When I was a little boy, a local tv station played a movie called “Woodstock”. At the end of it there was a man playing the most amazing music that I had ever heard. I turned to my mother and asked. “Who is that!?!” She smiled and said “Thats Jimi Hendrix.” I bought a guitar, and taught my self how to play.

Over the years I have played in a handful of garage bands, various types of Metal for the most part. House parties, you know: The wild-sofa-burning-vomit-every-where-clean-up-and-glue-every-thing-back-together before your parents get home from vacation kind of house parties. Met a lot of people and picked up a lot of bad habits.

Eventually I reached the point where I realized I had to let it go. And as much as I hated to, thats what I did. There was ten year period when I didn't play, not for people any way. When I did pick my guitar, it was just to see if I could still “do it”. The way that an adult will some times pick up an old familiar toy in hopes of recalling their childhood. I had given up on music, and wouldn't have taking it up again if not for a chance encounter.

I, caught up with an old friend of mine called Ian, in a supermarket down the street from my house. We were talking and the subject of music came up, Ian is a guitar geek. He told me about playing live, and loving it, about becoming a music teacher and loving that too. Then he asked me how my guitar playing was going. I told him it wasn't, and he made this face, I can still see it. It was a lot like the expression people have after a bad brake up...

“You should start playing again, we should jam.” He monotoned.

Musically Ian and I have always complemented each other well, but that first jam went badly. In the ten years since I had dropped the guitar Ian had become a much better guitar player then I. The worst part was, he rubbed my nose in it.

“You're rusty”

“Come back in a week...”
I locked my self in a room and didn't come out until my hands had come back. My style has changed. And my touch is different but it still sound like me. Ian and I still jam, things have gone back to the way the were, the two of us get together and its less like two guitar players wanking away, and more like two old friends having a good conversation.

Heres what I have been up to Musically.
Djinn1973

And as for Ian?
Ian Merill

I would like to thank Ron and Leo at Watermelon Music, for always finding good left handed guitars, then cutting me fantastic deals so that I can afford to buy them.