FunTwo (Canon Rock)

[scuzzy]

Talk about 6-string masters, check out this clown: FunTwo

Johann Pachelbel would have been proud. Or then again, he might be rolling around his grave. Rockin' and rollin', that is.

Scuzzy; I think it's Ace in car-neato

[Bill]

A minute is all I could take of that boy.  Ace has got to be better than that, look how long he's been playing!

Bill;where's the aspirin?

[Ace]

Ok, fine.. you sorta "called me out" on this so I'll vent an opinion.  It's so frustrating, being on dial up; took a half hour to get maybe half of the thing to load.  But I figure I heard and saw enough to figure it out.

Alright; he's good.  I mean, I think he's a talented guy and what you're seeing and hearing is some good stuff.  First thing I always wonder is if it's "fake" but watching and listening to it it seems authentic.. what he's doing is matching what you're hearing, and would sound like an ESP shred guitar with a volume pedal (through some unseen amp set up).  The vibrato and tapped harmonics look and sound real.

Only thing I probably play as a "regular tune" like this is the Icarus Dream Suite Op. 4 by Yngwie Malmsteen.  I've seen Yngwie, live, twice.  I own DVDS and pretty much all CDs by Yngwie.  If you want a neoclassical Pagannini like virtuoso take on guitar, then do Yngwie.  The guy is a (true) virtuoso;  I've seen a few in my lifetime, and he's the real deal.  (Yngwie, Eddie Van Halen, Virgil Fox). 

I did think the youtube guy is a bit "stiff".  I didnt' get a lot of emotional content or musicality from the video.  It seems "accurate" but not really moving, you know?  Sorta clean and clinical.  I don't think in term of doing bar chord arpeggios, so that was sorta different for me to absorb.  And I'd tend toward more of a vertical (violin..) vibrato more than the wide horizontal this guy does, in some sections.  I thought it was "pretty" and competent.  Kinda weird to start playing WITH the orchestra, and then "take it."  Instead of just doing it all as a solo...  So, in all, I didn't see or hear anything wrong with it, but not enough impressive with it to find it really moving or meaningful...  Just my thoughts. 

You know, on the comment of "playing a long time" (equaling "getting better/good").... my brother and I are playing tennis today, and this young guy comes up to watch.  My brother's 4 years older than ME.  He asks him "how long have you guys been playing?"  My brother says "you mean today?" [see "Yogi Berra; asked 'What Time Is It', Yogi says "You mean now?] Guy says "No, since you started.."  My brother says "1968." 

Guy goes off, and I tell my brother "You know, we've been playing for 40 years.  No wonder I'm tired!"  I then added "You'd think we'd be better.."

Ace; sometimes, you just reach the statue of limitations the longer you do something.

[scuzzy]

If you got a headache within just one minute, what more proof do you need that it was Ace?

Personally, I admire anyone that can so much as spell guitar. I tried to learn, but I was completely hopeless.

I was totally stunned that you are familiar with Icarus Dream Suite Op. 4 by Yngwie Malmsteen. I've never heard of either. But after looking him up on YouTube, I'm impressed.

As for FunTwo, I like his Canon rendition. I simply had fun listening to it. I wish I could play like that. No, he's not fake. He's a Korean with quite a reputation for his guitar skills.

Time for me to get into bed. Ya'll have a good night.

Scuzzy; I remember 1968 very well. It was a very good year.

[Ace]

You know what's funny, to me.. you go on YouTube for visibility, and then wear a cap pulled down over your eyes so no one can see your face...  He's a very practiced and precise guy.  I'm assuming he's pretty young, and the piece seemed very practiced.  Very technically proficient; and probably even more so trying to get it "perfect" for public consumption.  That's what I mean by not seeming very "passionate" or musical in that sense.  And it's not a criticism, but more of an observation of my thinking it's more this instead of that.  And I'm sure not saying I could play the thing.  Heck, I only know what half of it sounds like.

Sure, I cause headaches.  Geez, what's your point?

Yeah, 1968 was great.  I was in 8th grade, I guess.  I remember playing "Walk Don't Run" and "Diamond Head" at my school's talent show.  I was 'aight.  And, no, that wasn't exactly the same as Pachelbel's canon.  I don't think the Ventures covered that.  I suppose 1968 was with strings attacked, between my S&H stamps wood Wilson racket and my Sears Silvertone guitar.

Ace; some would like to string me up.

[scuzzy]

I vaguely remember 1968, which is probably why I think it was such a good year. I think I was in either 5th or 9th grade. But I do remember "Walk Don't Run", "Apache", "Guitar Tango", "Wipe Out", "Sleepwalk", and other guitar classics that were still popular at the time.

One of my favorite tunes from that era remains "Time Is Tight" (mostly organ, I think) by Booker T & The MGs.

Scuzzy; America's Got Talent, but it ain't got English skills.

[Ace]

I remember playing "Wipe Out" in our 7th grade group, and that our drummer didn't know how the solo fills went and he was actually trying to read the (drum) music to figure it out...  and I was tapping it out on his snare, to try to show him.  Never did get it.  I just got the Montery Pop festival dual CD set, and it has a Booker T cut.  No one's better than Steve Cropper and Duck Dunn for R&B.  They're like blues brothers.

"Pipeline" was a personal favorite, and can still send chills down listeners when you do that top to bottom E string run... bidididididididididididididbom.

Hey, speaking of dinner and a movie we did get "Sin City" and saw that last night.  What a cool, bizarre, clever film noir.  Man, that thing is so noir you gotta turn on a light just to find the DVD player.  And blanc, with some of the blood, which was something.  Dinner was NY strips on the grill and we made cheddar mashed potatoes, and had a Bella Sera Pinot Noir.  Hey... there's that noir thing again!  I'm glad our kitchen cupboards are black.

Ace; Le Jestere Noir

[scuzzy]

This medley (of sorts) is worth waiting a few hours to download: The Ventures Original Members 1984