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| someone is strangling Greg |
We left around 8 PM and spent Tuesday night in Charlotte. There was no gig there, but we wanted to get a chunk of the driving out of the way. Our ultimate goal of the first leg was to get to Washington DC, but it was too far to try and drive straight from Atlanta and then set up and play a gig.
Wednesday we drove to DC. We arrived right around 6 PM (just in time for rush hour!) and loaded into a club call Saloun in Georgetown. It was not much of a bar. A really long shoebox of a room with a tiny stage, no PA, no lighting, flies in the restroom, broken windows…pretty nasty. We did get to park the van right outside the front door, though, so I guess it wasn't all bad.
The promoter who hooked us up with the gig was informed at 6 that there was no PA. It finally arrived three hours later--two main speakers, two monitors, one mixer, and some cables. Not impressive! I guess it would be acceptable to bitch about it being deficient, but if we had gotten the PA we would normally request, it wouldn't have fit on the stage. Ahh yes, the stage…it was the size of a parking space. Seven guys, all that equipment, and sidestepping do not fit. Greg just about wore a hole in the wall with the headstock of his bass, and Dannells had to hold his guitar vertically if he needed to touch anything on his pedalboard.
We played well in spite of the circumstances, though it was super loud. Only vocals were in the PA, so I had my amp cranked to try and get it out in the room, but my amp was two feet from my left ear. Ear plugs helped, but it was just too much volume.
The DC crowd loved us. We assured them that we would return in October--just not to Saloun!
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| well hello, blondie! |
Afterwards, I dealt with three drunk idiots, one of whom was named Jonathan, who insisted (spraying me in the face with spittle over and over again) that I play I Still Believe from The Lost Boys. We had the same conversation over and over and over…could I play that song? Of course! Will I play it at his friend's wedding? Maybe! At some point, Jonathan said that each of the three of them would pay me $500 to play it at the friend's wedding. I was later able to get the money up to $1000. I can't wait!
Later on, someone was in the restroom HURLING while I was changing back into my shorts. Out comes Jonathan, but he walked right by me because I had taken my wig off (thankfully--would I now be sprayed with vomit spittle?). I dodged the bullet momentarily; he did recognize me later as we were loading the trailer--as he was falling out into the middle of the street. "Hey…you're that guy! You're gonna play I Still Believe, right?" Right--$1,000.
We spent the night in Maryland.
Thursday morning we got up and drove to New York City. Yay! Staten Island to Brooklyn, under the tunnel, then up the FDR to the pier to play the Rocks off Hudson Cruise. We did two sets while the boat went down the East River, around the Statue of Liberty, up the East River, and back to the pier. I was thinking about Sonny Rollins and the Williamsburg Bridge, and this:
The cruise was pretty good. The sound was really bad on stage, but the mix out front was not too bad. It was loud, loud, loud--even the iPod that was playing on the break was distorting from the volume.
The food was terrible, and the woman who served the food was up to the task! What an old witch! We were doing her a favor by eating her pasta and meat grenades. So much for New York being a food mecca.
The crowd was really good. We were originally on a smaller boat, but some Yacht Rock super fan (I think a big guy from Google) bought all the tickets up and gave them to his friends, so the cruise company moved us to a larger boat, and then that one sold out. They loved it and it was easy (except the load in/out was about half a mile down the pier!). I hope we do it again, but we're going to need a bigger boat.
I spent a good chunk of the break talking to some hot chick about reeds. She suggested I try Superials on alto.
We spent the night in White Plains.
Friday during the day I went into the city and hung out with my niece and sister.
That night, Yacht Rock played a private party at a country club in Westchester county country club (Willow Ridge). Another easy gig, though the crowd was thin (eighty people?). Easy, easy, though, and it ended a little early.
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| service with a smile |
Saturday was the main event--a wedding in Brooklyn. We got into the city pretty early, parked the van, and wandered around for a couple of hours. I went and checked out my sister's old neighborhood--also where I lived for my time in New York. Nothing has changed!
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| I played a gig here (upstairs restaurant) |
The groom played drums the last song of the night--Ride Like the Wind. Not too good. Bride on cowbell. Check the technique.
We spent the night in New Jersey.
Sunday, we drove all day and all night to get back to Atlanta. Yay!
davidfreemanmusic.net
