Ladies Rock Camp 2012

February 2012

This entry has been hard to write. Where to begin? Where oh where....eh how about the beginning.

One day, when I was...14-ish the Sears Wishbook (catalog) came. Yes, it was back in the day when major retailers actually sent out these things called...cat-a-logs. There was a black on black bass. Black body, black neck, black head and I wanted it. I asked for it and was told, "no." I asked again a year or two later and was told, "NO!" So, being the good girl, I gave up and happily went on playing my saxaphone. There were a few times in high school when I was a bit jealous of friends who got a bass or an electric guitar. I think I even asked once more in high school and of course the answer the the same.

Fast forward 24 years. Well, I couldn't have a bass so I'll be happy being the bass player's girl. Jeff always said that if I wanted to play any of his guitars that I could. And while I greatly appreciated that, I didn't want to break them. He'd always laugh and said I wouldn't break them, but knowing me, I'd drop his Geddy Lee Fender Jazz and break it and I'd never forgive myself. Which always made him laugh more condering the number of times he's dropped it. Oh well, if he drops and breaks it, that one thing, he did it. But if *I* drop and break it I would feel absolutely horrible and honestly never forgive myself. It's his favorite bass. I always declined the offer, but was doing a little searching for maybe a bass of my own. Something that would be suited to my stubby little fingers.

Hello Luna!

My research brought me to Luna Guitars. Guitars ideally designed by women for women (and men) The founder had watched her mother, a petite bass player, rare in the 60's, physically struggle everytime she strapped on a heavy bass to play the music she loved. So she began designing instruments with her mom in mind.

I fell in love with the Andromeda bass . Oh how I loved the merlot flame style. But could never bring myself to actually buy it. That "responsiblility" gene kept kicking in... don't be silly, you are a grown woman, you have no NEED for a bass, there are more responsible things you need or can put that money towards... and so I couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger. But I still followed every Ebay auction and online listing I could find for it.

Then late last October or November I got a message from my PR friend that I used to work with, Dean Lofton, promoting a Ladies Rock Camp to support the Girls Rock Austin, which has been empowering girls of all backgrounds through music education. Three days of camp to let loose and play rock music together. No experience required. Sounded awesome! AND they'd provide instruments, all I'd have to do is show up? I could have instrument of choice, well, there would be only one option there. LOL There would be instrument lessons, as well as songwriting, recording, stage equipment setup (being the widow of a professional roadie, and the wife of a rockstar I kind of had a clue on that part), and merchandising and more. In addition, in those three days, we'd also form bands, write an orginal song, and then perform it in a special showcase on the third night. OH MY!

So I talked to Jeff about it later that evening. He too thought it was an awesome idea and said that if I wanted to do it we'd make it happen. I think he may have been a little more excited about it than I was. LOL He even said that if I wanted to use Jag (his beloved bass) that I could. Again, I declined for that whole breaking, never forgiving myself thing. LOL He offered if I wanted my own bass then by all means I could get one. YEA! So you know those Ebay autions from earlier... yeah I started watching them even closer, and wouldn't you know it, when I finally could bring myself to pull the trigger, the bass I SO wanted was sold. There was one other exactly like it, but it was in Great Brittian. I don't have an issue with shipping across the US, but shipping an instrument across the pond? That, while I'm sure would be fine, I just didn't really feel comfortable with it. So now, the hunt was on!

We began the great search for MY bass. We hit the music stores, watched craigslist (found one that I like but the guy sold it the night before...figures), watched auctions, had the great debates of what brand and style of bass did I want. I really wanted a Luna, but had kind of put it on the back burner. We had wittled it down to either a Fender Jazz or a Cort. Couldn't really find any Corts locally to lay hands on, and all of the Fender's, while they were the right style, they just didn't speak to me, and honestly, I really just found them ugly. Then one day, I again did a search on Ebay a Luna bass, and there she was. A little music store in Brooklyn, New York had an amber Andromeda....and cheaper than I'd ever been able to find them.

