February 2025

Just two gigs in February. This should be easy, right? 

Saturday, February 8, 2025: Marietta, GA. I played a gig with some friends at a church, but it wasn't a church gig (per se), though I have played lots of church gigs here. Anyway, this was a big fundraiser party, so the music went from opera to American songbook kind of stuff to a couple of big medleys with Careless Whisper and September and Just the Two of Us.

This was different kind of gig from what I've been doing, and playing with some different people was cool. I ended up writing my own charts/parts for this one even though things were well organized with charts and recordings. After the rehearsal, I added some more stuff so that I wouldn't just sit there while everybody else was playing. Mostly it was tenor sax and flute, but I did add a little bit of clarinet and bari sax.

Joe Reda on bass!

Ok, the other side of it: the sound in the room was pretty terrible. It was loud and really difficult to hear what we were doing (the blaring PA speaker in the corner behind us didn't help matters). The guys running the sound didn't seem like total doofuses, so I think that the problem was that the acoustic drums were just too loud for the room, and they had to crank the PA to balance everything with the overwhelming drum sounds. The drums were great! but I bet that if he'd played half as loud, they could have turned down the PA, and then it wouldn't have bled into every microphone in the room, and then we wouldn't have this noise soup in the earphones.

What else...we were supposed to go and mingle with people during the cocktail hour, but c'mon! I'm not going hang around and talk to a bunch of strangers at a random gig! I mean, what would I talk about? So I went and hid in a dark classroom until the show actually started.

The show was broken up in such a way that we played a couple of songs, took a twenty-five minute break and ate some food, played the next "act," took a break and ate some food, played the next "act." I don't think the vegetarian thing I ordered ever even found me, so I filled up on salad and bread and water.

I thought (based on the setlist) that this sucker was going to begin at 6:30 PM, and I'd be back home by 9 PM. But no--it was very drawn out. People loved it! Not what I thought it was going to be, though. 

They've already announced next year's date. I've got it on my calendar, so if Yacht Rock doesn't have anything, I'll be there.

Thursday, February 13, 2025: Sail Across the Sun Cruise (Miami to Cozumel). 

The biannual tradition of poor decisions and unlimited Indian food is once again underway, a smooth voyage across the Gulf of Mexico with Train, Living Color, the Pat McGee Band, and a bunch of other bands I'd never heard of.

In late January, Pat McGee messaged me to see if I would be interested in sitting in with his band on the cruise. Of course! It's what I do. He sent me four songs to prepare. Too bad we were on the atrium stage, which is very small and very loud! Killer band, though--it seemed completely unnecessary to try and steal solo space from anybody on stage. I played on Kite String, Lost, and Passion.

The fourth song I prepared was Broken Heart, in case you're keeping score.

Friday, February 14, 2025: Gulf of Mexico.

I saw Living Color play Cult of Personality. They seemed kind of bored.

The Yacht Rock shows finally kicked off on night two of the cruise, with our first set being in the theatre. We had a lot of trouble with the on stage sound--lots of tweaking things right up until the moment they opened the doors, and then we just had to live with it. 

The third keyboard (the one that Pete and Nick played) was of the incorrect generation, so the sounds were not at all what they were looking for. Bencuya's top keyboard was also not the one he currently plays, so he also had some sounds that didn't quite line up. During Baker Street, Pete was playing something that sounded like a boat horn in my ears, which was funny and distracting. The game of gig, as we say.

It was good to finally get going after wandering around the ship for a day and a half, but all the weirdness in the monitors made for a chaotic performance.

Saturday, February 15, 2025: Cozumel, Mexico.

We got off the boat in Mexico. I've been here a few times, so exploring isn't that much fun. Beth and I ended up going for a walk on the main drag, and found a spot with shade and benches where we could look at our phones for about fifteen minutes (thank you international plan).

comparing BMIs

squeezing in a little bit of playing in an empty backstage room

Yacht Rock played the sail away show in the afternoon on the pool deck. Fortunately, the sun wasn't beating down on us by that point, so it was pleasant. Fun show! By the end of this one, I'd made enough monitor mix adjustments that everything sounded pretty normal.

