Thankful, '22 Style.....

THANKFUL FOR so many things in 2022....

Not gonna lie, friends - COVID has made life tough for a lot of folks in my industry for the past few years (with careers folding & huge talent moving to other areas for employment), so I'm even more thankful than usual to make my living with guitar in hand. 

Addressing audience at SDML student recital, 2022.

My quick list for "things to be thankful for in 2022" include....increased business interest in the Lexington Music Awards & a smooth launch of the public ballot for the 9th Lexi Music Award....successful gigs like Lexi-Fest "unplugged battle", my monthly Goodwood gigs, various one-off performances, and a helluva birthday jam...backing stellar artists like Tabi Gervis, The Wallace Sisters, and others in various venues (see video clip w/ Tabi below)....seeing the return of live performance in the area & making initial steps to kick Skinny Devil Booking back into gear to book gigs for students & others....reaching so many personal & professional goals....being far more healthy than is warranted by my past & present lifestyle (and still slamming brutal workouts)....having real friends who truly have my back....lots of time with the kids and grandkids, as well as a very special Thanksgiving and equally special Christmas....being blessed with amazing guitar/music students & the progress of SDML Academy of Guitar as well as my new Patreon Page...being surrounded by more incredible & interesting humans than I could possibly deserve....the continuing success of the Guitar Gods interview series & Skinny Devil Magazine....and sooo much more.

Quick count: As SD Booking, booked over a dozen performances for students (not including recitals) and have set up a monthly invitation open mic for students & the music community.....wrote a dozen articles here at SD Universe (including free fingerstyle lesson, the "musicians' gig list", R&R Hall of Fame piece w/ song charts, & more).....9 entries to SDML blog with well over 100 song charts for students, taught close to 1000 private lessons and in excess of 50 group lessons....9 posts at SD Magazine (including serialization of an entire novel called "Nemesis Tori", & lessons on Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, "Top Gun", "Dark Crystal", Christine McVie, and Leonard Cohen)....played over 3 dozen gigs (the most post-COVID so far)....roughly 50 posts at my new Patreon Page.....I'm losing track of it all! Hahaha!

Playing Bert Francis' beautiful Gretsch guitar, Nov '22.

I am astounded every single time I wake up and realize that I'm not dreaming - I really do get to make my living in this world with a guitar in my hand and ideas in my head. 

Damn... and THANK YOU!! All of you!

#StayFierce #SkinnyDevil #DogsLife #CloseToTheGround #HungerAndFear #LuckyMF #GoBigOrGoHome #GuitarLife #MusicLife #PirateLife 

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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

FREE Fingerstyle Intro Lesson

FINGERSTYLE REQUEST? I gotcha covered...with a Baker's Dozen! 

Explanatory text is below the following video.

The following is hardly our usual methodical approach (and similarly, is not an exhaustive list of fingerstyle techniques or concepts). At SDML Academy of Guitar we certainly have a framework for fingerstyle playing, and as I write these words, we're also working on a video lesson series.

In addition, I'm currently shooting a short (less in-depth, but extremely challenging) video series for my Patreon Page.

But this introduction is sort of the "old school" approach, if you will. That is, just jump in and "do this"!

Sooo...let's jump in.

The below video is under 12 minutes long, calling by string numbers (low E is string SIX, high E is string ONE), and the patterns are as follows:

1) 5 - 2

2) 5 - 2 - 4 - 3 

3) 5 - 3 - 4 - 2 

4) 5 - 2 - 4 - 3 ***

5) 5 - 3 - 4 - 2 ***

6) 5 - 2 - 3 

7) 5 - 3 - 2 

8) 5 - 2 - 4 - 2 - 3 - 2 - 4 - 2

9) 5 - 2 - 5 - 3 - 5 - 4 - 5 - 3 

10) 5 - 4 

11) 5 - 4 - 3 - 4

12) 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 3 - 4 

13) 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 

That should get you started!!!

