Museums can be at their most engaging when they encourage participation in the form of art and science they feature. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame does this through “The Garage” - the section on the institution's 2nd floor that invites visitors to pick up an instrument and jam with the house band and with each other.
One of my favorite things about making music since my pre-teen years has been the social aspect, the way it facilitates striking up conversations and friendships. I was even playing guitar at the company picnic the day I met my wife Amy! And being at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with my family led to a new connection around playing music.
At the Beatles exhibit, there was a video of Ringo singing “Act Naturally” while playing drums. I commented to Amy and our daughter about how hard that must be to play drums and sing at the same time. A fellow visitor pointed out those guys who pull that off - Don Henley of the Eagles and Phil Collins. I'd encounter him a little later in the Garage.
So when Amy, our daughter and I headed up to the 2nd floor to wait my turn to get in a jam session, we encountered that same visitor who talked singing drummers with me downstairs. Turns out he's waiting to play “Hotel California” by Eagles on drums. He introduced himself as Jim, and I decided to jam with him on that song. Since the house band is stacked with talented vocalists and that song sits above my baritone vocal range, I chose to play guitar and sing the backup parts that were in my range.
Josh, the skillful and versatile guitarist in the house band, shared the lead guitar role with me, culminating in the iconic guitar harmony part at the end of the song. The house bassist handled the lead vocal part admirably, and another house band member sat in on keys and added more texture to our vocal harmony. It was a great experience to sit in with this very talented group.
I got to play a Gibson Les Paul for the first time, a gold standard in electric guitars, named after a true pioneer and innovator in the history of the electric guitar. When I played leads on this guitar, the instrument really sang for me. And the crowd gathered at the garage entrance really noticed and responded. The guitar felt familiar enough in similarity to my Paul Reed Smith SE Custom 24 with its wide, flat neck and easy string action.
While I'd like to share video of our performance of “Hotel California,” I'm wary of Don Henley's tactics of claiming copyright violations against anyone who posts videos of themselves covering his music – so no video this time. While I believe songwriters deserve to have their rights protected, I don't understand banning covers of a song I wrote. I'd want to hear my song interpreted in many different ways by people I inspired. I've had that honor before, and it never gets old for me - plus I get paid when those covers are successful. Why wouldn't Henley want that?
Jim drummed a faithful and accurate rendition of the song as he laid down a groove that the band fell right in with. He was visiting the Hall with his son Brad, who had treated him to this day in celebration of Jim's retirement.
Jim and I later encountered each other again at a restaurant down the street from the hotel we both happened to be staying at. We exchanged phone numbers and I invited him to continue collaborating me in the form of recording cover songs on BandLab. Stay tuned for some upcoming music from these joint efforts.
If you're a musician or a student of music, I highly recommend jamming in the Garage at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Music fans will also get a kick out of hearing the jam sessioins. The Garage has a list of classic rock, pop and alternative songs the house band is prepared on. You can bring a song that's not on the list and the house band may be able to figure it out on the spot - but if you can play one of the “standards” you're sure to have an amazing performance with the house band.
📰 Read part 1 of my blog series about my visit to the Rock Hall.
📰 Check out Part 2, focusing on the Beatles & Rolling Stones.
And stay tuned for more blog posts, sharing more of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame experience.