Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 1:49 am Post subject: My introductory story.
Hello all, My name is Steve Wisnoski AKA Kingfreeze. I am a 52 yr. old professional guitarist who has made a living from playing the guitar for 37 yrs.
I won't talk of the technical aspects of the guitar, we all know there's lots of that info on the web.
I began playing at the age of 9 when my dad sent me a plastic guitar with a picture of a cowboy on it. I knew 5 songs by the end of the week from the pamphlet that came with the guitar.
At 16, I got a gig playing church at the local Air force base, and kept it until I was 23. I played acoustic guitar for mass, as well as the occasional liturgical based theatrical production.
My interest in the guitar was peaked about the time the Beatles became popular in the US. I went through the various styles of the day, folk, 12 stringed guitar, r/b, rock, ect. In 1964, there was not much information available, hence, as I remember, songbooks were not produced yet, only sheet music. We lifted tunes off records and jammed on the carport, until the police came, then cranked it back up when they left. I guess I deserve a special place in hell for those antics. We learned Santana, Cream, Spirit, Grateful dead and Hendrix as the albums were released. Initially my education came from a chord book, word of mouth, and lifting stuff off records.
At 18, I was involved with a variety of local groups that were trying to learn the cutting edge rock tunes of the day, Yes, Flash, Wishbone Ash, Savoy Brown. As I entered my 20's , there were many exciting things happening, John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Frank Zappa. Of course, we were all trying to do these things too, and ripping off licks from our favorite artists. I tried to do these styles, but the backbone of our incomes was country music, which I played professionally for many years both in town and out. Although I was involved with many LTR's with different bands in different styles, I had progressed to the point where I was able to freelance, and enjoyed the freedom of that situation.
I joined referral lists across the US and was always ready to travel if called. I traveled the US extensively and eventually took a contract in British Columbia, Canada playing rural towns throughout the province, and into the Yukon.
As the 3rd winter came on, I felt compelled to travel south again and do who knows what. I went to my last home town of San Antonio, TX. and a friend picked me up at the train depot. Another friend let me have my old apartment without electricity or water, for 3 months to get it back together again. He was using the place for storage and not intending to rent it out again. I had 2 electric guitars, a trunk, backpack, and an amp.
Shuffling down in the old neighborhood was quite an experience after living in motels and an old van in British Columbia. I noticed a local entertainment rag in front of a store and read it by candlelight at the apartment. It mentioned a place called "Fiesta Texas" was looking for musicians and the audition was a week away. Another friend drove me to the auditions and I was hired to play a show called "Rockin' Blue Rhythm. Fiesta Texas was owned and managed by Opryland, and I was hired for every contract to be had for 3 1/2 years. My first corporate gig ! I met people there who were way into showbiz and it paid off well for me.
From this spun off cruise ship contracts, theatrical tours, production shows, local theater, all from people I met at a corporate type gig.
I guess I should mention that I had 2 years of college music courses, and graduated from GIT, musicians institute, in Hollywood, Ca. in 1983. Frank Gambale was in my class and quite a player at that point, just off the boat from Austrailia. I was an employee in the library for a year after my graduation and would copy Franks rough drafts of a book on sweep picking, I told him I kept a copy for myself, he was OK with that. At the time he didn't know what to call it and left the word before "picking" blank.
I was the winner of the first "Guitar Wars" in San Antonio in 1989, and pocketed some cash and an Ovation guitar.
This led to a short lived career with Kaman music as a clinician/product specialist. Although I had some jazz experience before, was in no way a jazz player, this greatly distressed the music directors when I started picking up cruise contracts.
I was OK at the production shows, but big band night was especially brutal, lots of yelling and stares and bad vibes. I began listening to big band, and jazz standards and blew the dust off the real book I got in LA in '83.
Now I read rather well, can play a bossa nova, big band, and I still can play the stuff I learned as a kid. For those of you that can't envision yourself as a big star, but would like to make or supplement your income playing the guitar I have a few suggestions.
1.- You are never too cool to play any style, do all that you can, the worst that can happen is you get fired and in the same place you started
2.- Get some formal education, at least the basics of harmony and theory
3.- Network and take every gig you can get, if they want Siberian dancing bears, say yes confidently, then work your ass off to get some Siberian dancing bears.
4.- Stay off goaway drugs
5.- NEVER, burn a bridge. Always try to be a lady or gentleman, no matter how difficult the individual is.
6.- Put together a library of at least songbooks, back this up with a good chord encyclopedia, 3 books worth having, "chord chemistry" by Ted Green, keep this next to your bed and look at it every night, and "Mickey Baker Books" 1 and 2.
7.- Your only as good as who you play with, try to play with people better than you, you might be the bitch for awhile, but it pays off.
8.- Join your local AFM and attend the meetings. (American federation of musicians) I wound up completely fried in an apartment with no electricity or water in 1989, and by being frugal and networking a few breaks, bought property that sold for 5 times what I bought it for, bought a dream home in the Texas hill country, have a nice wife, 2 great cats, a 1960 Chevy Apache pickup truck that runs like a bat out of hell, and about all the work I can manage. Presently, as Riffmaster is posting, I am on a tour of arrangements of "Rogers and Hammerstein", when I finish, I will resume teaching about 8 students a week, playing a jazz duo in San Antonio, and back to my old rehearsal big band. And of course , all the local theater I can get. It would be wise to be in another business, but if you have no choice, never give it up, you have nothing to lose.
Joined: 08 Nov 2005 Posts: 56 Location: johannesburg , south africa
Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2005 8:20 am Post subject:
fabulous read and might i say insparational too ..
p.s If you ever in the need of help with ur website i can try and help out I dabble a bit here and there in that sorta stuff.. _________________ Ahhh iiii eeeiiieee yeaaaaaaaaah!! ooohHHH!!
Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2005 6:19 pm Post subject: Re: thanks
kingfreeze wrote:
Thanks guys for reading my blog. I deceided after all these years to put together a website. I have no experience doing so , but I'm trying and hope to have some goaway's and MP'3's up soon. I will post the link when up.
Good luck, Kingfreeze
Cool, after reading your excellent and nicely put together
article, I'm really curious to hear some songs from you.
BTW am only -8 away from you (years) _________________ A goaway society is one where it is safe to be unpopular
fabulous read and might i say insparational too ..
(years) 
