Read it and remember
Current mood: crazy
Category: Writing and Poetry

"My Dreams went to Heaven"

Jonathan Bryant Dean

"Went to my dreams, Why?
I asked them where they're goin'.
Hook up later." -- Mitch

'I'm sick of following my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where they're goin', and hook up with them later. ' -- Mitch Hedberg

7:18 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

I miss Florida.
Current mood: crazy
Category: Not Driving in Florida Life

First there is Anna Nicole Smith kicking the bucket at the Hard Rock Café. She has had more of a boost in press since her death than she was able to get in her pathetic life. She kicks off with a probable drug overdose, leaving behind her baby with more potential fathers than a guest on the Maury Povich Show.

Of all things, I wonder how senile Zsa Zsa Gabor's husband, Prince Frederic von Anhalt may be, since he has come forward to say that he might be the father of Anna Nicole's child! Now there are at least three contestants in the name that baby's daddy contest, since the birth certificate lists Dannielynn's father as attorney Howard K. Stern, but former Smith boyfriend Larry Birkhead is waging a legal challenge, saying he is the father. Hell, I am stepping up, and I will say I am the father. I am Anna Nicole's Baby Daddy!

Then there is the astronaut stalker, Lisa Nowak, that wears depends to drive cross country from Texas to Florida, with murderous intent, love on her mind, and LUVS on her butt. I know, that is a crappy pun, I hope she is not pissed. The fact that she was willing to wear the adult diaper to avoid bathroom stops is a true dedication to her fatal attraction. I wonder if she boiled his rabbit in tang?

It has been said that Nowak was viewed as a role model by the schoolchildren she often addressed in local schools. She is now charged with attempted murder and attempted kid-napping in what police said was a love triangle involving a fellow astronaut.

Then there is the botched lethal injection of Angel Nieves Diaz, which took 34 minutes for him to die, and an unprecedented second dose of the poisonous chemicals before he died. "I have no medical training and no qualifications," said the executioner. How messed up is that, the executioner was not even trained in how to kill people, and that is his job.

Maybe they should have strapped the death row prisoner into a car and let him drive on Florida's highways. Traffic deaths have steadily increased in Florida during the past five years, rising from 2,920 in 1999 to preliminary figures showing 3,200 fatalities in 2004, according to the Florida Highway Patrol and the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The data for 2005 and 2006 is not yet available, but I am sure that it is not an improvement upon previous results.

Florida is staying right up there with the most retarded state in America status. This is a continuation of the reputation achieved when Katherine Harris was accused of impropriety during the Bush/Gore election in 2000. At that time there was also the issue of hanging chads, and voter confusion. Basically the majority of the voters in Florida had no clue as to how to work the voting booths.

Of course all of this is merely my own opinion, even though I feel that it is supported by the facts that I have quoted. Florida seems to have a handle on their population growth problem, with people dying on the highways, in prisons and in their hotels.

Just remember that if I die after my show at Bobalouis in Tampa on March 11, 2006, I am Anna Nicole's baby's daddy!!!

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

4:46 AM - 7 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

I am almost through with myspace.(Updated)
Current mood: crazy
Category: MySpace

Thank you to all of the people that have spread the word about this blog. Karen did leave a comment that this blog is about her, and she appreciates all of your kind words and thoughts.

I have updated this blog to let you know how Karen wants to thank everyone, and it is also important to keep this situation in the front of our minds. This was not someone that Karen just met, and as some of you have commented, it could have happened without myspace. It is sad that we cannot ever trust anyone, because some people are like animals, that will lay in wait, and attack when the opportunity arises.

As for myself, I am done with myspace for a while. You can visit http://www.writerscafe.org/profile/JonBoy/ to read some of my poetry and short stories, or www.thebluedoodle.com to read a bunch of cool writers, and I will be there as well, as the Crazy Comic.

Thanks again for all of your comments.

JonBoy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My friend is a beautiful woman, both mentally, emotionally and even a physical beauty. I met her here on the internet. She came to one of my shows, and I was able to entertain her from the stage, and she became a both a fan, and a friend from that point forward. I had the opportunity to meet her boyfriend that day at the show, a soft-spoken gentleman.

