The Blues in Church!

I want to give a shout out to my friend Tavo, who is our band leader at church.  Last week he put together an arrangement for "Lonesome Valley" that focused on blues guitar.  The lyrics, which were a gospel version, emphasized Jesus walking through that lonesome valley alone and facing it for all the rest of we humans.  Well, it was awesome to hear Tavo sing and play that song, while Dane, his teen son, played Upright bass, and my adult son, Mark, played drums and sang harmony.  The beauty of this is that Tavo knows how I dig the blues and love the opportunity to turn up my gain knob on my Epiphone Riviera and get the tubes warmed up on my Crate Vintage Club 20 amplifier.

It was everything I could have hoped for in the way Tavo arranged the chords and allowed me to fill the background with blues runs and riffs, culminating in his giving me a nod to begin a lead solo over a whole verse.  I was really in my element, bending those strings on that Semi-hollow electric with the P90's and letting my emotions for the message in the song be expressed through my guitar, pedals and amp.

It's the kind of guy Tavo is, a person who thinks of others and gives them credit for things before himself.  He is a far better player than I, but he gives me the spotlight in moments like this and it truly touches my heart.  Makes all the hours of practice worth the effort and all the love I give to my music!  The worship was sweet and the song list really drew in the people to reflect on the grace of God, and this blues number to close out as the service concluded was a joy.  My thanks and a "fist bump" to my pal and fellow traveler, Tavo.  You're the man!  -- Guitar Man