JANUARY...."Lifestyle Challenge" & 2022 Resolutions!

HELLO January & hello 2022!

Let's take a look first at SHORT-TERM goals using our usual format....

Monthly Lifestyle Challenge

For those new to the challenges, it isn't to compete against others. It's to push yourself to greater heights, have some company & inspiration along the way, and a few ideas the help get us focused. For example, you can use this waving of the analytical knife to help organize your goals:

1) Exercise/Diet - Set a specific plan or goal(s). Keep us posted weekly (or more) on your progress!

2) Creativity - Music, art, writing, acting...set a goal to complete by month's end. Keep us posted!

3) Personal life - Re-affirm your personal relationships, get to that project/chore you've been avoiding, or just read a book you've always wanted to read!

4) Professional life - Set a work goal or change jobs or....just tell us what it is and keep us posted!

NOW.....let's use the same format for LONG-TERM goals!

Gratitude & Expectation

THANKFUL FOR so many things in 2021...

I'll post goals and such in a lifestyle challenge the first week of January (and hoping YOU will join me making "resolutions" & both short-term & long-term goals!), but what am I thankful for this year? Too many to name, but here are some highlights...

...overcoming covid-caused market difficulties and racing into the 8th Lexington Music Awards (with the help of folks like WLEX-TV, Highbridge Springs, Three Chord Bourbon, The Botany Bay, Ale-8, Overheard Productions, Goodwood Brewing & Spirits, and more)...

...successful gigs like Lexi-Fest 7 at EKU, a weekly run at Ranada's (playing & opening the mic for others), and a helluva birthday jam at Twisted Cork...

"Silent Night" Run Thru & Lesson

MY GIFT TO YOU.....

The first video (shot a couple of years back) is the same arrangement I've done for gigs & TV spots for a long time. Super basic the first run through, and then I add a bit of complexity the second time around.

WATCH HERE

The next video was shot a year earlier, and is shorter (one run-through), but the lighting is better to see my hands.

WATCH HERE

The next video is a close up walk-through to teach you the basic arrangement.

WATCH HERE

And the final video is the same thing for ukulele!

WATCH HERE

When I get the tab worked up cleanly, I'll include it, also!

Hope you enjoy the challenge - and remember the pay-off is worth the effort!

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If you value my work and want to support it......contact me for lessons (guitar, electric bass, ukulele, social drumming, songwriting, etc) or feel free to leave a tip (one-shot or monthly):

PayPal (one-time or monthly options)

http://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic 

Venmo (one-time only)

www.venmo.com/David-McLean-47 

http://www.skinnydevil.net 

http://www.sdmlguitar.com 

Happy 57

"There are two great days in a person's life - the day we are born and the day we discover why." - William Barclay

left to right, me, Victor Wooten, Michael Johnathon, Morgan

So, another revolution of this celestial sphere - a count of fifty seven for me. This year has been quite the ride as, I suppose, each & every year has been. And the past few weeks have been quite memorable, also, from playing Woodsongs multiple times with the likes of 5-time Grammy winning bass legend Victor Wooten to Grammy winning Blues Hall of Fame inductee Bobby Rush to backing up rising star miss Phoebe White, to continuing to teach my incredible students, to playing my small weekly patio gig where I get to bring folks up to sing & play with me!

Looking back on the year so far, I'm also particularly happy about a few accomplishments, like my interview with Grammy winning guitar god Jon Butcher of Jon Butcher Axis, my 2 movie music pieces ("The Music of Black Widow" and the long time coming "The Music of James Bond" available at SD Universe), and the new songwriting series "Sonic Sorcery" at SD Magazine.

Outside of music performance & instruction, I'm happy to report my workouts continue to be epic, the Lexi Music Awards (despite covid-related challenges) continues to move forward, and the books I've discussed in the past are finally fully outlined.