Jerry Becker from Train called in the afternoon and asked if I would sit in on their evening pool deck show on Mississippi, so I stayed around to soundcheck and get ready for that. It went pretty well. I guess Jerry (the music director) didn't let everybody in the band know, so there were some surprised faces when I popped up to play the solo.

Here's a video of it!

After I sat in with Train, Pat McGee asked me if I would sit in with them on their pool deck show. Absolutely! We had a great time, and Pat's band played great. Their percussionist was very drunk, and shouted wild encouragement for every note that I played, including the ones on Broken Heart.

Here's a video of us playing Passion. Everybody got to take solos on this one!

After I'd played my songs and put my horn away, Pat called me back up to play on a song I hadn't prepared. I still don't remember what it was called, but it was in B major, and we just went for it.

Sunday, February 16, 2025: Gulf of Mexico.

In addition to performing three sets, Yacht Rock has a few other duties. For the past few boats, it's been bingo.

Norwegian Cruise Lines has a few people from the entertainment staff to handle calling the game. They kind of ignored us at first. The decent into chaos was highlighted by Monkeyboy interviewing me (on the mic) about Miles Davis' electric era (I am not a fan, I explained) until Pete finally took over for the staffer, and then it was much more fun and chaotic, and Monkey read dad jokes off his phone. If the internet had been worth a damn, I probably would've paid even less attention to what was happening.

In the afternoon, we had our meet-and-greet autograph session. An hour and a half of signing my name on posters, t shirts, body parts, and hats for people who may or may not have any idea who we are. A music cruise scavenger hunt. Monkeyboy signed Mark Bencuya's name on a bunch of stuff, which kept us entertained for about thirty minutes.

We played late on the last day of the cruise, closing it out on the pool deck. I don't remember anything about this show. 

ok, bye

The Yacht Rock tour starts this week--new songs, new lighting guy, new guitar tech, new photographer! We'll be in Texas, Oklahoma City, Colorado, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Vegas, and California in the next few weeks. 

January 2025

January was busy for Yacht Rock! Here are some highlights...

Thursday, January 9, 2025: Montclair, NJ. We arrived in New Jersey pretty early in the day, so as soon as we arrived at the venue, it was time to go to lunch. Fortunately, there's an Indian restaurant across the street from The Wellmont Theater, so off I went!

maybe it's a joke, but...wrong kind of Indian?

So...usual stuff. Cold load in, set up the gear, eventually sound checked everything, went for a run. I think I had a peanut butter sandwich for dinner, since lunch was pretty filling.

a fellow runner

It was really cold, mostly because the wind--gusts up to 44 mph!. I ran off down the street, thinking that I was doing really well because 1. I wasn't too cold, and 2. I felt like I was running well, and just before my turnaround point, it dawned on me that the wind was at my back, and the second half of the journey was going to be a lot more difficult! (and I was correct!)

The Wellmont was really good. It definitely sounds like a big ol' cave of a room, but we had a huge crowd and they were into it. Maybe we were kind of rusty? It seems like that's always the case when we have a week or more off.

Friday, January 10, 2025: Huntington, NY. The vans/trailers caravan made its' way out to Long Island for two nights at The Paramount. We decided to not stop for lunch, and instead got to the venue early and ate in Huntington. My Indian restaurant was closed, but there was a Thai place (RuCha Thai Cuisine) across the street, so that's what I had. I can't even remember what this was, but it really hit the spot. That's some kind of fried...zucchini on top? I ate the whole damn thing.

damn right it's mine

Coming back from taking this picture of the marque, there was a guitarist busking on the corner, and at first I thought he was making fun of me, but I guess it was just serendipity. Baker Street in the freezing cold on a guitar with questionable intonation. Right on.

meanwhile, the party backstage raged on

The Paramount is great! Sold out. Great energy. More accuracy than last night!

birthday cake for me, courtesy of the Queen of the Anchorheads!

