sediment

"material that settles to the bottom of a liquid; lees." my first foray into recording of original material, look to your right for the link. the three sediment albums i've been on (under various names) have been a learning experiance to say the least. my producing and engineering skills on a four-track analog recorder are evident. though i will say the last song i did on sediment four was by far the best production to date. tvr may hopefully be on sediment six, watch that website for more details. this time with digital quailty sound, this is the vintage revival.......

the 3000

i've been in many places with three thousand or more people at once, sometimes it's downright frustrating and others it's an adventure. may fifth two-thousand six, the mexcian holiday "cinco de mayo", interesting to name a holiday by the day. cinco de mayo will always hold a significant place in my fond memories, not because of it's cultural connection to my family rather because of the event i was a part of that day. our spanish ministry team had (and has) been growing by leaps and bounds, we were (and have) getting lots of positive feedback about our worship style and music. we are a unique blend of salsa/merngue/worship and rock, i tend to model my guitar playing after santana, henry garza and stevie ray. of course i am no where near the caliber of the aforementioned. but word had gotten out that we have something good going and much to our delight we were invited to open up for warner bros./word recording artists "salvador". that night was absolutely magical and i will cherish each moment, from our backstage prayer to my onstage solos. three thousand people attended that night and it remains the highest number i've played for to this day, what a night, what a blessing...this is the vintage revival........

sad old man

a whispered wind gently tugs at scattered leaves
fallen freedom
they pull away from the root of their lives looking
towards the mountains away
riding the surf of invisible waves past childhood memories
bidding farewell to days of yore
time passes through
new roots have taken ahold for them
and they grow happy new stories

the wind cries again
a familiar song they've heard
melancholy
little leaves fall and the wind tugs against their roots hold
loosing grip the young leave
...........the old raise their heads to look over the mountain
the journey is long, the journey is long.

this is the vintage revival..........

where are you my lovely friend

i played my dad's epiphone for such a long time, it seemed an eternity at my tender age. i'd always dreamed of owning my own piece of art, cause you know guitars are artwork. so many dreams, so many fantasizes, looking at the racks of mahogany and maple that decorated the local music store walls. i was so afraid to ask to play one, i mean what did i know? i was a mere three freter and couldn't compare to some of the van halen wannabes that were loitering about the various areas of the music store. nineteen ninety two, i had a job and some money, and the only thing i could see was fender. a nice piece, creme colored (now a discontinued color), maple fretboard; i knew nothing of action or intonation in those days. i gave the gentlemen his money and sped home to play my new "toy". thirteen years later i understand........i understand how art, soul and heart merge into one infinite painting and the importance of choosing the right art for your soul. i still have my first fender tele, she's still important, but it took thirteen years to find the right art for my soul....this is the vintage revival..........

the old country

heritage has always been a significant part of most latino families, i always wondered why it wasn't pursued by ours. the lines in which i came are rich in stories, it saddens me i know little of them. i'm told we still have family in spain (jaen) and mexico (tamaulipas), i've often looked at the maps wondering if i could reconnect with someone. two years ago i was encouraged to audition for our churches growing spanish ministry music team, i did with great hesitation. i was asked to play, and so i did, the first few months were discomforting as i tried to relate to people i had nothing in common with. as the first year passed i understood more and more the commonality we all did share, since then i've embraced what i am and who i am. the challenge now is to share these discoveries with my daughter and hope she will embrace her roots, this is the vintage revival.........

fender in the closet

i still remember the times i'd ask one of my brothers to teach me guitar and i still remember their response, no. by the time i really wanted to play i was thirteen and my oldest brother had gotten married and left. of course this left the one who was very much not interested in taking care of his little brother. although i can't say he never taught me anything, i used to sneak his writings from his drawers and read them intently, so you might say he inspired the creative writer within. but back to the story at hand; i remember his black fender strat in the closet and him telling me not to touch his guitar as he went off to work. i would raid that closet the second the door closed, grabbing all his guitar magazines and learning stairway to heaven. to this day i'm not even sure if his intention was to encourage me to learn or he simply did not want me playing his guitar, this is the vintage revival.....