One of the nice things about getting a tune from Steve is that he records himself playing the melody on keyboards. Since nothing is written down, I can freely interpret the melody as it fits the guitar, which allows me to vary it up melodically as well as rhythmically based on what’s comfortable and what I’m feeling in the moment. However, in the case of The Oriole, Steve played the tune through twice, and on the second time, he delayed the timing of the melody so that it was even more syncopated than the first time around. The first time around was already tricky enough to learn, so I made a lead sheet of it and printed it to read on performances. I was grateful that Steve didn’t push the issue on first rehearsal that I didn’t even look at the way he had played it on the second time through.
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