Funky Blues

Welcome back to Blueschaser Jr for some music talk. This week I decided to add a short video of me punching out some funky blues with my recent addition... VOX pedal. I snatched this one almost brand new looking at the pawn shop for $30. It even came in the original VOX bag.

In this video I chose my Fender Fat Strat and playing through a Blues Jr 15w tube amp. I really got the right sound I wanted with these choices and had fun playing it too. So, T

take a few minutes and enjoy a little funky blues.

My Les Paul in Action

WOW! I would have never thought that I would be playing this guitar much less own it! I have been playing guitar since a teenager and have always played modest guitars in low price ranges. I have always owned Fender somethings and love playing them. Growing up listening to and watching bands like the Allman Brothers Band, I fostered a love for a Gibson Les Paul.
I currently own a Fender Fat Strat that I absolutely love playing. I also have a Fender Tele that was my first guitar back in the 80's when I got serious and started bands and playing gigs. It did me well for a start up! I also still own my acoustic guitar i purchased in high school and it is still playing great!
It's a funny story but in the last few years and old friend from high school and I connected up via Facebook. Little did I know that he and his brother bought and sold guitars and amps. Several times in posting on FB he would randomly show me pics of guitars he wanted to sell me. My wife caught wind of it and asked if i was going to buy one. NO way honey! They are too much money. Time went on and then right before my last gig in Mansfield, he approached me, I mean tempted me, with a few Les Paul models he had to sell. I ended up borrowing one for the gig that weekend to try out and, well, never gave it back. SOLD!
I absolutely love this guitar and NEEDED this guitar! It's a Gibson Les Paul Classic 05 model gold top. It is in mint condition and plays great! I think that made my night for the performance then knowing I was playing the best there is in my opinion. I asked my wife that if I danced on stage during a song ( I do not dance) would she let me buy this guitar! Of course she said yes; and yes I did a dance.
Check it out in the picture. That is me at Farr Best Theater with my Les Paul in action!

Comments? Discussion?

Back In Time Booked for Port A Event

On Saturday October 12, 2013 I will be scratching through one of my bucket list items: my band is booked for my 40 Year High School Reunion in Port Aransas, Texas. The event will held at the Sandcastle Beach Condos Conference Center on Saturday night.
This has been my dream for many years and finally it will be happening. After a few phone calls and contacts from previous band members I was able to recruit a band. You know the story; we then got booked a few times to perform and have had some great fun with this.
Back In Time Band is a cover band playing mostly classic rock hits from the 70's. We play the songs that you still hear on the radio all the time. We chose the big hits that anyone would know and love to hear over and over. Songs like Born to be Wild, Take It Easy, Wonderful Tonight, and Old Time Rock and Roll. You can't ever get tired of hearing those classic hits.
Our last two gigs at Farr Best Theater were almost sell outs and each time the crowd went crazy and loved the event. Farr Best Theater is a small 150 seat entertainment venue that is fun for the whole family. We rocked the house and gave tickets holders their moneys worth for sure.
I am not sure what our future holds after this culminating event in Oct so keep watching here for updates.

What do you do for fun? Comments? Discussion?

Another Night at Farr Best

Back in Time Band rocked the house AGAIN at Farr Best Theater in Mansfield, Texas Saturday night June 29, 2013. We cranked out nothing but classic rock from the 60's and 70's that everyone loved. The band did great and the venue was super fun. Many were dancing in the isles and down front with minutes of the show starting. All ages young and old were there to remember those class rock hits.

Farr Best Theater is a local music hall made from a restored movie theater in downtown Mansfield and does a fantastic job of hosting. This was our second show there and the people loved it. The theater is family friendly and is a fun and intimate music hall.

Our set list included, Fleetwood Mac, Clapton, Steppenwolf, Doobie Brothers, Allman Brothers, Bob Sieger, Steve Miller Band, CCR, CSNY, Eagles, Lynard Skynard, and so much more. It was a great show! See more pics on this site from Another Night at Farr Best!

I put this band together last year to play my 40 Year High School reunion this Oct in Corpus Christi, Texas and little did i know we would be performing before then. The band came together pretty well at the start up and just kind of took off. Each member was hand picked knowing them from other bands i had put together and the knowing the talent they each have. More details on how the band came together is an some previous posts!

