MY LIFE IN MUSIC

We all have had life transitions, and this week might well determine what I will do for much of my future.  Nothing particularly monumental, but I wonder if the time has come for me to finally do something about music.

I've always liked to listen and watch.  Performing is something I've generally avoided.  Part of this is because I just haven't had time to practice, while more likely, lack of talent probably had a lot more to do with avoidance.

My older brother Stan could well become my inspiration.  Like me, I didn't think he had much to offer.  However, he had good attitude.  He played the clarinet growing up, and in adulthood, with his wife Ann, formed a hula halau in Oxnard, California.  I've noticed that people from Hawaii miss home and gravitate into Hawaiian music.  Their daughter actually became a professional impersonator of Patsy Cline, while their son has for decades had a band which performs on weekends and weddings.

At a family reunion a long time ago, he recorded the karaoke songs we were singing and made a Christmas CD.  I have a copy somewhere.  One of the songs I sang was a joke.  Freddie Aguilar's Anak has long been one of my favorites.  But it is in Filipino and very difficult to keep up with on the screen.  Anyone finding my version on that CD will have evidence that could be useful for blackmail.

My karoake experiences have had no highlights.  I've probably been to these bars a hundred times in my life, mostly in Japan.  Typically, my friend Tadashi have dinner.  We then go to his Ginza bar, where the mama-san sings to me Ginza Kan Kan Musume and we have whisky.  I didn't realize that song had a Hawaii connection, which appeared in to You Tube link.  Then we find our way to his Rappongi bar, where we finish with cognac.  I sometimes sing Your Cheatin' Heart by Hank Williams, possibly because someone once remarked, wow, almost sounds like him.

I recorded Ken Burns' Country Music miniseries on PBS, all eight episodes, each two hours long.  I have never liked Country and Western, but the program well argues that this is the real American folk song.  Fascinating.  I happened to watch #3 this week featuring Hank Williams.  Your Cheatin' Heart is his most popular, but I did not previously know that this song was released after he passed away, at the age of 29.

Instruments?  My wife and I a long time ago bought a Baldwin Fun Machine, which was a synthesizer that could be converted to play like a piano, banjo or almost anything.  After a few years we gave it away.  We just didn't have time to do it right.  However, this experience led to another attempt a little more than a decade ago.

Nine years ago, when my wife was in intensive care I bought a Casio Song Bank Rhythm Controller, essentially the same thing as the above, but four decades more recent.  My plan was to play her a song when she returned home.  I even stored a Dom Perignon to celebrate that occasion.  I turned to page one and tried to learn Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  After two weeks I gave up and went to page 98 for Pachelbel's Canon in D.  Unfortunately, she then passed away, so I drank the champagne and this electronic keyboard is now in my closet.  But it had no blinking lights to show you the way.

Two summers ago on America's Got Talent, I saw Jokgu play America the Beautiful.  I did some research, and saw that this chicken was pecking at keys that lit up.  I also saw her play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, something I could not do.   So I went to Amazon and found a 61-key Portable Light Keyboard for $300.  128+ instrumental sounds and 4000 programmed sheet music songs, including Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  However, Amazon did not ship this instrument to Hawaii.  But Spotify did.  So I ordered it, with a confirmation which blared out and said that the company failed fraud detection checks.  Oh great, they got my credit card details.

I called VISA, and the person on the phone said, why don't I just wait until something happens.  I won't be charged if nothing comes.  Well, The One arrived.

Amazingly enough, an ancient iPad I had could link with this instrument.  I tried it out and had difficulty playing TTLW.  Then, the iPad died.  So I bought a new one.  Argghhh...the link did not work.  But with great difficulty I found an adaptor.  However, I never got around to seeing if it worked.

With all that background, I can now go into what happened this past week:

• I had a friend over for dinner and she said the next time she comes, why don't we use my karaoke system.  So I said I'll see if it works and let her know.  The device must be 15 years old and how long do those rechargeable batteries last?
• My golf career might be coming to and end.   I see a knee doctor at the end of the month.
• People have been telling me that my blog site is getting more and more difficult to reach.  It's possible that after more than a decade it is bloated.  I was planning to quit this daily ordeal next year, but maybe this will come earlier.
• Thus I'll have a lot more time to devote to music.

So I have a karaoke system that I hope works, The One electronic keyboard and Pearl's Kamaka ukelele:

There is a prevailing joke at 15 Craigside that Pat will soon have a recital.  That is because they know about my travails with Twinkle Trinkle Little Star.  Maybe I'll someday surprise them with that song, plus Pachelbel's Canon in D, with the synthesizer, then something on the uke, not sure what at this point, as I've never even tried playing this instrument.  Certainly Your Cheatin' Heart and some other Hank Williams' songs, My Way (not quite Frank Sinatra-like, but my life today is being lived my way) and Impossible Dream (I identify with the Man from La Mancha, with impossible projects like the Blue Revolution).

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