So, birthday weekend....

on stage at Twisted Cork w/ Greg & Chris

Friday (the day before my birthday) saw a particularly brutal workout - since I knew I had 2 days off - that included an hour of cardio, 30 minutes resistance (weight machine) work, multiple laps of farmers carries (45 pound plate in each hand), and then sets of pull-ups and dips. Post workout meal tasted like heaven! Then I got to pick the kids up from school & the evening was all pizza party and late night of playing & video games.

Saturday (my birthday) I woke and fixed their breakfast, then off to a visit with their other grand parents while I prepped for my birthday cookout. Got to hang out with my youngest son, his wife, and 7 of the grandkids while grilling food for all. Add to that hide & seek, basketball, soccer, and other games. Then ended the day watching the sun set with a glass of fine bourbon.

#ThisIs57 swimsuit edition

Sunday was to see TWO birthday jams, but the patio gig at Ranada's was unexpectedly cancelled (the staffing shortage has caused major problems in so many industries!), but we hit Twisted Cork and bassist Greg Rhodus and I were joined by Chris Jones on drums for a lively open mic jam! Two hours of music with multiple guests made for a fantastic day. The day ended on my back porch with a glass of fine Jamaican rum.

Also blessed to receive hundreds of birthday wishes via text, email, snail mail, social media, phone calls, & the like...including a personal note from a particular author that I rank in the top 10 living authors on Planet Earth, which was, admittedly, an additional thrill.

As I do each year since my 50th birthday, I'm posting an ODIS picture (that stands for "Old Dudes In Shape") as a challenge to my buddies who also post ODIS. Good accountability and keeps us all motivated!

If you are interested in the stories & photos from past birthdays, you can punch THIS LINK, which will list them all.

That's it for now. Gotta get to work prepping lessons, Lexi Music Awards, & the songwriting workshop video series....but check out the video below of my cover of Louis Armstrong's James Bond song, "All the Time in the World" that I shot a week ago.

See y'all soon...in person, online, on TV, or wherever we shall meet!

#StayFierce #SkinnyDevil #FierceAF #SDMLguitar #LexiMusicAwards #ThisIs57 #PirateLife 

a gift from Eddy: Blackwell 007 Rum

Fall Highlights & Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!!

IT'S BEEN AN AMAZING year so far, despite the continued uncertainty in the world due to COVID, and this autumn season has been no exception....so a quick re-cap of a few highlights and some Big Changes in the pipe.

1) TV/RADIO/STSGE: Happy to report that I was called to the Woodsongs stage again as they returned to broadcast (for those unfamiliar, please see Woodsongs description below) for 3 weeks in a row: The first to support 11 year old Phoebe White for her amazing performance....then again to play back-up for the readings of Grammy winning Blues Hall of Fame artists Bobby Rush's new autobiography (and hanging with Bobby backstage for an hour prior to showtime was an incredible experience).....and yet again when 5-time Grammy winning bass legend Victor Wooten took the stage for his performance & interview, and on his last song he invited me to play on his impromptu jam.

Now that's a serious return to the center ring! My thanx to Michael Johnathon & the entire Woodsongs crew for everything!

2) TEACHING: In addition, we've finally returned to live, in-person student recitals and are transitioning back to in-person lesson option for local students (both group & private lessons) over the coming weeks & months....as well as expanding teaching tools for our virtual options (which include Zoom, pre-recorded video, & more) for both local students and my growing call for our of state & even out of country students...as I'm now teaching students in Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Phoenix, and now even Canada.

3) GIGS/WORKSHOPS: I also hope to be booking more live gigs and workshops, but am also currently taping the videos for both the 8-week Songwriting Workshop and the 8 week Improvisation Workshop.

4) DIGTAL TIP JAR & 21st CENTURY BENEFACTORY: It has constantly been suggested to me that I embrace the "subscription model" as an addition to my more traditional biz models. That is to say, I am now offering payment options for anyone who values my work and wants to support it - both one-off "tip jar" model and ongoing "monthly subscription" model.

This is to cover the additional (and unpaid) work that I do, such as the "Guitar Gods" interview series, my "Classic Covers" video performance series, various cost-free lesson articles and "Ask Me Anything" series, and more.

