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Tommy

I am here for Networking

About Me

I am a blues-rock guitarist in the St. Charles Missouri area. Mostly my influences are from classic rock and blues artists from the 60s and 70s. I've really been influenced by just about any of the music that I've ever heard in one way or another. It's funny sometimes when I'm improvising a guitar solo and I play a lick that I've been playing for years and then hear and old song on the radio with the same lick in it. I guess it's really a subconscious thing sometimes. I hear something I like and then tuck it away in my memory...when I hear it later, it sometimes surprises me to be reminded where it came from.... I'm very proud to be playing lead guitar in a local St. Charles band called Blackdog and the Rainmakers. Blackdog is a musically experimental ensemble of like minded musicians who want to strike a balance between pleasing a audience and remaining musically creative and fulfilling. It's not always easy to strike that balance, but I believe that we do. While it would be very easy for us to play the standard predictable string of classic rock tunes. People would get tired of it almost immediately (without even realizing). As it is, our set remains fresh and spontaneous. Our most recent CD you may notice is posted as the backdrop of this myspace page. The lineup is: Scott Debo: Lead Vocals, Lead and rythm guitar, Susan Conner: Lead and background vocals, Billy Hessecamp: Drums and Background Vocals, Greg Farmer: Bass Guitar and Background Vocals, Zach Pemberton: Harmonica and Background vocals, Tommy Smith: Lead Guitar and Background Vocals. What I like about the album is that it creates a decent snapshot of how the band is live...even though the songs have evolved a lot even since the album was made. Many of the tunes on the CD are still in the set such as "While my Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Lady Love".

My Interests

I'm told that the band was mentioned and raved about on K-SHE during the St. Peters old time Picnic. They had a remote broadcast set up and I guess playing Post Tostie and Do You Feel... pushed just the right buttons for the DJs who were there. ^This will BLOW YOUR MIND!^

I'd like to meet:

Lots of people who will come see my band, enjoy some good music, talk about music, play music sing music, experience music.....that's.....that's about it... Myspace Layout Generator-Layoutgen.com

Music:

My musical influences are so varied it's difficult to mention them all. Often times I'll be listening to some soloing on a song that I hadn't heard in years and will notice a musical phrase or guitar lick that I use every day, and had forgotten where it came from. I guess all musicians owe a lot to our roots...mine are mostly in the 70's progressive instrumental sound....the logical musical continuation of Albert King,BB King, Hendrix, Townsend and Cream by way of guys like Robin Trower, Tommy Bolin, Gary Moore, Stevie Ray Vaughn and of course, the inimitable Jeff Beck. Locally I've been equally influenced by the likes of Jimmy Lee,Chuck Berry and of course,and Mama's Pride....I've always felt that Pat and Danny Liston rival Frey & Henley for songwriting talent and are better singers to boot...but I guess I'm biased.... However, that's just the beginning actually. I also love Jazz (vocal and instrumental). Some of the newer jazz singers like Dianna Krall, Erin Bode and Nora Jones are my particular faves. I also love classical guitar (thanks to Rik Emmett). I listen to Paco De Lucia and Django Reinhardt (who teeters between beebop jazz and flamenco)... Most of all, I never get tired of city and delta blues. I guess anything that I've lisened to that has effected me even for that one moment has influenced me. I'm always looking for my next musical fascination.

Movies:

Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, a Few Good Men, Treasure of the Sierra Madre (Bogart's scene by the campfire in that one...people just can't act like that anymore), Godfather, The Sting and Butch Cassidy (that duo should have made more movies), The Mountain (Spencer Tracy), The Cain Mutiny (Bogart again), Big Jake, the Dirty Dozen, Holy Grail and the legendary Young Frankenstien......oh and Terms of Endearment, Beaches, and Serendipity...(lol, just kidding)

Television:

The Office is about all I watch these days...maybe an episode of King of the Hill now and then. I guess I just don't have enough time to get hooked on any new shows.

Books:

Anything by C.S. Lewis, I really like the Screwtape letters.... Charles Dickens...Right now I'm reading Capote's In Cold Blood, AA1025, the Da Vinci Hoax, I guess I prefer classics over post modern or beat literature (where the authors agenda is often trite and transparent). I also like to read about theology, history, science, spirituality etc. I might read something political occasionally but I take that with a grain of salt...invective too often becomes more important than substance or truth. What is truth?...I can tell you what it isn't... it isn't Michael Savage or Michael Moore. That kind of stuff accomplishes nothing.

Heroes:

Mel Brooks, Mel Torme, Mel Blanc, Mel Sharp (inventor of those little bugle snacks). Mel Gibson's niece's boyfreinds sister in law's best friend who is a really innovative mime and juggler.... oh to be a mime!

My Blog

Scott Debo Sing Anthem TONIGHT!!!

Yup!...you heard right...Scotty will be singing the national anthem tonight at the Cardinals Royals game. Be there if you can or watch it on TV or internet....this is a lifelong dream of Scotts and we...
Posted by Tommy on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 05:46:00 PST

Tuners Saturday!

Kent Stone (of "Send Help" fame) will be sitting in on drums this weekend and we are all looking foreword to it. Kent played on the band's first album "Take Your Time..." and second album "House Party...
Posted by Tommy on Thu, 29 May 2008 04:56:00 PST

Tommy on Philosophy

My new philosophy on life is, live life "two days at a time." One day at a time is unrelenting. Two days, well, if I drink too much or eat too much I can just do better tomorrow, on my secon...
Posted by Tommy on Thu, 15 May 2008 04:50:00 PST

Variax Illness Cured...film at eleven...

I just had some top notch fretwork done on my guitar. It had developed some dead spots and places where it was "fretting out" on high bends (like during Europa). Basically....she was sick....Trus...
Posted by Tommy on Wed, 14 May 2008 09:52:00 PST

CARDINALS

Hey I just noticed that the Cardinals record is 21 and 12....so does that mean that they're the priests of the temples of Syrinx....and operate the mutants within their hallowed halls.......LOLOL........
Posted by Tommy on Tue, 06 May 2008 01:49:00 PST

BLACKDOG AT THE BLANCHETTE BUM'S HOLLOW CONCERT!!!

Well, it seems that Blackdog will in fact be playing a headline show at Bums Hollow in Blanchette Park on July 19th. You may remember the mixup at the Blackdog Barbeque last year which caused the Arbo...
Posted by Tommy on Thu, 01 May 2008 06:00:00 PST

Jeff Healey has passed away

Jeff Healey made his debut album "See the Light" in 1988 when I was in college. I still remember the first time I heard Confidence man on KSHE and I almost did a u-turn on the highway to get to the ne...
Posted by Tommy on Mon, 03 Mar 2008 07:49:00 PST

Salvatores

Thanks to all who showed up Saturday and packed Salvatores to the rafters. Every single person I contacted showed up and brought a whole table of people with them. It was a Rockin evening from st...
Posted by Tommy on Mon, 25 Feb 2008 09:57:00 PST

Bubba & Docs

We finally have confirmation from everybody that our leap day show in LaBelle is a go....We'll be there on Fri., Feb. 29 and Sat. Mar. 1. It should be a blast as always. The food is great and so's the...
Posted by Tommy on Thu, 07 Feb 2008 05:00:00 PST

Thanks Mike!!!

Many thanks to our friend Mike Kern and Bob Heil for the magnanimous gift of a Heil PR-20 Professional microphone (made right here in the midwest half a globe away from his competitors). I'll be using...
Posted by Tommy on Thu, 17 Jan 2008 05:52:00 PST