I have had the opportunity to get to know my friend and her boyfriend via telephone conversations and internet instant messages. I feel that I know here almost as though she were someone that I was speaking to face to face. She has a wonderful little baby boy, whom I have yet to meet, but after our conversations, I feel as though I know this little angel as well.

While I know that rape is, as defined in textbook psychology, more of a power issue than that of pleasure, it is still a horrible thing. It turns out, from what I have heard, that in the animals cell phone, was the number to the soon to be ex husband's cell phone. This rape may have been motivated as a murder by hire plot. There is no reason for this person to have know the spouse of the victim, my friend. So here we see the internet, once again used as a hunting ground for a predator.

8:10 AM - 54 Comments - 58 Kudos - Add Comment

Steve Irwin Croc hunter, killed by a Sting Ray....
Current mood: sad
Category: Pets and Animals

The Crocodile Hunter is dead at the age of 44.

My thoughts are with his two young children, and his wife Terry.

Here is the article I read:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20356038-29277,00.html

I have a sick mind, but even I will save the jokes until after the funeral. Have a little respect. I am a fan.

Jonboy

8:59 PM - 7 Comments - 7 Kudos - Add Comment

I have Created another profile, so check it out and leave a comment
Current mood: crazy
Category: Writing and Poetry

JonBoy's other Profile

 Oh, and you can still visit my myspace and leave comments on my blogs, it will not piss me off at all. I will also have a video posted soon!

JonBoy

JonBoy is an insane poet with the heart of a comic.

What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: By 06 October, 2004

3:12 AM - 3 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

Survivor is Racist!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I said it....
Current mood: crazy
Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities

This season they are dividing the teams by race in an attempt to show which race is superior! Sounds a little like Joseph Mengele to me, but who am I to judge... I am a comic! That is who I am to judge.

In the commercials leading up to this season of Survivor, they are playing the race card very hard. There is this one American chick, that happens to be black, and she says that she "Lives for her culture". She is an American, so her culture is the United States.

I am of Scottish heritage, my ancestors were forced to the United States because of poverty in the 1700's, they were indentured servants, which is a bondage similar to slavery, only it is one that is chosen by the servant. You do not see me walking around with a Kilt and Sporan, talkin with a fake brogue. I am an American, this is my culture, as fucked up as it is.

I feel that Survivor is racist in its experiment, as well as in the fact that they have not added a category for Celts! The Celts are recognized as a seperate race, as have the Aboriginal tribes of Australia. There are more than just Asian, Latin, Black, and White.

There is no redeeming value in pitting people against each other based upon race, since this is what we have been striving to end for over 100 years!

Am I the only one who sees how funny this is?

5:49 PM - 7 Comments - 9 Kudos - Add Comment

My first War Protest Poem and others that are not
Current mood: awake
Category: and insane News and Politics

War?
Jonathan Bryant Dean
Imagine my penultimate frustration,
Over the location of such agitation,
Such Degradation,
With no foundation,
The purported defense of our nation.

A Tax for Attacks
(*Double limerick)
Jonathan Bryant Dean

For all to know, Tyrants well attack,
Instead of like Spain, who gave in,
And for funds for the war cause to back,
To prevent by tyrants terror; a win,
Please take my advice,
We will pay more for gas,
Its well worth the price,
Cause well kick their ass,
Support your country, protect your kin,
And, vote for a tax, for attacks on Iraq!

(Author's Note: "This is an example of a Double Limerick: Instead of writing two stanzas one after the other, I have combined the two into a seamless, if not confusing poem. Note that the story progresses naturally from beginning to end, and observe where the rhyming scheme comes in.")

INVESTIGATION
Jonathan Bryant Dean

The Nine-Eleven investigation,
Was at the Democrats instigation,
For so they did behoove,
Senate hearings to prove,
Bush did not protect our nation!

Bush, in answer to this wild claim,
Said in defense of his good name,
The reports were historical,
With no proof categorical,
Al-quaida, our people would maim!

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

11:10 AM - 4 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

My Little Brother is in the News, in a Good Way!
Current mood: happy

I remember when he was a thorn in my side, I never saw the rose that he was trying to give me. I am proud of my brother, so I am sharing this article with all of my myspace friends that care to read it as well.--JB

Meat manager, Monroe grad an 'excellent employee'

Jesse Dean focuses on providing for his family and Kroger Marketplace.

