Fascists Killed This Machine

Check out Guitar George
He knows all the chords
Mind he's strictly rhythm
He doesn't want to make it cry or sing
Sultans of Swing - Dire Straits

I bought a guitar today! And like Guitar George, I do not want to make it cry or sing. Nor do I want to make my audience cry, although to hear me play right now that could happen, and it would have nothing to do with the emotional aspect of my songwriting. Right now I make dogs cry. Yeah, I'm seriously out of practice.

Okay, let's be honest. At best, I've always been a poor guitar player. That's why I surround myself with good musicians! But if I'm going to do the duo or even occasional solo thing, I'm going to have to rely on more than a handful of a capella numbers and my stunning good looks. I'm going to have to practice. Gulp.

This afternoon I reclined in my chair and let fly my first-in-a-long-time G/Em/C/D chord progression. Immediately I had blisters on my fingers and a lump in my throat. What was that sound??? It was not good. It was bad. It was very, very bad. It was... me.

Oh my.

Woody Guthrie was famed for the sticker on his guitar which proclaimed "This Machine Kills Fascists". After ten minutes of torturing the strings of my guitar in an effort to produce something that sounded at least a little bit like music, I shook my head sadly and told my husband "Fascists Killed This Machine".

Thank god I look good in black and have a closet full of boots.