I seem to be on a strange kick this week, but c’est la vie. It must the be idiocy of recording a large amount of Christmas music when it’s stupid hot out. Or it could be I’m staring down my destruction doing all that I can to avoid it. I don’t know which. Its not a fun trip.
However, I’ve run into an interesting dilemma here in the past 24 hours. Before I get to that though, I’d like to say a few things about Tal. First, a few years back I got a call to do an audition with him for his band when the album came out. It was the first audition I did where they were unable to get me a copy of the CD ahead of the meeting. So I went to a local music store and put it on. Then I took a copy of the CD to the checkout and bought it right there. I was floored by the songwriting and the display of emotion coming out of that plastic disc. It was frightening. I was also flattered to get the call.
I spent a few hours learning the songs they requested then the following day I made my way to the rehearsal studio for the time they asked me to be there. I didn’t know much about Tal. Though I did briefly get a meeting with his manager at the time, prior to the audition. The manager was very much approving of me in the meeting, telling me what to expect, what was expected of me, etc… I walked out of that meeting feeling like I may have already gotten the gig. There I am with this custom painted guitar about to spend some time playing with the son of someone who wrote some of the biggest rock songs in history and obviously that talent made it through the gene pool. It was one of the select times I was actually overly psyched to be auditioning.
The moment I walked into that room I could feel his presence. It was astounding, I don’t think I’d ever met a musician with that much of a special something that I can’t describe. He was so calm, so cool, so collected it was bizzarre. Actually it was as if he might have been devoid of any emotion. The true poker face. It wasn’t the response I expected from the music I had committed to memory. Instead, I could tell he was a true master of his craft. Certainly a rare breed. Before we got to playing any music he asked about my guitar and the paint job. I learned from that little conversation that he is Mormon. I have this guitar that I had my father paint with a Jesus on the front, and also a different version of him on the back. The front is pretty and wholesome, but the back is a bit of the opposite. I thought of it as the duality of man. But it’s never taken that way and it’s one reason why that guitar won’t likely be seeing stage time in the future. I reserve it for studio use now.
After our chat and his discovery about my parents divorce, we got to playing music. It was probably the one time I felt like a true outsider during an audition. The whole band knew each other and I was the new kid in the situation. They jammed on one of his father’s songs and just fiddled around. I didn’t think they were up to much – but looking back on it, they probably expected me to join in and play along. I felt it was better to wait until they asked me to play, I don’t know why. Then they wanted to play his material and I ran it down with them. In fact we played some of the songs more than once. I know I nailed it. It was the most prepared audition I had ever done. The manager, his assistant and several other people all were smiling after we got done, clapped and mentioned what they thought. Tal thanked me and I packed up and walked out.
I never heard back.
Then about a month later I got a phone call from the assistant manager about another girl he was managing. But before he got into too much detail about the new gig he wanted me to try out for, he told me that I ended up being the second pick for the gig. Then proceeded to let me know that the guy that got picked didn’t keep the gig. In fact, none of the band did. It seems something went wrong and everyone got fired. I didn’t know what to make of it, other than it’s not fun to know you’re second pick. Even if it was a short lived gig. Looking back on it, I have to think it was due to the artwork on the guitar and the stuff we chatted about. Which unfortunately is often a big key to getting a gig – how you’re perceived by the artist. It was one of two gigs I was truly bummed I didn’t get. Why? That self titled debute is so amazing it’s ridiculous. From front to back, every single song is just powerful. It’s a rare disc where any song you choose is an obvious hit.
If you don’t buy this CD you’re doing yourself a big disservice.
(** Disclaimer: Should Sony feel Strong Enough to show me the crazy side of love for an artist they’ve let go, I’ll pull the audio before I’m smothered and learn of a Darker Side of Blue. The text will remain. **)
p.s. – My dilemma is very well summed up in the lyrics.