• From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Topic: yet another new member

Hi everybody. smile

I've been a lurker in this forum for some months now and I must say that I really love the friendly atmosphere here. So I decided to get registered an say hello.

I live in southern Germany, am in my early forties, married with three cats. wink

When I was younger I listened to artists like Eric Clapton, Johnny Winter, Stevie Ray Vaughan, ZZ Top, Jeff Healey, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Blues Brothers and so on. At age 14 I learned to play the guitar and some years later I played in a (unknown and unsuccessful) band. We did everything from blues to punk - mostly songs by widely unknown bands. Well, maybe that was one of the reasons for our unsuccessfulness. LOL roll But we had lots of fun and that was what was important to us.
However, I stopped playing the guitar 12 or 15 years ago when other things in my life got more important.

It was my wonderful wife who "rediscovered" the blues for us. She also discovered JB (thanks to the internet) and made me listen to some of his songs on youtube. From then on we were hooked. That was last summer and since then we've found some other blues artists we really like (e.g. Davy Knowles and Joanne Shaw Taylor). But Joe is still #1. We got the RAH DVD and the Rockpalast DVD, we saw Joe perform in Mannheim, Germany last year (do I have to mention that it was one of the greates concerts I ever saw?) and we're planning to see Joe's concert in Lucerne, Switzerland in summer.

My wife is also to blame for making me play the guitar again. wink She had been telling me for years that I should start to play again, but I could never get myself motivated. hmm But all those great "new" (at least to me) blues artists - and most of all Joe B. - made me want to drag out my old guitars from under the bed again. And that's what I did last summer. It took my fingers around 3 weeks to stop aching and start doing what my brain tells them (LOL). I've forgotten a lot of things, but also learned some new things (thanks to the internet, it's so much easier to find out things than 25 years ago). And most of all, I'm having great fun playing the guitar again! cool

Interestingly, my taste in guitars has totally changed. When I was young, I prefered heavy-looking stratocaster type guitars (I still have an old Ibanez ProLine 1770 and just sold an old Ibanez RG 750). Les Pauls looked ugly to me, then. Today, I love Les Pauls - especially the sunburst ones. And I also like the sound and look of semi-solid guitars like the Gibson ES 335.
So what did I do? Last summer I bought an Epiphone B.B. King Lucille and a Vox VT 30 amp (which gives me some nice blues sounds at bedroom volume). And in december, I got myself an Epiphone Les Paul Standard 1959 (the one with all those nice Gibson parts - Burstbuckers and all).
I guess the technical term for this phenomenon is G.A.S. (gear acquirement syndrome). Oh, by the way: I also started to play slide guitar (tough stuff for an old f*rt like me, I must say), and I really like the look and sound of those shiny acoustic resonator guitars... wink

What can I say? I'm an innocent victim. My wife and this reckless guitar god called Joe Bonamassa have caused my addiction.

You certainly have noticed by now that I'm not only suffering from G.A.S. but also from verbal diarrhoea. Anybody read this far anyway?!?? lol

OK, I've stolen enough of your time. Thank you all very much for making it a real pleasure to read through this forum.

Maybe we'll meet on one of Joe's concerts.

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • From: Netherlands
  • Registered: 2009-08-01
  • Posts: 251

Re: yet another new member

Hi Rusty, nice to meet you and welcome to this forum!
Thanks for your extensive introduction! I'm sure you're gonna love it here. Please post frequently. Since your German you are very lucky. Germany seems to be Joe's favourite country to perform, he'll be doing some extensive touring down there this year! Since i live close to the border i'm sure we're gonna meet somewhere!
cool

  • From: Norddeutschland
  • Registered: 2008-12-03
  • Posts: 1,458

Re: yet another new member

Hi Rusty

warm welcome from the snow of the north to the snow of the south.

As a GAS sufferer you will find your natural home in Joe's gear section. Quite a few German based fans on here and we get to see the mainman reasonably well with a number of concerts here.

I got to the bottom of your post OK so I wouldn't worry about lengthy posts. We like to know what people have got on their minds so don't be backwards about coming forwards. This forum has introduced me to so many new artists. I think I saw more concerts last year than I had in the previous 5!

Well done Mrs. Fingers for getting you back in the swing.

See you around
MikeH

No Hits, No Hype.......................Classic Rock Jan 2012
  • RickB
  • RickB
  • BONAMEGAMETAL
  • Offline
  • From: San Diego
  • Registered: 2009-10-30
  • Posts: 12,198

Re: yet another new member

Welcome Rusty. California here but family there, in Berlin. Spent the holidays and brrrrrrrrrrrrr it was cold. Hope it warms up soon, if not, the man will arrive and help out with some hot licks. See you on the forum spaces, Rick.

Free download from Vienna! http://mbsy.co/bNLR
Lots of unique videos of Joe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwd5vL8fXTw
Buy Joe's merchandise here. http://www.jbonamassa.com/affiliates/id … hp?id=1381

RickB's Website

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Re: yet another new member

Thanks for the nice welcome, everybody. smile

Yes, Joe has been visiting Germany quite often in the past years. I hope, it will stay like this...