Saturday, January 11, 2025: Huntington, NY. Gig number two here.

Our hotel could've been mistaken for a bank, and my shower used to be the water fountain. Nobody else said anything, so I guess I ended up in a room with no water pressure.

Back to RuCha for more Thai food. This was the more traditional stir fry with tofu kind of thing. Delicious.

Monkeyboy showed Bruce (our new guitar tech/crew guy) how he wants his instruments restrung. We'll see how it goes. I want to believe that the look on Bruce's face is at least fifty percent sarcasm.

Night number two. I was kind of hit and miss. I can't say why. I slept, I ate, I ran, I warmed up. Maybe I tried too hard? I dunno. It was still probably fine, just not a home run.

Sunday, January 12, 2025: Staten Island, NY. A new venue for us--the St. George's Theatre. Wow!

I shared this dressing room with Pete and it had a space heater and it was glorious

Really nice place. Nick did his best to watch the Packers game while we were performing (his iPad was hidden between he and Greg). I don't remember any detail about our playing, but I do remember warming up in a bathroom downstairs and listening to Hans talk to everybody who came into the catering room...for at least an hour.

This show was early--maybe like 5:30 pm? Early enough that we packed up, drove to Newark, New Jersey, and I was running on the treadmill at 10:20 PM. Four miles. The two guys who were coaching each other through some weight lifting were really loud. I ran six miles in the morning before we left Long Island, so regardless of whatever I played on stage, at least the exercise part of the day was successful.

Thursday, January 16, 2025: Evans, GA. Evans is a suburb of Augusta, and they have a very nice performing arts center. We played here last year.

This gig was pretty terrible for me. I just couldn't get my shit together. Monkeyboy was the same way, and we were equally frustrated. At one point, he turned around to me and yelled "THIS. GIG. SUCKS!" It turns out he was getting sick with Covid, too, but he didn't know it at the time.

We signed the wall last year. They haven't painted over it yet.

After the gig, I was going to jump on the treadmill, but the exercise room closed at 11 PM, so I missed it by about ten minutes. That's the way this day went. Briefly I considered running outside (the weather was acceptable), but hmmm...Augusta at 11 PM just seemed like a bad idea.

Friday, January 17, 2025: Charleston, SC. Since I got shut out of running last night, I got up and ran on the treadmill this morning. The ride from Augusta to Charleston took a few hours, so I was able to grab a solid nap before we arrived.

I had this excellent lunch at Big Gun Burger Shop and Bar around the corner. 

We played a fundraiser for the College of Charleston baseball team. They do an excellent job hosting us.

Good gig here. We played the Charleston Music Hall for the first time, a pretty decent venue. Limited dressing rooms, though, and the one I was in had the only bathroom, so it got really stinky.

The schedule was really relaxed, and I squeezed in about an hour of flute playing before soundcheck. After soundcheck, there was still lots of time to kill, so I went for another run. Twelve and a half miles on the day. Woo.

Thursday, January 23, 2025: Sarasota, FL. Florida in January is the way to go. We started in the purple performing arts center in Sarasota (it has a name, too--the Van Wezel). Not bad. Plenty of time for me to do sax and flute noodling in stairwells. I also went for a run, which was awful because the weather was surprisingly bleak--cold, very windy, and overcast. 

This place had catering, including some kind of killer vegan soup (it tasted like a meatless gumbo), but it was so hot that I burned my mouth with every bowl. I mean, it was so hot that you couldn't hold the ladle to get the soup for more than two seconds. I had four or five bowls anyway. 

I left a pair of running shorts hanging in the dressing room. I guess their time was up. RIP.

Friday, January 24, 2025: Clearwater, FL. It's a short drive from Sarasota, thankfully, about an hour. Greg Lee, Nick, and I did a three song radio performance in Tampa. Do people still listen to the radio? Unknown. This place had a nice little setup for acoustic performances. 

We hit some strip shopping center Mediterranean joint for lunch.

