Today’s Tele-Tuesday comes in the form of a tip to stay healthy on the road. John Stannard recently had a blood clot cause him some problems. We’ll let John tell you in his own words:
Dr. John’s Tele Switch Tip of the Day:
Bakelite, Dakaware, ’50s style, ’60s Top Hat style… this one has been a long, long time coming but – like all the good ones is worth waiting for…
After 40+ years of wrangling, wrestling, hauling, strangling, toting, poking, prodding and mauling a Tele (and its relevant switch) around the world I recently had cause to rethink about all those happy times a’ traveling.
We all love it don’t we?, those infuriating, maddening stupidly long drives from A to B ?, its part of the job isn’t it ? Sitting on someone’s Bassman cab with one knee next to your ear and the other supporting a lighting rig !! “Can we stop yet ?” — “Next town – oh, OK then”
To be honest, I have oft times taken gigs just for the journey, cheap and ever cheaper airline seats meant longer and longer, further and further flight times with possibilities of gigs even further away and more exotic – what could possibly be going wrong for the musician sitting squashed in the overhead locker?
Well, I had heard it mentioned for years but ‘DVT’ or ‘cheap seat-itis’ really didn’t hit home until last week when a little old piece of my own blood decided it wanted to go a wandering too!
Around my venal system, up my arm, looking at stuff, laughing, pointing at things and how odd they look from the inside and then bammo… “Hey gang, I’m going to pull over for a while. Heart OK for everyone ?”
Well, thanks to the fantastic work by the team at Scott&White in Round Rock, Texas, I’m back at home to deliver my sage and timely ‘Switch Tip’…
If you are traveling any long distance it’s simple …. make time to get out and stretch out those long, thin, musicianly, girl friendly legs !!, no macho daftness and get up an hour earlier if you have too but please .. make the effort to do it, combine it with a photoshoot if you must but don’t just sit there, you really are sitting on a time bomb.
If you are on a plane ?, just unfold yourself from the seat and walk – just do it.
I really have ‘dodged a bullet’ this time and expect soon to be back, doing what I do but a lot won’t be so lucky this year !!
Right, lets all sing manfully together “I’ve been everywhere man I’ve been everywhere etc etc etc “
Telecaster wrangler extrordinaire John Stannard’s web site can be found here:
www.jrstannard.com
