1/28/17

I got a voicemail from Mike Nicolai asking if I could play the 20th anniversary show for the Hole in the Wall's "Unplug This" cd. I almost shit myself when I realized I was on a 20 year old compilation. Then I started doing some math, then I was feeling grateful I wasn't already dead. Sometimes you got to face reality no matter how cold or hard it is.



It was a disc from the weekly songwriter show at the Hole in the Wall. Monday nights were songwriter nights and to me it had always been about trying new, partial or almost songs, seeing what worked and what didn't. You know, songwriter stuff.



I did Mondays a few hundred times during the "Unplug This" run and it felt good to be back on the front stage all alone, staring at friends while I shouted. A little surreal standing on the same spot and looking at older versions of the ones who were left. But I was glad they were still there.



There were a dozen folks on the bill and we all got fifteen minutes. I snuck five tunes in for my set. Three new ones, a "classic" and something from Henry James. I go old when I do a cover. I'm really glad I got the call, it was great seeing folks I see all the time and some I hadn't seen in forever.

And apparently I really miss playing solo!

11/13/11

Another day at Jovitas. My buddy Ken Jones (aka Poetken) asked me to join him in a little round robin songwriter swap. I did and it was fun. I am not into the whole four songwriters on the stage playing one song each going around and around (I've played this way and it's been called a guitar pull, one of the worst names). Most of my songs are two and a half minutes long and when your followed by three others that have songs four to five minutes long you get kinda bored. The "mini set" route is so much cooler. Three songs each and switch. It gives you time to build a little something. Three songs about murder, love or sex. Or some of each really changes the dynamic of a boring songwriters night.

Breakdown

The staff was the same as the last show so everything was great there. My solo setup Is so good it hurts. My Guild jazz box into that Top Hat portly cadet is so sweet I could explode. 5 Watts of dreamy goodness.