Greatest Rhymes in Music

"Pablo Picasso" by David Bowie. I love to see how people use rhyme in songs. Sometimes it's easy - "I love you baby and I don't mean maybe" or whatever, but sometimes it's tricky, and I love to see how musicians get around the problem. Occasionally they'll just give up and say the same word twice; basically rhyming a word with itself. I love that. But sometimes great and unexpected rhymes come up, and this is one of my favorites of all time. It's from the song "Pablo Picasso" from the "Reality" CD. Bowie manages to rhyme "asshole" with "Picasso," and that's inspired. Plus "asshole" is a great word anyway. The song says:

                   Well some people try to pick up girls
  They get called assholes

                      This never happened to Pablo Picasso

Amazing. Just amazing. Fantastic song too. Studio version (no link function):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8xWOK9K0_I

If Life Gives You Lemons...

...sell those suckers. Forget lemonade. Priced any lemons lately? Seems like not long ago they were three for a buck and now it's pushing two. Leave the lemonade stands to the kids. Just a thought. 

Drum Dog Update

After I played a few songs I ate a bit and took the dog out and he came back in and tore around the house as fast as he could. I figured maybe he'd crash and I'd play more drums. He ran around for a song or two but then I didn't see him so after a few minutes I looked around to see what he was into and there he was crashed out right beneath me while I was playing. I wonder how many drummers can play drums with their dog by their drums. Certainly not many guys with regular acoustic kits, unless the dog is about 16 years old and deaf. It's pretty cool to have a dog under you while you play drums. Not only is it good luck, but while I hear the drums normally with headphones, they aren't loud enough to even bother a dog. Not bad. 

You Know You're a Halfway Decent Drummer when...

...you can play the first three songs to the excellent "Reality" CD by David Bowie without missing a single beat and only having to stop twice, while trying to keep in line a ten-week-old Beagle puppy who's just gotten up after a five-hour nap and is running all around the drum kit, trying to bite the cords and at one point even standing on my foot as I was playing the bass drum. It's the first time I've played drums since I got him and he didn't know quite what to think, but he minded me about 50-50. The drumming is pretty simple on those songs but it isn't east to point one stick at him and say "NO" while keeping on playing and not mess up, and I was strangely locked-in for being so distracted by this crazy puppy running around the drum kit. I'd have been glad to record the drums I played it was so accurate, and I think even Bowie himself would appreciate it. No kidding. Maybe I should start playing drums with little puppies going berserk, because I haven't played that smoothly in a good while. Go figure. 

Puppy Breath

Puppy breath is amazing. To me it beats new-car smell and even a new vinyl LP. I've been trying for several days to identify the different aromas, but it's hard to compare it to anything it's so unique. If I were to describe it as a wine, I'd say that the principal note is burnt coffee, followed by leather and hints of hay and mowed grass. There's a touch of peanut butter made with Valencia peanuts. Sounds crazy maybe, but that's what I'd say. I'd wear it on a date. 

Dog

This is my new dog. His name is Herbert, or Bert for short. So far he's a stellar animal. What a regal little face he has. He looks oddly human in this photo, and it reminds me of some face I can't remember...like a sarcophagus or a face you'd see in ancient Egypt. What a great dog. Beagles rock. His official registered name will be Dr. Octafer's Herbert Sherbet. 

Drumhead of the Day

This drumhead is about 17 years old. There's a farmer's market close by and I used to get produce there three days a week or more. They had a huge watermelon bin made out of corrugated cardboard with this print stamped around it, and every time I'd pull up I'd park in front of it and make a hole with my thumb and finger and look at it and think how cool it would look on the front of a bass drum. Out there maybe, but cool. I finally told the guy one day and he goes "You can have it." We carefully peeled it off (you can see stripes where it was glued to the cardboard) and there was just enough paper to trim and fit inside of a clear drumhead. I'm pretty sure it's unique. I gigged with it for five years probably, and people always got off on it. The drum was old to begin with (probably 80s) and it's semi-officially retired, but that thin paper cuts down on just enough excess ring to make this bass drum sound like a million bucks without any other muffling, and if there were any studio work around here I'd replace the tension claw and get it rockin' again. It still looks cool though. 

Watch out, Neighborhood

After years and years of hard work, dedication, sacrifice and playing, I've become the best drummer on my block. Last time I checked there were no other drummers on my block.