Music Stuff - Cool Stuff

 Win Some, Lose Some 2020 has been a roller coaster of a year for my music projects.   First, the Eugene Saturday Market had to downsize for the season which meant no music at the Market.  As the Stage Manager (which includes booking the entertainment, running sound and the stage) there was no work to do.  The worst wasn't being laid off due to a lack of work, the worst part was losing all of the community social interaction.   Next, the cancellations started to roll in for my band's gigs, as well as gigs with the Jesse Boden Band.  Then came late spring and summer when several of the venues where I booked my band had large outdoor spaces.  The venues put up outdoor stages with tables spread out across large lawn & garden areas so people could come out and be safe with social distancing.  Rewarding Experiences So, from June through September 2020 the Jimmy Haggard Band will have played several outdoor, safe shows.  It is amazing how appreciative the folks are who come out f

Live Music has not Died. As you all know, it has been a rough few months for musicians in the USA, and I am sure around the world.  The COVID-19 pandemic shut down bars, clubs, concert halls, festival venues, and any place where people would gather together to enjoy love music. So far, I've lost a lot of gigs in March, April, May, June and July, and I am sure there will be more cancellations to come. Enough of my crying about it.  Live Music is making a comeback in Oregon, with very carefully crafted safety plans in place so that people can come out and be safe. Band Mates Getting Together Luckily, my band mates have been able to get together once a week for a few hours to rehearse and unwind.  It's not the same as playing music for people, but it sure beats the hell out of nothing.  We have been safe.  The place where we rehearse has enough room where we can all stay 6 feet apart Inspiration! One thing that came out of the down time was the inspiration for a new

Next Life of my Franken Tele Hi everyone, it has been awhile since my last blog post. Well, I thought my Franken Tele was done and ready to live forever with the last set of changes.  It sounded great.  I had the frets leveled and finished, and had the intonation set.  Did I say it sounded great? But something was wrong. What the hell was wrong? It just didn't feel right when I played it.  I would pick up my favorite guitar, a Gibson CS-366 and would sound and feel great.  Yet, the Franken Tele felt a lot different.  For some reason I had an AHA moment. AHA! I realized the big difference in FEEL was the neck scales of Fender vs Gibson.  The Fender neck scale is 25.5" and Gibson neck scale is 24.75".  While 3/4 of an inch does not seem like much, it makes a major difference.  I use D'Addario XL Nickel Wound 11-49 strings because of the tone, longevity and that the wound strings are easy on the fingers.   The strings on a Gibson neck are not stretched as t