Human soundtracks

Annnnnd a Happy Belated Birthday to the one and only Mr. Stevie Ray Vaughan!

I hope you folks listened to some of the late, great Mr. Vaughan yesterday! Wait - this blog has taken a few days. It was last week.

Anyway, got a cool thought for you today. But to get to it, first the story...

I was doing some busking (street music) this weekend. I'm very fortunate to have access to such a great pitch. It's in historic Alexandria, Virginia (USA), right on the waterfront. Setting up with an acoustic guitar, I can jam to my heart's content as the breeze blows in off the river, and entertain the people who stroll along.

Early October is a peculiar time on the docks. The days get shorter, and the wind runs up the river with a melancholy warning for the revelers. It tells the man who makes the balloon animals first, and seems to make his brightly colored shirt fade a little, like the leaves clinging to the trees in anticipation of the Winter. It must be a cousin of whatever agent makes the carnival music slightly out of tune as it echos through the chilly and empty fairground. The party is almost over.

I was standing and strumming, playing Stormy Monday, and a little dust devil wandered up and made the leaves whirl in the corner next to the cold concrete walls. I stood in it and played the blues. Winter was certainly on it's way. I decided that it would be my last gig on the waterfront until the spring. A few hours later, and the random drunk shooed away from my set, I addressed the night and the lights sparkling on the water, stood up a little straighter, and after a little consideration as to what was a good season's end song, I started to softly play Tears in Heaven.

It was way cool...All of a sudden, I felt like I was in a movie with a soundtrack! I was the soundtrack! The lights took on a softer glow, and the docks looked downright cinematic.

Here's the thought:

We are the soundtrack. We are the nightlife.

Choose what you play with great care and thought.

Rock on!

- Josh

Bad habits my foot

Happy October, everyone!

Wow, I think this is one of my favorite months. Besides, it's Stevie Ray Vaughan's birthday on the 3rd - coincidentally (or not) the same day as my stepfather's. A great month all around!

Pursuing any discipline gives one a before-and-after perspective on what they were told, and what is actually the case.

The business of learning guitar has some rumors going around that, at best, are amusing, and, at worst, discouraging legions of would-be greats from ever picking up the instrument. Well, OK, maybe I'm being a bit dramatic, and acting just like what I'm preaching against, but hear me out for a minute.

It wasn't that long ago compared to, say, the way the line at the DMV moves, but about a decade or so ago, I remember standing in the guitar shop. I was awed by the walls lined with guitars of all colors, and the smell of new amplifiers wafting through the air. (It is actually quite a wonderful smell.) The salesman told my father quite earnestly "He should sign up for guitar lessons. You don't want him to pick up any bad habits."

Who would argue with one of these messengers of music, and purveyor of the ultra-cool - a guitar salesman?! Not teenage me, that's for sure! Besides, I was dying to take lessons, and couldn't wait to get one of those guitar cases that I could put stickers on. (Things really haven't changed that much.)

So I signed up, and I'm so glad I did. I'm writing this sitting in my office in my home that I own. I bought it with money I made as a guitar instructor myself.

But here's the thing - I never saw any bad habits to avoid.

I can explain...

A lot of instructors scare people into taking lessons by ominously mentioning bad habits. So far, I know of one of these frightful habits, and I am going to tell you right now, and take the scare tactic teachers out at the knees! (MAN I've had way too much caffeine!)

- Make sure your thumb stays perpendicular to the neck of the guitar - don't have it go parallel.

BaBOOOM!

*hums a certain Queen song.*

Guitar is an instrument of innovation, experimentation, and inspiration. Sure, there's technique, and many lifetimes can be spent acquiring perfection. But sign up for lessons because a teacher can help you learn faster, more efficiently, and inspire you to new heights. My lessons with my teacher were something I looked forward to each week, and were a source of inspiration. But you don't need a guitar teacher to learn guitar. Funny that I should be going on about this, but I think it's true. Hey, I think a good teacher can be the best thing for learning! But if you can't afford one, can't find a good one, or would rather learn from a book, that's fine, too!

Maybe all the bad habit camp folks mean is that they can make the road easier. True, true. I call it the evolution of teaching. I learned from my teacher's mistakes, and my students have learned from mine. It's scary how fast these kids are learning the material sometimes. But the road rarely leads off a cliff, so don't be afraid of trying stuff on your own.

I remember one time I was looking at guitars with a client, and I was chiding him on picking the strings a certain way. One of the salesmen came over and said "Hey man, maybe he'll invent something new!" Johnny B. couldn't have been more right!

This invention and innovation is a magnificent thing about music. Where would we be if little James had always kept his amp at a respectable volume and didn't flip his stratocaster left handed?

We might not be listening to Purple Haze.

Learn on, good people! In what ever way suits you. Invent, innovate, inspire, and be inspired.

