You can`t always get what you want!

Sometimes it`s hard to follow your heart!

Last night i wanted to go to Scotland Yard Bar,
for a healthy dose of blues-jamming but my knees were weak after running
around all day in a bloody cold weather and tempratures at around 25 F.

My early visit to the N.Y.U Dental Clinic,
didn`t help matters as i spent two hours laying on this very comfortable
chair while my student doctor was working on my tooth under the
supervision of faculty members.
But i had to keep my mouth open for two hours and that`s exhausting enough!


My wife`s writing group rescheduled so they all came here instead of there
and i ended up having a light dinner,drinking red wine with them and
engaging in discussions about novels,poems and music.

That was the inspiration i needed to get me into my writing mood
and later on as i retreat into my wife`s office i came up with
some pretty interesting lyrics and music!

You cant` always do what you want but you can always
do the best of what you have.

Friday night.

I called my friend Dimitri at the
Waterfront Ale House in Brooklyn to find out
about an upcoming date for me and my Band "SOUKIS" at this very nice place.
He told me that he was having a party there on Friday night celebrating
his girlfriend`s birthday and that Lex Grey and the Urban Pioneers
were performing there the same night.

The name hit me like a blast from the past!
It was on my very first visit in N.Y.C in 1997 when i first heard of them,
and then i saw them live at Hogs and Heifers.
I remember that hot and sticky summer night, meeting Lex at the bar
before the show.
She was very friendly and interested to know where i was from
what kind of music i play,how did i hear about them and
she gave me a new released, live captured cd of the band!

I went there a little before the show starts at 11:00 pm.
I gave my "Transblues" cd as a present to the birtday girl,
ordered a Guinness and made my way to the front to watch the show.
They played non stop for one hour and they really rocked!
Lex was even better than the first time i saw her nine years ago,
and the band was tighter.The Drummer was cooking!
She did remember me, and when i told her that i now live here
she said she knew that i was coming back.

Arthur Neilson was there and it`s always
a pleasure meeting him and his lovely wife.
He told me that he will be at Scotland Yard
on Monday night hosting the Blues jam together with Big Ed Sullivan
and i said that i will try my best to be there.

Blues Clubs.

When i first visited N.Y.C. in 1997 with my Blade R4 ,
I was so interested about the blues scene and the blues clubs in the city.
I soon found out from reading the Village Voice
about the Blues-Jam sessions and started participating, playing
and meeting with musicians from the local scene.

Big Ed was the first one i met.
He was guesting the jam night on wednesdays in a place called Manny`s Carwash.
There i saw Tinsley Ellis after reading about him in the Guitar Player .
I don`t even remember where it was.
But it was a legendary place that is sadly now closed.
Another legendary place that is closed down was The Chicago Blues club.
I remember Popa Chubby having his birtday party there.

I once went to Tramps to see Robin Trower .
What an amazing experience that was.After the concert i finally met The Man himself!
I gave him my CD and he gave me his.Signed too! What a great moment!
Another Live Music Venue that belongs to history.
One of the last apearances in Bottom Line ,another famous and fabulous venue
was Robben Ford .
Another guitar player that i really like and to whom i had sent
my latest CD from Athens and had heard very positive words.
His drummer that night was a Greek guy and we all met and hung out after the show.
Bottom line is now closed too.

It`s such a pity that the high rents in Manhattan forced these clubs out of business.
It should be some kind of law protecting them like cultural landmarks,
that help keeping this so unique and valuable form of the American culture Alive!

New Yorker!

YOU KNOW YOU'RE FROM NEW YORK WHEN...


– YOU'RE 35 YEARS OLD AND DON'T HAVE A DRIVER'S LICENSE.

– YOU RIDE IN A SUBWAY CAR WITH NO AIR CONDITIONING JUST BECAUSE THERE ARE SEATS AVAILABLE.

– YOU TAKE THE TRAIN HOME AND YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHERE ON THE PLATFORM THE DOORS WILL OPEN THAT WILL LEAVE YOU RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE EXIT STAIRWAY.


– YOU KNOW WHAT A "REGULAR" COFFEE IS.

– IT'S NOT 'MANHATTAN'; IT'S THE "CITY".

– THERE IS NO NORTH AND SOUTH. IT'S "UPTOWN" OR "DOWNTOWN." IF YOU'RE REALLY FROM NEW YORKYOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO CONCEPT OF WHERE NORTH AND SOUTH ARE.... (AND EAST OR WEST IS "CROSSTOWN"!)