I live in the south-west of Germany, so concerts in northern Germany or the Netherlands would be quite a long way for me. On the other hand: We must be grateful that Joe visits Europe regularly. So I'll take what I can get. I want to see Joe perform at least once a year (= one concert for each new album).

Mike, I'll forward your congratulations to Mrs. Fingers... wink

Yes Rick, it's really cold here in Germany at the moment. The roads are blocked by too much snow. I'm dreaming of California...

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • From: Ruhrpott, Germany
  • Registered: 2010-02-06
  • Posts: 1,326

Re: yet another new member

Hallo Rusty,

ein Bayer hier im Forum, da muss ich kurz Hallo sagen.

Have a good time here.
Greetings from someone living in the Ruhr area not far away from Dusseldorf where tomorrow carneval begins which means a few crazy days if one likes that.

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Re: yet another new member

Blues Sissi wrote:

Hallo Rusty,

ein Bayer hier im Forum, da muss ich kurz Hallo sagen.

Have a good time here.
Greetings from someone living in the Ruhr area not far away from Dusseldorf where tomorrow carneval begins which means a few crazy days if one likes that.

Hi Sissi,

thanks for saying hello  smile and shame on you for calling me a bavarian!  mad  lol  lol  lol
I'm from the other part of southern Germany - the wild south-west (Baden Württemberg).
Hey, maybe we'll meet on one of Joe's concerts ... you owe me a drink ...  wink
I have tickets for Lucerne in summer. Will you be there, too? I know, it's a little far from the "Ruhrpott"...

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • From: Netherlands.
  • Registered: 2006-04-27
  • Posts: 2,186

Re: yet another new member

Hallo Rusty,

I sehe gerade das ich dir noch gar kein Wilkommen gesagt habe, entschuldige!. Bei diesem; Herz Wilkommen auf dem   besten Forum der Welt!!

Wir werden uns bestimmt einmal bei einer Joeshow in Deutschland treffen; hab schon viele sehr nette Deutsche Joefans getroffen und viele Deutsche Joefans den netten Mann aus Holland!!!!!

Gut das du hier bist und nochmals  liebe Gruesse aus Holland.

Andre Wittebroek

  • From: Ruhrpott, Germany
  • Registered: 2010-02-06
  • Posts: 1,326

Re: yet another new member

Rusty Fingers wrote:
Blues Sissi wrote:

Hallo Rusty,

ein Bayer hier im Forum, da muss ich kurz Hallo sagen.

Have a good time here.
Greetings from someone living in the Ruhr area not far away from Dusseldorf where tomorrow carneval begins which means a few crazy days if one likes that.

Hi Sissi,

thanks for saying hello  smile and shame on you for calling me a bavarian!  mad  lol  lol  lol
I'm from the other part of southern Germany - the wild south-west (Baden Württemberg).
Hey, maybe we'll meet on one of Joe's concerts ... you owe me a drink ...  wink
I have tickets for Lucerne in summer. Will you be there, too? I know, it's a little far from the "Ruhrpott"...

Uuuppps, I stepped in it.  roll
And if I'm telling you now that my dog eats cats ... lol
Probably, I owe you more than one drink ...
I won't be in Lucerne, but maybe we'll meet someday somewhere in the middle of Germany.

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Re: yet another new member

Andre, thanks for the welcome. Looking forward to meeting you on a Joe concert sometime. smile
Sissi, your dog eats cats?!? You should do something about it. Maybe your husband Franz (<- inside joke) could organize a dog trainer... wink

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • From: West Yorkshire, England
  • Registered: 2007-08-02
  • Posts: 1,587

Re: yet another new member

Welcome to the forum Rusty, we're very glad that you have joined us.

I'm happy that you have been inspired to start playing again. Your addiction to gear and to Joe will be well served here!

Best wishes to you and the missus......you have a lot to thank her for!

Tripsy smile

  • wolfi
  • Silver Member
  • Offline
  • From: Germany and Hungary
  • Registered: 2010-02-20
  • Posts: 52

Re: yet another new member

Grüß Gott Rusty!

Seems we are similar Blues and Rock-Fans, though I'm more than 20 years older. We're lucky that Joe (and by the wy Steve Winwood too) seem to like to play in Southern Germany (and Switzerland).

We might meet each other at some concert this year, till then: Enjoy the music:

PS 'I'm the guy that Eric Clapton looks like nowadays, if you check the latest pictures of him performing with Jeff Beck.

We'll hear them all at the Crossroads concert  - sorry that I can't go there, but hope thy'll have it on the 'net like 2007 ...

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Re: yet another new member

@Tripsy + wolfi
Thanks for the welcome.  :-)

Tripsy wrote:

Best wishes to you and the missus......you have a lot to thank her for!

I'll forward the wishes to Missus Fingers. Yes, I have a lot to thank her for - not only music-related things... smile

wolfi wrote:

We'll hear them all at the Crossroads concert  - sorry that I can't go there, but hope thy'll have it on the 'net like 2007 ...