If you're interested in more fingerstyle (from patterned approaches to Travis Picking to tremolo picking to independent melody lines to "dead thumb" and more), stay tuned for both the short series on my Patreon Page and the more comprehensive series at the SDML website!

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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 58

"Count your age by friends, not years." - John Lennon

Skinny Devil Life 2022

My annual obligatory birthday post!

Sooo...another trek around burning Helios - a count of fifty eight for me. This year has been quite the ride as, I suppose, each & every year has been. Last year I was honored to share the stage with Grammy winners (Victor Wooten, Bobby Rush, etc) as well as amazing new talent, and its a pleasure to see some of those talents (like Aisley Autumn & Phoebe White) now climbing the mountain! Of course I also had the pleasure of sharing the stage yet again with several amazing talents, including both radio & stage with the incredible miss Tabi Gervis for AlltechONE Conference Concert (& her interview on WUKY)....video at the end of this entry of her "TN Whiskey/I'd Rather Go Blind" mix from our performance at the show!

Of course, the big change is more local gigging than I've done in a long time.....restaurant gigs to coffee houses to corner bars. Loving it all and really enjoying seeing everyone in smaller settings than the radio & TV gigs and similar (that I also love).

Very pleased with the entries written here at SD Universe in 2022 (as well as the traction of older pieces like "The Music of James Bond") as well as the new "Sonic Sorcery" articles (which are suddeny among the most popular lessons) & the serialization of the amazing novel "Nemesis Tori" by Renaissance Man & omni-disciplinary artist (he is musician, visual artist, & writer) Gregory Francis at SD Magazine.

Definitely hoping to see my PATREON page gain some traction, as I'm sharing a lot of content (both public and patron-exclusive) there, from music performance to music instruction to lifestyle/diet/fitness.

Outside of music performance & instruction, I'm happy to report again that my workouts continue their Top Shelf trend.... the Lexi Music Awards (despite covid-related challenges) continues to move forward.... and I'm trending on pace for some serious personal goals.

So, birthday weekend....

Sunday gig on stage w/ a dozen fantastic artists!

Friday (my final gym workout before my Sunday birthday) was a fantastic workout - since I knew I had 2 days off - that included an hour of cardio (4+ miles at various elevations), 30+ minutes resistance (full body) work, & multiple laps of farmers carries (45 pound plate in each hand)....then good food! Then I got to pick the kids up from school & the evening was spent watching them play with friends while I cooked on the grill!

Saturday was more fun & games, and hit the grill again while the kids played outside.

Sunday (birthday) morning it was street soccer with the kids before I hit the road, a little quality time with more family (phone & in-person), and then Twisted Cork for our annual Birthday Jam w/ Greg & Chris on bass & drums! 3+ hours on stage & with friends, drinking a superb 12 year old scotch (thank you Bobbie!), conversing, & making music with others! That's damn hard to beat....until I got home and found a steak & cheesecake waiting for me care of my son Damien. Makes the night damn near impossible to beat - haha!

Also blessed to receive hundreds upon hundreds of birthday wishes via text, email, snail mail, social media, phone calls, & the like...including a personal note for the second year in a row from a particular author that I rank in the top 10 living authors on Planet Earth, RF Laird (who wrote, among other great works, "The Boomer Bible").

6am pre-workout & pre-pump haha!

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!

11am post workout PUMP - artsy version haha!

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....and please check out my Patreon page ($5/month for Total Access to writings, performance clips, music instruction, diet & fitness writings, AMAs, etc)!

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

#StayFierce #SkinnyDevil #FierceAF #SDMLguitar #LexiMusicAwards #ThisIs58 #PirateLife

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If you dig my work......

One-time Donation via PayPal
Monthly Donation via Patreon

Guitar Lessons (In-Person & Virtual)

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

Howdy, everyone!

Couple of quick notes....including word about our return to IN-PERSON lessons!

1) RECITAL - YES, we're back to in-person student recitals! Full band recitals and solo/duo performances are on different days. August 21 is band recital, August 28 is solo/duo recital!