– YOU CROSS THE STREET ANYWHERE BUT ON THE CORNERS AND YOU YELL AT CARS FOR NOT RESPECTING YOUR RIGHT TO DO IT.

– YOU MOVE 3,000 MILES AWAY, SPEND 10 YEARS LEARNING THE LOCAL LANGUAGE AND PEOPLE STILL KNOW YOU'RE FROM BROOKLYN THE MINUTE YOU OPEN YOUR MOUTH.

– YOU RETURN AFTER 10 YEARS AND THE FIRST FOODS YOU WANT ARE A "REAL" PIZZA AND A "REAL" BAGEL.

– A 500 SQUARE FOOT APARTMENT IS LARGE.

– YOU KNOW THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ALL THE DIFFERENT RAY'S PIZZAS.

– YOU ARE NOT UNDER THE MISTAKEN IMPRESSION THAT ANY HUMAN BEING WOULD BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND A P.A. ANNOUNCEMENT ON THE SUBWAY.

– YOU WOULDN'T BOTHER ORDERING PIZZA IN ANY OTHER CITY.

– YOU GET READY TO ORDER DINNER EVERY NIGHT AND MUST CHOOSE FROM THE MAJOR FOOD GROUPS WHICH ARE: CHINESE, ITALIAN, MEXICAN OR INDIAN.

– YOU'RE NOT THE LEAST BIT INTERESTED IN GOING TO TIMES SQUARE ON NEW YEAR'S EVE.

– YOUR INTERNAL CLOCK IS PERMANENTLY SET TO KNOW WHEN ALTERNATE SIDE OF THE STREET PARKING REGULATIONS ARE IN EFFECT.

– YOU KNOW WHAT A BODEGA IS.

– SOMEONE BUMPS INTO YOU, AND YOU CHECK FOR YOUR WALLET.

– YOU DON'T EVEN NOTICE THE LADY WALKING DOWN THE ROAD HAVING A PERFECTLY NORMALCONVERSATION WITH HERSELF.

– YOU PAY "ONLY" $230 A MONTH TO PARK YOUR CAR.

– YOU CRINGE AT HEARING PEOPLE PRONOUNCE HOUSTON ST. LIKE THE CITY IN TEXAS.

– THE PRESIDENTIAL VISIT IS A MAJOR TRAFFIC JAM, NOT AN HONOR.

- YOU CAN NAP ON THE SUBWAY AND NEVER MISS YOUR STOP.

– THE DELI GUY GIVES YOU A STRAW WITH ANY BEVERAGE YOU BUY, EVEN IF IT'S A BEER.

THAT'S NEW YORK, BABY! YA GOTTA LOVE IT.

Guitar Player.

In the midst of all mail i receive, one publication always make my day.
Guitar Player is my old time favorite guitar magazine.
I started buying it way back in the eighties when i was living in Stockholm-Sweden.
It was an eye opener for everything new on the market and instead of spenting
precious time trying to find and test every new product that interested me,
i was quickly going through the magazines pages and reading the reviews
of Guitar Player`s staff...
And beleive me i never got disapointed by anything that had their stamp of aproval.
I remember the first time they introduced these plastic 45 discs together with
a fully trancription of the music...
That was so damn revolutionary and i discovered so many new players from
listening these cute vinal wonders!
Robben Ford was one of them
Steve Vai was another,
Joe Satriani and
Steve Ray Vaughan and so many more!
I never missed a column and i remember when i was packing my house
in Athens-Greece getting ready for my transantlantic move to N.Y.C
i had to give away hundreds of columns....
I am still sad about it because every single one of them was packed with valuable info.
One of the advances i get living in U.S is that i am now finally a Guitar Player
subscriber and get it at a very low price every month in my mail box!
And that`s Great.
Three years ago in Greece i was paying 10 euros for one issue,
now i pay $25 for one year subscription.Living in U.S.A!
So for all you guitar lovers this is ONE magazine worth checking out each month....
I already have the April Issue.....

Raffle.