I saw a Crossroads concert on TV (3Sat I think), but where can I see it on the 'net?
And welcome to you, too, wolfi. I see you just joined yesterday.
Hey, if we meet I'll have a picture taken, so I can say I met Eric Clapton. wink

Rusty

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • wolfi
  • Silver Member
  • Offline
  • From: Germany and Hungary
  • Registered: 2010-02-20
  • Posts: 52

Re: yet another new member

Hi Rusty!

About crossroads 2007:
It was streamed for several days, sponsored by Microsoft and Ford (and others ?), so you had to endure some advertising in between performances. We had my notebook running it all the time when we were at home ...

Maybe someone else remembers more about it than I do, we just thought it fantastic!

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Re: yet another new member

Thanks for the info, wolfi. So I'll look out for a streamed version on the internet. I'm shure someone here will post a link as soon as there is more precise information. :-)

Rusty  smile

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • Registered: 2009-01-01
  • Posts: 665

Re: yet another new member

Hi Rusty,

You could be my twin brother.

Rusty Fingers wrote:

Hi everybody. smile
When I was younger I listened to artists like Eric Clapton, Johnny Winter, Stevie Ray Vaughan, ZZ Top, Jeff Healey, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Blues Brothers and so on. At age 14 I learned to play the guitar and some years later I played in a (unknown and unsuccessful) band. We did everything from blues to punk - mostly songs by widely unknown bands. Well, maybe that was one of the reasons for our unsuccessfulness. LOL roll But we had lots of fun and that was what was important to us.

Just like me!

Rusty Fingers wrote:

However, I stopped playing the guitar 12 or 15 years ago when other things in my life got more important.

Just like me! (well... I was 20.)

Rusty Fingers wrote:

we're planning to see Joe's concert in Lucerne, Switzerland in summer.

Just like me! (I think we should all have a little forum gathering in Lucerne.)


Rusty Fingers wrote:

My wife is also to blame for making me play the guitar again. wink She had been telling me for years that I should start to play again, but I could never get myself motivated.

NOT like me. I started playing again a couple of years ago. Now I play better than ever (which doesn't mean much). The missus complains about the money I spent on gear... I tell her it's still cheaper than a divorce  wink  (only kidding, of course)

Rusty Fingers wrote:

I also started to play slide guitar (tough stuff for an old f*rt like me, I must say)

Just like me. Sometimes it sounds great and sometimes as if I stepped on my cat's tail. Well, I'm sure I'll get there.

Rusty Fingers wrote:

Maybe we'll meet on one of Joe's concerts.

I'm sure we will.

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2010-01-26
  • Posts: 140

Re: yet another new member

Hey Bluesbreaker,

that really sounds like we're twins (separated right after birth, maybe)... smile smile smile

Somehow it feels good to meet someone with such a similar "curriculum vitae".

You're going to Joe's concert in Lucerne? Great! You're the only forum member i know of (so far) planning to go there. Looks like many of the others are going to Munich or Bonn to see Joe play with Jeff Beck.
Yes, we should meet there (in Lucerne) and have a drink before the show or something like that. smile I'm shure we'll have a thread about the Lucerne gig in summer, so we can make arrangements.
Where are you from? Switzerland?

I can't say that today I'm playing the guitar much better than before. But maybe I'm playing the blues better than before (which also doesn't mean a lot) - just because I specialized in it. I was pretty ignorant then, playing the pentatonic scale up and down and thinking it was blues. Today, I know that there are other scales, too, in blues. And i'm practising blues licks and try to integrate them into my playing. And I'm trying to be a little B.B. King rather than a little Steve Vai. And I have a lot more background knowledge (thanks to the internet) than 20 years ago...

Bluesbreaker wrote:
Rusty Fingers wrote:

My wife is also to blame for making me play the guitar again. wink She had been telling me for years that I should start to play again, but I could never get myself motivated.

NOT like me. I started playing again a couple of years ago. Now I play better than ever (which doesn't mean much). The missus complains about the money I spent on gear... I tell her it's still cheaper than a divorce  wink  (only kidding, of course)

LOL - great stuff!  lol  lol  lol
So at least our wives are a little different. wink
Sometimes I think that if I've done one outstanding thing in my life, it was finding me a girl who not only bears my spleens (rather) patiently but who is a kindred spirit. I'm not saying that she understands why a guitar player with only two arms needs to have four guitars, mind you... wink

Bluesbreaker wrote:
Rusty Fingers wrote:

I also started to play slide guitar (tough stuff for an old f*rt like me, I must say)

Sometimes it sounds great and sometimes as if I stepped on my cat's tail.

smile That decribes my slide playing very well.
So you have a cat, too? This is starting to get creepy. What's the color of your hair and eyes? wink wink wink

See you,

Rusty

"Tradition is not worshipping the ashes, but carrying the fire."
  • Registered: 2009-01-01
  • Posts: 665

Re: yet another new member

Hi Rusty, it seems we certainly have a lot in common, cats and all. We'll definitely have to meet in Lucerne. As you said, I'm sure there will be a thread on that in due time.
I'm based in Switzerland but a mate of mine and I are seriously considering the Bonn gig as well. Joe and Jeff Beck together on the same bill seems too good to be missed.