David Freeman Music

I got up a little bit early Saturday morning and went for a run before we headed to the airport. The hotel that we frequent in Indy is very near the airport, surrounded by warehouses, an industrial park, and a Fed Ex depot. Back on a plane. Zzzz. The day's gig: a wedding reception at the Egyptian Ballroom in Atlanta. Many, many gigs have I played on this stage. Many. Too many? Here's the pre-show food. edible (picked out meat and just ate the pasta) inedible edible edible (though heavy on the dressing) no thank you (this was some sort of vegetarian lasagna)  The gig itself was a piece of cake, and it was nice to see several musician friends out in the audience. photo cred: Stephen Renney After the gig, we were all involved in the low-grade war with the caterers and the production crew to get our gear down the freight elevator and out to our vehicles, which culminated in a car/truck (nobody saw it) peeling half of the bumper off M...

More gigs! Thursday night, I joined Scott Glazer's Mojo Dojo for a gig at Blind Willie's. Also in the band were Kenyon Carter (saxophone), Jez Graham (keyboard), Nick Johnson (guitar), and Jack Jones (drums). What a group! It inspired me to some of my best playing in months. I always think, "Blind Willie's...ugh..." but the energy and chops of the group draws something extra out of me. Friday morning, Yacht Rock reconvened at the airport! We haven't flown to Indianapolis in almost forty days, so this seemed like the right time to go back. Also, someone had hired us to play a private gig in Carmel at the Lucas Oil Estate. It turns out that the estate is not a home, but a multi-acre event space. I never did figure out for whom we were playing. Easy gig, though, and good backline. Nothing else to report.

And we're back! The storm blew threw Atlanta Monday evening/night, and we were at the airport Tuesday morning, Washington D.C. bound for a corporate gig. post lunch/pre gig stroll through the National Zoo  Another easy gig. Nice backline gear from Drums Unlimited. In bed before midnight!

Back to Texas! This trip was originally going to begin with a Thursday night gig in Houston, but Hurricane Harvey cancelled it. Instead, we flew Friday to Dallas to begin the weekend's work. D/FW Friday: Our first stop was a public show in The Colony, which is (I think) one of those "planned community" places. The Lava Cantina has a large outdoor stage that is mostly protected from sun and weather. This show was pretty good. The crowd was into it (free show in the suburbs!), from what I could tell. A few things that were weird: 1. the large video screen that broadcast (on a 1.5 second delay) what was happening on stage--incredibly distracting! 2. the stage was maybe seven feet high, which left me feeling pretty disconnected from the crowd. Maybe they could show the crowd on the big screen (solving both of my issues?). I did like it later in the night when people would step in front of the camera out front, blocking half of the shot with a dark, fuzzy blob....

Two gigs last week--one in Santa Fe, and one in Martha's Vineyard. Lots of flying. Lots of pictures. Let's begin: Friday: 9:50 AM flight to Albuquerque meant that I left home at 7 AM, which means I slept on the entire flight--I was passed out before they shut the door, and didn't wake up until they put down the landing gear. I slept so hard that as I walked past the pilot and flight attendant at the door, the attendant said to me, "Mr. Freeman! We were very impressed with how well you slept! Also, congratulations on your recent Gold Medallion status!" I was so confused that I didn't know what to say. Anyway, we got to Albuquerque and then took a limo van to Santa Fe. The scene for this birthday party was a private compound of sorts on a hill just outside of the city. Multiple buildings and spectacular views all the way around. The house manager even pointed out Carol Burnett's house on the adjacent lot. Good company! The backline....