[Harp-L] In which Gus is Summarily Dispatched to Eternal Ignominy

["Bradford Trainham" <bradford.trainham@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

So periodically, we talk about our oft-besmirched acquaintance Gus and what
he does and doesn't do for the harmonica community. 
Last night, I was invited by a drummer with whom I'm in a band out to a
"jam" with various members of the Geezinslaw Brothers and other local
(Austin) country bands. 
He said... "Bring your guitar, your harps and... Do you know any country
music?"...
I allowed as how I could probably get through a few country songs,  and felt
able enough to follow what anybody else was doing. 

We arrived, were graciously greeted, got set up, had the levels established
and soon began a round robin sing-in.
I quickly established that these people really valued "tightness" and a
"groove" over "sonic exploration"/"creative experimentation", so I played as
much "in the pocket" on guitar and harp as I could. 
I ingratiated myself to them with a version of Hank Williams's song I heard
that Lonesome Whistle Blow wherein I snuck in a teeny-tiny bit of harp and
everything seemed to be going well enough when....

A man estimated by my sighted comrades to be in his "mid-twenties" came in
with harmonicas and an alcohol-propped enthusiasm and asked if he could join
in.
He was received with the same aforementioned graciousness by the host, given
a mic and encouraged to play.
I adopted a policy of guitar only, hoping to draw him out and soon, either
from the beers he was still chugging or from some other causal agency we may
never completely understand, he felt somehow at ease and began to play. 
And painfully... In the wrong key. 

At first, it seemed good-natured indulgence would prevail, but then, a guy
started playing a Marshall Tucker song, situated in d-major, requiring a bit
of a swing-country sensibility that it soon became apparent this
mid-twenties man didn't quite have. 
He got it that the song was somehow in d, but he attempted to play a d harp
in what appeared to have been second position, the result being that
seemingly almost every dissonance conceivable was played out in his
never-ending "solo". 
I went through a whole range of conflicting emotions, some of them quite
selfish as when I began to hope that the drummer who invited me, being
behind a glass wall to keep levels down didn't think it was me making those
"contributions". 
Finally, one of the regulars walked up to the guy and quite forcefully told
him to sit down.
The young man was aghast and assured the "regular" that he was mistaken and
that he (the young man) was a professional level harp player. 
I was never quite sure how close we were to the possibility of physical
violence, but soon the young man left not just the room but the house, and
it was alleged by some he left in tears. 

So we played a few more songs and then took a break.
This break proved to be a "post-game commentary" in which the "young man's"
transgressions were replayed with various observations about his general
lack of readiness for "jamming" and other problems he might or might not
have really had...

Before we went back in, the "regular" told me to please continue to play
harp when ever I wanted and that this kind of thing usually didn't happen.
I did play harp, but having already sensed the allegiance to orderly playing
cited above, I did not go even over the edge of "the box", let alone outside
it. 

I'm telling this story, not because it's funny, but because it somehow
revealed how fragile the harmonica's place can be within even a "jam"
setting. 
While I think these people would have treated an errant guitarist or
vocalist the same way, I somehow felt that they were particularly incensed
not by generally bad playing, but by specifically bad harp playing. 

When I first joined harp-l and I'd see these laments about prejudice against
the harp, I was a little skeptical, but I've come to believe that a specific
suspicion of the harp itself seems to exist among rockers and "red-necks"
alike. 
I guess if the story had a moral for me, it would be that if you can't play
conservatively in a context wherein conservatism is given a high value,
maybe you shouldn't play at all. 
I hope that doesn't fly in the face of our search for creativity and any
hope we might have to redefine boundaries.
Sorry this one was so long, but I think somehow the whole thing got me
emotionally a little more than I first realized. 
I'll close with this question.  How forgiving might we be of young Gus and
still be true to ourselves and our desire/determination to play "good harp"?
Brad Trainham