The full list is below, but in summation, 2021 alone saw me publish 20 articles/lessons at Skinny Devil Magazine, another FIVE at Skinny Devil Universe, THREE "Ask Me Anything" videos, and another 28 performance videos. That's 25 articles and 31 videos. So far (it's still October as I write this).

Sooo....one-off via Venmo or PayPal and monthly subscription via Patreon or PayPal!

One-shot support: https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ or www.venmo.com/David-McLean-47 (Pay What You Will)

Monthly support: https://www.patreon.com/skinnydevilmusic​ or https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ (Pay What You Will)

And I've just gotten the new PayPal pay button here: 

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=U9PN8H8LM722A

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Addendums:

WOODSONGS: 

Woodsongs Oldtime Radio Hour is taped live at the Lyric Theatre and broadcast on over 500 radio stations worldwide, satellite radio, RFDTV plus about 3 dozen public TV stations across the continental US, Armed Forces Radio, and more.

FULL 2021 content list: 

EIGHT songwriting articles (see: Sonic Sorcery), FIVE one-off music lessons (from "Signature Chords" to the "America the Beautiful" Superbowl performance), THREE Jimi Hendrix style re-print lessons, THREE Zen Guitar lesson re-prints, and one "Guitar Gods" interview (with Grammy winning Jon Butcher) with more in the cue...all in SD Magazine.

At SD Universe saw THREE "Ask Me Anything" music articles, and TWO large works: "The Music of Black Widow" (info & 3 song charts) and "The Music of James Bond" (info & 26 song charts).

Add to that 28 performance videos and THREE music-centric "Ask Me Anything" videos.

The Music of "Black Widow"

"Black Widow" marks the first post-COVID return of the MCU, and it sure did it with a bang. It was the number one movie its opening week and the biggest opening week since "Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker", grossing some incomprehensible amount of cash in the US and worldwide.

But we're taking a look at it for the music!

In addition to an excellent and thoughtful score composed by Lorne Balfe (the Hans Zimmer protege who also composed for "13 Hours", "Terminator: Genisys", "Mission Impossible: Fallout", and more), we get 3 songs: "Cheap Thrills" by Sia and Sean Paul, the classic "American Pie" by Don McLean, and a modern cover of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Think Up Anger w/ Malia J.

So, let's take a look at those songs!

"Cheap Thrills" was released by Sia in 2016 (from her 7th album, and the newest song, compositionally speaking, on our list) and it went right to #1 on the charts in over 20 countries and was nominated for a Grammy Award! WOW! 

"American Pie" was released way back in 1971 and charted in 9 countries (including #1 in 4 countries) and in 2017 entered the National Songwriting Registry (of the Library of Congress) for historical & cultural significance!

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was originally released by Nirvana in 1991, where ushered in the era of grunge (and killed off the 80s hair metal bands that had dominated the rock scene for a decade). The song hit #1 in 5 countries (and charted almost everywhere else) and has since landed on "best of" lusts from Rolling Stone, Billboard, & more, and is a Grammy Hall of Fame song. The Malia J version borrows its pace from the 1990s cover by Tori Amos, but with a modern twist and heavily substituted chords.

Sooo....the song charts:

"Cheap Thrills" Sia w/Sean Paul (2016)

F#m - D - /A - E - /F#m - D - /A - E - /

repeat throughout

"American Pie" Don McLean (1971)

chorus

G - C - /G - D - /G - C - /G - D - /

G - C - /G - D - /Em - - - /A7 - - - /

Em - - - /D - - - /D - - - /

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" Nirvana (1991)

transposed to Em for comparison purposes

verse/chorus

Em - A5 - /G - C5 - /Em - A5 /G - C5 - /

repeat

transition

Em - - - /Em - - - /Em - - - /Em - - - /

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" Think Up Anger w/ Malia J (2021)

verse

Em - - - /C - - - /Em - - - /C - - - /

transition

Em - - - /Em - - - /Em - - - /Em - - - /

chorus

Em - - - /C - - - /G - - - /D - - - /

Em - - - /C - - - /G - - - /D - - - /

repeat

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If you find my work useful & would like to support it....

