On being Unique
Have you ever done a Google search on your name just to see what comes up? Of course you have. Everyone has.

I'm the youngest of six children. As it happens, all of our names begin with the letter "S". My brother, Sam, is named after our grandfather. As is the tradition in a lot of large, Italian families, there are plenty of cousins named after grandparents and aunts or uncles. Since there's only so many of those to go around, we've got a lot of cousins with the same name. I was the only Steve (Stephen, to be accurate) in the family. I always felt unique in that regard.

When I was in seventh grade, a girl moved to town with the last name West. Considering the size of Livonia, it was a novelty that we weren't related. The odd thing was that her father's name is Stephen. He even has the same middle name. So does her brother, Steve Jr. Then, about three years ago, a guy moved in about four houses down the street. You guessed it, his name is Steve West. No relation.

As I was first building this website, I did a search and found out that there are tons of Steve Wests. Many of them are also musicians. That causes two problems. The first being that they took all the good domain names, the second being that it causes some confusion for people trying to find me, or one of them for that matter.

I don't wish ill will toward anyone, but today, Nov. 2, is my birthday. I think when I blow out the candles tonight, I might wish that mine is the name folks are thinking of. At least for today.

Branching Out
There's an old saying: "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten." That can be interpreted a number of ways, but I take it as an admonishon not to get too comfortable. It's a challenge to push ourselves to try new things and improve upon the same old same old.

Last night, I had the pleasure of playing with my friend Bill Brown. Bill is a fantastic musician, and a wise philosopher. Bill asked me to play some guitar and harmonica with him. Now Bill knows that I am comfortable playing in certain keys and playing certain styles of music. Nonetheless, he'd pick a different key or a style of music I'm not really comfortable with, and challenge me to hang with him. It forced me to step outside of myself and come up with some new ways of thinking about how I play.

I witnessed a similar thing the other night. I was at the jazz open jam at Daily Perks. Most of the musicians who go to this event are students at Nazareth College in their jazz program. They don't really play much blues. The host is one of their professors. Knowing I was there, he called a blues number and asked me to step up the the stage with my harps. The drummer had never played a blues rhythm before, and the guitar player hit the wrong chord three bars into the song. The host stopped the song, explained a couple of things, and started again. They got it right this time, and it was one of the most fun numbers that was played all night.

Timing is Everything
A couple of years ago, Pete Collin and I had a gig in mid October at the Big Tree Inn back when they had live music. We were feeling pretty good when the crowd erupted in applause after one of our first numbers. A little later, the crowd erupted again right after a fine solo by Pete. Again, our chests were swolen with pride. Then, in the middle of a beautiful ballad, the crowd started cheering. It was then we realized that game seven of the Yankees vs. Red Sox playoff series was on TV right around the corner from where we were set up.

Last year I managed to schedule another gig during the baseball playoffs again. We were even asked to stop playing for a little while so they could hear what the announcers were saying about the game. I was humbled, but I was also getting paid, so I gave 'em what they wanted..... silence.

I've never been much of a baseball fan. I'm more of a football and basketball kind of guy. I just don't pay much attention to baseball. So of course, I went out and booked Pete and I to play at Boulder Coffee Company this Friday, Oct. 28. This year, however, I got lucky. A quick check of the schedule tells me that the World Series will either be over by then, or be between games. That means you can all come out and enjoy an evening of fine picking and singing by your truly, along with Pete.

Join us, won't you?

Back in the Saddle Again
I haven't performed in about a month. Back in September, I started having some problems with my throat, and the doctor advised me to take it easy for a while.

This Friday, Oct. 28 I will be doing a gig at Boulder Coffee Company with Pete Collin. I must admit, I'm more than a little nervous about it. I just don't know yet how my voice will respond. I certainly don't want to give anyone who shows up to see us a half rate show. Luckily, Pete has plenty of material to carry the load if need be. To be sure, there will be some songs from my normal set list that will have to be put on hold for a while until I learn how to perform them without causing myself harm.

In any case, it promises to be an interesting night. Boulder is a comfortable place to hang out and listen to some music. After our show, Eric Reinhart will be taking the stage to do some songs. He's well worth hanging around for. I hope to see some of you there.

