An interview with Terry Blankenship

At what age did you first want to be a musician?

My great aunt Margaret Ingram (Auntie), told me that I loved Elvis Presley and had her buy me a pair of blue suede shoes and a leather jacket when I was 5 years old. She said that I would climb up on the kitchen table and sing Elvis songs to her.

What were your first instruments?

I got my first guitar when I was 10 years old. My first guitars were a Teisco Del Ray, then a Harmony, then a Vox Phanthom 12 string, then a Les Paul Custom. My first amps were a Norma, a Silvertone, a Magnavox, a Standell, a Fender Bandmaster, a Vox AC 30, a Fender Twin Reverb, then an Acoustic 150. I also had an acoustic guitar which my aunt Elaine gave to me.

What kind of music did you like then?

The first things that I learned were the old rock and roll songs from the 1950's. My mom had a lot of the old 45's and I learned how to play by listening to all of the original 1950's rock and rollers. Then I got into instrumental surf music like The Ventures. After that I got into the whole British Invasion. I really loved The Beatles. There were so many great bands from that era. The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Animals, The Kinks, The Hollies, The Who, and all of those great singles by so many different bands. Then you had all the great American musicians like Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, The Byrds, The Jefferson Airplane, Spirit, and The Doors. It was a magical time.

Do you remember your first gig?

I played my first paying gig when I was 11 years old. I had a trio called "The Tweed". We made $210 which was a lot of money at the time. We got $70 each. We didn't have any expenses. I spent all of the money I made from that gig on baseball cards. I remember us using these different names for the band during the first few years. "The Tweed", "The Ascots", and "Osiris & The Living Dead".

Did you play in bands all through high school?

I played in different bands all the way through my school years. I can't remember the names of them all. We would play at parties, high school dances, roller rinks, American legions, fairs, state fairs, local night clubs, any place that would have us. I played out a couple of times a month all through school. We eventually were playing out somewhere almost every weekend. Then instead of just local gigs, it became gigs within a couple of hours drive from where we lived, then gigs in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Michigan. Then regional gigs. Before I knew it I was playing all of the country. Some of the bands I played in were "Crowhaven Farm", "Sunnava", "Tangent", "Heroes", "The Scandal", "Drastic Measures" and "Daemon". I played a lot in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Florida, Colorado, and Texas. I ended up playing gigs from NYC to LA and from the Florida Keys to Canada.

What kind of music were you into then?

Jimi Hendrix, The Jeff Beck Group, Cream, and Led Zeppelin mainly. We also did a lot of original music along the same lines. After high school I got into all of the progressive bands like King Crimson, Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Genesis, The Moody Blues, and Gentle Giant. Then I got into The Mahavishnu Orchestra. At one point I even did a complete turn around and got into punk rock, then new wave. I was really into music like The Cars, Ultravox, Bill Nelson, and David Bowie for a while. I still love all of these bands.

Do you have any recordings from those times?

Several years ago I was moving and had to store all of my belongings in a storage warehouse. Someone broke in and among the things that were stolen were literally all of my original recordings and master recordings. I had 90 hours of my original music that are lost forever. This was the final straw that made me quit writing, recording, and performing.

So where did the CDs that you have up on mp3.com come from?

My friend Bill had made dats of "Daemon", "Entering The Silence", and "Unreleased". I was visiting him and told him what had happened. He told me he had those three dats and gave them to me. I decided to put them up on mp3.com since everything else that I had was lost. I wanted to see if anyone would notice and see if anyone would like them now. People are noticing them and I have gotten such a good response that it has inspired me to start writing and recording original music again.

What about your Celtic CDs?

Celtic music is what brought me back to life. I have played Celtic music exclusively for the last five years. I fell in love with the music and taught myself to play the Irish bouzouki, mandola, and mandolin. I was in a Borders about five years ago and saw a local band playing Celtic music. The fiddler asked me to come back to the house with them and jam after the show. I did and was asked back again, After a few more jams they asked me to join the band. They were "Silver Arm" and were the premeire Celtic band in this area at that time. We played out a lot at Celtic festivals and at a lot of other gigs for the next couple of years. I loved the music and it brought me back to life. When that band broke up because one of the founding members wanted to quit playing and pursue her art career, I was asked to join Margaret Gravitt as a duo. We eventually started a trio called "Margaret, Rick, & Terry" and ended up playing at a lot of Scottish festivals all over the country. It was during this time that we recorded the "Margaret. Rick, & Terry" CD. When Margaret had to stop for health reasons "The Gabriel Hounds" asked me to join them. I loved playing with "The Gabriel Hounds". We were a great Celtic band and played all over the country at all of the biggest Irish Festivals for about a year straight. Then the fiddler quit the band and we disbanded. I had recorded a solo Celtic CD just before "The Gabriel Hounds" had asked me to join them. I put this out after the band broke up. This is the "Terry Blankenship" CD that is all Celtic music that I put out on mp3.com.

