Neal Schon - Oklahoma City's Guitar God

By Nathan Spencer

It is impossible that you have not heard about Neal Schon if you are a music fanatic and one that has a craving for guitars. This world famous guitarist from Oklahoma is considered by many to be the God of guitar. This American guitarist who was born on the 5th of February, 1954, is famous for his performances with the world famous band Journey. Of all the members of the band Journey, Neal is the only one to have played in all of their recordings. Neal, who was born in an air force base situated close to Oklahoma City, picked up the guitar at the tender age of 5.

Few people know that his father too was into music and was a jazz saxophonist. A quick learner, Neal joined Santana at the tender age of 15. Before forming the group Journey in 1973, which he still leads, Neal was connected with Azteca. Those who are familiar with the playing style of this guitarist consider it as soulful. Neal has also cut albums with many other musicians, apart from the fourteen studio albums he has made with the group he founded.

Neal had been asked for by one more guitar great, Eric Clapton, to join his group, Derek and the Dominos, quite early on in his career. However, this offer was turned down by Neal, since he was first called upon by Santana. For recording the album Santana III, Neal Schon joined Santana. Those who are interested in learning electric guitars will be interested to know that the first guitar used by Neal was an acoustic Stella. 2 years later this guitar was replaced for a Gibson ES-335. When the Gibson got stolen, Neal replaced it with the 1956 make Les Paul Goldtop reissue and he used the same for quite a number of years.

Gibson guitars are currently endorsed by this famous guitarist. Some limited editions signature models also available and they are known as the "Neal Schon Signature Model Custom Les Paul". According to the official Gibson website, only 35 numbers of such custom guitars were manufactured. A number of other guitars were also used by Neal during his vast career and Goldin guitar is one of them which he had used for the single album "Beyond the Thunder", which was released towards the end of the 1980's. Gibson, which manufactures some of the best solo guitars, is endorsed by Schon. - 23806

About the Author:

Visit out discount guitar site for tips on buying new electric guitars.

The Relationships - More From The Sookie Stackhouse Series True Blood Season 2

By Joseph Archibald

Season 2 and True Blood is now well under way - new characters and new romances blossoming. Some relationships are evolving, such as Bill and Sookie, while others like Jessica and Hoyt's are beginning a-fresh.

Question is though, where are these relationships headed? Let us have a quick look see at some of the key relationships going on in small town Bon Temps right now and check out where they may just be headed, shall we...

Eggs and Tara: hmmm, not sure I am taking to this Eggs guy too much. There is something that just does not sit right with him. Whats more - he seems a bit on the dangerous side too. You wonder if he is under the control of Maryann or something like that. I pity Tara having Eggs in her life. Really she ought to try harder to get him out. But thats easier said than done.

Daphne and Sam: Daphne at first sight seemed useless and rather pathetic but... when we saw those great big scratches on her back which were the same as those left on Sookie's back by the bull/man "thingy" ... you can't be too sure if she is connected to this creature, whether she is good or bad, but you gotta say - those scratches do make you wonder about Daphne, for sure. Are you wondering if she is just flirting around with Sam maybe? He is kinda cute after all. Na, don't think so. More to it than this I suspect.

Terry and Arlene: Terry is an oddity for definite! He's got a strange thing for sniffing Arlene's hair - so odd - yuck! Not that sniffing hair is so bad, its just the way he does it thats bad. Although they are not truly a couple as yet, its fairly obvious they will become so fairly soon I suspect. More to come from them shortly.

Jessica and Hoyt: sweeeeeet! Oh so sweeeeet! This is love as it should be - innocent and real and cute and cuddly, and just plain loving. Ahhh... to be in love again.... how nice! Jessica now being so much in love with Hoyt is bound to be on the right track again and catching up on lost, wayward, time.

Jason and Sarah: Jason Stackhouse, ever the guy to get in a pickle because of his stupidity, or if you will prefer - naivety. The sooner he gets out of the Jesus Camp the better. And this relationship with Sarah - is it going any place in the longer term?

Sookie and Bill: well, you gotta admit it, like a typical loving couple, really. Always fighting and getting back together again. How long can this sort of behavior last though? Is it not getting a bit tiring and all? - 23806

About the Author:

Go to Joseph Archibald's website and you will be kept up to date with news, reviews and hot gossip about Charlaine Harris and Sookie Stackhouse.

Rafael Nadal - The New Tennis Star

By Edward Pagan

Sometimes known as 'Rafa,' Rafael Nadal is a local of Spain who has made a huge impact in the world of tennis.

Born June three, 1986 in Manacor, Mallorca, Rafael Nadal is the son of Sebastian and Ana Maria Nadal.

Standing 6'1' and weighing 178 lbs, Rafael Nadal turned into a professional tennis player in 2001 after having played since four years old. Fans shouldn't let this young age trick them as Rafael Nadal nabbed his first championship at just eight years old.

Under the steerage and teaching of Toni Nadal, his uncle, Rafael Nadal began learning to play tennis extraordinarily early in life as is clear from his early championship.

Toni, who remains Rafael's coach, is a particularly crucial part of this kid's success.

In 2005, he won 11 titles and also caught recognition as the 'Most Improved Player' for 2005 as named by the ATP.

In June 2006, Rafael Nadal won his second Roland Garros crown and also scored his hundredth claycourt career victory.

That same month, Rafael Nadal turned twenty and finished his teenage years with major success. It was during these years that Rafael Nadal won sixteen career titles, which tied the record for the most titles won by a teenager.