This day's show was at Ruth Eckert Hall. Soundcheck was slow developing, so I got in plenty of noodling beforehand (also remembering that I got yelled at by the production manager last year for noodling side stage when the union rules said nobody could noodle on stage at a certain hour). I also went for a run, but the path along the bay was closed, which was kind of a bummer. And it was kind of chilly.

I guess the gig was fine. Nothing memorable.

Saturday, January 25, 2025: Orlando, FL. Woke up in Plant City, went for a run, blew up a bathroom at a Ford dealership. We had lunch at a shopping center, so I had a pub sub from Publix. I also bought one for later, because the House of Blues has pretty bad food.

The Orlando House of Blues was packed! Pretty good gig, though we were zooming through songs so quickly that I missed the beginning of Lotta Love (it starts with saxophone), and I was pretty mad about it for a couple of songs. But other than that, it was a slammin' show.

After the gig, I grabbed my pub sub out of the green room fridge and started in on the first half...the ingredients were not what I was expecting, but it say "veggie" on the sticker, and it was the only sandwich in the fridge. It was at that moment that Bencuya came over to tell me how he'd hidden Kip's sandwich behind all the drinks as a joke.

Uh oh. He'd actually hidden MY sandwich, and I'd just eaten half of Kip's sandwich. Kip was furious at Bencuya about it. He refused to eat the other half of his sandwich (or the other half of my sandwich), so we had to make a pit stop at Steak-n-Shake on the way to the hotel.

Sunday, January 26, 2025: Fort Lauderdale, FL. 

today's warmup room

Last year, we played a different venue in south Florida that was really crappy--this place was better in every way, plus we had a big crowd.

Not pictured: the five pounds of pasta I ate for dinner, or the chocolate lava cake I had for dessert.

Monday, January 27, 2025: travel day. We drove from Fort Lauderdale to Saint Augustine. Another pub sub in a parking lot.

We had dinner at some steak place (I had an impossible burger). It got ok reviews from the band. Most of the guys headed on to a second location (a bar). I walked back to the hotel and ran three miles on the treadmill, bringing me to eight miles on the day.

Tuesday, January 28, 2025: Jacksonville, FL. The Florida Theater. If you're willing to climb a lot of stairs, there are ample dressing rooms in which to play flute.

A little saxophone repair here: this felt was coming off the arm on my alto, so the key on the right was not closing all the way. Super glue saved the day. I'm glad I noticed this before the felt broke completely free.

Dinner was catered, but the vegetarian option was shepherd's pie (basically a bed of veggies under a two inch blanket of mashed potatoes). Not my thing. Peanut butter it is!

Really good crowd for a Tuesday--even the balcony looked full.

Friday, January 31, 2025: Brown County, IN. Our lighting guy (James) things that the Brown County Music Center feels like one of those non-traditional church places, and I would agree. It sounds good, though, and the load in is easy, and I found a spot to noodle without bothering anybody too much. 

I tried running here last year and didn't like it, but I discovered that there's a YMCA right across the parking lot from the venue (hell yeah!), so I ran on the treadmill there.

there's still snow in the corners of the parking lots

Indiana is always a good show, and since Nick and Pete are from right down the road in Columbus, there are lots of friendly faces.

February 1, 2025: Nashville, TN. We played the Ryan today. Hot damn! Big show!

I think it went ok. I was a little wobbly on the Africa solo but I think I got it right. All my other stuff seemed fine. I didn't have much feeling about any of it--I guess I'm just glad to get through the gig without being miserable from a bad performance. 

We had an after party at Robert's. It was very loud in the back (where we were), very loud in the front (where the band was), and not too bad in the middle.

It's a drag that Nashville doesn't have more places like this--most of the bars on Broadway have a famous name and a corporate vibe to them, like "Garth Brooks' Good Times Saloon" and they serve Applebee's food with stupid names like "The Friends in Low Places Salad." Maybe this place has corporate backing as well, but it doesn't feel like it. Hang in there against the rage of capitalism!