The legend of TrevRa and other anecdotes

Sometimes familiarity can make it difficult to know when to take someone seriously.

Trevor is known for his mischievous sense of humor, which manifests itself in many things - from songs to comments to pranks - and so when he stated during his August 17th Q&A at the Guitar Center in Sherman Oaks that he was learning to play the tuba, well...truly, my first thought was Pull the other one, Trev!  After all, this is the man who allowed people to believe he possessed multiple spleens for decades, chuckling all the while, I'm sure.  But you read it here first (unless, of course, you were at the event): we might be treated to a thundering tuba interlude on Trevor's next solo record.  Unless he lets us in on the joke years from now and then I can declare Ah I knew he was just messing with us!  But to watch him explain (and make appropriately comical grimaces) how awkward it is to hold a tuba  - how heavy and how cramped one feels with it on the torso - was totally hilarious, as were his impressions regarding the different positions one can utilize in order to play a guitar.

Trevor also revealed during the course of discussion that he will be scoring the entire first season of the upcoming ABC series Zero Hour, which marks a new chapter in his scoring career and yet another reason for Rabinites to stay glued to their televisions (although I'm still confused as to whether the show is on the Fall schedule or is a midseason replacement, as there are conflicting sources of information).

A nice surprise for me was to hear Trevor recite some of the lyrics from "(Wake Up!) State Of Fear," a song which has taken on the feel of a folk tale because the version he recorded with Freedom's Children was never released and thus has never been heard save by those who had seen that particular lineup perform it.  But it was a great example of how much he desired to address the problems facing South Africa at that time, when protest against Apartheid was usually squelched quickly and violently, and the song ended up becoming a casualty of the government's draconian censorship policies.

The audience was allowed to ask questions at the end of the session and I was the last of those participants.  I came up to where Trevor was sitting because in order to ask my question - about his famous Strat - I needed to reference his new portrait shot, which was displayed in the promotional poster for the event on the table next to him.  I recently obtained a hi-res copy of that photograph which allowed me to closely examine the Strat and I noticed something I'd never seen before in any of the photographs and screencaps I have of the guitar, and I was curious about what it was.

I started out by teasing him: "You know, it's not as if we don't know whose guitar this is, because your initials are all over it!"  And he said, "Yeah I hate that," which surprised me, given that he's done the same to his favorite Alvarez, which was his main axe for many years.  But also because he carved his initials into the body at the lower end many years ago.

Much love to Larry Mah for this wonderful photo.

Trevor noted that his son Ryan's name is on the guitar as well (there is a Ryan sticker on the scratch plate, which was added circa 1988, I like how he placed it so he could read it whenever he played the guitar):

The Ryan sticker when it was (relatively) new, from 1992.

...which is known to fans, of course, and so I asked for the story behind it and he replied, "I found this dynamite sticker and he's my dynamite boy!"

(Best.  Dad.  EVER!)

The Ryan sticker is a bit faded by time now but still legible:

But what I wanted to ask about was this, on the upper part of the body:

I stated that I had just noticed it thanks to being able to examine a hi-res version of the photo and asked what it was.  Trevor explained it was a pin - a lapel pin, I'm assuming - from Chrysalis used to promote Trevor Rabin (the 1979 international release of his first solo album).  I also asked and he noted it was broken because not all of his name is there now.  It does feature the same typography as on the album cover itself:

Trevor and I agree this is his worst album cover ever.

As I returned to my seat Trevor declared, "Great question!" which was very kind of him.  Driven by a need to know things...that's me!  And it's finding things out which is the greater reward.

Meeting the Maestro

I've met some tall musicians in my time...the late Peter Steele of Type O Negative (6'7) and Danny Carey of Tool (6'5) just to name two.  And my favorite musician resides in that rarefied air as well (6'3) but even knowing someone is tall, it's still a surprise when you actually see them in person.  Or at least it is for me.

The promotional juggernaut for Jacaranda has offered fans a nearly unprecedented amount of media coverage - Trevor hasn't done this much press since his days in Yes - and it's been wonderful, but his personal appearance at the Guitar Center location in Sherman Oaks on August 17th (as part of Trevor's promotional partnership with the musical instrument retail chain enacted this year) was certainly a boon for SoCal fans (like myself).  Other than movie premieres, Trevor has not made a public appearance of this type since the Varese Sarabande signing at Dark Delicacies back in 2003.

And so in true fangirl fashion I braved the heat (we've been having high temps and high humidity here in Southern California this week as it's monsoon season) and traveled far north (for me) to the Valley to attend this event.  And when I say "high" I mean it: it was 104 in the afternoon when I first arrived!  It turned out to be a rather intimate event in that there were only about 15-20 people all told.  Others I was very happy to meet included Trevor's wife Shelley (who was kind enough to lend us Trevor on the night of their 33rd wedding anniversary), Alex May (who works for Trevor's publicist firm Costa Communications), Elyse Glickman (a journalist and fan who credits her 1989 interview with Trevor in launching a writing career that now spans 20+ years and many subject areas), and Lee Gately, the founder of the YesMuseum website, as well as various members of the Yesfans discussion forum of which I am also a member.

