Thursday, July 08, 2004
Call it musician's insecurity, or whathaveyou, but it's always nice when you're away from your core audience to know that what you do works regardless of where you are.
A couple of weeks ago, during my family's trip to Virginia, I played an open mic in Richmond in a bar called Potter's. Not Harry Potter's, just Potter's. My friend and host Tom Anderson drove me there, which was an experience in itself. Here's why:
Ever heard the old sarcastic adage, "the shortest distance between two points is always under construction?" This explains the entire Richmond area. The bar I wanted to play at really wasn't all that far from Tom's house but due to road construction we had to drive to what seemed like fucking Florida to get there.
(I appreciate it, Tommy boy.)
But we did, I signed up, and everything was cool. I got to hear five or six of the locals, and then I got up on stage and did a four-song version of my "act."
The fact that several of the attendees were slightly inebriated probably helped, but I "had" these guys. I was particularly interested to see if one of my songs, "Sun City Sinners," would work in a place where there aren't retirement communities, and it did. So that's DEFINITELY on the next CD.
When I was done the hostess of the open mic said to me, "hell, I could listen to you all night!" Another good sign. Several people asked if I had just moved there and were genuinely disappointed when I said no, I'm outa here on Saturday.
I did meet a very nice fellow who used to live in Tucson, though, as well as another guy who I swear told me his name was Dead Fox Poe. At least I think that's what he said. Nothing like having parents with a sense of humor, I guess...
Also while we were in VA, we went to Virginia Beach one day. Aside from seeing two schools of dolphins heading north not 75 feet off the shoreline, it was your basic beach, with too many souvenir shops and chain restaurants along the main drag, and weird rules posted in the bathrooms to ward off perverts, I guess. One of those rules was NO CHANGING CLOTHES. So, if you're not staying at one of the overly priced hotels painting the Virginia coastline, where is someone supposed to change into, say, beach attire? I asked someone. The answer? "Oh, just ignore the sign and change in the bathroom." I just decided to punt and sit on the beach in my clothes, since it was cloudy out and I really didn't wanna get wet. The boys changed in the bathroom, no problem.
How unexciting is Virginia Beach? I took three pictures there and none of them were on the beach. One of them was a graphic road sign that means "No Cursing."
I swear to God.
TT
A couple of weeks ago, during my family's trip to Virginia, I played an open mic in Richmond in a bar called Potter's. Not Harry Potter's, just Potter's. My friend and host Tom Anderson drove me there, which was an experience in itself. Here's why:
Ever heard the old sarcastic adage, "the shortest distance between two points is always under construction?" This explains the entire Richmond area. The bar I wanted to play at really wasn't all that far from Tom's house but due to road construction we had to drive to what seemed like fucking Florida to get there.
(I appreciate it, Tommy boy.)
But we did, I signed up, and everything was cool. I got to hear five or six of the locals, and then I got up on stage and did a four-song version of my "act."
The fact that several of the attendees were slightly inebriated probably helped, but I "had" these guys. I was particularly interested to see if one of my songs, "Sun City Sinners," would work in a place where there aren't retirement communities, and it did. So that's DEFINITELY on the next CD.
When I was done the hostess of the open mic said to me, "hell, I could listen to you all night!" Another good sign. Several people asked if I had just moved there and were genuinely disappointed when I said no, I'm outa here on Saturday.
I did meet a very nice fellow who used to live in Tucson, though, as well as another guy who I swear told me his name was Dead Fox Poe. At least I think that's what he said. Nothing like having parents with a sense of humor, I guess...
Also while we were in VA, we went to Virginia Beach one day. Aside from seeing two schools of dolphins heading north not 75 feet off the shoreline, it was your basic beach, with too many souvenir shops and chain restaurants along the main drag, and weird rules posted in the bathrooms to ward off perverts, I guess. One of those rules was NO CHANGING CLOTHES. So, if you're not staying at one of the overly priced hotels painting the Virginia coastline, where is someone supposed to change into, say, beach attire? I asked someone. The answer? "Oh, just ignore the sign and change in the bathroom." I just decided to punt and sit on the beach in my clothes, since it was cloudy out and I really didn't wanna get wet. The boys changed in the bathroom, no problem.
How unexciting is Virginia Beach? I took three pictures there and none of them were on the beach. One of them was a graphic road sign that means "No Cursing."
I swear to God.
TT
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