Even though Rafael Nadal is right-handed, he plays left-handed and produces a backhand using both. As with most top sportsmen in their sport, Rafael Nadal is managed by IMG and is sometimes found in Nike attire.

Fans who would like to request a signed photograph or just send Rafael Nadal their best wishes are entreated to do so in care of his pro association.

If you are asking for an autograph, be sure to include a SASE ( self-addressed stamped envelope ) together with your request.

Popular items to have signed include blank index cards and photos. It is usually recommended that fans not send any item that they can't afford to lose, for example cherished possessions and/or limited edition collectibles.

As with all mailed autograph requests, there is no guarantee of an answer. For this reason, many fans simply wish to request a signed photo.

Depending on the sportsman's schedule, autographs could be authentic, secretarial, pre-printed or even impossible to provide. Patience is the key to requesting autographs by mail, particularly when you are talking about an athlete as popular as Rafael Nadal.

Rafael Nadal ATP Tennis 201 ATP Blvd. Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082. - 23806

About the Author:

Find more on Nadal biography and Rafa Nadal.

Film Adaptations From Celebrated Children's Books

By Sam Elliott

A lot of of the greatest family films have been adapted from famous family writing. Much-loved children's books that have stood the test of time often make superb family movies. Most of these films are terrific on their own but a query is how intimately do the movies stick to the story of the book?

A fairly new show that was adapted from a series of books is "The Spiderwick Chronicles" from 2008. The film was adapted from the series of books by the same name authored by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. There has only been one show so far but there are actually 5 books in the series at this point. The books and the motion picture follows the escapade of a family of children who move into a new dwelling where they find a out of the ordinary book that leads them into a land filled with goblins and trolls, elves and dwarves and other creatures.

The dearly loved family book "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl was initially published in 1964. It has been modified into two famous movies, "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" in 1971, starring Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka and from 2005 "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" starring Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka.

One of one and all's much loved children's books seems to be "Charlotte's Web" by E.B. White. The tome was firstly published in 1952 and it has never lost its regard. It is one of the most dearly loved children's books of all times. It was first made into an animated feature film in 1973. A live action motion picture adaptation was released in December 2006. Both movies followed the story line of the book almost exactly.

One of the most adored children's authors of all times is Dr. Seuss. More and more of his brilliant books are now being made into films. In 2008 with Jim Carrey as the voice of the main character, "Horton Hears A Who" came out. This motion picture was an animated feature motion picture that very correctly followed the story of the book.

"The Grinch Who Stole Christmas", another Seuss classic was made into an cartoon adaptation that showed on Television every holiday season. That version followed the book. But in the year 2000 a big budget film of "The Grinch" came out with Jim Carrey as the Grinch and there were many extra scenes and events. "The Cat In The Hat", also from Seuss was released in 2003 and it too, had new scenes and events.

The second highest grossing movie series in times gone by was from the kids sequence of books about "Harry Potter" by J.K. Rowling. 6 of the 7 books of the series have now been completed into movies with a plan for two films to be adapted from the seventh book for a total of eight films altogether.

Kids books many times turn into films that are cool for the whole family unit to view. Reading the books aloud to your children and viewing the movies together is a terrific family pursuit, where great memories can be made. - 23806

About the Author:

Record ranking box office accomplishment at the movie theater! For more information about twilight movie online download visit my blog at http://gamersnetwork.org

Downloading MP3s Online

By Susan Reynolds

There are many various sites that you can download MP3s from. Sometimes it can be difficult choosing a site. This is especially true if you?re not sure which sites are legal. Another huge factor in choosing a site is the price. Each site prices its music differently. You should search several sites to find the one that will offer you the best performance and price.

The most important part of downloading MP3s is to make sure that the site you are going to be using is legal. It?s extremely easy to download music online without even paying for it and without realizing that it?s not legal. There are many sites that boast that you can download as much music as you want per month. Most of these sites will charge you a monthly fee to download from them. The problem is that they do not have copyright permissions to distribute the music and thus you?re still downloading music illegally even though you?re paying for it. Other websites know that they can?t upload music legally so they act as a gateway for users to share music between each other. This method is very effective for downloading music however it?s still very illegal.

To help you escape all of the illegal sites you should use websites that are well known and that have been around for a while. If you download from a reputable site you won?t have to worry about spyware and viruses invading your computer. It?s very easy for someone to give a virus to another user since there are so many people downloading music from sites that aren?t well known.

After you have a list of sites that are legitimate you will need to find the best priced sites. Some sites will charge you a flat rate per song or per album. There are other sites that may charge various amounts depending on how new or popular the music is. You may also need to use a couple sites to get the best price per download if you are downloading a combination of both old and new music. There are a very few legal sites that will allow you to download unlimited amounts of music for free every month. However you won?t be able to transfer them off of your computer or iPod and you won?t actually own them. This means that you can only listen to them rather than put them on CD?s.

You need to compare the sites that you?ve found to get the best prices. Some sites may have one song for a lower price than the other site. You may also want to consider what else the site offers when you?re choosing a site. Some sites also allow you to download album art, games, and TV shows. Also if you?re a parent that is looking for a site for your children to download music from you should ensure they have measures in place to allow you to limit how much and what they download. Many sites have filters that you can set into place so that your children can only download certain content. The reason that you will want to be able to control how much they download is so that you don?t end up with a huge bill or a ton of money missing from your debit card due to too much downloading. - 23806

About the Author:

Susan Reynolds is the webmaster for Free Music Downloads portal. For more information visit: http://www.musicdownload3mp.com