LIBERTY TWP. Jesse Dean, a 1993 Monroe High School grad, didnt last long at Miami University.

It didnt fit me, he said.

Deans young life was at a crossroads work dead-end, minimum-wage jobs the rest of his life or land a position with growth potential.

In order words, be ground round or filet mignon.

In just 12 years, Dean has blossomed from an 18-year-old meat clerk at Kroger to managing the meat department at the Kroger Marketplace on Yankee Road, one of the companys crown jewels.

Or as Dean said, Its Disney World.

On Thursday morning, while giving a quick tour of the massive 112,000-square-foot Kroger Marketplace, Dean showed why he has risen so quickly in the corporate world. As he walked down an aisle, he spotted a small piece of paper on the floor.

Instead of stepping over the trash leaving it for the janitor Dean stopped, leaned over, picked up the paper and threw it away.

Certainly, a small feat, but it revealed Deans work ethic.

Hes an excellent employee, said Evelyn Miller, Kroger store manager. Hes very friendly, very business-like.

Once a lost college dropout, Dean has found a home at Kroger. At 23, he was named assistant meat manager. He was named meat manager of the Kroger on South Main Street when he was 25. The Kroger Marketplace is his fifth location, and the highlight of his career.

This is an incredible opportunity for me, said Dean, 30. Ill see what I can make of it. This is a very important job for me.

But it doesnt rank No. 1. When asked what he considers his most important job, Dean became uncharacteristically quiet.

Being a good husband and a father, he said quietly.

His wife of 10 years, Jennifer, wasnt surprised by Jesses answer.

That sounds just like him, she said. He takes great pride in providing for his family. Thats why he works so hard. He wants the best for us.

The Deans have three children, Jesse Jr., 10, Cory, 8, and Ashley, 2. When Dean pulled out his wallet, and showed pictures of his children his boys in their baseball uniforms and three kids the day they were born his eyes filled with tears.

Man, this is tough, he said.

He looked around the room, made sure no one was watching, and wiped away the tears.

You have to provide for your family, and at the same time, provide for your company, he said. Everything has to come together

Right on cue, the phone rang. It was a call for the meat department. Dean stopped in mid-sentence and answered the phone. It was his wife.

That was the boss, he said. You have no idea how fortunate I am.

He needed no college degree to know the importance of the caller.

Contact this columnist at (513) 705-2842 or rmccrabb@coxohio.com.

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

6:33 AM - 8 Comments - 11 Kudos - Add Comment

Some more Limericks and a new poem about Friends
Current mood: crazy
Category: Insane Writing and Poetry

SLEEP
Jonathan Bryant Dean
We know another word for sleeping is slumber,
Fitting since after sleep I wake with lumber,
Lumber is wood,
And wood is good,
Lumber, wood, copper, materials of a plumber.

Vernacular terms may be vulger it's true,
The point gets portrayed, for me and you,
Anatomy is plumbing,
Pleasure is coming,
Females and males just perform what we do!

Sleeping and dreaming do go hand in hand,
Dreaming of perverse acts that are banned
Is it a sickness,
Or source of hapiness,
Or a breaking of the laws of the land?

I will say that sleeping is so grand.
dreaming of breaking laws of the land!
Dreams of my own,
I wake alone,
Thank goodness I still have my hand!

Friends
Jonathan Bryant Dean
It is important for all of us to remember,
It's not the number we have not even one,
But to how many are we truly a friend?
For if we are not a friend, we have none.

12:55 PM - 3 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

Limericks that I have written
Current mood: Insane
Category: Insane Writing and Poetry

I like odd forms of poetry, like the Double Limerick-

DOUBLE LIMERICK
Jonathan Bryant Dean

You can write a poem bout most any cliché,
The subject can be of any known topic,
Even about dance moves as people saché,
In the East, the West, or in climes so tropic,
Many poems are writ,
By poets young and old,
With a quick enough wit,
These stories are told,
And of subjects theres an endless caché,
Unless, topics, elude your eyes, Myopic!

