OT: Mike "Monk" Bruce Dies at 58... (long)
John King
----------------------
Yeah, I know... Probably nobody on this group ever even heard
of the guy, but he was *very* influential musician and guitarist
in the Tulsa area. Partly because he taught so many area players
to be better players. Including yours truly.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/TWPDFs/2005/Final/W_082505_D_3.PDF
(I *think* the Tulsa World will let anyone view that in PDF form.)
Besides what the newspaper article says about him. I'd like to
share a bit of my personal experience with Mike.
At about age 12, I'd taken a couple of guitar lessons from some
asshole who had a big reputation, but he was a real bastard and
by the second lesson, I didn't want to go back. Like so many other
players, I proceeded to learn on my own through books and bits
picked up from friends etc... By my early 20s I was playing regular
gigs with my first band, but really didn't have a clue beyond basic
"three chords and the truth" pop / outlaw / progressive country and
blues.
However, with a few years of that experience under my belt, I was
able to put together a local blues band that was considerably better
than my first group. In fact, I'd surrounded myself with guys that
for the most part were much more experienced than me, and somewhat
better players. IN some ways an Ideal situation, but I was playing
was playing "lead" guitar for these quasi-better players! This is
where Mike Bruce comes in.
Around that time, I was invited to a big party that was being hosted
at the legendary "Cains Ballroom":
And there was this band playing called the "Soul Avengers." I'd never
heard of them. It only took me a couple of songs to realize that this
guy on guitar was some *hot* player!!! It was like the first time I
saw Billy Gibbons play. I was awestruck! This guy was all over the fret-
board playing everything from ZZ / SRV / Jazzy stuff, hot country... You
name it, he played it and kicked ass.
I started running around the club asking people "Who *IS* that guy???"
Finally my own brother told me... Oh... that's *just* Mike Bruce, he's
been around here forever. He used to play with all kinds of national
rock and blues acts and then played with Bob Seger (IMO, they should
have said that Seger played with Mike.)
Then, asking brother and a couple of people he was with "Do you people
have any idea how good this guy's playing is?" Somebody said "Oh yeah,
well he's good, but..." I said "No wait a minute, this guys not just
*good*, he's a players player, a fuckin' *MONSTER*" which garnered a
little bit of a chuckle from the people at the table; because Mike's
nickname was "Monk" (as in monkey) and he was only five foot and a few
inches tall. One of the folks at the table told me "I think he gives
guitar lessons at some local music store."
The next week, I went through the yellow pages and called one music
store after another asking: "Does a guy named Mike Bruce give lessons
from your store?" Luckily I only had to call about a half dozen before
locating him. I started taking lessons from him that week.
I warned him going in that I was an "experienced player that gigged
around town, so we could dispense with the basics." He put me in my
place immediately, by saying, "well follow me on this:" and he proceeds
into some ungodly jazz chord comping that I could hardly keep up
with *visually* much less mimic on the fretboard. Then he reeled it
in a bit and played some blues shuffle riffs, but with chord forms
and moving lines within the chords that I'd never seen before...
Then he had me show him some of what I *did* know... Typical bar band
monkey see monkey do licks and assorted self taught crap. By the time
all was said and done, it was plain that in *his* world, I barely
ranked as an intermediate player :-(
But the good news was, after the initial humbling, he proved to be
exceptionally patient and understanding, and he had a real knack for
seeing the holes in a students knowledge, and giving you just the
right lesson to help you make the leap to that next epiphany.
I was unemployed (day job) during some of of this time, and began
practicing my guitar several (sometimes 8-10) hours a day. After only
a couple of weeks, I noticed that I was getting surprised looks from
band mates after pulling off some newfound licks. But I kept my
lessons secret. Finally, after a couple of months of this, my playing
had improved by a huge leap. Then the Singer / second guitar player
just asked me one night at rehearsal: "Ok, somethings going on here...
Just where the hell are you coming up with all these licks you've
been popping up with lately?" At first, I just told him I was "taking
lessons" but wouldn't tell him from where and who.
Then, as traveling around town watching other bands, and attending
jam sessions, I began to recognize many of these guys playing the
same licks as me, which wouldn't be so strange, but they were playing
them *exactly* like Monk had taught me to play them, including little
quirks that didn't sound exactly like the original covers. After asking
a few other guitarists, I realized that many, many of the local players
had been trained by Mike. Including some players that were currently
getting more attention than Mike!
After a while, My day job opened back up, and I let the singer
in on who my teacher was, and he started to take lessons from
him too. I slowed my lessons down, and over the period of about
two years, I probably took 50-60 lessons from him, but with his
vast knowledge, within 15 minutes, he could show me more than I
could comprehend and practice over the next couple of weeks.
During the time I took lessons from Mike Bruce, My playing advanced
in leaps of magnitude. I progressed more in that 1-1/2 to 2 years
than all previous 20 years of playing. To this day, I still find
myself learning and exploring new areas that I might never had touched
had he not been there to guide me. Even though playing is just a
hobby to me, he greatly contributed to the enjoyment of my life.
I'd recently heard that he had moved to Arkansas to be close to
his wife's family, and that he was in ill health. I'm familiar
with the area he was staying, and now greatly regret not visiting
him in his last days to personally thank him for bettering my life.