Current students: You should have info via e-mail AND our supplemental page (drill vids, song charts, etc)!

2) PATREON - I'm building my Patreon page, where I include both public works ("Guitar Gods" interview series, "Sonic Sorcery" songwriting series, etc) and behind-the-paywall works (advanced guitar tips, performance vids, music AMAs, etc...and even some non-music topics!).

If you're interested in supporting my past AND future works, it's only $5/month for ALL ACCESS!

https://www.patreon.com/skinnydevilmusic 

3) LESSONS - Since we're in-person AND virtual, if you or anyone you know - ANYONE, ANYWHERE - is interested in guitar or ukulele or electric bass lessons (or advanced players needing to work on specific skills like technique or theory or improvisation....or just stepping up their game), please contact me (or send them my contact info!

The new GROUP class starts at Willis Music on Thursday, August 18. G4 class is 4pm and the G1 class is 5pm. BOTH have in-person and Zoom option! We're pondering adding a G2 class, also! Sign up form is HERE:

https://forms.gle/sw7tQyLR3hFMZ4tF7


I also chatted with the folks at Hurst Music and we hope to return to some form of in-person PRIVATE lessons before year's end! I'll keep you posted, but for now, I still have a few private lessons slots open using our virtual model (live Zoom, e-docs, supplemental page, pre-recorded video, etc).

That's it for now! See y'all soon!

“I believe every guitar player inherently has something unique about their playing. They just have to identify what makes them different and develop it.” – Jimmy Page (guitarist of Led Zeppelin)

Musician's Gig List!

I'm gearing this checklist towards guitar players (so I won't mention extra drum sticks and drum heads, for example), especially of the singer-songwriter sort, but its easy to modify this to your personal needs.

Now, whether you're brand new to gigging or been doing it a long time, its good to have your checklist either at the forefront of your mind or physically written down to look at before you drive to the gig. And as a bonus.....This same list can be used for your recording studio checklist (though you can subtract the merch & stage announcement stuffs).

Let's jump right in with a Baker's Dozen:

Guitar Lessons

I was asked about my background & successes as a music instructor, so I thought I'd post something here for anyone needing the information!

Student Melissa Findley opened for legend Judy Collins

First, I primarily teach guitar, but also electric bass, ukulele, songwriting, improvisation, theory, a "piano for guitarists" workshop, and do some vocal coaching. Many of these are taught not just as weekly private lessons or group lessons, but also as one-time extended workshops and performance clinics.

I teach in-person, via Zoom, and via pre-recorded video.

Contact me via phone/text 909-929-2007 or email at sdmusiclab@gmail.com for details...and visit SDML Academy of Guitar.

My bio, also available on the SDML Academy of Guitar site and the Skinny Devil Music Lab site:

David backing Grammy winner Suzy Bogguss on PBS

David is the founder of the SDML Academy of Guitar, built upon his approach to teaching guitar in an efficient way, leveraging on student strengths and developing the fastest pathways to reaching their goals.

As a solo performer, band-leader, and sideman, he has also worked with or shared the stage with many notable artists, including Foghat, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Lori Lieberman, Paul Di'Anno of Iron Maiden, JD Crowe, Muriel Anderson, Tom Rush, Michael Johnathon, Suzy Bogguss, Ben Sollee, J.P. Pennington, Rhonda Vincent, Guy Davis, Steve Wickham, Michael Martin Murphey, Pat Flynn, Si Kahn, Red Molly, Valerie June, and more, on stages, TV (local and national), radio, and the like. David also performed in the Lexington, KY musician tribute to the late Prince.

He performs concert sets as well as master classes and clinics on songwriting, improvisation, hand-drums, music business, and more, across the southeastern US, appearing at private venues, music stores, high schools, and universities.