Here is the story of Ghenghis Khan as written in Double Limerick Form:

GHENGIS KAHN
Jonathan Bryant Dean

There once was a youth named Temujin,
Whose enemies survival was to surrender,
Though a youth he was a true curmudgeon,
When enemies resisted he would render,
The women to capture, but men bludgeon,
His ancestry was of royalty,
Of Mongolian lineage,
His requirement was loyalty,
From anyone any age,
Those disloyal, often felt his dudgeon,
Which ended life for such an offender.

Temujin was the son of a chief Mongolian,
His Father was poisoned by a Tatar enemy,
After, Temujin was called the Gengis Khan,
Vowing to avenge this Tartar blasphemy,
He wanted to lead his clan,
But they rejected his claim,
Saying "He's not yet a man"
Causing Ghengis much shame,
Then Ghengis extended vengeful intention,
For to him respect is a word of monosemy.

So Ghengis Kahn was banished to the Steppes,
His mother and family forced to nomadic strife,
That struggle served to be one of the steps,
That caused him to become famous later in life,
Mistreatment by his clan,
went against loyalty rules,
So to prove himself a man,
Refusing wrongs to excuse,
Thus were vengeance, and no mercy his precepts,
Enforced with a cudgel, bare hands, or a knife.

It took much to convince the Mongols to unite,
It did not just happen in one day or overnight,
Amongst each other they'd still rather fight,
Until the 'the Great Law Ghengis did incite,
Thus Ghengis began,
to enforce his law,
By ruling his clan,
by inspiring awe,
He took back the Steppes, his born birthright,
Then went on to conquer all within his sight!

Then there is there the reverse upside down limerick, which I inented-

REVERSE UPSIDE DOWN LIMERICK
Jonathan Bryant Dean

This is a reverse, upside down limerick,
That rhymes on both sides,
Begat by my fancy decides,
Amiss, new rhyme scheme that I pick,
Dismiss not, for it is not an easy trick,

I, Oh, I am sure that this is a "First",
Reverse upside down,
Perverse all around,
My,Oh My, how it quenches athirst,
By and by now I know I am cursed!

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

1:48 AM - 3 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

Haiku vs Senryu (Gesundheidt!)
Current mood: Insane
Category: Insane Writing and Poetry

What I Need
(Hai-ku or Sen-ryu = Gesund-heidt!)
Jonathan Dean

Haircut, Money, nice Car,
I have a Good paying Job
But feel I need more.

House Cat friendly dog,
I have enough to live well
But feel I need more.

Good friends, food, and fun,
I have all of these as well,
But feel I need more.

I have not I need,
But to fulfill not for greed,
Hearts request, soul plead:

Heart says to my soul-
Find your mate before to death,
My sad heart will bleed.

HAIKU
Jonathan Dean

At the simplest level, haiku are verse,
About nature and humanity, writ first,
Composed of lines of three,
Five-seven-five, syllabee,
Via which writer and reader converse!

True Haiku written by the haijin,
Don't well translate to a gaijin,
In a Japanese unza,
A gaijin will soonza,
Know their verse doesn't fit in!

For in a Japanese Haiku alliteration,
Kanji are counted, not syllabization,
Each a character counts,
Five-seven-five amounts,
But this too is just a generalization!

But ocidental haiku poetic form,
Of Five-seven-five words is norm,
For we have learned,
Oer time we spurned,
To define what'l our hearts warm!

Poems of other than nature are senryu,
Having five-seven-five like the haiku,
A senryu has not ever kigo,
But in satire it feeds ego,
Senryu has "kiredji", or an innuendo!

Senryu may be my orient poem cousins,
I read them by the fives, n by the dozens,
They may be related,
Or maybe have dated,
The limerick, for its' satirical denizens!

Prologue:
For those of you wanting a translation,
Of saijedi words there is illumination,
At the end of this post,
You will find that most,
Of the words there is Anglo explanation!