So... I'll do the best I can, and thank him here, publicly, and
perhaps send a copy of this to his survivors.
As I began, I will conclude: MIKE "MONK" BRUCE
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN.
Sincerely,
John King
John King
I see the PDF link didn't work, so I had to cut-paste and edit
it for copy here:
Tulsa guitarist dies at 58
BY JOHN WOOLEY
World Scene Writer
Mike “Monk” Bruce, one of Tulsa’s best-known rock and
blues-rock guitarists for more than a quarter of a century,
died Tuesday. He had been living with his wife, Cindy, in
Bentonville, Ark., where he was waiting for a liver transplant
He was 58. Bruce grew up playing music in Tulsa, graduating from
Nathan Hale High School. He was living and working in California
with another famed Tulsa musician, drummer Jimmy Karstein, when
a hometown friend, Ernie Fields Jr., called and asked if they’d
be interested in a job with R&B great Bobby “Blue” Bland.
“We looked at each other and said, ‘Bobby Bland? When do we leave?’
recalled Bruce in a 1990 interview. Bruce toured with Bland
from 1969 until 1971, when he tired of the road and returned to
Tulsa. He hadn’t been home long when his old friend David Teegarden,
then based in Detroit, offered him a job with the duo Teegarden & Van
Winkle, which had recently taken on a local boy named Bob Seger as a
vocalist-guitarist. Bruce took over as lead guitarist for the outfit,
recording several albums — both with and without Seger — and appearing
in the unreleased concert movie “Ten for Two.” “He was just a monstrous
player, a brother, all those things,” said Teegarden. “A gifted musician
who was incredibly well-rounded. He should have been a legend, and it’s
kind of regrettable that he never really got discovered.” After leaving
Teegarden &Van Winkle, Bruce returned to Tulsa, where he played in a
dizzying number of bands, ranging from country (Big Frank) to jazz (the
Jazz Babies), and taught guitar. He also worked with drummer-vocalist
Mike Dragoo and the late bassist Steve Munson in the well remembered
Soul Avengers, as well as booking gigs under his own name. A disc
of Soul Avengers music from a decade earlier was released in 2003.
By that time, Bruce was suffering from hepatitis, which he believed he
had picked up during a Far East tour with Michael Jackson’s sister
Rebbie. He continued to play guitar intermittently until his death.
Services are set for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Samaritan House Fellowship,
1211 W. Hudson Road, Rogers, Ark., under the direction of Stockdale
Funeral Services. Memorial donations may be made to the Mike Bruce
Medical Fund, c/o Samaritan House, P.O. Box 939, Rogers, AR 72757.
Mike Bruce
paul
paul
az
"John King" <kin...@swbell.net> wrote in message
news:esTQe.984$nB6...@newssvr30.news.prodigy.com...
Phil S
It's quite a story. Indeed, it seems you were very fortunate to find Monk
and learn from him. It's painful and sad when someone you know and respect
dies at such a young age. I'm truly sorry.
Regards,
Phil
Wämp
pratice room. May be you'll meet up again. Peace Chris
int...@cox.net
Miss ya Mike !
Universe
>I was blessed to take some lessons from him over here in Arkansas. He was sick a few times and had to cancel but I was blown away by his expertise. He played with his church band too at Samaritan House which is a great community help center. I stopped taking lessons for a couple years to finish a remodel on my house then stopped in at his house to give him a book about heaven that I thought was really good. No one had told me so when I asked Cindy (his wife) for Mike...there was a long, painful silence then she filled me in. Man, I was SO hurt; I did NOT give him permission to bail on me...what about the rest of those lessons bro? I loved him and miss him but have no doubt I'll see him again and I believe he's still playin' some out of this world tunes in heaven.
>
>Miss ya Mike !
with stars--people who work hard and aspire to create something
beautiful. Sorry to hear about your friend.
Lord Valve
Fuck you.
swmart...@gmail.com
ca...@panaglab.com
Lord Valve
> I had similar experiences with him. He was my teacher in Tulsa in the 80s. He wasn't just a good guitar player but a good teacher. He was very patient, but made me work. He taught me a bit of his style, but helped me develop my own in a really cool supportive but not controlling way. He said "know your 145 in every key better than you know your own name because there might be times you can't remember your own name, but youll still need to know your 1,4,&5 in any key." lol,he was right a lot. Lets all sound as good as we can and share whatever we know. I think hed like that.
Lord Penis
> On Saturday, January 14, 2017 at 6:46:58 PM UTC-7, ca...@panaglab.com wrote:
>> I had similar experiences with him. He was my teacher in Tulsa in the 80s. He wasn't just a good guitar player but a good teacher. He was very patient, but made me work. He taught me a bit of his style, but helped me develop my own in a really cool supportive but not controlling way. He said "know your 145 in every key better than you know your own name because there might be times you can't remember your own name, but youll still need to know your 1,4,&5 in any key." lol,he was right a lot. Lets all sound as good as we can and share whatever we know. I think hed like that.
INCHES LONG.
Lord Valve
Lord Penis
black cock on Martin Luther King Day.
tony reay
Just search for Mike Monk Bruce tulsa
yer welcome
tony reay
> GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
> Sincerely,
> John King
you may be pleased to discover that there is now quite a lot of Monk on youtube...
just search youtube for Mike Monk bruce Tulsa
have a blast mate.