidding for a box of fading years
And the elephants are dancing on the graves of squealing mice.
Anyone for tennis, wouldn't that be nice?


And the ice creams are all melting on the streets of bloody beer
While the beggars stain the pavements with flourescent Christmas cheer
And the Bentley-driving guru is putting up his price.
Anyone for tennis, wouldn't that be nice?


And the prophets in the boutiques give out messages of hope
With jingle bells and fairy tales and blind colliding scopes
And you can tell they're all the same underneath the pretty lies.
Anyone for tennis, wouldn't that be nice?


The yellow Buddhist monk is burning brightly at the zoo
You can bring a bowl of rice and then a glass of water too
And fate is setting up the chessboard while death rolls out the dice.
Anyone for tennis, wouldn't that be nice?

Where I Was?

These are the five of his live performances I wish I would have seen.

1. Cream's - The Farewell Concert
2. Rainbow Concert
3. Live at the Budokan Theater, Tokyo
(CD as Just One Night)
4. CrossRoads Guitar Festival Dallas (May-Jun 2004)
5. Unplugged!

LiveWire!

It was the high time in my college as it was the last year and the placements were in full swing. The first company came and rejected me, the second came and shove me in the GD round. Then for a few days there were no companies visiting the campus. I had realized that its going to be tough call if I this spark initiates a chain reaction (of companies rejecting me). I was not desperate to get a job just because I needed it, but I needed more than everyone, as it would hold the key to see him live. My Big Bro got lucky; he got the tickets for Clapton's shows that were cancelled. They were scheduled in November end. So I arranged myself, did some SWOT analysis and got myself ready for the next one. It struck, I was through. After getting through I had nothing to do, I'd just sit back in my room and play the guitar all day (lectures never bothered me). Occasionally I would go to the institute but would go after the lectures timings and come before the next one started. Meanwhile, I did all I need to do to get the visa and other things. It was scheduled on the 29th Nov 2003 at Yokohama Sports Arena.

When I got there it was a sold out. I settled for an EC collectible cap from there as a memoriam for 3000 yens (the rest of the collectibles were way too costly 7000 yens and more). The first thing I saw on the stage was his guitar (one from his own signature series) known as the Crashocaster as a painter who calls himself Crash painted it. I just started to wonder the amount of equipment that was on the stage - guitars, amplifiers, processors, monitors, miles and miles of cables and what not. The amplifier Clapton used in that show was a Fender Vintage Series amplifier, and I felt that it was turned all the way up in its volume. And he just as came he alone played a Robert Johnson classic “When You Got a Good Friend” upon a black Martin acoustic (sites reported that it was made specially for him by the Martin & Co for this tour). It felt like four guitars in synch! After this one, he just leaned back picked up his Crashocaster and pulled a solo out of it. It was out of this world. I got my money’s worth. His head leaned back his body, his eyes closed in desperation. It was a sight of a master craftsman. After this it was all up the hill.

He did all the songs crowd wanted Wonderful Tonight, Layla, Cross Roads, Can’t Find My Way Home, Great Muddy Waters’ Got My Mojo Working, Cocaine, Sunshine of Your Love, White Room, Reconsider Baby, I Shot The Sheriff. The rest I don’t remember as it was one his rare shows that lasted for nearly two hours. And the last one was from the Classic Wizard of Oz – Somewhere Over The Rainbow. What I missed was My Father’s Eyes & River Of Tears, but what he gave was too much to take in a single evening. In between the songs he did not talk with the crowd, all he did was just a mild thanks giving. The most amazing thing he would do in the show was to pick a slide in a split second and play a solo on slide.

I was stunned by the energy and vitality of the 60-year-old man and I wonder what he would play when he was 25. Time to check up his schedule, lets see when he is visiting Japan again as my trip to Japan is due ;-)

Change!

Mood in the morning was Double Trouble!
And Now its The Last Fair Deal Going Down!

One More thing

One thing i realized that his music makes you feel the way you want to unlike BB who makes you feel the way he is feeling.

Want One?

I got this list from Christie’s Official site. This is the comprehensive list of all the instruments Clapton auctioned in Mar ’04 to support Crossroads - A rehabilitation he has set up center for the chemically addicted. Among the instruments, I was lucky to see Clapton playing the Cherry Red Gibson ES 335 at the Yokohama Sports Arena in Nov’ 2003. He had played “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” on this guitar in that show. If I am not wrong this is the same guitar upon which he achieved that Fat Heavy Bluesy Tone of “Reconsider Baby”. Last in the list is the famous “Blackie”- Clapton himself assembled this by taking the components from four Fender Strats, eventually in this auction it became the most csotly guitar history has ever recorded. Also it became the template for the Clapton Signature Strat. I tried a signature Strat in a shop in Tokyo, the action and the sustain are amazing plus that extra boost that it gets from the tone control, costs a whooping 6,50,000 yens + 5% Tax :-(





[Fender have the same repute in guitars as Mercedes in Cars]
[Stratocaster aka Strat is one of the most celebrated electric guitars]
[Action - Distance from the strings and the board of the guitar]
[Sustain - The time for which a note persists when played]
[Boost - You can only feel if you play :p]

Just One Night

This is about about the twin CD “Just One Night”, recorded live in Dec’ 79 at the Budokan Theater Tokyo (I saw him live there in last November). Just for the reason that I am listening to it now. This is perhaps the best live performance of his during the 70s. In this Clapton once again proved why “EC is God” was written on the walls all over London and Europe. In this recording Clapton is visibly under the influence of the country music and drugs as well. Not to mention the Blues, what he regard as his inspiration and driving force when he drifts from his roots. Clapton, in this tape also resembles a bit to B.B. King. This is perhaps the most mysterious guitar tone I have ever heard. I am trying hard to achieve that tone since last two months, but all is in vain.

Now, I beg pardon of all those who are not musicians as they might not be able to get what I’m talking about. I am just dying to get into this tone. This tone seems to be in between of clean and overdrive, but where I can’t figure out. I tried with all the combos of Clean and overdrive channels in my 30-Watt Marshall amp. I am using an Ibanez GIO series guitar and a crybaby wah-wah pedal. The crybaby wah-wah has helped me inching to this tone. (I don’t have any multi effects processor, just a Crybaby wah-wah pedal). The nearest I can get to it is when I am on the clean channel with treble at 4 and bass at 8 and volume nearly at 9. I guess that sustain comes from the volume, reverb and the feedback. Also extra sustain from the chorus that’s laid over the effects. As Ibanez are naturally high pitch guitars, I keep the tone control on my guitar somewhere in between. I will get an overdrive pedal perhaps a Boss Blues Driver or Ibanez Tube-Screamer, lets see how closer it gets me to this tone. I am waiting for the weekend. Will post again, if I get it.
If anyone can help, please do comment

P.S. I want to use this space as a discussion forum rather than an expression forum.