The world of music awaits you.

Rock on!

- Josh

Do something with your music (or art...or writing!)

Rockers!

We're in the age of the internet, and living in a time where the Annoying Orange makes a quarter of a million dollars with a silly laugh.

We exist in a plane of possibilities, and it's up to us not to waste them! Recording this EP has been so empowering for me. I'm giving them out left and right, and I'm even wearing a Josh Urban shirt right now! (The official announcement will be soon.)

I've been urging all of my students, and now you, too, to do something with your music! Check out Audacity, the free recording program! Put your songs up on myspace! Get a YouTube channel! Do something! Play campfires. Look up blues jams and open mics. If your town or city allows it, play street music! This isn't just limited to musicians. Writers- start your own blog if you haven't already! Artists, find a local art resource of sorts. (This is sad. My mother's an artist, and I don't even know what to recommend to other artists. But I'm sure you'll figure something out!)

The world ain't gonna take itself over!


Rock on!

Josh
PS. Send me some of your music, art, writing, or accounting! I'd love to see what you've done!

Selfish question

Hey hey hey rockers!

OK, got a selfish question for ya that I need some help with: What style does my music sound like? I've described it as blues, rock, and adult alternative. Input is much appreciated! Strike that - friendly input is much appreciated!

CD baby has stumped me with the category description of my music.

Check it out at www.joshurban.com

Thank you, good people!

Rock on!

- Josh

Record away!

Rockers!

Wow, I hope everyone's been enjoying the approaching autumn season! At the risk of sounding severely un-rock 'n roll, days like this make me wish I were a butterfly.

Wait wait, I can explain! Really!
I was out on my morning exercise, and it's literally a walk in the park. I passed a Monarch butterfly feeding at a fall flower. That buddy goes all the way to Mexico! On his little spangled butterfly wings! He doesn't have to worry about marketing and border crossings and all the madness that is life. He just flies on the wind.

Then I came back to my old self, Rammstein songs filled my head, and I kept on plotting to take over the world.

Here's one thing that's been helping me in my journey so far - recording ideas. Yep, yep, I've mentioned recording many times before, but the technology has changed significantly since I got up on the recording soapbox! (I actually own a separate voice recorder. My iPhone makes it obsolete, but I have it anyway.)

If you have a cell phone, especially a smartphone such as the reigning iPhone or any of it's lesser rivals (passive-aggressive punch at my Android-owning brothers here), you've most likely got the capibility to record sounds. Speaking as the top dog, an iPhone owner (smirk!), I can use the stock voice recorder, or many apps available. I use FourTrack. It was ten bucks, but you can record four tracks (unfortunately, not all at once - it's not multi-tracking.) The app lets me mix them together, and send it to my computer. It rocks!

The point is - recording is extraordinarily helpful to musical progress. Be it perfecting shredding, or capturing the latest idea for a folk song, it's there, and it will help you. I like to use it for a.) listening to the track fully (I can't when I'm playing), b.) capturing ideas, and c.) charting progress. It's cool to look back a few months and say "wow!"

Since you probably have a recorder on that phone, use it! How much easier does it get? (I'm yelling here.)

I was just telling a client today how helpful it is for soloing. So - Arnold Schwarzenegger voice - Don't be a girly man! Get da recorder app! Yah yah! Use it! Yah yah!

Rock on!

- Josh

The Making of an EP - Final chapter - Hello, World!

HOLY SMOKES!

I'm done! I'm finished! The EP is ONLINE! I'm super proud to introduce to the listening audience my latest studio effort! Will you please put your hands together for....Signalman!

This is my first "real" recording, complete with vocals, drums, and even keyboards! I'm responsible for every single sound on it.

It's been quite a journey, and I've had an awesome team to help me through. From my brother Noah putting my website online, graphic design help, and answering endless photoshop questions, to Mike Mori helping me figure out the mixing and recording phase of the project, and acting as assistant producer, to the good folks at the Oasis record plant, Bill Wolf doing the mastering, my Mom for her much appreciated consultation, business and creative advice, and of course, my brother Zakk for his marketing input, and sitting through many conversations and rants about the project! Every single one of these people got dragged into this project, and they were most gracious with their help.

Thank you all!

And, without further ado, please take a listen to Signalman.

Handy Street

Hey hey hey!

I hope everyone's doing well...and has had a chance to listen to Radio W-HAM!
It's my zany radio track explaining a song I had written about a laundromat in Jersey. It's what happens when a nun tells you to shut up and you're stuck on a train.

Anyways, here that very same song is! It's track #4 off my upcoming EP. It's what I've been working on for months. It was quite a process to write, record, and mix. I learned a ton, and I really recommend songwriting if you haven't tried it yet. By the way, I plan to write an account of the journey very soon. Yay! That'll put ya to sleep.

Hope you enjoy!