Monthly support: https://www.patreon.com/skinnydevilmusic​ or https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ (Pay What You Will)

One-shot support: https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ or www.venmo.com/David-McLean-47 (Pay What You Will)

THANX!

SUMMER NEWS!

QUICK NEWS.....

1) GIGS - Join me every Sunday about 1pm or so at Ranada's Kitchen (496 E High Street in Lexington) for some music fun! If you play or sing, jump on stage and play or sing - with me or without me! I'm easy!

Let me know in advance if you wanna sing or play or if you just have a song request for me to play for you and we'll make it happen for sure!

2) YOUR GIGS - I'm booking Ranada's for Friday & Saturday, as well as preshow for Woodsongs when they begin taping again. Drop me a line for details if you're interested!

3) LESSONS - Zoom & pre-recorded video for weekly lessons still BUT.....live in-person workshops, clinics, student recitals, field trips, and working on a monthly in-person performance class! Message me for details if you or anyone you know wants lessons of any kind!

Songs students are working on for July & August include classics by Rolling Stones, Bill Withers, the Beatles, & more....plus new hit songs from The Weeknd, Billie Eilish, Maroon 5....and many in between, from Bob Dylan to Kansas to the Police!

4) SD MAGAZINE - New articles and interviews posted at SD Magazine (like my new "Guitar Gods" interview with Grammy nominated Jon Butcher of Jon Butcher Axis) and more on the way, including songwriting analysis of John Lennon's "Instant Karma" (part of our Sonic Sorcery series), and a bio of legendary artist Link Wray!

Remember, the "Guitar Gods" interview series is at over 80 interviews with unknown gurus to Grammy Award winners....from Steve Lukather to Donna Grantis (Prince) to Tommy Emmanuel to Steve Stevens to Muriel Anderson to Nuno Bettencourt to Steve Morse to Jennifer Batten and many more!

5) NEW ALBUM(s) - COVID derailed some of my recording plans for 2020, but hopefully we'll be back on track soon....with a new EP of old traditional songs and a new EP of all original material targeted for 2022. Listen to my last release from a few years back, called "Public Domain", HERE!

6) VIDEOS - Still adding songs to my "classic covers" series, which is up to over 100 songs now, mostly by request! Latest songs have been lots of blues: "I'm Ready" Muddy Waters, "Baby Please Don't Go" traditional, and "Sweet Home Chicago" by Robert Johnson....with several songs by Prince and NIN on deck! Check the playlist out HERE!

7) SUPPORT - As always, if you enjoy and want to support my work, you can give monthly or just once in my digital tip jars! 

Monthly support: https://www.patreon.com/skinnydevilmusic​ or https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ (Pay What You Will)

One-shot support: https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ or www.venmo.com/David-McLean-47 (Pay What You Will)


More soon...!!!

“The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you.” - BB King

TEACHING Newsletter

HOWDY ALL!

Just a quick note about SDML guitar lessons, EKU's Foster Music Camp, and more!

1) LESSONS: I have private lesson slots available NOW and we're also starting a new GROUP session! Haven't taken lessons for a while and wanna get back in the saddle? Stuck in a rut and need to get out? CALL ME!

2) UKULELE & BASS: In addition to guitar lessons, I also offer bass guitar & ukulele lessons....perfect for summer strum fun!

3) VIRTUAL LEARNING: We offer not only group & private options, but also live and pre-recorded options in case your schedule is crazy or if you now live a few time zones away! We hope to return to IN-PERSON learning soon, but we'll maintain the virtual options for everyone for your convenience! 

Lots of info at our website:

www.sdmlguitar.com 

4) EKU Foster Music Camp: This year EKU will be offering a new COMMERCIAL music camp, and I'm honored to be teaching alongside some incredible folks (like Berklee grad & former Exile & Judds keyboardist Lee Carroll, award-winning producer/engineer Duane Lundy, sax-player to the stars Joseph Carucci) as well as special guest artists! 

