RE: [Harp-L] From the heart



Gary(SJ):

You da man!  I am sure everyone could agree that your pioneering spirit and
overall contribution to the world of amplified harp and also the styling's
of Sonny Terry have been, at a minimum, great!  I learned a great deal from
you about playing "big" amps when I got my SJ 410 many years ago.  I also
have a copy of some of your Sonny Terry stuff from many years back and I
remember listening to it in my truck struggling with the Syncopation. It was
that little turn around plus the rhythmic breathing pattern that was so
unique as respects Sonny's playing and you are the only one I've heard hit
it like he did!  Thank you for the service!

Respectfully,

-----Original Message-----
From: harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of SONNYTONE@xxxxxxx
Sent: Friday, June 26, 2009 2:09 PM
To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [Harp-L] From the heart

Please read this with the understanding that I have once again, along with
the sudden passing of such great people, truly realize that life is so
precious  and short. After reading the posts about Charlie's new gig and
review that have  been posted by reputable, long standing members of the
list, None were solicited  or even hinted to post by myself, that even
jokingly questioning the validity of  these posts is not even close to being
a "joke", for Anyone. 
    It is now clear, and I am sure many will say, "I  heard this all
before", that absolute mind numbing pain and being alone  allow me to see
visibly what my true calling is, how I should conduct myself,  and what are
the True priorities are in life. This is a process that will  take the rest
of my lifetime, and I hope that everyone understands how precious  life is,
and that Life in itself, is a terminal disease which can be ended at  any
given moment. 
     The statements that I am making are not  manic, done on a whim or rant,
you can take them as seriously as you would a  death bed testimony.
    So many wonderful people that are now passing along  expertly Sonny
Terry's style and legacy, have been one part of the equation  which is
pushing me towards what I know is my real responsibility in life. That
would be to fully account my eye witnesses experiences, testimony, of who
Sonny Terry was as a person and harmonica genius from the initial meeting
with  him at Toad's Place, New Haven, Ct. in the year 1974, through how it
came about  to become his aid, driver, and harmonica duet partner from Jan
1977 - Sept  1978.
My goal is not a personal, money driven idea whatsoever, it is simply to at
the best of my ability, honor and praise His legacy from those periods of
time,  in order so that in lifetime's to come, all can appreciate one of the
greatest  human beings, harmonica players, pioneers, of all time. Whether I
can play  exactly as the master right now is not of utmost importance, when
I do  actually create a CD, it will be from my heart and my only wish is try
and bring  joy, passion, and entertainment to whomever listens to it.  
Along with the, Kent  Copper, Fred Palmer, Peter Ruth, Tom Ball, Phil
Wiggins, Paul Lamb, Ben Felten,  joe Filisko, and the countless other
wonderful people that have inspired  us, I hope that my being Blessed with
the knowledge of said time in  Saunders Terrel's life can be accepted and
taken it as the best I can recollect,  along with as much physical
documentation that I can supply. In spite of trying  to give harmonicas
players the best possible amplifier that I could at the Time  of each
creation over 17 years, this will eventually become either a calculated
amount of product I can offer in one year, or if my calling is to just honor
Sonny's legacy, than still to offer my undying customer support to All
existing  customers. The more we can truly document, detail, give personal
insight to, the  most generous Man I have ever met, is what we really need
to focus on. 
    When anyone mentions Charlie Musselwhite and then  has an off comment or
question what is said that is absolutely the truth, it  effects me, as
Charlie and I have become lifelong brothers and friends, we email  virtually
many times a day, he is without question the most sincere, honest,  self
giving person I have come to fully appreciate and again, have the
opportunity to be part of. What he states about my amplifier is always his
unasked for true opinion of what he believes. In any of you actually KNOW
him,  you would understand this as well as I do. I will need to distance
myself  entirely from reading the list and feeling the need to post, so
please bear with  me. I fully understand the length. 
    I would like most to thank all the countless  supporters from all walks
