Green Arrow Radio

ELKHORN, Wis. – When Tallan “T-Man” Latz was 5, he saw Joe Satriani playing guitar on TV. “I turned around to my dad and said, ‘That’s exactly what I want to do.'” Three years and countless hours of practicing later, 8-year-old Tallan is a blues guitar prodigy. He’s played in bars and clubs, including the House of Blues in Chicago, and even jammed with Les Paul and Jackson Browne. He has a summer of festivals scheduled and has drawn interest from venues worldwide. And what, you might ask, would a kid not even in the third grade have the blues about? The state of Wisconsin for one, and some possibly jealous older musicians for another. An anonymous e-mail sent to state officials complained that Tallan was too young to perform in taverns and nightclubs because of state child labor laws. His booking agent even got an anonymous letter threatening her with death if she keeps booking him. When Tallan’s father read him the state’s letter saying he couldn’t play clubs anymore (he can still play festivals), the boy’s response — like his music — seemed beyond his years. “He goes, ‘It’s not how many times you get knocked down but it’s how many times you get back up and go forward,’ Carl Latz said his son told him. “And I told him that’s exactly what this is all about and if nothing else this letter just taught you a life lesson.” The lesson can be stiff: Each day he performs, the employer can be fined $25 to $1,000 and the parent from $10 to $250. Jennifer Ortiz of the state Equal Rights Division said her agency has a responsibility to enforce the law once it becomes aware of a violation. “Well, the law prohibits it, and the Legislature enacted the laws to protect the health, safety and welfare of all children.” Latz, who also is Tallan’s manager, has asked a legislator for help changing the law but it’s unclear whether any action will be taken. Latz received the letter a few days before Tallan was to perform at Lil Downtown Lounge in suburban Milwaukee, where club co-owner Michelle Boche said the boy always packed the place when he sat in with other musicians. Boche said she has received backlash from musicians and area bar owners because she supports Tallan. Some have tried to take patrons away, she said. Some even called in fake incidents to police, causing them to look for guns or underage drinkers, she said. “If my doors close and I never open again and this boy becomes successful, then I will be the happiest person in the world,” she said. Tallan’s agent, Sharon Pomaville, said she received a threatening letter June 2 warning her to stop booking the boy. She thinks he’s a local musician and believes he’s harmless. Greg Koch, 42, an internationally known guitarist and clinician for Fender Musical Instruments, called the backlash despicable. He said most 8-year-olds don’t have the strength or attention span to pursue guitar or can’t endure the calluses. “It’s strange that a kid at this age would glean onto this particular kind of music and show the intensity and kind of the ability to function as kind of 8-year-old blues guy,” he said. Brad Tolinski, editor-in-chief of Guitar World magazine, said kid guitar prodigies are rare, with one emerging perhaps every four or five years. “It would be unusual to find an 8-year-old who can play Satriani licks,” he said. Carl Latz said there’s no explanation for Tallan’s blues connection other than he seems to have an old soul. “I’ve had more people tell me, they say ‘It’s a kid’s body but it has a 70-year-old dude inside,'” Carl Latz said. Tallan, whose heroes are Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, has 13 guitars and endorsements from at least nine companies to use their equipment. He can read music but plays mostly from memory. He has two bands — one with veterans called T-Man’s Blues Project and another with 16-and-younger bandmates called Tallan “The T-Man” Latz and the Young Guns. He also sings and plays drums, harmonica, bass and piano. Tallan said he likes to play guitar to “put smiles on people’s faces” when they are having a bad day. “It sounds awesome,” he said. “I think it’s so much you can do on the guitar.” He knows 30 to 40 songs and someday hopes to write his own. It was his idea to start playing in public. “He drags me around,” his dad said. “I don’t drag him around.” Tallan said the problems he’s faced have doing nothing to dampen his ambition to be a blues rock star when he grows up. Just the opposite, in fact. “Because I got more inspiration, I got more sadness in me,” Tallan said. “I’m just feelin’ it.”

Just like Doodlebug announced live on my show, the reunion of this hip hop union is kickin’ off September 10th in Sacramento CA. LadyBUG MEK, Butterfly AND CEE KNOW THE DOODLEBUG will hit da road with thier deejay performing classics & new joints too.

Check out my rappin’ w/Doodlebug here.

Check out my past convo w/the LadyBUG here.

This news is “COOL LIKE THAT”

Over the course of his career, from his mid ‘70s run with The Brecker Brothers to his various stints as a “hired gun” for everyone from Gil Evans and David Sanborn to Billy Joel and James Brown, Hiram Bullock earned his reputation as a bona fide guitar hero. But all along, Hiram has also been developing his skills as a singer/songwriter and charismatic live performer. His style is not easily categorized, since his playing is a creative blend of rock, funk, blues, and jazz. It is easy to say, however, that his music is fun. Almost immediately after arriving in the Big Apple, Hiram’s international career began. He first played with Sanborn, meeting producer Phil Ramone and playing on many gold and platinum albums. His credits include: The Brecker Brothers, David Sanborn, Paul Simon, Chaka Khan, Pete Townsend, Bob James, Sting, James Brown, Miles Davis, Kenny Loggins, Billy Joel, Barbra Streisand, Burt Bacharach, Roberta Flack, Spyro Gyra, Eric Clapton, Al Green and James Taylor. Check out the discography section of his website for the complete list. Hiram gained a huge following as the barefoot guitar player on Late Night with David Letterman. From the inception of the show until 1984, he was a regular member of the World’s Most Dangerous Band, led by Paul Shaffer. Other television work includes being a member of the house band on Saturday Night Live, and working as the musical director on Sanborn’s critically acclaimed Night Music show. He was also seen acting the part of a musician in Under Siege (starring Steven Segal); he wrote 6 of the internal songs in the film. Hiram’s career as a solo artist began in 1983. He has produced all of his albums, which include many of his own songs. His albums span many different genres of music, from the contemporary jazz of “From All Sides” to the rock of “World of Collision”; from the latin-influenced “Carrasco” to the organ-trio jazz of “Late Night Talk”. The style that Hiram’s fans have come to expect in live performances is exemplified by the group-oriented funky rock of “Color Me”, and continued with “Try Livin’ It” and his latest release, “Too Funky 2 Ignore”. He is also known as a dynamic performer, who gives his all for the sake of the show. Certainly his style of making music was an example of what greenarrowradio would like to strive for.

James Taylor-Only a Dream in Rio featuring Hiram (1988)

one of the best ever…..thanks to our friend Dr. Dot for reminding me of this one.