This was my third time chatting with Trevor, the first being back in 2009 (and out of that experience this blog was born, but that's another story) and the second time was just three weeks ago, we had an hour-long phone conversation which was a lot of fun for me and he graciously agreed with that assessment.  I believe this event was an even better in-store experience than just a CD signing because the attendees had the chance to listen to Trevor expound on various topics, as the employee who acted as host led the audience through Trevor's musical history with questions and comments.  Trevor's Q&A (which lasted about 60-90 minutes) was then followed by a period of time wherein he graciously signed items (one guy brought two beautiful guitars - a Strat and a Les Paul - for Trevor to sign) and posed for photos.  Before the event I had a chance to introduce myself and he fondly recalled our interview but interestingly he immediately noticed that I was wearing a replica of the necklace he used to wear in the early 90s, with a Sharkfin plectrum charm and a number 13 charm.  I also have a small garnet heart charm on mine which I told him represents the heart tattoo he has on his left breastbone.  After he posed for a photo with me Trevor joked, "I should have worn mine and we could have matched!"

Trevor was also kind enough to allow the audience to preview his new video for "Rescue" and so as not to spoil it too much I'll just note that it features the lovely and talented Liz Constantine, whom of course reprises her original vocal from "Rescuing Fischer" on the track.

Mr. Rabin submits to our inquisition.

Fashion Watch (oh, and The Video!)

Those readers familiar with my fandom discussions know of my running joke regarding The Maestro's wardrobe...long-time fans can spot familiar items of clothing in almost any photo existent (sometimes even Ryan has worn Trevor's clothes) and a brand-new opportunity for further Trevspotting presents itself in the long-awaited appearance of Trevor's directorial debut, the music video for "Anerley Road."

Eh voila!

It certainly felt like a long time coming...fans were given a glimpse during Trevor's appearance on The Weekly Comet online talk show and the lucky attendees of Trevor's release party for Jacaranda at the Gibson Museum on June sixth were treated to a full preview.

And so I must exclaim with unbridled glee over the kickin' plaid pants and the shorts (!) as well as those items from Trevor's closet we've seen before.  Although I have to admit it sort of reminded me of that one commercial for luncheon meat in which a harried wife is dealing with her husband's midlife crisis and his yearning to wear skinny jeans.

The video also features stills of the lovely and talented Tal Wilkenfeld, Lou Molino looking like a classic jazzbo in a natty buttondown-and-tie ensemble, all nine guitars (and dobro) used in the song, and a cast of whimsical statuary from the expensively eclectic Regalo boutique featured in the studio decor.  My rhetorical question to the auteur (but more Robert Rodriguez than Alfred Hitchcock): What, was it not Casual Friday at The Jacaranda Room?  There's quite a wealth of detail to be found for the observant viewer; with many shots showing more of Trevor's studio than we've seen previous; like the huge collection of awards next to the piano (too many to fit on top now, the weight will make it go out of tune!).

Trevor's sense of humor is wholly evident in this effort, and it's the little things: like the blink-and-you'll-miss-them jump cuts during Lou's shots (which feature an image of Trevor in a totally cheesy Hollywood pose).  There are other jump cuts included, although not quite as humorous.

Although it was likely unintentional, there's a little homage to Trevor's previous video for "Something To Hold On To" (a wacky collision of director Jeff Stein's 80s-era eye-popping aesthetic and Trevor's sense of humor): a shot in which Trevor is seen in real time playing in the foreground, while in the background the projected image of himself on the studio's widescreen monitor provides accompaniment - recalling shots in the former video where Trevor plays along with himself as seen on a bigscreen TV in his house of guitars (reportedly the home of actress Shelley Duvall, who also appears in the video...well, her eyes do, that is).

I like the closing shots the best: a couple stills of the street Trevor grew up on in Parktown, I appreciate the little glimpse into the past he has given us.

Now that The Maestro has stated he wants to shoot a video for every song on the album, we can all have fun speculating on which song will be next.  My vote goes to "Me and My Boy," which would be fabulous cutting back-and-forth from a photo montage of Rabin & Rabin through the years with sequences of the two of them tearing it up in the studio...especially with one particular photo I know of which shows the proud papa giving his infant son his first lesson in engineering at the console in The Jacaranda Room (on a decidedly casual day, given Dad's attire!).  But a true auteur has to find his own path to fulfillment...which is why we're so lucky to have Jacaranda as part of the soundtrack to our lives.