Glossary:

1. Haiku: Three line poem about nature and seasons.
2. Haijin: A haiku poet.
3. gaijin: "foreigner".
4. Unza: Hhaiku contest.
5. Kanji: Japanese writing character.(ie: a symbol for a word)
6. Senryu: A three line poem, like haiku, but it exhibits a different sense of humour.
7. Kigo: Season word
8. Kiredji: Cutting word
9. Saijedi: Almanac of haiku subjects

Here are a few Haiku that I have written:

My Ire is now Raised,
Many leaders are in sight
The cross-hairs aim!

Ignoramouses,
Fools with Constipated minds
Diahreal mouths!

Filth spews in season,
Putrid vile hateful spite,
My emotion shows!

Please feel free to post comments with your own Haiku. Or any poetic Form.

Also please read my friends poetry, who has requested that I refer people to his Poetry:

WATCHFUL

POEM: Bullets Fly  (view more)

POem: CRazy  (view more)

Poem: IF Hearing is Beliveing  (view more)

New Poem: Create in Me a New Heart  (view more)

POem: Holden My Beholden  (view more)

[View All Blog Entries]

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

1:18 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Here are the Bare Facts of the Bear attack!!
Current mood: embarrassed
Category: Crazy insane you get the idea! Pets and Animals

JonBoy attacked a Bear, and they both lived to tell the tale! I cannot vouch for the bear, but the following is my tale:

This past weekend, I travelled to Cleveland, Oh to the Ekoostic Hookah concert at Nelsons Ledges Quarry Park. Check it out at www.nlqp.com I must say, it was a blast! The music was awesome, the crowd was full of great people. The only sad note, was that I did not get to perform

Thats right, the main reasons for my trip. I did not get to perform on the stage, but I made my rounds among the crowd and at the campsite, still the same.

The irony is, the owner of the campgrounds felt that I had too many drug references in my act. He is the one that booked me for the show, by the way. Now the true irony, is that this concert is a Grateful Dead style atmosphere, and pot is everywhere, so are shrooms. Shroom tea available for the taking at several spots along the way, but I declined. I stayed sober the entire time, since I was planning to drive home after the show. So I was pretty boring, compared to some of the people that I met.

One character that was very interesting was a 49 year old hippy burnout known as Psycho Ted. He was an interesting sort, who was formerly a lead singer in a band of some sort, and he fancies himself somewhat of a comedian. He did have some funny stories, and a few funny jokes; it was sad to see his delivery ruined by alcohol induced slurring. He also had a tendency to be a "close talker", which was even more annoying with the alcohol on his breath at such a level that a light drinker could have gotten a contact buzz!

At about midnight, I learned that I was not going to be performing, so I began to prepare for my trip home. I stopped by the food booth of Disco Pizza, a vendor from the same town where I live, and he gave me the lovely parting gift of some free pizza! The pizza was some of the best I have ever had, and not just because it was free. The sauce was great, the crust was perfect, and it was fresh. If you ever see Disco Pizza set up at a festival or concert, just stop over and get in line. Yes, There will be a line!

So, after eating my pizza, I began my journey home. It was mainly an uneventful journey, until I hit a bear. I thought that I was hallucinating at first, then I realized that I had felt the impact...

I was traveling along I-71 at 3:30 am, going about 60 mile per hour. I saw a blurry brownish black object enter my headlight swath, then I felt the impact. There was a violent jolt. Understand, the bear was just slightly bigger than a German Shepherd, but I was driving a Hyundai Accent, which felt as though it went up on two wheels after hitting the bear.

After the initial shock, I pulled to the side of the road to see just what damage had been done to my car. After turning on the hazard lights, I tried to open the door, but I could not get it to open. My first thought was, "Oh man, I have the minimum insurance, and my car door is jammed shut! I probably just totaled this car!" The sad part of it is, the bear probably just has a bad headache!

So what would you do,. If you had just hit a medium to large sized wild animal, and your door is jammed shut? Right, that is what I did, I called 911. Then I opened the passenger door, and crawled out head first, and fell into a small ditch. That was funny, but you had to be there to see my fat ass falling out of the care into a ditch. It was as if the care were giving birth to a fat man.

I then went around to the drivers side, thinking that I was strong enough to pull the door open. The first thing I noticed was the damage to my hood, and the bumper that was torn. After a brief inspection, I determined that the car was drivable, the tire was not flat or anything, so that was good. The window was down so I grabbed the door and was about to try to yank it open, when I realized that the lock button was down. I had locked myself in the car!! In my panic after hitting the bear, I did not think to check whether the door was locked...