The camp is 100% virtual and there are scholarships available! Info at:

https://fostercamp.org/commercial-music-camp 

5) WORKSHOPS: I'm turning the songwriting workshop and possibly the improvisation workshop into 8-week classes for anyone interested (though I'll still be doing the one day workshop format), and using the pre-recorded format so you can access at any time, re-wind to review, and the like! Info on that coming soon!

6) SD Magazine Articles: There are several lesson articles that may be of interest to many of you, from stand-alone pieces like "Signature Chords" (discusses "Prince Chord", the "Hendrix Chord", the "Hard Days Night" chord, & more) to the new series "Sonic Sourcery" (a songwriting series discussing melody, progressions,rhythms,& more, and has SONG CHARTS for each song) as well as up-coming "Guitar Gods" interviews to go along with out 80+ interviews already published! 

Visit SD Magazine at: 

https://skinnydevilmagazine.blogspot.com/ 

That's it for now! Have a fantastic week!!!

AMA - How to Be a Full-time Self-Employed Musician

Next in our "Ask Me Anything" series.....Dylan asks:

"What are the most important things to do on the path of wanting to become a “professional musician” in writing, teaching, and performing?"

This is a tough one because, unlike being (for 2 obvious examples) a doctor or a lawyer where there is a single path to the goal (and by "single path" I mean schooling and licensing), there is no such single path in any of the arts. 

I will also assume his question embraces self-employment, as opposed to getting, say, a teaching job as a college professor or high school band director (or other such employment that lends a degree of financial security to the equation)....which is almost another question entirely.

So much of the focus of this discussion will be $$$, but certainly not all. And, as usual, I'll over-simplify much for the sake of brevity, but I'm happy to expand any areas where any of you reading have specific questions....so don't be shy about commenting below or contacting me directly.

AMA - Music Theory for Beginners (part 2)

Howdy!

Our last conversation was the first installment in this series within a series, and discussed the fundamentals of chord progressions (though more on that later).

Today, our task is to look at the fundamentals of chord construction (which will make sense out of those crazy chord names, like Cadd9 or Bm7b5 or Am11 or Gaug or Fmj7 or Emb9 or Dsus4. Sounds scary, but it really isn't.

Just like last time, we're going to start in the key of C (no sharps or flats), so our basic notes are, in musical order, C, D, E, F, G, A, B.

AMA - Music Theory for Beginners (part 1)

Howdy, all! This is the first in my new "Ask Me Anything" series. The idea is exactly what it says: Ask me anything. Presumably, y'all will be asking about music-related topics rather than what I think of the new movie or TV show, or my views on...whatever. But I'm open to most questions, and am happy to respond so long as I think I have something meaningful to say.

These short text entries will often, but not always, be accompanied by videos (just as certain videos will often be, but not always, accompanied by a text entry here). If YOU have a question, contact me in the comments below or via social media or email!

So let's leap right in!

First question - Caitlyn asks (via FB): 

Where does an adult with no grasp of music theory begin, if they want to know more?

Excellent question! Answer? Right here - read on!

New Stuff for 2021!

Just a quick note of possible interest....

1) March sees me with a few PRIVATE lesson slots open and next week we start a new 8-week GROUP session.....so if you or anyone you know is interested in guitar, ukulele, or bass lessons, please get in touch FAST! And be sure to visit SDML Academy of Guitar for lots of information!

2) I'm writing this on a break from outlining & shooting the 8-week songwriting video workshop (and will follow with the 8-week improvisation workshop)....so if you or anyone you know is interested in adding weapons in your songwriting or improv arsenal, contact me for details!

3) I'm pondering doing a weekly or monthly songwriting deconstruction. That is, analyzing some cool songs from a particular point of view (lyrics or chords or melody or rhythm, etc). Please let me know if this interests you so I know it is of use to folks before committing time to it! Here is the first one - check it out and let me know what you think! 

Sonic Sorcery: Exploring the Magic of Music.