More pics from the night are on the Random Photo Page on this site! Enjoy!

Another Farr Best Night

Our band is playing another show on June 29 at Farr Best Theater in Mansfield Texas. Show starts at 8pm and tickets are no sale now at www.farrbest.com. We have lots of new classic rock hits from the 70's ready for this show. Farr best Theater is a restored movie theater in downtown Mansfield that is fun, intimate, and great for this type of thing. Come help support local theater and have too.
Back in Time Band started as  bucket list item for me. I wanted to play my high school reunion and this year we celebrate our 40 Year reunion. So I got a band together to play the reunion! Along the way we got booked to play a few times and are having a blast.
The band is made up of friends I have known 20 years and most have played with me in other bands. Dave Lucas is the new guy and adds lead vocals that you will love. Dave and the drummer Steve, play in Monkey Love, a DFW local band that play somewhere almost every weekend. Darryl, our bass player played with SRV back in the day and has a poster to prove it. Steve, our drummer, is the tech guy and sets the song pace and kicks us off for each song. Stan, vocals and guitar, has been playing since high school and loves rock music. Jet, our keyboard guy, was a concert pianist at age 24 and will knock your socks off.
So, if don't have anything better to do on June 29, come see our show full of classic rock hits, music trivia, and fun. The June 29 show also features special guest RW Hollar, aka Blueschaser, a blues harpist that i have known for 15 years and have played with before. He is incredible and adds a lot to the music we play. See you there!

Rick Cadden

Comments?

MXR Does it Again

This is the second MXR pedal I have added to my board and it certainly meets all my expectations. Its the MXR 78 Distortion Custom Badass. They could have left that last word off and still would have got the message across. lol! I replaced a Boss DS-1 and made an excellent choice. The Boss did alright but I could not get the 70's sound that I wanted. Plus the DS-1 had little choice and little variance in sound.

After a four hour band rehearsal today using the new MXR it was by far a huge improvement and really gave me that 70's distortion I needed for songs by Santana, Steppenwolf, Doobie Brothers, and ZZTop. I found it very easy to dial in the right sound for each song. I like to get as close to the original sound as much as possible and this pedal helped me greatly.

Output - very nice and really makes a difference in the fatness of what is put out. I never went past 12 noon and had plenty of power.

Tone - big difference here from the DS-1 because the MXR goes from low heavy tone to high thin sound plus there is a wide range in that knob to choose from.

Distortion - the usual here but again much more variance in that knob from 8 o'clock to 5 o'clock position.

Foot Stomp Switch - I like that better than the Boss version

Crunch switch - just a sweet bonus if you don't need a ton of distortion use the crunch switch to just add some fat to the sound with a little more bass to it. I found that great for blues.

The MXR has that smooth distortion with better sustain that what I am used to . It really carried me through the classic rock songs using distortion. I would highly recommend this pedal to anyone looking for that 70's classic sound. Kudo's to Bob at Back Stage Pass Music Center in Waco for recommending it and letting me demo it in the store this week. It sells for $80 which is the middle of the price ranges I have seen for similar pedals. It's my new favorite pedal for now.

Comments? Discussion?

My New Axe

2006 Epiphone Les Paul Standard Sunburst
This new addition really gives me some versatility in my classic rock band. Actually it is not mine! (rats) My son plays and has had this guitar for a while. He brought it over for me to store for him while on an out of town job for a while. I re-strung it and cleaned it up some and well, really like it!

I tried a new string this time veering away from my fixation on Fender strings. I laid down some DR Pure Blues 09-42 Pure Nickel - Round Core Handmade strings from Back Stage Pass. I REALLY like them and will definitely use them again. I have to have light gauge strings and these sure fit the bill. I highly recommend you try these on electric.

I used this for the first time at band rehearsal today and the only thing I did not like is the heaviness of this guy! Plus the plug in on the back hits me wrong on the leg, especially if i use my wireless  bug on it. My others are much lighter than this Les Paul! Overall I loved the tone, the sustain is great, and the lead solos stand out more. It is not a Gibson or a high-end model but for the price and quality it sounded super. My biggest preference for this axe is Allman Brother songs for the sustain on lead solos and heavy rock like Bob Sieger or Steppenwolf.

Comments? Discussion?