OK, need some help. I have the Crystal Planet world premier CD, and it has some cool live tracks from a private concert in San Fran.

I cannot find any information on when it was. The info I have only says "recorded last week in front of about 60 fans"

I think it was an invitation or competition only event.

Can someone please give me a date? It was recorded at Coast Studios (San Fran) just prior to March 1998.

Long post

Hi all just a quick post before I make the tough decision of which beach to swim at :) - aaah I love being on holiday!

Last night I caught up with my bro-in-law who is a flamenco guitarist and he gave me a lesson for about 2 hrs - OMG I learnt more in that space than I had in the last 3 weeks reading the Dummies Guide.

He graciously let me play his beautiful $8000 Conde Hermanos guitar - it was so light, soft and lovely, with a short neck (about 3-4 less frets than my guitar) smaller body and steel-covered nylon strings. Man it was heaven compared to my monster Canora - he played mine whilst he gave me some tips and he said mine was incredibly hard (explains why my fingers were numb this last 3 weeks) and I should see if the strings could be lowered.

He showed me barre chords, and also how you can be playing a major chord but pick out 2-3 strings in the chord to keep playing the other notes in the song - sounded so much nicer than strumming all chords in sequence, you just hold down C or something and pick out the next notes in the song as single strings. Of course, I have to memorise the notes that each string is producing in a chord to do it.

He also showed me that you can alot of the time anchor your pinky on the 1st string 3rd fret and switch between some chords more easily because you have the pinky oriented. It doesn't change the note because it is only doubling an existing note in the chord. Brilliant.

He showed me how to hold the plectrum and strum so that on the down stroke you use one side of the plectrum and on the up stroke you use the other side, all the time your hand doesn't move other than vertically, and to strum all 6 strings evenly. Have to practice that.

Now I finally know how the syncopated rhythm works - he showed me the missing strums and now it makes sense.

I also learnt about hand, forearm and elbow position so I started to get a clean C and F.

Needless to say every song in the Dummies Guide he just looked at and immediately read the music and played - but not how the book had it notated, he did it all different ways.

Got to go, lots to learn and 9 days of free time to practice guitar...........

Slans--Moritz is me married name. My hubby's family is from Germany, Prussia, Lithuania and England. Quite a history! My family came from Fidler outside of Manchester (Hazel Grove) and Farrar a subclan in Scotland (location unknown). I would love to come to England and Scotland and find out a thing or two about the names. My curiousity is boundless!!

Michelle--My heart goes out to you. I hope the "games" end soon and you know where you stand. On another note--February 2 is comin' up and I think it's Groundhog Day isn't it? It's funny that people would ask a ground dwelling, fat herbivore when Spring will begin!! The animal just wants to be left alone in its warm burrow as any self-respecting oversized squirrel in that part of the country does. People are so funny and will make up any excuse to come together in the middle of winter to find out, if they can get closer to warmer weather. All I can say is come out to Cali and you will find warmer, fair weather. The trees don't know what time of year it is and are starting to bud!! This is not good for Cali or its neighbors!

Al McKenna--Hope you are having a blast in Spain. Gale force winds in Eire or anywhere are brutal. It's just an eastern Atlantic and North Sea thing, I guess. Ya know, old man winter and all that. I hope you took yer guitar with you to keep ya company.

roo--You are amazing taking all that time to set up a page for reviews and stuff about Joe.

Igneousiceman--Ry has a great teaching style. He's very patient. Expects me to follow his demonstrations of fingering and repeat what I see. He gives a fair amount of homework. I think Joe passed along his teaching style and generousity to Ry. It sure shows! ;b

My Steve is on fire about stereo components, speakers, cables and the like. He has always been a stereophile. He also can't get enough of goings on for Martin Luther King Day and the up-coming swearing in of the next President of the USA! He thinks Michelle Obama is a foxy lady! Yeah, she is good looking. I think the whole Obama family is attractive! It's going to be an interesting year---hopefully a brighter more prosperous one.

Good night T2J people.

GG2: Thanks! I wouldn't say amazing, but it is taking a stupid amount of time. Literally (and I mean literaly) hours a day almost every day of the week (lot's of late nights).

I still have heaps to put in. I'm a little disappointed in reaction of the global community. Its a great resource to look things up, but it could be sooooo much better if more people helped fill in the missing gaps with gig venue locations that I cannot find, more of Joe's sketches, some harder to find photos (joe on drums or sitar)... etc....

I think my main motivation is to help spread the word for Joe. He is a great person who is an incredible composer with fantastic artistic and technical ability. He is shaping and influencing guitar today and well into the future. If I can spend some time to contribute like this, and it helps in some way to keep Joe in the public eye, or generate more sales for him, then I'm just glad to be able to help.

Like I said also, with the breadth of information I'm posting on the site, searches for beethoven, san francisco, the warfield, Greg Kihn, and heaps of other things will end up possibly directing people to this site. So more will know about Joe.