Imagine how hard it was to explain all of this to a cop, that arrived as I was standing outside of my car. That I had hit a bear, that had since run into the woods, and that I reported that I was trapped in my car, but actually it was a case of my locking myself inside. Now realize that I was coming from a hippy concert, so I smelled like pot, and when I told him where I had come from, he probably thought that I was trippin on acid! But he was cool, we stood there and joked for a bit, then he sent me on my way. I gave him my card, and told him that if he ever needed a comedian, or killer of small wild animals, just give me a call!

And that is the short version of a story that would make a novel, if I ever wrote it all down.

12:25 AM - 3 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

Myspace vs Myschizophrenia (or "Two Nuns walk into a Bar")
Current mood: crazy
Category: MySpace

Two nuns walk into a bar, the priest ducks. The bartender says, "We don't serve Jews here."
The nuns say, "That's ok we're not hungry."
The priest says, "I am George Bush!"
...................
What, you don't like political humor?


My myspace was available for 20 minutes of the past 36 hours!!
I am not sure that I will be able to even send this before it goes down again. That sucks!

Get it:
Goes Down.
Sucks
I gonna HEAD out....

I just kill me!

Then when it is available, it is slow.

As slow as molasses in winter.
Slow as a pig on a hot day,
Slow as a dead possum going up hill,
Slower than a dead squirrel chasing a walnut backwards up a tree that has been chopped down with a dull axe on Sunday.

That is as crazy as myspace has made me today, not that I did not have a head start anyway.

I would say that this experience is driving me crazy, but I could walk there from here.



Jonboy,
The Crazy Comic.

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

4:56 PM - 6 Comments - 12 Kudos - Add Comment

Here are links to my poems that I have posted
Current mood: creative
Category: Writing and Poetry

Here are links to some of the poems that I have posted on Myspace. They get pushed back by my other blogs, but I feel that I want to know what you think of them.

I am posting these links, and challenging all of you to read a few. If you do not like then, leave a comment, if you do like them, then leave a comment!

I appreciate your taking the time to read this!

Here ya go!

Here are few Obscure Limerick Styles that I love!

Pretty Pictures....

Silent Nudity

Inertia

BOSS

Awake

EGO

"Don't Get Your Hopes Up, They May Want To Sleep In Today"

"My Ears, My Sensitive Ears Hear Painful Noises"

Suicide

Autobiography of Insanity

Currently reading : What Is A Limerick?: Limericks And Other Poems: With A Bonus Section: The Book Of Nonsense By Edward Lear By Jonathan Bryant Dean Release date: 06 October, 2004

8:51 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

My First Interview with LOR Hearing Voices: Shane Gambe Interview!
Current mood: Hearing Voices
Category: Hearing Voices Music

(Interview with artist Shane Gamble)


Hello this is L.O.R.s Hearing Voices with Jonboy, and today I have the pleasure of interviewing Shane Gamble, a talented young musician from Maryland, who is getting ready for a Nationwide tour to support his latest album "Behind the Blue."

JB: Shane, what or who inspired you to become a musician?

Shane: I would say there were several influences. I listened to Hendrix and Dylan, in fact I ruined a couple of phonograph needles listening to my dads records when I was a kid. I started playing guitar when I was 5 years old.



JB: Phonograph records, what are those; how old are you, man?

Shane: I am 29, I listened to my fathers records.

JB: How old were you when you first started to sing?

Shane: When I was 15 or 16 years old I started to write songs to sing. I connected with the music at an early age. I look at each stage of my career as a musical chapter of my life, and sometimes it is fun to go back. I still refer to some of the songs I wrote back then, for inspiration.

JB: Do you play any instruments other than the guitar?

Shane: I started out as a Drummer, and that has affected my style of play on the guitar. I have been playing sets, where people asked me, "Are you playing to tracks?" And I do not play to looped tracks, I play everything live. I just play everything like I would a drum beat, I just hit it, you know

JB: I have been listening to your cd and I must say I love the sound, I hear some influences, but I also hear voices, so I will ask you: what do you feel are your influences as far as your music at this point of your career?

