SEVEN FOOT FREAKOUT
by Steve Mann


ERIK : Freak out for the remaining seven feet!
STEVE (muttering): Freak out for the remaining seven feet...Freak out for the remaining..,
THIS IS NOT A TEST. THIS IS NOT A TEST! (Laughing) Everyone is advised to get underground!
(Plays a few great jazz chords for an ending riff, chuckles)

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Erik Frandsen was running out of tape at the end of an incredible home recording session with Steve in Berkeley, 1967. In those days reel-to-reel home recorders usually ran at 7-3/4 inches per second, so to have a few feet left on a reel is still worth a shot in dark if anyone feels inspired.

On the spot, Steve came up with this little creative panic attack after which the tape ran out actually before he could say any more.
Looking for some way to develop his announcement into an actual track of some kind, (because he is having such a good time being silly) we located some really tasty chords on the same tape from Erik, in a finale to a take of “Jelly Roll.”

Having already chosen another version of Jelly Roll for use on the CD, (see song #2) we decided to use just this chord finale by tacking it onto the end of the freakout announcement, Voilå! A new title for the playlist.

This kind of thing would also have been possible in 1964 using splicing tape, but is much easier now in digital technology, Besides, modern technology is non-destructive to the original tape, which belongs to Erik and don’t worry, Eric, we didn’t splice your actual tape. Hope you enjoy the surprise new track.

Steve says he;s not sure of the exact actual same chords he played here, even when we play them back to him, but cheerfully offers about six alternate equally cool endings, any one of which of course would do just fine, but we wish he would just play that progression and hold still a minute so we can just diagram the chords, but no, maybe we could put him in the freezer first or something...

Or, maybe with a video camera!, if can he actually reproduce these chords on the guitar at some point. If not, well we can offer six nice alternatives.

There’s an idea. Video. —JS

FREAK OUT: Well, this means act bizarre, go crazy, get terrified and panicky, start yelling, something like that, (We try discourage freaking out around here, in general).

The last time it got unusually quiet around Bella Roma Music I called out "Steve, what are you doing.?"

"I'm sitting in the kitchen muttering to myself.," came the prompt answer."

That's not freaking out,. right?