Roo

Bloody service provider has crashed now. Even their home page has disappeared from the net.

Dear Mr Joe,

When will you and your most excellent tallents and crew be missioning to New Zealand again?

After many hours of excitment and frustration i finally gave up trying to plan a trip to see you here last year. The student life just wasnt going to allow me to do it:( But ive told myself that next time you set foot in my homeland ill be in your audience with my forehead to the ground chanting something along the lines of "I am not worthy, I am not worthy".

Many an hour i have spent listening to your most excellent music ever since i discovered "Crushing day" back in the day when i was but a small boy, only then it was the chorus that captured me and now its the solo. I must congratulate you on your most excellent brain powers and finger skills.

I must ask (if ofcourse you have time), do you know what its going to sound like before you play? For example do you dream up themes and solos just before you play them, or play and see what it sounds like? Or maybe you dream them up in your semiconsious half asleep state with the help of alians who visit to teach you riffs?

oh, we called our uni class group "Group Satchafunkilus" last year:P

Blue Monday

and let's not forget it's Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Hello T2Jers and hope ya'll have a good Martin Luther King Monday!

Maritime--Interesting info about January 19 being the gloomiest day of the year. Well, the door to Cali is always open and I will roll out the red carpet at a moment's notice should you decide to make the trip to San Jose/Santa Clara. Maybe it's a good thing since I was diagnosed with depression that I live in one of the sunniest places in the world. However, I think I am a daughter of nature and depend on the daylight, dark of night, seasons, rain, wind and even wintry blasts of earth to build character and share with all my brother and sister humans!

Roo--My heart goes out to you. If you do something for Joe it is never in vain, even if you fall short of your goal. Take it from someone who has fallen on her face many times in her journey through life!

Peace and joy and music power!

Blue Moon, when in Malaga check out a cool Spanish shredder named David Valdez, from the Vinnie Moore Jason Becker school of shred.

Ask him if he is related to Juan......

Hey Satchland..

SuperDave--Sad to hear about your loss. Great bass players and friends like that are precious. I'm sure you have some wonderful memories.

Campbell--I have another lesson tomorrow afternoon. Today I bought the beginning HAL LEONARD book Ry recommended. Practicing as much as I can to prepare. Thanks for the direction to the vistas of Scotland.

Ibanez_god---LMAO. You got that right, man! Good riddance!!

Hello Joe !!! Here Again from Argentina !!! Thanks again for your featiful music !!!! Really, for me the music is an important part of my life and ejoy the music is enjoy a part of teh life!!!

How many hour need to dedicate to perform play guitar, to practice, to learn, to understand the music and teh guitar?

Hey everyone,

I hope everyone is doing okay on this Monday, or Holiday (Martin Luther King Jr. Day). Got today off, but then it is back to work early in the morning for the next three days.

Maritime: Blue Monday to you as well.

SuperDaveMcCarthy: Sorry for the loss of your friend. Prayers to you, the families, and everyone.

Michelle: Well, one team isn't bad. Good luck to the Steelers in the Super Bowl. I hope things are going well at your job.

Anibur: Same to you. I hope things are going well with your job as well.

Skippygirl: Glad to hear you are doing well. You continue playing guitar, while I continue to run.

Igneousiceman: How's everything going with you (and the swimming)?

Blue_Moon: Hey Al, how's Spain?

GoldenGirl2: I hope your guitar playing is going well as usual.

Like melodic instrumental music?

Be sure to check out www.soultostrings.com or www.myspace.com/soultostrings.

Super Dave - sorry to hear your friend passed away, condolences.

Glitzy - yes I'll keep playing and you keep running - I think my body is really built for strength not for running, at least not distance running. I can sprint from 30 years of basketball but the flat running isn't getting any easier or better. Yesterday I did a short 5km walk around the area of the beach we are staying and just ran up the hills, I couldn't run more than a few hundred metres.

Al - hope you are having a lovely time in Spain.

Michelle - sorry to hear you have 2 wks off, but as you say it is a good opportunity to catch up on odd jobs.

GG2 - can you outline what you are learning in each lesson and what you find hard/easy? Sounds like a great experience, nothing like talking to an expert.

Hey Joe, How bout doing something with Blues/rock legend Gary Moore? I recon you guys could shake the earth :D

Hello T2J. I am back (Sorry :P)

Last i posted, my mother didnt know i was sick. When i told her about my headache, then she said i must not play guitar before my headache disappeared. Baaaah. How boring was that ...
I also havent been sick for 3 years. So i couldnt remember being sick was that awfull. Oh. Never mind. Im back again and happy :D
Lets read the 100 unread messages from you T2J'ers

Cool. Some people do know Denmark in here xD

I updated the front page to list all new items: http://roo.emu.id.au/newsatch/

This now also lists other new items like photos and doodles, etc.

I also made a new index (from the index menu) to show the latest updated items: Latest Updates

And added heaps of song descriptions from Anthology, a few doodles from plectrums, etc.