Playing With Myself: "Plastic Jesus"

Another take on my favorite Lukas Jackson song,"Plastic Jesus"

Playing with Myself: "Albatross"

This was a tough one. Not an easy arrangement since the original is so dependent on reverb atmosphere.

Playing with Myself "Done Somebody Wrong"

Another take on one of my favorite Elmore James tunes

Playing with Myself: "The Weight"

I've been meaning to work up a full version of "The Weight". I guess now seems as good a time as any to record a quick solo version.

Everyone loves The Band's "The Weight". It's an FM radio staple, a bar band anthem singalong, and been covered by too many artists to count from the moment it was released. Robbie Robertson's evocative tapestry of a drifter weaving through a colorful cast characters is both fantasy and relatable at the same time. The simple, folksy song structure lends itself to interpretation by artists as diverse as The Staple Singers, Joe Cocker, and even Aretha Franklin, among so many more the song would have reached over saturation were it not so good.

It's Aretha swampy take that inspires this version. Duane Allman famously played slide guitar on her funky, soul take that downplays the melancholy original. Decades later, the Allman Brothers would cover "The Weight" in the same style as an homage to their fearless leader.

Playing with Myself: "Ain't Wasting Time No More"

Most artists can work alone at home, but musicians are feeling the isolation. I even got a little tired of being limited to just one instrument, so I decided as long as I'm alone together I might as well play with myself. Here is a favorite, the Allman Brothers Band's "Ain't Wasting Time No More"

"It Hurts Me Too"

Day Whatever of COVID Quarantine. Felt like playing some Elmore James on my Tricone.

A New Gibson Les Paul

I've been playing out more, which has left less time for recording. Playing is always more fun than recording, so it's definitely a good thing. One project lasted exactly one gig, but it was a decent gig - here is me playing slide on "Ain't Wasting Time No More" (apologies for the portrait mode video)

But I couldn't let all of 2019 go by without posting something, so here's a quick look at the Les Paul I recently added to my arsenal. After years of playing a Les Paul Goldtop, Dickey Betts switched to a Paul Reed Smith for the 1994 tour. Being a huge fan of Dickey's sound, I sold my Les Paul and saved up for a Paul Reed Smith of my own. I was 14 and did not fully understand that what Dickey was playing was PRS's new McCarty Model which was an homage to Gibson. It had a 3-way pickup switch and a thicker body and a shorter neck. I thought it looked (pearl bird inlay!) and sounded pretty cool. Dickey switched to a Gibson ES-335 the next year and I spent the next 20 years trying to get the PRS to sound like a Gibson, which, I found, is impossible.
  
After playing in a few bands the past year, I grew frustrated with the "brittle" PRS tone. The sustain wasn't what I wanted, and too often it sounded closer to a Strat. So I found a deal on a used 2013 Gibson Les Paul Studio 1970s Tribute. Being a 1970s Tribute, it's my shade of brown and had no cumbersome pick guard. Of course, tone is more important than anything, and the Dirty Fingers pickups were way too metal for me. So I swapped out the pickups for some Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates (I managed to hack the dreaded Gibson circuit board) which I had bought when attempting to brighten up my PRS. They didn't do much for the PRS (probably because they were out-of-phase from the factory which I had to fix), but sang in the Les Paul. I also swapped out the hardware to accentuate the satin brown burst. It sounds great, I really missed the Les Paul tone.

Here's the before and after.

And the whole fleet: