Michael Sheldon's Musical Stuff

Got a train in to Koln today and bought myself a nice new Dobro (all quite the challenge to my poor German skills) and have started to learn to play some nice mellow sliding blues. Here’s a picture:

It’s suprising how loud a little guitar can be :).

Davy Graham’s Anji again, but this time played somewhat better and on my acoustic guitar instead of my electric.

Anji Acoustic – ogg vorbis
Anji Acoustic – mp3

Thanks to Jono I now have a flashy Delta 44 sound card, which can handle multiple simultanious inputs. This particular card has the distinct priviledge of having recorded 43 episodes of the ever popular LUGRadio and will now live out its retirement providing me with a suitable card to write the simultanious input code for Jokosher on (and perhaps recording odd stuff of my own).

Today I finally plucked up the courage to try my hand at a little busking. I caught a train up to Reading and spent about an hour in the finger numbing cold before my guitar strap broke (again). I didn’t make much money but that was as I expected, it being my first attempt, and I think I’ve learnt a fair amount from the experience.

I had my picture taken by some random person. I was pointed out by a mother to her child saying “Isn’t that exciting”. I was wished good luck by a friendly man and possibly mocked by a group of children, though that may just be my paranoia ;).

Oddly there was a large police presence in Reading when I arrived, which forced me in to an area that I think was a bit too noisey for my acoustic playing.

In-between the gut wrenching fear and the mild embarrassment I enjoyed myself and it’s definitely something I plan to have a go at again in the future (though perhaps not until the weather warms up a bit).

I’ve written a rather odd little F/OSS themed parody of Joss Whedon’s “Ballad of Serenity” (the theme song to Firefly). The guitar part was originally worked out by FIVEBYFIVE from the acoustic version played by Joss on the DVD extras. If I’m feeling particularly sadistic I might even record a version of it, all I can promise is that it’d be ever so slightly better than the Free Software Song ;).

A              G
Take my drive, take my files.
D               A          Em
Take me where I can't compile.
C             G
I don't care, I'm still free,
D                  A           Em
You can't take the source from me.

A           G
Take me out to dev null,
D                A       Em
tell 'em Windows was too dull.
C                  G
Burn the files and boil VC,
D                  A           Em
You can't take the source from me.

G              D               C

A                G
There's no place I can be
D                  A    Em
since I found Open Sourcery.
C                  G      D    A
But you can't take the source from me

G              D               C A