of life who have expressed their thanks and love for  what I have Tried to
accomplish, with my reputation being an integral part of  this journey. 
Without thinking that these people are "above" anyone else, these recent
events have also made me realize just how many fantastic harmonica genius's
that  have been supportive and placed in my life. Again, so many, but feel
the need to  speak their names: Charlie, Lee Oskar, Dave Barrett, Gary
Smith, Paul Lamb,  Peder Nande, Guy Van Eesbeck, Mark Hummel, Mitch Kashmar,
Sugar Ray Norcia,  countless others who I hope know how much I love and
thank them. 
        With that said, I would  also like to THANK all the people that I
have hurt with my words and had/have a  negative experience with me, as it
was YOU all that have directed me towards  this path. In my small way
Michael Jackson's life, his narcissism, wanting to  help boys, not being
satisfied because he could not top Thriller's success, is  what I have
wasted so much of my time with, and Other's time with. I am not  asking for
forgiveness, everyone is entitled to either hold onto their feelings  for
me, express their opinions, whatever they think is necessary, I only hope
and pray that a higher spiritual guide can come into Their lives and set
them  from free from ANY negative thoughts, as these thoughts only take away
precious  seconds of our lives which can be used to LIVE, love, give back. I
only ask my spiritual guide for "It's" forgiveness, hoping that in some way,
if I let go, others can let go. Please right NOW, tell someone you love just
how much you love them, and if anyone is in your life that truly loves you,
cherish that 
with  all your heart and soul.     
          I must truly,  truly, thank the moderator of this list, FJM, for
his compassion, tolerance, and  complete dedication to making this forum a
reality. He had every Right to cancel  my being able to be a part of this
far too many times over than I can count. I  can only hope that his
compassion in dealing with my insanity can inspire  other's to have this
same compassion for whoever they feel the need to. One last  thing I feel
the need to say, then I will not take any more of your precious  time.
        I would like to thank, from  the bottom of heart, Scott Berbarian,
Brian Purdy, John Kinder, Mr. Kendrick,  and all the fabulous amplifier
companies for giving me the boost and push  to continue to try and create
the best amplifiers that I could. Without them,  the new amplifier/upgrade,
the Cruncher, Any amplifier that I have produced,  could not have been
possible. 
In the beginning, I only had MY thoughts being a  harp player for so many
years, hoping that the tone I heard from the amplifier,  everyone could
achieve, everyone will get something different out of each one,  more or
less. 
Please finally let me say, as the tears are flowing so much I  cannot see,
that my concern for anyone who has a product from me, may buy a  product
from me, customer service, my Reputation is still as high on  the priority
list as everything else I have listed. In the event that I can no  longer
provide upgrades for 410 owners, and am seriously considering it now, I
will post it, or any other related harp issues on my website. The reason I
do  not do that right now is due to fact that as I have for the past 17
years, I  want to Personally make sure everyone understands and has support
for whatever change is made, as it is not just a speaker and back panel. If
posting everything I know about the upgrade is the most I can handle, then
try to field emails, than that is the route I will take. Currently I am
fielding literally hundreds of emails a day, yesterday was a reality check,
I dug MYSELF into this  hole, and with your love and support, I hope we All
can start to unearth me  and anyone else from whatever hole they may be in.
I am not going to read this and filter it, this is all from a calm, from my
heart, expression. 
We  are updating the website as quickly as possible while still taking care
of  all that is involved with the business, which I am sure everyone, in any
profession, can relate to. 
    I appreciate Anyone's time for even reading any  part of this extensive
letter and again want to thank EVERYONE for their help in  allowing me to
see right now just a speck of light.
    With dearest and heartfelt sincerity. Gary Francis  Onofrio    Born: 
September 15, 1955
Given the verbal permission by Mr. Sonny Terry and his widow, Emma Terry in
September 1978. 
AKA   Sonny Jr. 
**************Make your summer sizzle with fast and easy recipes for the
grill. (http://food.aol.com/grilling?ncid=emlcntusfood00000005)
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