New Trail Coaching, Scott Malyszka

A few months ago, someone asked me what style of banjo I play when I perform. I thought for a moment, then answered, “I don’t perform with the banjo. I play some clawhammer, some three-finger, but it’s always been just once in a while at a jam. Never a performance.”

When I was recording my first CD in late 2007, the friend who was helping me get things done asked me if I was going to record anything on the banjo. “No,” I said, “it’s going to be all guitars. I haven’t been able to work up any banjo arrangements that seem to fit for my songs.”

I have ruminated on this lack of banjo performance for a while. Why don’t I take the old 5-string out and put some of my songs to it? I have my own personalized arrangements of some fiddle tunes, and I have even composed a few fiddle things of my own. I have put my own unique guitar styles onto my songs and on the covers that I perform. Why can’t I do that with banjo?

Well, I think I am starting to understand my “banjo block.” It’s like a writer’s block, where a writer just can’t get words to come out. I just can’t get interesting notes to come out of my banjo. I can imitate styles of banjoists that I admire, with varied success. I can approximate an Earl Scruggs tune here, a John Hartford tune there, and a few Pete Seeger, Bob Carlin, Doc Watson, Adam Hurt, etc. things. But I have a banjo block. I can’t find my own unique feel and style, my own notes that are not an emulation of someone else’s style.

Each of the banjoists I just mentioned has a unique banjo voice. And there are so many others that I admire–Alison Brown, Bela Fleck, Ken Perlman, Tony Trischka, Mike Seeger–each of whom has a unique banjo voice. That’s what’s missing for me–my own banjo voice.

For a long time I had a similar block for the ukulele. But I started working up some alternate-thumb bluesy picking on the uke for a few songs, including a couple of my originals. I have one song called “Nickels and Dimes” for my upcoming CD that will have some of this bluesy uke stuff on it. Once I hit that little thing on the uke, I was ready to pack up and take the show on the road. I wasn’t satisfied just adding another instrument to the caravan. I had to wait until the new instrument brought something strong to the music, then I was ready to take it out for the world to hear.

So I need to open up my creative instigation techniques and attitudes for the banjo to see if something starts flowing. I have a decent banjo, a gold Tone Maple Mountain, though it’s not outstanding. Maybe all I need to do is just spend a little more time with it and make friends. I tell my students not to get stuck playing everything from tab, but maybe I’m stuck there now. Maybe I need to get a little more of the freer banjo sounds that you here from people like Fleet Foxes, Sufjan Stevens, and even the Beach boys for heaven’s sake.

One last thought: I’m not complaining too much about my banjo block. Having a banjo block, a writer’s block, or any other creative block means that you have standards. Just because a person spends money to buy a new instrument doesn’t mean that he should afflict his audience with a bunch of crap. “Oh look, I got a banjo, now I am creative because I play some boring nonsense on it for a couple songs.” Nope, a block is a good thing. It means I ain’t putting some junk out there to waste an audience’s time. I will work on the thing until it’s ready, then I will bring something strong and worthwhile for people to hear.

Last night we went with some friends to Bangkok blues in Falls Church to hear Lisa Taylor. The Zen consultants were playing after Lisa, so we stuck around to hear some of their stuff too.

I’ll talk mostly about the sound of Lisa’s band, because I couldn’t follow the lyrics well enough to get into the songwriting. She had a standard rock band going, with rhythm acoustic guitar, lead electric guitar, drums, bass, and keys. Lisa’s sister Dana sang a lot of harmonies and threw in some great leads as well. Dana even played some snazzy flute on a few numbers.

The band was great. Lisa’s songs have a variety of styles, mostly reminding me of folky rock stuff from the seventies. As a performer she is very engaging and sweet with the folks in the audience, and there is a lot of fun energy from the whole band. It was great to chat a little with Lisa afterward as well.

I was really digging her keyboard player’s sounds. He was playing in the background almost the entire set, just rocking out with some nice piano or organ sounds. I wish that a few of the extended electric guitar solos could have been dropped in favor of giving this guy a few leads on his keys. Otherwise they sounded great.

After Lisa’s band, the Zen Consultants started playing around 10:00 pm. We had been there for over three hours at that point, so we only stuck around for three or four of their numbers. They were starting off with some nice covers of The Band, Dylan, Van Morrison. I really love this kind of material, and they sounded pretty good playing electric. I’ve heard various members of the ZCs doing acoustic stuff at various folky things, but this was my first chance to check them all out together gone electric. Pretty good. We were sitting closer to the stage than anyone else in the place, so it was a bit loud for us. But I hope to hear them again soon for a little more of their sixties and seventies rock stuff. Pretty

A few days ago I went with some friends to a songwriter show in Herndon VA. The performers were Jonathan Byrd plus Doug & Talisha Williams.

