Robben Ford Discussion

[anne]

Hello, All,
We have managed to sqeeze another clinic into Robben's busy schedule. This one is slated for June 23rd from 10 to 4 in Ojai, CA. Please log on to Robben's clinic page http://www.robbenford.com/clinic.htm for information and registration.
Thanks so much for your interest.
Anne

[Vinni Smith]

Hi Anne,

I plan to make it to this one.

Do you take Pay-Pal for payment???

vinni
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[anne]

Please register the old fashioned way: send registration form together with a check, via snail mail, to the address listed on Robben's web page.
It is easiest for us that way.
Thanks.

[Vinni Smith]

OK, will do.

I'm looking forward to the clinic.

Thanks for the reply.......

vinni
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[BlueRunner]

Whoa. Wait a minute. You're Vinni the V-Pick guy. Cool. I seem to recall seeing you at a booth at some event, but can't place it. Anyway, not that Modesto isn't a nice place and all, but in case you don't know, you're going to LOVE Ojai. Be sure to set aside enough time to enjoy it all.
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- BlueRunner

[Vinni Smith]

Yep! I'm the V-Pick dude, indeed.

I plan on seeing Ojai and Santa Barbara as well. Then I am on my way down to San Diego for the rest of my vacation.

Are you gonna be at the clinic?

vinni
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[patocaster]

I mailed my registration this morning for the June 23rd Clinic. My wife and I will be traveling down to Ojai from the Bay Area. See you there! Can't wait!

-Pat
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MEDICAL MARIJUANA CARD

[Vinni Smith]

I own every REH instructional video that Robben has recorded. I am working with them every evening in preparation. There's a lot of information on those videos, indeed. Can't wait to get that info face to face though.........
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[Tele295]

I went last year, and it was amazing. It was even worth the trauma of returning to the podunk town I grew up in! (Ojai)
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You got a motor like a brand new car....

[Vinni Smith]

I'm counting down the days now!
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[Vinni Smith]

Well Anne, how many participants do you have for this upcoming clinic?
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[JohnnyZ]

Anyone care to give a review of the clinic?
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Soul on Eleven

[patocaster]

Got back yesterday. Robben was gracious, conversational and totally open about his approach to music, playing and songwriting. I am still percolating with some of the material he gave us. I really enjoyed being there and meeting some fine folks - Bob, Christian, Vinnie, Simon from Denmark and more names that escape me.

Robben played his recently acquired vintage 1968 335. It was an extremely educational experience and a whole lot of fun. I know this is short but I'll write more stuff later.

-Pat
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Honda ev plus history

[Vinni Smith]

I would like to chime in and say this was, by far, the best guitar clinic I have ever gone to! Honestly! I could not have spent $180 anywhere else and gotten the info I got Saturday from Robben. He is a patient man indeed. He made sure every question was answered for every person. If you walked away without the peice of info you wanted, then you just did not speak up.

It started off with Robben telling us his view/philosophy on music. He started of by saying "Guitar playing is about MUSIC. It is NOT a competition." I loved that saying. He also said things like "Just play the pentatonic scale if you want, but play the shit out of it!"

I arrived wanting to get something cool to play over the 4 chord. Mr Ford made sure I got that and much more. The biggest piece of info I sucked in was the half-whole tone-double diminished scale. I learned of this from his 5 videos that I have but just could not seem to get a good grasp of it. Well, by the end of the day, I understood it's significance in Robben's overall style and sound. I have been practicing this scale for days now and still don't know what I am going to use it on but when the time comes and it finally clicks, I will have mastered this unique tool indeed. It is a wonderful tool to go from one thought to another.

Robben also told us to treat every 7th chord as a 5 chord. That makes good sense now when listening to his playing.

I sat right up front, maybe 5 feet away from the man. I saw everything to see. I did not want to miss a lick. He brought 2 red ES335s. One was a 60's model he just purchased a few days earlier from Norm's Rare Guitars in LA. He plugged into a very old Fender amp. No tuner, no Zendrive, nothing. Just the man, the amp and the guitar. He has great tone in his hands. He sounded absolutely amazing. Just another piece of evidence that tone is every bit as much in your hands as in your equipment. One thing I noticed is that he did not turn the guitar up all the way. Maybe volume on 5-7. Quite a sweet tone there indeed. I noticed he went there EVERY time.

Now as you all know, Robben is not only a good lead player, he is also a genius rythym player. He showed us lots of cool chords and by me being right up front, I was able to ask him what this was and what that was. I have many new chords in my arsenal just from this!

He also played and sang a few tunes for us. That dude has a great voice. I have read in the past that he does not think he sings well. He is wrong. I'd like to have a set of pipes like that.

Even though we all brought our guitars, I did not really play mine much. I brought a recorder and a note pad. I didn't want to miss one little piece of information because I was busy noodling around on the fretboard instead of listening. I did not go there to play, I went there to learn, and learn I did. Man! I am happy that I went to that clinic and I would reccomend it to everyone. There were folks there from all over the US and one guy from Europe. He seemed to be pretty happy with the clinic as well. He was a pretty serious looking player. Said he was doing some recording sessions in LA the days before.

Now, it was not all intermediate to advanced stuff either. There were some folks there that were only playing for a short time and Robben was cool with that. He made sure his explanations would be understood by all. There was a kid there about 15 and at one point, right after the lunch break Robben was crouched down on his knee in front of the kids chair making sure he understood some chords played earlier. Man, that is being humble! Very cool cat that Robben.

We were also given some charts with chords and scales on them. He explained them very well. I am glad of this because I am sure I would not remember all of what I was trying to absorb that day. My brain was worn out and I was gratefull to take home a binder full of info from the best guitar player in the world.

I didn't know this about the man but he has quite a sense of humor. I expected more of a serious, introverted man. I expected more of a nervous genious type. Not the case at all. Very relaxed and spontanious. He really made me laugh out loud at times.

I met some very cool folks Saturday. I do hope to keep in touch with them via e-mail. I know Robben will not remember me next year but he had a way about him that made me feel like he is a new friend as well. He was very gracious and polite. He really gave you the time you hoped for. When he addressed your questions, he looked at you right in the eye and made sure you got your answer. He did not hold back info at all. He layed all of his knowledge and style right on the table and said "What do you want to know?"

It was a great experience. Thank you Robben and Anne.

vinni
_________________
Does this guitar make me look fat?

www.v-picks.com

[Ian Hurtt]

Very cool post, Vinnie!