"The Kells" reformed out of the ashes of the old Gabriel Hounds. The founding members of the original band were Terry Blankenship, Brian McCoy and Eddie Cotter, Jnr. We were together around a year and a half and released one official CD called "Feast of the Archangels". We recorded it in one day, basically live. My friend Coni did the great cover art. We recorded all of our rehearsals and decided to put up a series of "Collector's Editions" CDs on mp3.com. We did two collectors CDs taken from our rehearsals: "Collector's Edition Vol 1 & 2". Don't you wish some of the early traditional bands like Planxty or the Bothy Band would have done that. Sadly this great band has also bitten the dust.

How did you record the "Entering The Silence" CD?

For about a year straight I would meditate at night and then record an improvisation. I would try to keep myself in an altered state of consciousness while I improvised. I would listen for the music and play what I heard. I'd listen for the sound and try to follow it back to the source. This was a spiritual practice for me. Each track on that CD was recorded live in one take to a 2 track stereo reel to reel, with no overdubs. I owe this CD to my friend and manager at the time Paul Lovett. I never intended to release it. He came over one night and heard me recording one of my meditation pieces and loved it and convinced me to put it out. Thanks Paul!

So you were just using the 8 tracks on your your early projects?

Thats right, for the early ones. I actually play all of the music from beginning to end like they used to. Hey every Beatles album up through Sgt Peppers and the first two Jimi Hendrix albums was recorded on 4 track. So was all of the great music from the 1960s. Today people have unlimited tracks to record on. They can take sections from several different tracks and combine them to make one good track. They can cut and paste so they don't even have to actually play the whole song straight through. They can change the sounds they used on keyboard tracks after they have recorded them to a different sound without having to play the part over again. They can speed it up or slow it down without having to play it again. You can even enter all of the notes into your computer without ever having to actually play anything. It is not totally a bad thing. It gives real musicians better tools to create with. I just think that musicians used to have to be more creative and be better singers, songwriters, and players to get a good recording than they do today. I recently got Digital Performer and an eMac, so I will be able to do pretty much anything I can think of.

Synthesisers are a good example of this?

Yes. You used to have to literally create each sound from scratch. Create the sound from nothing. You could create sounds that no one had ever heard before. Today any kid can buy a synthesizer that has hundreds or even thousands of sounds already programmed into it. I hear very little original sounding electronic music today, probably because almost everyone is using the same sounds, computer software, and commercially available samples and loops. Almost all of what is being called "Electronic" music today just sounds like disco played on a synthesizer to me. There is some really great new electronic music.

So what do you consider electronic music?

Well all of the people who pioneered it: Stockhausen, Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, Tomita, Vangelis, Jean Michael Jarre.

So who are some of the musicians who have most inspired you?

There are so many. The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, The Moody Blues, King Crimson, Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Genesis, Tangerine Dream, Tomita, Vangelis, David Bowie, Brian Eno, Bill Nelson, Peter Gabriel, Steve Reich, Kornog, Martin Carthy, Dick Gaughan, Dervish, and all of the groups I mentioned earlier.

What was it like to work with Robert Fripp?

I could write a book about that. I played on two CDs with him; "Robert Fripp & The League Of Crafty Guitarists", and "Toyah & Fripp The Lady Or The Tiger". I lived at his house with him while we were rehearsing and I played concerts in the USA, England, and Holland with him. MTV also filmed and played a one hour live concert of ours from George Washington University. I really liked Toyah, and I learned a lot from my experiences and the time I spent working with Robert Fripp. He is a true professional musician, a musical genius, and an eccentric. He works harder than any one I know to be good at his craft. We would literally rehearse from morning until night. Our first CD won the best experimental guitar album in the Guitar Player magazine polls that year.

I see you were voted in as a "Texas Tornado.