His students have shared stages with Norah Jones, Judy Collins, Tommy Emmanuel, Pat Benatar, BB King, GooGoo Dolls, Loe Kottke, Ritchie Havens, Amy Grant, JJ Grey, Kenny Loggins, Taj Mahal, Bozz Scaggs, Bela Fleck, Grace Askew, LeeAnn Womack, Lucinda Williams, Gov'T Mule, 3 Doors Down, Mark O'Connor, the Ramones, Jake Shimabukuro, 7 Mary 3, Frank Vignola, Michael Martin Murphy, Black Crows, Craig Morgan, Michelle Shocked, Cindi Lauper, Dustin Lynch, Peter Yarrow (Peter, Paul, & Mary), Jefferson Starship, Punch Brothers, Chapin Sisters, Victor Wooten, Exile, Rodney Atkins, Andy McKee, Emmylou Harris, Grammy Hall of Famer Wanda Jackson, Joan Baez, and more They have studied at major music universities including Morehead State University, NYU, Belmont University, EKU, Vandercook College of Music, WKU, Berklee College of Music, and have appeared on TV shows like The Voice, Woodsongs Oldtime Radio Hour, Chasing Nashville, and more.

2022 Class - Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame

A hearty congratulations to ALL the nominees and inductees this year!

This piece will explore the music (with song charts) of only a handful of the inductees, but they (and all the nominees) are worthy of your ear! I've chosen a handful based on a guitar-centric approach, but we could easily explore the rhythmic vocal approach or lyrical approach of Eminem or the layered production of Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, for two examples.

First, our list of the entire Class of 2022 (performer section in bold):

Pat Benatar

Eminem

Duran Duran

Eurythmics

Dolly Parton

Lionel Richie

Carly Simon

FREE Group Class & FREE Strings

ALERT: To celebrate our post-COVID return to group guitar lessons at Willis Music Lexington, we're offering an EIGHT week guitar session (eight 40 minute group classes each Thursday at 5pm) absolutely FREE.

BUT it gets better: If you BRING A FRIEND and attend the entire session, you'll BOTH receive a FREE set of guitar strings!

AND...while classes are set up for in-person instruction, we also have a ZOOM option for virtual learning for anyone unable to attend for any reason...including out of state or even out of country students!

Willis Music is at 130 W. Tiverton Way in Lexington....and contact me directly (sdmusiclab@gmail.com) for ZOOM information!

P.S. - I do have (as of this writing) 5 open private lessons slots available (though these are not free). Contact me if interested!

-- 

David M. McLean

SDML Academy of Guitar

Benefactory in the Cyber Age

MUSIC/ART, DIGTAL TIP JARS, & 21st CENTURY BENEFACTORY: I posted a version of this essay last year, but was recently urged to up-date it and share again....so here it is:

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, un-paid "Jam with the Skinny Devil" invitation open mic gigs, and more....(as a full-time self-employed musician, the overwhelming bulk of my income is through live performance & teaching).

A more comprehensive list is below, but in short, 2021 alone gave me the opportunity to host 36 non-paid invitation open mic gigs giving stage time to almost 50 different players, plus saw me publish 21 articles/lessons at Skinny Devil Magazine, another FIVE at Skinny Devil Universe, THREE "Ask Me Anything" videos, and another 28 performance videos.  More than that if we were counting since COVID struck....and it looks like we're off to a good start for 2022!

Free G4 Class Extras

Howdy, everyone!

WEEK ONE

We covered finger exercises, rhythm drills, scales, chords/chord drill, and more in the first class!

Below is some supplemental material for the free G4 class! We'll expand this a bit each week, but thought we'd give you a LOT this week to kick things off!

Enjoy!

Free G1 Guitar Class Overiews

Howdy, everyone!

WEEK ONE

The below video gives a quick overview. We covered:

1) parts of the guitar

2) holding the guitar

3) up-strokes and down-strokes (or thumb & fingers if not using a pick)

4) basic finger exercise

5) picking patterns

6) basic rhythm drill

7) reading tabs - melody & the C major scale

8) basic open chords

See the video HERE.

WEEK TWO