Matt the Guitar Man e-mailed me
asking if i should be interested in giving private guitar lessons to
a client who as a part of a raffle they do , won an acoustic guitar and two private lessons.
I answered back thanking him for his offer and after contacting the winner
i took the express 3 train to Chabers str. for our first session.
It turned out that she won this nice alvarez acoustic
and that she was a comletely beginner.
I mean she didn`t even know how to hold the guitar.
But she was a fast learner and after spenting one hour with her she could both stram and play arpeggios
on Em,Am,C major,E major and A major chords.
She could also play the C major scale on the first position involving open strings.
She learned how to count too and the down and up picking motion which was impessive.
I was happy about her progress and so was she!
We arrange for the next lesson on Friday.
On my way to the subway i passed by the amroadhouse
to check it out and discovered that the blues jam with Big Ed
is scheduled for every Wednesday so i guess i am gonna be heading
down there again tonight for to rock my blues away.

President`s Day.

President`s day was cool!
The relatively empty streets made it it easy for pedestrians like me to enjoy our daily walks.
Went to Westerly to get my fare share of organic products and then run over to
Duane Reade to get three films developed,only to find out that the photo
shop was closed for the day.
Back home took my Brian Moore out and started jumming to CREAM`S
WHITE ROOM song with Eric Clapton writing down the chord changes for
my student Carlo.
But as usual i got carried away and ended up listening and jamming along the whole "The Cream Of Clapton "cd.
What can i say.I love the Man!
7:30 pm ride the F train to 63nd and Lexington, to my next rock`n` roller student Tony with whom i spent another hour,
fooling around with the five positions of the A minor pentatonic over the "Killing Floor" 12 bar changes.
The Howlin` Wolf version.
On my way back i grabbed two Brooklyn Lager beers and spent the rest of the evening fine tuning the lyrics of a brand new song.

Scrabble.

It was a freezing cold sunny Sunday in Manhattan.
Didn`t feel like going out.
Played my 70`s Strat tuned down 1/2 step .
Jammed along with
my essential Robin Trower cd and

Stevie Ray`s,Texas Flood cd
craving for some inspiration to write a new tune!
I ended up sitting in front of my window strumming my
Guild acoustic tuned in open G and coming down
with some interesting chord progressions that sounded kinda
Sonny Landreth.
I recorded it down to a cassette player as i always do when i come up
with something interesting...
Time does fly when i play my guitar.

Time to go to Jill`s who`s birthday is today.
My lovely wife and i are sitting in a cab on this freezing night
heading to 35th and 2nd ave.

All day long i was longing for my beloved dog Robin
who passed away this summer,so it was so nice and therapeutic to meet Butch ,
(an adorable schnauzer) whom my friend
Bruce saved from the streets of Brooklyn two years ago!
After a great dinner with lots of champagne and wine ,
six of us sat around the dinner table
to play Scrabble .
I had only played the game once or twice in my life time,
but it turned out to be such fun!
After three hours long game and with Kathleen`s (my wife) assistance
i ended up with 180 points and on the fourth position of the list!
Not bad.

Guitar Man.

It was a sunny beautiful and cold day yesterday.
I was reading the voice when i saw this add
saying that if winter blues is bumming you out come on over and win a
randall RH50T guitar amp and randallR212CX cabinet
on Feb.17th.
So in between my dentist apointment and my scheduled lessons i took the F train
to 2nd ave.and from there to 147 Orchard Str.to check it out!
Guitar Man is a very nice place to be!
With all these guitars hunging from the walls,all the amps on the floor
and a very friendly service,i was in Guitar Heaven.

I almost forgot what i was there for, so i started fooling around with different guitars.
These gyus are giving away something every fifteen days...
That`s amazing!
I quickly signed up for the next giveaway (that one was already over and done)
and i focused on the stomboxes asking Matt (the owner)
if i could play a brand new expandoradistortion pedal.

He was very helpful explaining everything this cute little monster could do to your sound,
and man i had a blast with this silver-shining,built to last any kind of abuse round box.
He also gave me a very good deal for this little boutique pedal
and i left there happy as a kid who got all he ever wanted...

Sometimes life seems to be so good when you find yourself
in such a good company of smiling,helping and trusting people.

Here`s to you Guitar Man!

Transblues!

Hi Everybody,

It was a a beautiful day yesterday in N.Y.C.
Just a few days after the big snow storm, crystal clear blue skies,
sunshine and smells of spring in the air make you forget the fact
that we are still in the middle of winter....

But it didn`t last long and by late afternoon the strong north winds
brought the temprature down to where it`s suppose to be,
In the middle of February....Freezing cold!


Being Greek it`s sometimes hard to follow the rapid changes of the weather.
Especially here in Manhattan, where the wind factor can be brutal.
You can hear the wind hawling as it makes it`s way through the canyon of scyscrapers.
It can literally blow you away!
But the sun king has always had a positive inpact on my soul.