Shane: I would say there are several, from Bob Dylan to John Mellencamp, to "Toad the Wet Sprocket", Son Volt, WILCO, Chris Whitley, who just recently passed away. I am influenced by song writers that are honest, and real, with no barriers between the lyricist and the listener.



JB: What sort of music do you listen to?

Shane: I like Jazz, the blues. I like the naivete of artists that wrote before they were famous, and carried that throughout their career. Guys like John Coltrain, Muddy Waters, Miles Davis, Sun House, a lot of the music that influenced me from a young age, is still a part of my life.

JB: To get a bit personal, Shane, are you a full time musician, or do you have another source of income?

Shane: I am a full time musician, I love to play every day. Right now I have a lot of gigs, so I play almost every night. When I am not playing a gig, I am in the studio recording songs for the new album. I try to record a new album about every year and a half. I am working the road at a rate of about 200 nights a year, so I keep a pretty full schedule.



At this point you will see that this is not your average interview....Shanes neighbor knocks on the door:


Shane: Can you hold on a minute, its my neighbor....

He is like the biggest Star Wars Geek! He is 6'5' and he has a Darth Vader suit that he had custom made, for like $1000, and it takes him an hour and a half to put it on! He has life-size Chewbacca in his living room, he has 150 Han Solo action figures still in the box.

Anyway, now back to the interview.

JB: You know I am going to use that in the interview, haha....but you said that this guy is 6'5", I might not want to piss him off!

Shane: Go ahead.

JB: I notice that your album, "Behind the Blue", is self produced, and that you are not signed to a major record label. After listening to your CD, and all of the awesome music that is on it, I cannot see why you are unsigned. What is the reason that you are unsigned at this point in your career?

Shane: I am purposely avoiding the major labels at this time. So many artists sign with a label, then end up with a watered down sound. I do not like the way "Pop" music is marketed, and the label tends to take away the creativity of the artist. There is a band that I will not name, that completely alienated their established fan base, because the label convinced them to wear leather pants, and "tweak" their music. If their music wasnt good enough, why sign the band? And if was already working, why change the band? These are a few of the reasons that I avoid the major labels. That, and because the focus is all about the Single now, as opposed to the Album. I think an artist needs an album to tell the whole story, to paint the entire picture.

JB: Do you think that the advent of the MP3 and sites like I-tunes have affected this decision to be more focused on the single, versus the album?


Shane: I really think that is the reason. This is the MP3 Generation. And I think it is a shame, because with a complete record, you can set the mood, the scene, the vibe, and relay the message to the listener, it is important to have a complete album, not just single sons. With a major label the public will not "get" you, they will get a single, as an independent I can release my album and promote it myself, to my fanbase.

JB: How do you promote?

Shane: Do it yourself promotion is the way of the future. I believe that is to tour, tour, tour, record, record, record, and play, play, play. You may not hit the charts but you will have gotten the music to your fans, and as that fanbase grows, you will sell more records, and that is the honest way to sell your music. The great singer/songwriters like Dylan, did not do it for the charts, they did it for the music. That is what I try to do.


JB: Now it seems kind of weird to ask this next question, given your opinion of single songs, but, the song, "The Story of Mary," what was the inspiration for that song?

Shane: Everybody asks me that, and I always ask them, "Who is Mary to you?"

I was sitting on the beach in Hawaii, playing some chord progressions, and talking about this woman. The talking then became a song, and I was singing about exploration and mystery. That woman then became Mary. Its like , you dont know what you are looking for, but you know that it needs to be found, understand?

JB: That is deep, man. Now I know what I liked about the song.

Is there anything that you would like our readers to know before we end the interview?

Shane: Well, I will be hitting the road and touring nationally, so look for me in your town!

JB: Ok, Shane, thank you for your time and the interview. I suggest to all of my readers, go see Shane Live, and go to www.shanegamble.com to buy the CD and see what tour dates are in your area. This is Jonboy as always, Hearing Voices, for Locals Only Radio, Peace Out!

CLICK HERE TO VISIT SHANE GAMBLE ON MYSPACE

Currently listening : Behind the Blue By Shane Gamble Release date: 04 October, 2005

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