After a few days of talking it over (have a meantioned before we both "research" things to death before we buy them? LOL) we decided to go for it. When I got to the office the next morning I figured Jeff would be too busy, so I was going to buy it, but then I got busy with a few pharmacies, and by the time I got back over to buy it, it was gone! Someone had, once again had beat me too it. I was almost in tears. I couldn't even tell Jeff. A little while later he asked me to send him the link to the auction, I did and told him it didn't matter cause it was sold already, and he was like "oh really." and I sniffled "yeah" and he fed the sad puppy for a little while before he reveled that HE was the one who had bought it. Yea! Our offices are just under 2 miles apart, he could hear the squealing from there.

I had a bass! My very own bass! After a couple of weeks she was here! AAAAAAHHHHH {insert chorus of angels and rock girl screams} She was here, she is beautiful, and she is perfect! Jeff checked her out for me, she needs a little tweeking (like any guitar out of the box would need) but luckily we now the best bass man in town, so when we get the chance she'll be going in for a set-up and a little adjusting.

Jeff bought me cables, gave/loaned me his favorite tuner, the little Fender practice amp, and he let me borrow a strap. I went on the search for a strap worthy of my guitars' awesomeness and found one in, of all places, North Yorkshire. Oh sure, I'm not comfortable with my bass traveling the pond, but a strap, pfft, no problem. LOL! I also found a few little beginner videos online and began fumbling around till the big day came.

Then finally came the day of Ladies Rock Camp. I was so excited, a little nervous, but mostly excited. Would there be others as with as little experience as me? Was I really ready for this? Could I really do this? Pfft...was I really asking these questions? LOL

Day 1 started awesomely. Once we got started we had a little "warm-up." As a facilitator and event planner (retired lol) I know and understand the importance of warm-ups, but the introvert in me still doesn't like them. LOL! We got a little run down of the day then split up into our intrument classes. I can't say what took place in the other classes, there was guitar, drums, keyboards, and vocals, but the bass class, WAS DA BEST! I'm a little biased maybe...LOL

There were four of us, Kaitlynn and Shelly had experience on guitar and maybe some bass, and Steph and I were the "true" beginners. We had the best instructor, the AMAZING Heather Webb (of Adrian and the Sickness, BugGiRL, Princess of Darkness). The whole keys to strings, staff to tabs, being new, and while yes frustrating, I love it. And I felt a little better that the look on Steph's face at times matched how I felt, so I wasn't alone. LOL

After lunch we had a pleasant performace by Melissa Bryan,then they gave us our

band assignments. I got Kathy on guitar, Gladys on keyboards, Betty on drums, me on bass, and our band coach....Heather and Eva! Score... for me and Kathy! LOL! We had a song writing workshop, then we jumped right in to the whole band thing and by the end of the day, we had a band name, The Underwires, the title of our song, I Found It!, and for the most part, the songs rhythem and key. When we initally started messing around I REALLY enjoyed and like, no loved the sound. By the end of the day, not so much. I don't remember where or why we had the change but the "sound" just lost me, but I was still open to the process. Oh, AND we had homework!

Our homework was to write lyrics. Um....oh gawd, what to write?

Day 2 started out pretty much the same, intrument instruction in the morning, lunch time entertainment by Agent Ribbons (cute!) and the afternoon spend with the band working on our song.

The late afternoon workshop was on merch and screen printing. We made our own Ladies Rock Camp tshirts and/or patches.

We made some cord changes to our song so when I went home, I asked Jeff for help. I wanted something "new" for the section that we changed. I played him the recording that I had made and the bass line that I had been using and he instantly said "This is what I hear..." and he played me another bass line and I liked it. A nice simple driving line with a simple octive change. Score!

Day 3 was going to be a BIG day. We had just the morning to finish working the kinks out of our song, because after lunch, we had our on stage run through and then that was it. I was pumped! I got to the school early (just as I had been). LOL

We got busy working out the final lyric s and rehearsing. Over and over and over again we ran through the song. The other bands would stop in to check it out and they said it was sounding great. It was kind of funny to suddenly look up and have a full audience. It was sounding great and to me, we were nailing it. Even after Heather erased all our notes from the board. LOL Then the hour finally came, it was time for lunch. Dund-dun-duuuuuuunnnnnnn!!! We were as ready as we were going to be. I'm not sure Kathy agreed with me. LOL Our lunch time entertainment was provided by Amy Cook. She was a really nice wind down for the morning. Our afternoon workshop was on stage set-up/sound.

