Blue Nebula
Blue
Nebula is…
Jeff
Boughner, Guitar
Jeff has been playing in the
"I write most of the
band's original material, but my compositions are always inspired by the
musical personalities of the other band members. I'm always hearing one of Al's
deep bass lines or some irresistible rhythmic figure that John and Luis come up
with. All of the arrangements come out of our collective improvisations. For
me, this band is all about the groove and it's really a joy to create melodies
and then solo over the solid foundation and shifting rhythms that those guys
lay down. And I love it when people dance at our gigs...it really inspires me
to play my best! I'm a huge fan of Miles, in all his incarnations...always
pushing the limits of his imagination, but I particularly love his electric
phase and all those layers of sonic funk. I'm definitely a music junkie...I
listen to everything. I'm not a purist by any means. I'm really interested in
finding the common creative heart that all sincere musicians share. That's my
search. And of course I love guitar players... the whole 20th century history
of the instrument from
Equipment:
Fender Stratocaster, Gibson ES335, Gibson ES175, Martin D35 Takamine
12ENC12-12 String, Guild Mark 4 Classical.
Fender Deluxe Reverb, Fender Twin Reverb, Messa Boogie Cabinet.
Line 6 Delay Modeler, Lexicon MXR 100,
Phrase Recorder, Boss PS-3 Pitch Shifter, Alesis nanoverb.
Al Thayer, Bass Guitar
Al is
also a major contributor to Blue Neb's original music. Not just a bass
guitarist in Blue Nebula, where he lays the steady foundation on which the rest
of the group plays, he plays a variety of other stringed and reed instruments.
If you like bluegrass, check him out on banjo in the Hula Dawgs.
"Blue Nebula, for me, is a
hugely important creative outlet - but beyond that it allows/requires
spontaneity, improvising and playing with and in support of the others. I
believe in support. We've played within a number of personnel configurations
during the course of the Nebula run and each achieved a level of success at
least in terms of what we thought we were after at a certain time - but the
current band is the tightest and the best at developing musical ideas, turning
riffs and rhythm patterns and melodic lines into cohesive pieces. We depend a
great deal upon Jeff. His tunes and improvisations are really what Blue Nebula
is musically all about. But John's feel for jazz and mathematical approach to
assimilating Juan Luis's Latin patterns provide a solid and infectious
foundation for Boughner's guitar flights. Me? I'm just another drum with
harmonic possibilities - possibilities I'm only just beginning to
understand.... "
Equipment: "I play a
fender bass(fretless)through either my smallish Hartke or my biggish
Gallien-Krueger. I have the usual assortment of guitars, banjos, amps, and even
a diatonic accordion which may or may not ever see the light of day with Blue
John Corrigan, Drums
"I'm
a big believer in learning and exploring every time I sit down at the drums.
Through my formal music education and lessons in grade and high school, and
then on through college, I rarely turned down a gig. As a result, I was playing
at least a little of almost everything: concert, classical, marching, musicals,
gospel, rock, blues, and jazz - you name it. Even though lately I've kept to
the small group improv, I encourage all players, young and old, to learn to
read music and jump at pretty much any opportunity to play."
"Jazz
is where I found my real love of the instrument because that is where I found
the most interaction with the other members in the group. Nothing beats funkin'
along with Al's grooves or playing counter-rhythms with a percussionist. It is
their incredible playing that sets me free to comp along with Jeff's soaring
solos; sometimes catching a rhythm to shadow or a riff to answer. Live
performances are what we love the most, because that's where we stretch and
improvise. Whether it’s a bar with a dancing crowd or a quiet gig playing
background music, it's always the live audience that makes it fun."
Equipment:
DW drums with Emerald Satin Oil finish; 10", 12", 14" toms,
5"x14" snare, 18"x22" bass drum. Zildjian cymbals: 20"
Custom Dark ride, 16" Dark Thin crash, 10" Splash, and a pair of hats
from way back. Miscellaneous: LP and CP cowbells, CP drumset tambourine, LP
shakers. Sticks: Vic Firth wood-tip American Jazz 3, Regal nylon-tip Jazz, Vic
Firth and Regal Brushes, Zildjian cymbal mallets. Hardware and pedal: DW. Remo
heads: Coated Ambassador on top, Clear Ambassador on bottom, Clear Diplomat
snare side.