Shayan Afzal

My Performance at Marcello’s Bar & Grill

shayanafzal — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:51:49 +0000

Last night I played at Marcello’s Bar & Grill in Mississauga. It wasn’t really planned but it was a good night nonetheless. I played the following songs:

Layla (Unplugged Version)
Wild World
Because I love you
Wonderful Tonight
Wish You Were Here

Last night was the first time I played Eric Clapton’s ‘Layla’. It’s a great song. Clapton’s a legend. He’s one of my favorites. I really like his blues albums. ‘From the Cradle’ and ‘Riding with the King’ are two of my favorite Clapton albums.

The Mystifying Path

shayanafzal — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 20:09:56 +0000

Today marks the beginning of 2010. I am satisfied with my accomplishments of 2009. Life seems to be moving forward and I am excited about what this year has to offer.

There is a lot of talk about setting goals at the start of each year. I have a number of unconventional artistic goals that are considered impractical by many. I tend to ignore their views. What do they know? I chose the path I am on a long time ago. There are obstacles on this path but that is what makes it exciting.

I am often given examples of people who never made it. I tend to ignore such mundane talk. I don’t think like that. I chose the path I am walking on and every step I take is a step towards success.

Music Review: Soulbook by Rod Stewart

shayanafzal — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 09:47:07 +0000

I like listening to the music recorded by Rod Steward in the 70’s when he was part of The Faces. I like a fair amount of songs that he recorded in his Great Americain Song Book albums but a lot of those songs sound very similar to each other. His latest album is definitely a step up. Soulbook is a pop / soul album. Rod’s voice is as expressive as always. He still sounds very different from the way he used to sound before his surgery but he finally seems to have grown accustomed to his new voice. The album also features performances by Stevie Wonder, Mary J Blige and Jennifer Hudson. Stevie Wonder plays harmonica on My Cherie Amoure which is one the best songs on the album. Soulbook is a very nice relaxing album. One of Rod Stewart’s best in the recent years.

Slowly Separating

shayanafzal — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 04:06:59 +0000

The sky is crying. The wind is blowing away the rain drops as they fall onto the earth’s surface. A partly broken branch soaked in rain is hanging from a maple tree. It doesn’t seem like it’ll be able to hold onto the tree much longer. As much as one may like to, there are some things one cannot cling onto forever. The world keeps changing and sometimes it all seems to be a dream.

Finger Style Guitar Delight

shayanafzal — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 21:12:20 +0000

I recently experienced the bliss of attending a finger style guitar gig in Toronto. I am not too big a follower of the genre but I do own all of Andy McKee albums and I have listened to a fair bit of Don Ross music as well. To my surprise the place was packed with talented musicians. Most of them played original instrumentals while a few played instrumental versions of well known songs from the rock music genre. Most of the musicians there used pedals to loop their music but a fair bit didn’t use any such pedals and they definitely outshined the others.

It does take a fair bit of skill to play lead, rhythm, bass as well the vocal sections of a song simultaneously. It’s something I myself have been working on since the last few months. You hardly hear such intricate guitar music on the radio today but that’s a whole other debate. Michael Hedges was one of the few well known musicians who employed such guitar playing techniques coupled with numerous alternate guitar tunings. Unfortunately he is dead now but he did leave an extensive collection of tasteful music. Check him out if you’re into acoustic guitar music.

The Way You Look Tonight

shayanafzal — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:55:03 +0000

It’s four in the morning here. Today is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada. I am a little frustrated right now…I have fruitlessly spent the last hour or so trying to put into words the smile of a particular being.

It’s hard to describe anyone’s smile exactly as one senses it. It’s not just the lips in fact…it’s the entire face, the twitching muscles near the eyes, the raised eyebrows, the slight tilt of the face, soft blushing cheeks, glowing eyes and so forth.

The following lines from a Frank Sinatra song titled ‘The Way You Look Tonight’ come to mind:

“Yes you’re lovely, with your smile so warm
And your cheeks so soft,
There is nothing for me but to love you,
And the way you look tonight.”

It’s a classic. It’s written by Dorothy Fields and Jerome Kern. Rod Stewart also recorded a nice cover of this song. It’s in his album ‘It Had to Be You: the Great American Songbook’.

The song doesn’t go into the kind of depth I am trying to reach here. I once read about the science behind a simple smile in a science journal. It was quite an interesting read.

Anyway, I am going to give it another try. I need to get it done before I sleep.

Happy Thanksgiving Day!
…Cheers!

Doctors and Nurses

shayanafzal — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 01:35:47 +0000

I cut my finger yesterday and had to make a trip down to the hospital to get some stitches. I had to wait two and a half hours in the emergency section for my turn. There were about ten people who where ahead of me, including a man who had crushed his hand in a weight lifting accident.

Guess how many doctors were there…

One!

That’s right, one doctor.

O-N-E, one!

If this was a little family doctor clinic then that would have been understandable, but this was the emergency section of the biggest hospital in the city.

Doesn’t matter what the emergency is, if you go to the ‘emergency section’ of the hospital you will have to wait a couple of hours for your turn because there is only one doctor. It doesn’t matter whether you cut your finger, broke a bone or got raped.

I pay enough taxes; I have the right to complain!

The Episodes of Life

shayanafzal — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 10:30:22 +0000

At the end of each episode, one is merely left with a memory.

Life goes on.

The Meaning of Life

shayanafzal — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 02:36:35 +0000

A young man approached me when I was out today and gave me a flier that outlines the meaning of life. I believe it’s quite unintelligent to narrow down the meaning of life to one solid definition. The meaning of life is what one makes it to be. The meaning of my life may not necessarily be the same as the meaning of your life. There is no one answer to the meaning of life question.

The people who look into such fliers only do so in order to escape from the pathetic reality of their lives which they are too lazy to change. Distributing ‘The Meaning of Life’ fliers is a waste of time and paper as far I am concerned.

Thanks, but no thanks.

The Changing Seasons

shayanafzal — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 06:28:42 +0000

Have you ever noticed the changes that come with the arrival of summer? Most people seem genuinely happy in summer, even those that I usually see walking around with a frown. I think summer is really the season of joy. Even nature seems blissful in summer. It’s like all of nature had been waiting for the arrival of summer. It’s interesting how the changing seasons influence human emotions.