More Music

No- I didn't get the house completely cleaned up---(there is a lot of crap stuffed in and around my small abode) but I did make some progress- vacuuming the living room- hallway, finding the suitable chemicals to get the hard water stains out of the American Standard Throne, and getting laundry done- of course- I still need to fold and hang said laundry- which would be easier if I had a real closet in my bedroom. The reason I don't have a closet in my bedroom is because my ex decided to tear it out in the interest of making more room for the bed- which meant that the bathroom needs to be completely redone in order to make a closet for the bedroom, which since he left- means none of the above has been done and I don't have the major fundage in the bank to hire a design team to come in and do what needs to be done. Of course finding someone to do what needs to be done to a 1967 Rollohome and be willing to do it-is going to be neither easy nor reasonably priced. So the day wasn't a total loss- there may be hope for me yet. And no- I didn't toss all the food in the house to the local Salvation Army food pantry. I did however, make what could be a major GI clean-out pot of beans, which are warming on the stove even as I write this drivel. But I digress.

By 9pm my choices were- clean the TV screen or get the hell out of the house. I decided that the latter was in order so I went to another- (Yes- my town has many purveyors of adult beverages- we did make the Guinness Book of World Records once for that.) downtown gin mill in the hope of finding musical entertainment. So- for the low price of 5 bucks to get in the door- I got to see a darn good band. Yes, they played covers- but at least they knew what they were doing- and best of all, they were NOT FROM HERE!!!!! I crave diversity when it comes to that now- I've seen the same local guys, the good, the mediocre, and the really bad, too many times to consider it entertainment- especially if I'm getting dinged for a cover charge plus the cost of my libational medication (beer).

Upon walking in- I hear bluegrass with a punch being played. Ok- not quite what I'm used to on a Sunday night downtown- but hey- maybe it might motivate me to go to church. The set they were finishing had a lot of songs that sounded reminiscent of hill country gospel (although- the lyrics were far short of singing the praises of the Glory of God.) But before you know it, my feet- they -were- a -tappin', even after only two pulls from my cold beer bottle. The last set was more rock oriented- but sounded definitely like some of the influences of the group had to have been The Band, and Little Feat, along with Skynyrd, and the Allman Bros. I finished out the night at the bar and even asked permission to take the poster advertising them so that I could get a signature or two. Prior to grabbing the poster- the lead singer was busy playing an encore of impromptu requests and having a sing along with some of the diehards, Grateful Dead- Friend of the Devil and Uncle John's Band. Finding out if my ears were right was the main reason for grabbing the poster (I needed props to help give me the courage to walk up and butt into the fan club). Yep- first band the guy named was The Band, and mentioned a few others I had heard of and some I didn't- and then proceeds to tell me that Yep- they had played with Little Feat down in Jamaica!

So if you like The Band, Little Feat, Beau Soleil etc- this band is worth a listen. And since I do have one album of Beau Soleil, I'm going to be playing that for my bedtime music lullaby tonight :)

http://www.myspace.com/greatamericantaxi and http://greatamericantaxi.com/

Music

Ok- so I'm living in the past. I've been collecting stuff like Long John Baldry and other blues for several years as well as expanding my collection of psychedelic and classic rock and having just begun to figure out how to burn compilations cd's- *FOR PRIVATE AND PERSONAL USE IN MY CAR ONLY* (Gotta have that for the lawyers,--sharks and thieves that they and their corporate clients are..) so have been busy playing around with that. So tonight after getting bored with the computer I decide to go check out the local talent at another local gin mill and music venue just to see if lightning will strike and give me a reason to hope for some original and decent local music.

The gin mill in question has been a local institution for over 30 years. Generations of 20-somethings have graced it's bar stools, tables and dingy restrooms,and danced their way through at least two layers of ancient floor-tile and have begun to make serious headway on the third, much as an archaeologist would dig farther down to go back in time. The back room containing two warped and listing pool tables, electronic dart boards and access to the loos-(one each for the ladies and the gents) provides minimal auditory refuge from the cacophony emanating from the platform in the center of the building that passes as a stage for whatever group of alleged musicians/artists happen to have been booked for the night. The walls in this sanctuary are covered with a variety of playbills advertising upcoming acts, and permanent marker graffiti, which in any other place be considered vandalism.The same graffiti inspired decor is once again repeated in the loos- however with decidedly more vulgar content, which makes the condom machine hanging on the wall of the ladies loo appear decidedly upscale.

All that said- the drink prices are more than reasonable and T and D the regular bartenders late at night are more than competent at handling a bar full of overly happy intellectual wannabes who for some reason think that whatever band or musician playing is just the greatest ever at playing their interpretations of Grateful Dead covers. Now- don't get me wrong here- I like the Grateful Dead. I like Hendrix. I even like some head banging grunge a la Nirvana. Regrettably- in this town, this one bar is the Mecca for cheap cover charges to hear live music and the owners aren't too picky about the quality of said musicians. Which is OK if you are a musician trying to make your way to stardom. After all, ya gotta start somewhere. Unfortunately- originality tends to go out the window as the crowd wants to hear sets that more closely resemble the play list on their I-pod.

Tonight was billed as an open jam- ok- maybe someone would try to do some original material, and maybe I wouldn't have to sit through a 45 minute 'jam' of 'Red House', 'Little Wing',and 'Are You Experienced' with the 'The Star Spangled Banner' in the spirit of, yet generally, poorly executed, style of Jimi Hendrix as the grand finale. Having watched this weekly tableau and had my ears assaulted on a regular basis for a number of years I've come to recognise some of the regular players, and many of them have made considerable progress in their abilities. But in order to keep from going insane in the course of three hours one must, by necessity, consume one or more of the following: -adult beverages or alternatively, partake of controlled substances in the loo. Without the aforementioned medication the only other method of survival is to be completely tone deaf.

By now you are probably thinking- 'what a freaking snob' I must be. Au contraire, it is the reckless abandon and aura of happiness that fills the place on open jam nights that continues to draw me to the place, because no matter how bad my day has been I can always see or hear something that makes me smile. A perfect example of this is 4 guys who are all purportedly music majors do a cover of Britney Spears 'Hit Me Baby One More Time'. The scary part is it actually sounded pretty good in the thrash metal kinda way they did it. Considering what I think of Britney Spears music, I just had to smile.