So i was already in a good mood, while siting in front of my computer,
checking out on my record sales at cd baby
and discovered that my "Transblues" cd had not only gotten
some very good reviews but it can be now purchaced
from any tower records shop all over the U.S.

Just search for Spiros Soukis.

That felt sooooo goooooood!

So check it out and place your orders now.....While in stock!

Got to go!

Abbie, my new guitar student will be here in any minute.

So that`s it for today folks,
Catch you later,
Peace,
Spiros.

White Manhattan!

We made it !!!!


Back to N.Y.C my wife and me on a bright new Airbus 320.
In fact so new that the T.V-video circuit was not yet in place.
But the views of The Bahamas were breathtaking as we took off
from the international Nassau Airport at 4:35 pm,
on a very bright sunshine day heading to New York
and expecting to be there before the snow storm hits the city.

Mon, we were lucky and landed two hours before JFK shut down.
Very happy we flew with Jet Blue i must say!
The snow was coming down,all the way driving to midtown Manhattan.

No way i could get myself to Lucille`s tonight.



But i managed to play my Brian Moore guitar and that was FUN!

Sunday Morning And the snow has covered Everything .
So hard to walk from 6th to 9th ave, just to get some bread from Amy's.
I realized that the chances to get to Hoboken for the night`s show at the

Yard
were not great,since the few cars on the streets were hardly moving!

And after talking to Margey who plays bass with the band, she confirmed what i already knew.
No way out tonight...
I `ll pick my guitar and play,just like yesterday ...
Catch you later,
Spiros.

After the storm!

Hi everybody!


Life in the Big Apple is back to normal.
Four days away from the big snow storm, now sunshine and clear blue skies.
The few reminders of that day are melting away.

I have never experience a snow storm like that one ever before I must admit.
Not in Sweden and certainly not in Greece.

On Sunday morning i hardly walked two blocks away,
before i turned into a snow man.Freezing cold it was too,
with high winds,blowing wet white flakes right through my clothes .

Monday night i was teaching a class on the Upper East side of Manhattan.
This student of mine was determined to play me something simple but Rockin`.
Cocaine ,the Eric Clapton version,was the song of his choice.
The song has a simple chord structure that he managed to play right,
but it was impossible for him to manage the syncopations,
thus turning it into something completely different,and rhythmically incorect.

After years of teaching experience i have come to the conclusion that the most
dificult aspect to comprehend in music is Rhythm!
Some students get it and some don`t....
The ones that don`t get it are the ones who give me a hard time!

Trying to teach them what they do wrong and how to do it right.
That`s a tough one...I can tell you that!

But here is the best advise...
Always use a Metronome!
Make it your best friend....
Analyze your rhythm patterns carefully and slowly.
Break them down and then connect the pieces.
That`s a very good way to practice your strumming technique as well.

So that`s all for today folks.

I will be at Guitar Man
later this afternoon test driving the all new USB equipped
Brian Moore i Guitar

Come on over!
That will be fun!
Catch you later,
Spiros.

N.Y.C Bound.

Hi Everybody,

Well that`s a bummer ....Leaving Nassau behind....

There goes the Calypso sounds ,there goes the sunshine and the constant good weather.
N.Y is freezing cold and snowing. What a contrast!

But one thing that keeps my spirit up is that i will be playing my beautiful guitars again after one week of separation. So that's Great!

Hey i might go by Lucille`s for a drink too.

And tomorrow night i am invited to Scotland Yard in Hoboken where my friends are performing. That will be fun. Haven`t played there for a while myself, i kinda of miss the place.

So more news tomorrow from the Big Apple folks.

Have a great day wherever you are,

Spiros.

Rockin' in sunny, blue Bahamas!!

Hey Mon!

Greetings from The Bahamas with its salty taste of home.

Blue skies, sunshine, sandy beaches and the wonderful shades of blue sea.
Spending our days with my friends who are showing us everything in and out of Nassau.
And guess whom I met and had the privilege of spending some time in the studio with?

Terry Manning the legendary producer & sound engineer at the famous Compass Point Studios!

What a treat and what stories this amazing man has to share!
I am in Nassau/Paradise Island having a wonderful time although tomorrow I'm bound for the freezing city of N.Y.

I'll keep you posted....

Meanwhile you can check out some of the sound wonders this legend has created over the years.

Keep on rockin'
Spiros