Today's Session

I could tell you all about it, but pictures are worth a thousand words. . .

Video at the studio

Here is a video that Punchline made while recording at Innovation Studios.

It should be law: All Non-Commercial Vehicles Are Motorcycles

I was thinking about this the other morning as I rode my motorcycle to Pittsburgh. Many problems would be solved by making motorcycles the mandatory vehicle type for non-commercial driving. Many would take to public transportation, reducing the number of vehicles on the road, the amount of oil consumption and pollution. There would be far less accidents because of a) less drivers, and b) bikers who ride a lot of miles (as most would in this case) tend to be very aware, alert motorists who drive defensively. Furthermore, all motorcycles would have to be Harley-style cruisers, not just because they're cool, but for safety reasons as well. Crotch rockets should be banned all together. There's no need to go from 0-60 in 4 seconds. What about babies and kids, you ask? Simple . . . side car with a roof and climate control. And shopping? Order it online and have it delivered. Bad weather or cold temperatures? Simple. There will be removable cold weather pods that attach to the motorcycle frame and enclose your body. Sensors that detect the bike stopping will open hatches for your legs to poke through, allowing you to put your feet down on the pavement and hold the bike upright. Once you start riding, the hatches automatically close. Snow? Either use public transportation or don't go.
Hmm, I think that I'm on to something here.

The 80's

The year was 1986. I was 14 years old. I'm the guy with the red guitar. I think we knew a Kiss song, and a Van Halen song at that time. It was one of our first jam sessions, though I never played any gigs with these guys.The drummer now plays in a band called Flywheel. They're pretty good.

Beautiful June Evening

Tonight is one of those perfect air, breezy, summer nights. The air is clear (rare for Steubenville) and dry. I'm sitting on my front porch with our new doggy. Yes, we broke down and got a puppy for Mackenzie's birthday. I managed to snap this picture of the beast before my camera battery died. Her name is Chewy (it was Chewbacca when we thought she was a boy for the first week). She is part German Shepherd and part Black Lab. She is very smart for her age (12 weeks), she is almost house broken after only a month, and she's going to be very large when she grows up. I love the dog, but man, puppies are very hard. They require a TON of patience and attention. It is steadily getting easier as time goes by. Right now, she's eating a firefly.
In the studio, I just finished 3 songs with former Berlin Project singer Jon Belan. I had a great time with these songs, and Jon was a blast to work with. I think he will be posting them soon on his myspace page myspace.com/belan. All three songs are very cool, big guitar rockers, sometimes 80s sounding (perfect for me). It made me wish we were doing a whole album. Maybe someday . . .

Joia Farmer Rocks

We've been working very hard for the past month on Joia Farmer's new CD. It was our first of many sessions with Erik Kerr on drums. I'm very excited about the unleashing of this CD upon the world. Some pictures:

Edwin Laying it down.


Edwin and I working out some parts to the song "I Would Die For You"


Joia: multitasking

Also just completed: the new Eric Himan CD!! Eric is always a pleasure to work with. He has Gobs of talent, his songs are amazing, and he is a super cool guy. His new album will certainly gain him many new fans. Yes, more pictures:


And finally, a special treat for this post. Here are a few pictures from my birthday.
Can you feel the love?

Righteous B bought a Harley!

This is actually a picture of my bike. Bob picks his up on Friday.

I took him out today to give him a few riding lessons on my bike. It was a perfect day for riding; the sun is shining and its 72 degrees. He did really well for his first time actually handling a big road bike. It's nice to add him to the growing list of riding buddies I have this summer. Last year it was just Lou and I. We also have Dan the BassMan, and my new friend Ray.
Bob's bike is a 2006 Sportster Custom 883, and I think he said it is pearl white. I'll definitely have pictures to post when we pick it up Friday. I'm very excited for him, and I know he's very pumped about entering the world of motorcycling.
Those who know me also know that motorcycling is my favorite thing in life besides my family and my music. Yes, it is more dangerous than driving in a car, but if you ride safely and defensively, it can minimize the danger. There is no greater feeling of freedom and zen than being on a Harley cruising through rural country, feeling the wind, hitting warm and cool spots through the hills and valleys, smelling all of the foliage, listening to your bike rumble in the trees, leaning the powerful machine effortlessly around corners while the g-force pushes you into your seat rather than side to side, all with a 360 degree unobstructed panorama of the scenery. That's it, I'm going for a ride . . .