-
Using the BOSS Katana 50 in a Live Setting
I picked up a BOSS Katana 50 back in the spring of 2018 and I’m pretty impressed. I have always enjoyed using BOSS pedals, even though I use a variety of other brands, there has always been something really reliable and tough about BOSS products. There are dozens of YouTube videos out there that will […]
-
Discovering the Amazing Portable Universe of the iRig and Amplitube
There is a scene at the very end of Men In Black II where J and K open an exit door to reveal an entire universe that earthlings know nothing about. It’s more than just a door. It’s a portal. And I know it’s just a movie and this might sound like a stretch, but […]
-
The Passionate Black-and-White World of July Talk
Updated April 29, 2019 Once in a while you come across a band that has something really special: a passion that goes beyond the music itself and that shapes the entire live performance. I find this in the band called July Talk. To be honest, I had not heard of them until my 17-year-old daughter […]
-
Celebrating The Contemporary Youth Orchestra
The first time I encountered the Contemporary Youth Orchestra was watching a YouTube video of Yes performing I’ve Seen All Good People [see it here]. Yes is a formidable live band unto themselves, but the performance was made simply magical by the kids from the CYO. Everyone looked like they were having such fun, in […]
-
Remembering Chris Squire
A year has come and gone since the passing of Yes bassist Chris Squire, and his absence is palpable. I was lucky enough to see him twice, during the In The Round tour of 1978, supporting the Drama album, and then in 2013 in Massey Hall, Toronto. Although I have been a fan of Yes […]
-
Billy Joel: A nod and a wink to 19,000 friends
I had the privilege of seeing Billy Joel play Toronto’s Air Canada Center this past Sunday, and it was a treat. Having seen many pro bands deliver tight, well rehearsed 3-hour shows as part of a multi-city concert tour, it is easy to get used to cool professionalism washed in the magic purple of stage […]
-
Bob Culbertson and the Chapman Stick
Walking along the Embarcadero in San Francisco very recently, I heard the most beautiful music floating across the late afternoon breeze. It sounded like a trio, playing a gorgeous flowing piece of easy-listening jazz; there was no percussion, but something that sounded like a marimba, accompanying a harp or two – an actual sit down […]
-
Why I Admire Performers Like Mariah Carey
To be honest, I have never given Mariah Carey much thought. As an aging rocker raised on Elton John, Paul McCartney and U2, I have certainly experienced my share of glamorous musicians and diva antics, but I have never had much time for warbling femme-fatales, and so she, along with Celine Dion and Beyoncé have […]
-
What if John Lennon had lived?
I was sitting in a Starbucks recently and a track from John Lennon’s Double Fantasy came over the restaurant’s sound system. I was 15 years old when that album came out, and had already been a Beatles/Lennon fan for a decade. I remember how that album, from the first three bell tones of its first […]
-
Follow
Following
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
Steve Prentice Guitarist 