Here are clips of my third ever open mic. I am still amazed at myself that I am actually doing this, but I am also enjoynig it more and more. I am more relaxed now when getting up on stage. There are still enough mistakes (couldn’t hit the Bm chord cleanly once, mixing up D and A chords and more) but they startle me less and I try to just get on with the performance.
Four songs in total, with the third one travis-picked (can’t do a set without travis picking can I?). Unfortunately the guitar sound wasn’t adjusted from the strumming settings for the first two songs so the guitar is only just audible. A real shame because I was really happy with the picking in the moment. I’ll take another video of it playing at home while it’s all in my fingers and before immersing myself into the blues for the rest of the year.
And then during the last song after the last verse my pickup got loose and fell into the sound hole! That’s life music for you. Luckily both guitar and pickup have survived the crash.
Really good performance(s). Strumming, fingerpicking, dynamics - all done well. You could probably sing the Steve Earle song slightly higher - a couple of frets up with the capo maybe. You sing with confidence and obvious enjoyment - as a Nanci fan I liked your cover of ‘I Wish It Would Rain’.
Well done in your OM Set , Molly, you were “on song” keeping the beat and rhythm pretty solid throughout.
I would never have noticed the miscreant PU had you not mentioned it, and kudos for playing the song out.
I think the recording’s audio didn’t do justice to your performance; with the audience “bar chat” a bit overbearing. But hey, the set was about you, not the AV production, and the performance to your audience came across very well.
Thank you for sharing in the Community, I enjoyed it.
Your enjoyment clearly comes through and is infectious in a very good way! Very well played and sung throughout the set. I would have liked to join the audience and listening to you for sure!
Thank you Brian, Elixir and Lisa for watching the clips and taking the time to leave a comment!
@beejay56 Nanci was such a great song writer - I am discovering her work only now (where have I been???) and the list of her songs I want to learn is getting longer and longer, so I might have a few more videos covering her songs later this year. On the Steve Earle song, you are probably right to go higher. I was already 2 frets up from the recording, 1 or 2 more might have been even better.
@Elixir1253 I really bashed my guitar during that last chorus after the pickup fell out. And yes, the audio quality of the videos is not great, but there isn’t really a great place in the pub to stand and film the performance without blocking the line of sight of the audience. And the sound quality isn’t great to begin with, too many internal walls in the pub. It’s just about ok for the strumming songs.
@Lisa_S I would have loved you in the audience! We could have even played a song together… Should you ever visit these parts (1h south of London) please drop by and say hello!
Thank you very much Lin!
A year ago I wasn’t thinking about ever wanting to do an OM let alone enjoying it, but then I woke up one morning … so just wait and see where your guitar journey takes you!
Great fun watching your set, Molly. You’ve made it. Your performing in public and looking very comfortable. There was a lot of atmosphere in the performance placed in a live setting as it was.
Thank you very much John!
After three of these it is getting easier - I have a better feel for what the adrenalin does and how to prepare for it and how to navigate it. It’s a mental prep as well: not to be afraid of getting up on the stage but to enjoy performing songs I love. At least that’s the attitude I am aiming for, can’t say it always works.
Very well played and sung throughout the set. I would have liked to join the audience and listening to you for sure!