Then it was time for the stage rehearsals. OMG...okay, I've been here before. But man, when you aren't in front of your amp, and the monitor's not really where you can hear, and the drummer doesn't have a monitor and everyone is lost by the fact that they can no longer see each other...yeah, that first one I felt like a train wreck. LOL I'm sure it wasn't THAT bad but it was frustrating for me. Poor Kathy, she was so nervous. The second run through was better, but still, not as perfect as we had been. But it gave me things to remember for that night, check and crank that bass amp up and get more feed through the monitor.

After the last band had their last run through, even though we wanted more practice time, that was it. Technically rock camp was over. All that was left was the showcase at Lucky Lounge that night and we had to be there at 6pm for set-up and sound check, with the show at 7pm.

Here it was, not yet 3pm and I didn't have to be downtown until 6pm? The other girls were going to go home, to chill and practice, but concidering it would an hour drive each way, that wasn't an option. So...what to do? Well, do exactly what the bass player in my house does, be the first to the gig. LOL

I went and picked up Jeff from work, we made a few stops and headed downtown to the Lucky Lounge. It would give us time to find decent parking (hopefully), a bite to eat, take some pictures and just chill before the showcase.

Being that Monday, February 20, was a State holiday it was pretty dead downtown around 3ish. We got a parking spot right next to the club. I changed clothes in the Jeep, as any rock girl would do. I wished I'd grabbed my little jacket, but I had grabbed my skull vasity sweater, oh well. We grabbed a bite to eat at Franks. It was nummy, and while I was hungry, it just wasn't what I think I really wanted. And while I usually drink diet Dr. Pepper, I put a hurt on that Dublin DP. LOL!!!

We went back to the club to just hang and wait for them to open. We took some pictures and chatted and as I stood there, pumped ready to go, full of energy and excitment I realized my life had kind of come full circle.

At the time of this photo, I was the happiest girl on earth. My life had come full circle, and it was AMAZING! Six years ago, I stood, in almost, the same spot. My life had vastly changed, Rich, my love, my husband, my partner, my road dog, my other half, was gone, taken in the blink of an eye by lung cancer and I was having to figure out life without him. I felt safe there in the shadows of his WPHobby Buildings. He could watch me from his towers, as he often did of 4th and 5th street. I was safe, he was watching over me and for then Antone's was my world. It was where I went to see Butcherwhite, Velvet Brick, the Addictions (wow, life there was much different with Clifford around) and many others.

The last 6 years have been an amazing mix of ups and downs, sad tears, happy tears, failures and triumps, and after many years, life had brought me back around to that starting point. That point where I was just learning to crawl out from under the rock and stand on my own. And here, here I was standing on top of the rock, owning the world. Today, the circle was complete. Nothing can stop me now. That night Lucky Lounge was my world, and I owned it!

That night Butcherwhite was there for me. My bass player was at my feet. And my roadie shined his spot light on me. The energy that pumped through me was like no other. Well, not true, there was one other time. The afternoon I stood in a little kitchen, eating chocolate covered marshmallows, and doing tequila shots and shook a man's hand. That night, I was on cloud 9.















The showcase went awesomely. Was it perfect, no, but it was as close to perfect as 16 women can pull off in three days, who, for most, had never met before that weekend, many who had never played their instruments before, or stepped foot upon a stage. But I loved every minute of it. Would I do it again? Oh HELL yeah! I can't wait to do it again!

A huge thank you to everyone with Girls Rock Austin/Ladies Rock Camp for pulling off an awesome camp. To all the other attendees, you ladies ROCK! To Heather and Eva, thank you for all your patience, endurance, guidence, your awesomeness and laughs. To Kathy, Betty, and Gladys, thanks for deciding to come to Rock Camp, for your patience, your awesomeness, your willingness to work the process, your laughter and most of all, putting up with my coughing. LOL!!! You ladies ROCK!!!

When it's all said and done, and the memories begin to fade, this I know for fact; I will ALWAYS be an Underwire and I know I Found It! at Ladies Rock Camp 2012.