I lived in Texas for ten years. Stevie Ray Vaughan was made a Texas Tornado, then Eric Johnson the next year, and I was voted in as a Texas Tornado" the following year. It was indeed an honor to be among the company of such great guitarists. I love Texas and Texans.

Did you know Stevie Ray Vaughan?

Yes. I met him before he ever recorded an album. He used to play at Al Bamboos in Dallas, Texas for about 50 people.

Have you met Eric Johnson?

Yes. I really like Eric. I think he is probably the greatest living guitarists. He is a true gentleman. He is also very in touch with that place that music comes from. I couldn't begin to express how much I respect him as a musician and a person. I run into him occasionaly on the road.

Did you ever get to meet any of the other musicians who had inspired you along the way?

I have actually met quite a few of them. You tend to meet everyone if you stay on the road long enough. I have met Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Johnson, Steve Vai, etc. Way too many to even remember off the top of my head. The one that blew me away the most was getting to meet Paul McCartney. I couldn't believe I was with Paul. He is a really nice guy. He let me play his Rickenbacker bass. I have got to meet almost all of my favourite Celtic musicians and I'm friends with some of them.

Who are your favourite Celtic musicians?

Martin Carthy, Dick Gaughan, Brian McNeill, Donal Lunny, Andy Irvine, Dervish, Kornog, The John Renbourn Group, Steeleye Span, and Hedningarna. There are so many. I love all of them.

I joined Brian McNeill onstage at one of his concerts and Brian McNeill and Alasdair Fraiser both joined me onstage in Dallas once at the same time.

I've met almost all of my favourite Celtic musicians at one time or another. I've met Dervish, Donal Lunny, Andy Irvine, DeDannan, Tannahill Weavers, Altan, Martin Carthy, Dick Gaughan, Danu, John Renbourn, etc.

Dervish invited me to Sligo for two weeks to visit them. I was in heaven. They are the best Irish band in the world today.

The last time Martin Carthy was in town I got to spend a lot of time with him. We played and sang together for five hours straight. Martin is the real item. There is no one like Martin Carthy.

Celtic music is the best music in the world and the musicians who play it are all really wonderful people. I love Ireland and Scotland and the people, culture, and music. I would love to live there. I feel at home when I am there.

I have Irish, Scottish, and American Indian blood in me so I guess that explains my looks and why I love the music so much.

I understand that you teach guitar.

Yes. It has been very rewarding. I really like all of the kids. There are some really talented and special kids out there. I will probably always continue to teach in one way or another. I love it. I am currently teaching private lessons at my home in Mason, Ohio.

What are the URLs for some of your mp3 sites and official web site?

Terry Blankenship Official Web Site

Terry Blankenship - mp3.com (Australia)

Who does the great surrealist art for your CD covers?

My friend and soulmate Coni. She is a surrealist and one of the only artists ever to be featured at The Salvador Dali Art Museum besides Dali. You can contact her at coni@siscom.net

What about the cool background photos on your official web site?

That was esoteric art by David Camp.

How well have you done on mp3.com?

Well just check out my fan mail. The last time I checked I had over 100,000 plays from my combined mp3 sites in the USA and have had around 20 tracks in the top 40 of their genre at different times. My track "Harmonium" made it to #3 in the minimal genre; "Alternative Rhythms" went to #3 in the psychedelic genre; "The Arcane Eye" went to #6 in the minimal genre; "Entering the Silence" went to #10 in the minimal genre; Dissociation went to #9 in the darkwave genre; and "Trance Mission Impossible" went to #2 in its trance genre. Unfortunately mp3.com in the USA closed down, so I moved all of my music to mp3.com in Australia. I am doing great there. I love Australians.

At one point I was the #1 artist in the experimental electronic music catagory on the Australian mp3.com and I also had the #1 folk album there at the same time.

I have set up my mp3 site there so that you can play all of my music for free.

You have so many different kinds of music on your Australian mp3.com site, and do them all well. What are you planning to do next?

I am already working on a new solo Celtic CD, and a new experimental guitar CD. I will probably do some collaborations with "Peiseleiano", and possibly another Trance Godz CD. My electronic duo the "Trance Godz" released our first CD called "Trance World". We have created a whole new genre of electronic music with some of the tracks we are recording. I also have a new solo electronic CD called "Tranceformation". I also recorded a new trance CD with Ganesh Kumar as a guest artist playing kanjira. Since I have been consistently in the top 10 in the folk music catagory for the last several years at mp3.com in Australia, and at #1 there several times, I guess I should do another solo Celtic CD soon as well.

