There's a new...

bass in the house today, a 3/4 size upright bass made in the Czech Republic and roughly ten years old. It's used, in generally good shape, and sounds decent for a reasonably inexpensive bass (remember these things can cost thousands). A little polish and its looking good and ready to play tomorrow at work for a hymn sing program and then this coming Sunday night at the acoustic jam session.

I'm always torn, of course, about buying an instrument. I've spent some real money on good instruments but at the same time the music has always been a source of both consolation and pleasure for me. As I get older I play more blues, old country, folk music, and gospel and hope to perhaps find a small local fiddle band to play with when I finally get off the road and settle down. I guess most of my rock has just rolled away with time. If I could build my own house it would have a large screen porch so I could invite some friends over on a summer night and we'd play for the neighborhood.

In an odd way as I get older I'm gravitating to acoustic instruments. I like the look of them, there's nothing quite like the look of fine polished wood, but I also like the idea that I could play them without plugging them in. I'm not against electric instruments (I own them) I'm just for the idea, the dream really, of being able to drop everything and play a barn dance without having to look for a plug in or spending an hour or so on a sound check to get the right mix.

Anyways, there'll be pictures to follow and tomorrow I'll join my wife at work to play old American Protestant hymns for our hymn sing at work the old fashioned way, upright and unplugged.