Hip to the dip

First off, I would like to say Happy Birthday to one of my heroes, the wonderful Mr. T!

Wednesday and Thursday went well, gig wise. Wednesday, Danny and I did an acoustic duo down at Lilly's, because no one else was interested in showing up. We actually had a really good time, and it was different enough to break the mold. We played some of the stuff we do with Exaggeration, only slower and groovier, and we let some other cats in the crowd come up and do a few, since we're pretty easy goin'. I also did a few originals. I played one of the tunes I wrote for Becca, just sorta in an off-handed way. "The girls," a group of regulars who are good friends of ours, really loved it, and made me play it again before the night was over. The best part was, after everything was packed up and I was walking to my car, I heard on of the girls singing the chorus as she walked down the street. Awesome!

Now, this is a rarity. Not because my songs are no good, but because I don't play most of the songs I write for anyone but me. I think there have been a grand total of 4 original songs that I've ever played for anyone else, almost always at their behest, although I did want to do a recording of "Belong", which I did at the luxurious Fisher Studios. But most of the songs I write... I dunno. I just don't play them for a variety of reasons. Most of the time because I'm afraid they're too simple. I listen to people like John Mayer, Harry Chapin, Jim Croce, Steve Goodman and others, and they're using these absolutely beautiful chords, with huge changes and flowing bridges, and here I am, plunking out my seven or eight chords, and singing my little songs. Hell, Chris Fisher, a buddy of mine, writes tunes that are really pretty hip, and while I may not LIKE all of them, I really respect his ability as a writer and a player. All these good writers/players make me feel so inadequate, that I just play the tunes for my own edification. Every now and then, a song leaks it's way out, but most of the time I don't feel comfortable playing them for other people, especially the person it was written for/about, although I was strangely serene when I was singing Becca her song. Huh. That could explain a lot. Ah well. Page 2.

As some of you know, I run an open jam in Roselle, at Pops Pub, with Mike and Matt. We had a lot of fun. We always have a good sized group of musicians who show up, and this time, we had two full bands, too. The only problem I have with full bands at an open jam, is most of them take too damn long to set-up. Anything more than 5 minutes worth of setup at an open jam is annoying and wasteful, if you ask me. I mean, the amplifiers are already set-up and ready to roll, everything is rigged and miked. Just get some volume checks and be on your way. Don't hook up every fuckin' pedal that fuckin' Boss made, test it, frown, and then rehook the pedal system up again or Nate might have to choke a bitch. Anyway, the bands were... alright. I mean, I don't mean to sound like I have a big head, but... well... we're better. *Ahem* Anway, the regular jammers got up, and we had one or two new guys come in. However, one guy came in really late, and I tried real hard to accomodate him, which meant we had to stay late, and keep the bar open, yadda yadda yadda. I also felt real bad that I could only have Jack Wilson up for one. Jack is an amazing guitar player, and usually likes to do solo stuff, but since he found out that Mike and I are jazzers, he likes to come up and throw jazz tunes at us. We did Monk's "Straight, No Chaser", and he was fantastic on it, as usual. I would have liked to have him stay up for a few more, but... oh well.

Looks like we're going to get hammered by some more terrible weather. Last night, as Mike and I were driving to the gig, I thanked all the gods in every pantheon possible that I had the forsight to Rain-X my windshield and back-glass. Rain-X, for those of you not in the know, is some of the most amazing stuff in the world. It's litterally a form of liquid wax that fills all the pores in your windshield, and just makes the water roll right off. It's awesome shit.

I'm off to get drunk, now.