...the spice of life
I'm talking about variety, of course. It's what keeps things interesting.

I went to the open jazz jam at Daily Perks Coffee House on Wednesday night. The majority of the players were from Nazareth College. I was blown away by their talent. I fancied myself to be a pretty fair trombone player when I was in high school, but I couldn't hold a candle to these very talented young musicians. But I've gotten off my point: variety.

I've been feeling a little bored with my musical environment recently, and tonight I realized what the problem is. Pretty much everything I've been listening to and playing is guitar based. It was so refreshing to hear a trumpet and a trombone and a sax tonight. Don't get me wrong, I love performing the music I do, but a little variety keeps life interesting. I recommend taking a different path every now and again. You may just find that you've recharged your enthusiasm for life.

Habits
hab?it (h?b'ĭt)

1. A recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behavior that is acquired through frequent repetition.

2. An established disposition of the mind or character.



Funny thing about habits, often times we don't realize we've formed them. For a few weeks, I've been under doctor's orders to avoid singing while my throat heals up from some problems I've been having. I've been amazed at how many times I've found myself singing anyway. In the shower, in the car, even watching tv when a catchy commercial comes on. Medical issues aside, it's not a bad habit to have. It brings me a lot of joy and (I hope) other people enjoy listening to me when I perform.

Other habits can be far less desirable. Somewhere along the line, I started stopping at the convenience store every day for a can of Coke on my way to teach lessons. Again, under doctor's orders, that has stopped. I've taken to carrying a water bottle with me in the car. I'm not really thirsty, but you wouldn't believe how strong the impulse is to pull into the store every afternoon when I drive by.

I've got a friend who over the years developed a couple of very self-destructive habits. For a while, he managed to get them under control with a lot of hard work and support from those who care about him. Sadly, he's recently started slipping into his old ways. Other old habits like making excuses and justifying have surfaced to accompany the old ways. I pray that he realizes his support is still here, and he breaks those old habits for good.

Now Playing: ....but can he sing
You may know that I've been having a little trouble with my throat recently. I want to thank all of my friends who have expressed concern.



I went to see Dr. Michael Haden of the Center for Treatment of the Professional Voice. Very nice guy. He stuck a camera down my throat to take a look. Without going into too much detail, he found a few issues that I need to pay some attention to. Thankfully, none of them are serious enough to warrant anything drastic. I just need a little time to take care of myself and I'll be good as new. For a while at least, the gigs will be kind of sparse as I learn how much I can do.

A Little R&R
September was a very busy month for me as a musician. I had an above average number of gigs, for which I am thankful. However, somewhere along the line I managed to strain my vocal chords a bit. So on the advice of my doctor, I will be taking it easy for the next few weeks.

The up side of that is that at least for the time being, I have some free weekends. That allows me to spend some time listening to other musicians. I love "discovering" talent and helping people find new audiences. This weekend, my new friend Connie Deming will be playing Chocolate Bar. I can't wait for the folks out my way to discover what I found out a couple of months ago. The lady can SING!

The Sounds of Silence
Have you ever tried not speaking for an entire day? I bet you can't do it. Even if you're alone all day, you will probably utter something out loud at some point in the day.

About a week ago, in the middle of a song, my neck and throat started hurting. I went to the doctor, and he thinks I've strained a muscle. His orders were to rest it. That means no talking or singing unless absolutely necessary.

It's an interesting experiment. Not only do I find I say things out loud when I'm alone, I'm amazed at how the people around me, people who know I'm not supposed to be talking, keep asking me questions that require more than the nod or shake of the head.

Hopefully this situation will heal quickly. I've got a fairly busy week of gigs coming up.

A Mighty Wind
The pictures are stunning. First Katrina, now Rita. I really can't even begin to understand the power of these storms.

We in upstate New York are fond of complaining about the weather. The old joke is, if you don't like the weather here, just wait five minutes and it will change. Well after the month they've had on the gulf coast, I think I can deal with a little snow and cold this winter. God bless those folks down south who are dealing with these storms.