We weren’t very familiar with these artists, so we were just there to check them out with our ears open. Jonathan Byrd started the show and sang a couple lively and upbeat numbers. Right from the start, he had a sweet, mellow, pleasant voice, and his guitar picking was clean and strong. he definitely picked in the smooth bluegrass style of folks like Norman blake. It sounded like he was miking the guitar and wasn’t plugged in, which of course always sounds the best. And his mellow warm vocals really got the songs across. Lots of air in the sound, nice and quiet, yet we could hear all the picking and singing.

After the first upbeat numbers, Byrd went into some more reflective and poetic material. It was all well-written and well-performed. He is obviously an experienced writer and performer There is an interesting mind at work behind these songs, no doubt.

Then Doug and Talisha Williams took the stage. They were going for a more conventional country style. She played bass and sang most of the leads, and he plugged in a small-body acoustic guitar and played Tele-flavored nashvilled leads.

I must admit that my mind wandered a lot while the Williams were playing. Their material wasn’t quite my taste. I like to hear a more poignant chord progression, something a little poetic or crafty in the lyrics. They were just cranking out the I-IV_V with lots of volume in a small room. I think they would have fit better in a honky-tonk bar than in a quiet songwriter-oriented venue. Maybe they just had too much volume going in the PA. Or maybe Talisha was getting up onto the mike too much when she was hitting some hard notes. But this is all just a matter of taste.

Jonathan byrd was definitely the more polished of the two acts. His songs really intrigued me. I was low on cash that day, so i didn’t cruise by the piles of CDs for sale. but I think I will listen to some of his stuff online to maybe find something to order. I’ll definitely try to keep up with him so I can hear him again soon.

Monday night I took my little trio back to the recording studio to get some more stuff down. I decided after the first session that I just can’t pull off my vocals while playing live with the trio setup. I need the chance to just zero in on the vocals and fix notes and phrasings, so Monday we started recording with separate tracks.

working with separate tracks turned out well. I thought recording everything live would be more comfortable and “living room” for the two guys playing with me, but they really seemed cool with the separate tracks. I was really impressed listening to the mandolin takes on one song in particular. Each take seemed to get more tone focus, tighter timing, less pick noise, less string rattle, and better notes. The mando player was working real hard, and he probably couldn’t appreciate the progression each new take seemed to achieve. But it sounded great in the control room.

some wine and beer probably helped lubricate the musicians a little. A few extra people hanging around in the control room joking and playing instruments added some lightness too. for a song called “Nickels and dimes” I threw down my ukulele part in one take, and this was an intricate syncopated picking part, not just a strummy strum strum soup thickener. On that same song, my slide guitar player put down a really sweet part, though I had rejected the slide on that song during our pre-production rehearsals. things just fell into place, how nice for a change.

so we’re making good progress. One more session and I think we’ll have most of the instrumental parts done. Then I will record a few things solo and do the final vocals. I am eager to see how the finished product will come together.

Yesterday was Easter Sunday and also the first day of recording a new batch of songs. Yes, I know, I should have gone to church or prayed to the Easter Bunny or something. But I was with good friends, and we did have a really great lamb dinner in the afternoon.

I am recording a pile of my originals for a new CD. I am planning to work hard on it to get a more polished final result this time. Also, I have two good musicians and good friends playing with me.

We worked hard on four songs over about five hours. I think that two or maybe three of the songs had a take that will work as a final cut. One of the songs had real problems with my focals. So We tried to record live with three acoustic guitars and my vocals all at the same time. I think that I will try laying down each part as separate tracks, so that when I do the vocals I can really let go and just sing.

The hard part of working in a studio is that there is no vibe from people listening and applauding. There is no breath and energy in the room from folks chattering and walking around clanging plates and glasses. You have to provide your own breath and energy. It’s just you naked with the music.

The cool thing about being in a studio for me is that it is just you there naked with the music. You hear all kinds of stuff. Raise your soft palette or squint your eyes and your voice sounds very different. Changing the angle of your picking hand shifts the tone of your guitar quite a bit sometimes. All those nuances.

What I learned yesterday: I am not as prepared with my vocals as I thought I was. Big surprise–everyone treats vocals as an afterthought, and I made that mistake yesterday. So I need to rehearse my singing a lot more. What else? Just have fun and laugh and enjoy being in a room making music, I guess.

So we’ll see what comes of it in a little while. But I’m very eager, excited, and optimistic that we’re going to bang out a good bunch of songs.
tone