4) If you are a past student or client, or someone who has enjoyed my articles, "Guitar Gods" interviews, periodic "Classic Covers" series, product reviews, music/guitar lessons articles, "Jam with Dave" gigs, student showcase gigs, and other free works, please consider reading my recent piece "Music/Art, Digital Tip Jars, & 21st Century Benefactory".

5) I have some really fun projects I'm hoping to unveil VERY soon (some music-related, some not) and hope y'all join me for some of those!

That's it for now! Stay safe out there!

Music/Art, Digital Tip Jars, & 21st Century Benefactory

If you're reading this, you likely already know me. Know at least some of what I do. Some know me as a guitarist (solo artist or support player), some as a guitar/music instructor, some as a music producer, some as an event producer, some as a writer & interviewer, and more.

So I'm just dropping a quick piece to act as a nodal point for many of my creative projects as well as my "digital tip jars" because, to be blunt, artists are facing many challenges to earning their keep in the new COVID-influenced world.

Below is a condensed index of some of my many music projects and, below that, multiple support options (from on-shot tip jars to monthly support).

Among my many projects over the years:

Guitar instructor & founder of SDML Academy of Guitar.....my YouTube channel SkinnyDevil TV features student performances, instructional material, and clips of me performing as sideman as well as my extensive performances of classic cover songs (86 videos as I write this)......Band member, sideman, commercial composer (see partial discography)....Session musician (see partial discography).....Publisher & writer Skinny Devil Magazine including conducting the "Guitar Gods" interview series (currently 82 interviews with unknown gurus to Grammy Award winners) as well as hundreds of other pieces written by me & others (poetry, prose, photography, visual art, product reviews, lessons, & more).....founder/producer of the Lexington Music Awards and founder/co-producer of the Lexi-Fest Concert Series and the annual Lexi-Fest Festival.....producer of other various guitar performance clinics (past participants include Muriel Anderson, Blind Dog Gatewood, Diana Chittester, etc).....and more!

Most of these are, of course, non-commercial labors of love....and if you are interested in providing any level of support, there are multiple options - from simply enjoying the music & interviews & such, to subscribing to content channels & interacting by leaving comments & such, to providing financial support via the digital TIP JAR options!

Monthly support: https://www.patreon.com/skinnydevilmusic​ or https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ (Pay What You Will) 

One-shot support: https://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic​ or www.venmo.com/David-McLean-47 (Pay What You Will)

The PayPal option even gives you the choice of paying with traditional means (US dollar) or one of four crypto-currency options (Bitcoin, Etherium, Litecoin, Bitcash).

Thank you for your continuing support!

COMBO: The February Lifestyle & New Year Challenges

Sooooo.....normally I'd be doing this post on January 1, and it would be both an outline for the year's goals (with wrap-up of last year's successes and failures), but the COVID bitch-slap caused a very specific disruption to many goals for many of us. So instead, let's just start with a clean slate (though I will, for transparency, outline my personal valleys & peaks from 2020's goals).

Also, due to the election, I opted to wait until February 1...and here we are! So first, monthly lifestyle challenge...then our New Year challenge!

February Lifestyle Challenge

For those new to the challenges, it isn't to compete against others. It's to push yourself to greater heights, have some company & inspiration along the way, and a few ideas the help get us focused. For example, you can use this waving of the analytical knife to help organize your goals:

Unpopular Opinion: Presidential Pardons

I'll keep this short and sweet. Without getting into the normal gutter of what passes for political discourse these days, I will just say that I have a few suggestions about who the departing president Trump should pardon on his way out. And if not, who Biden should pardon on his way in.

We can discuss in comments or, if needed, I can expand this to include my reasoning.

For now, may I humbly suggest the following for 2021 presidential pardons:

Edward Snowden (NSA whistleblower)

Leonard Peltier (AIM member convicted of murder in 1977)

John McAfee (creator of McAfee Antivirus held on tax evasion)

Ross Ulbricht (creator of Silk Road)

Julian Assange (WIKI Leaks)

And while we're at it, how about 100% of all non-violent drug offenders (excluding those who were selling to minors) as well as a moratorium on all executions?

Thoughts?