Thanks for your time and good luck.

Thank you. I plan on updating the site and adding new music regularly. The internet is a way to get your music to people all over the world instantly. It will change everything for the next generation of musicians.

Here is an essay by Terry Blankenship on Music & The Lost Word that reveals that music is much more to him than just music. Very enlightening.

Pythagoras discovered that all of music could be reduced to numbers and mathematical ratios and that the entire universe and everything in it could also be explained in these same terms.
From Egypt to Greece to India and China, we find the belief that music had the power to evolve or degrade the individual psyche and thereby make or break entire civilizations.
In ancient times sound itself, the very basis of all music was thought to be intimately related to the sacred dimensions or planes of existence. Audible sound was considered to be but an earthly reflection of a vibratory activity taking place beyond the physical world. Inaudible sound, or the "Word" was the origin of all the matter and energy in the universe.
The universal vibratory energies were called by the ancient Egyptians the Word or Words of their Gods; to the Pythagoreans of Greece they were the Music of the Spheres; the ancient Chinese knew them to be the celestial energies of perfect harmony; and this cosmic sound was know to the Hindus as Om.
The very phenomenon of sound was regarded with great reverence. He who knew how to, could release the sacred energies through the use of audible sound. In fact something of the Primal Vibration was believed to be released whenever and wherever audible sound is produced.
The power of sound as a force which could be used for good or evil was considered to be unsurpassed.
Everywhere you look in the ancient world we discover the same conception; that music is a releaser into the material world of a fundamental superphysical energy from beyond the world of everyday experience. In the spoken or intoned rituals of many of the worlds religions there is a similar concept; that the voice of the priest within the realm of time and space becomes the vehicle for the energizing voice of the Creator to manifest its forces through.
Music weilds a force which affects the world with both physical and mystical aspects. The air vibrations of its sound are not only real and measurable, but are capable of shattering glass. The military has developed a weapon that can kill with sound, and physicians use ultrasound to help speed up healing. Rhythm too can be all too real a force. Military experience has taught that when troops are marching across a bridge that they break step, for the effect of the marching has more than once caused the collapse of such constructions.
The Chinese associated Cosmic Sound with illumined, exalted consciousness. Cosmic Sound, the vibratory essence of all matter and energy, was in everything and everyone...and it was possible for man to raise his consciousness, to take himself closer to the Source, to attune himself more perfectly with the One. Spirituality was literally a question of vibration. He who succeeded in harmonizing the discords within his mind, emotions and body could become a more perfect embodiment of Cosmic Sound, an incarnation of the Word.
There are unmistakable parallels here between this Chinese concept of man embodying Cosmic Sound and the Christian acceptance of the Christ as being the Word of God.
Every conceivable aspect of music was aligned with the Above, that nothing remained mundane. The result was a scientific art; for the sake of practical effects. By creating a tonal art that was an accurate counterpart of Cosmic sound and celestial order, the ancients were convinced that they had provided a medium for the entry of heavenly proportion and sacred energies into the matter-world.
The earth had become imperfect due to the inharmonious thoughts, words, and deeds of an imperfect humanity. But all could be restored to perfection and maintained by the giving forth of perfect music. Thus a line of stability could be held, through the science of sacred sound, against the further encroachment of discordant forces which, if a balance was not held, could lead to disaster. Sacred sound was such a balance against imperfection and evil. And more; correctly applied music was believed to be capable of eventually re-aligning the world to its original and perfect Source.
The two solstices and two equinoxes, were periods during which vast radiations of sacred energy were released at the spiritual level. Music could act as the medium to aid these life enhancing forces to enter more fully into the material world; therefore it was at these four times of the year that music and ritual could be used still more effectively than at any other time. The T'ang Dynasty is said to have brought together an orchestra of ten thousand musicians for this purpose, each year. By scientifically invoking as much as possible of this sacred energy down into the earth plane, the holding of the four annual periods of holy ritual ensured the greatest benefit for the nation in all its affairs.
To the sages and emperors of ancient China, the alignment of the earth with heaven, and of man with the Supreme, was literally the meaning of life. Everything that exists in the visible and invisible universe is vibrating at different rates. I like to think of it all as music. The music of life.