Thank God it's almost over.
The final Presidential Debate proved one thing - the current Officeholder should never have been elected in the first place. He demonstrated this fact throughout the debates, never ONCE mentioning his record of "accomplishment." Instead, it was the usual "Blame Bush / disparage the opponent / act like a rock star" tactics that {somehow} got him elected in the first place. Barry even mentioned "organizing the world Community" several times during the foreign policy segments, for crying out loud!!!
Over the last four years we've seen everything from international concerns to the domestic economy proceed in a totally negative direction. While BHO's policies aren't the root causes, they're nevertheless major contributing factors. Say what you will about Dubya, his Daddy, or even Dutch Reagan, but NONE of them would have allowed our enemies to become so emboldened as to kill a US Ambassador, let alone innocent civilians - and get away with it. Reagan put Gaddafi in his place for a good fifteen years with one swift missile strike in 1985; Bush-41 liberated Kuwait and muzzled Saddam Hussein within a week in the 1990's; Dubya had troops in Afghanistan and over Baghdad within a few weeks of 9/11 {and eventually put Saddam out of business for good}.
Barry Hussein? Well, there was the "Apology Tour" throughout Europe, the Middle, and the Far East in 2009. I have never seen so much ass French-kissed before in my life! Bill Clinton must've been insanely jealous. Is it any wonder that our military's casualty-count began a steep increase immediately AFTER Barry's ridiculous exercise? "American Resolve & Determination?" For the most part it has been stuck up some foreign dignitary's poop-chute the last four years - and all our enemies know this. No more "speak softly and carry a big stick;" Barry's philosophy is a limp-wristed handshake, apologetic words, an embarrassed bow, and all the respect that a five year old child can command; whilst leaving the heavy lifting to those beacons of "brilliance" in the UN.
Domestically it's no different. BHO "saved the US auto industry" by tossing the UAW-thugs billions in Government cheese. Nobody ever mentions how this killed both the Pontiac and Saturn divisions within GM, nor how the bailouts forced Chrysler entirely out of American ownership {Italian government-subsidised Fiat has the majority interest in the Pentastar brand these days}. Only the Ford Motor Company passed on the Kool-Aid when it was offered - and their stock is as healthy as ever, and is AMERCAN-controlled to boot.
Our energy policy is in shambles - BHO has cheerfully let EPA regulators run rampant the last four years, and their regulations have killed three major oil pipelines, several proposed methanol refineries, dozens of coal-fired power plants; all while propping up failed endeavors like the Solyndra fiasco. Almost two million energy-related jobs have been lost as a result, and this doesn't address the ongoing harassment in the oil, coal, and natural-gas fields, either. I trust I don't have to mention how all of this seriously impacts the rest of our economy - you can easily see for yourself with the five-buck-a-gallon gasoline in California, or even the four-buck-a-gallon MILK in your local grocery store.
Unemployment is stagnant - and has been four four years.
The deficit is growing out of control - and has been for four years.
Congressional spending has been outrageous - and has been for SIX years, which directly led to Bush's fall, Barry's rise, and the awful malaise we've all been enduring under the laughable mantra of "Hope & Change" since January of 2009. Barry Hussein will never man up and take credit/blame for his disastrous term in office - which is why it should be his ONLY term in office. His smoke and mirrors have done far more harm than good both here and abroad, and has resulted in American blood being spilled time and again, amongst all the other damage wreaked so far.
Getting Barry out of office is just the tip of the iceberg, though. For any true change to be real and effective, we also need to clean house in the Congress as well. Pelosi, Reid, and their ilk are just as responsible - if not moreso - than the President for the multiple messes this country is in. They got the ball rolling midway through Dubya's final term, then cleverly made him the scapegoat just before Barry got the nomination. They all deserve to be fired with prejudice just like Barry does. Only then perhaps we can finally start emerging from this liberal Democratic cesspool we've all been in the last four {six, really} years.
For now though, I'm just glad that yet another Silly Season is almost history - they really do keep getting worse after each cycle, and I'm beyond fed up with it all. Let's all do what needs to be done in a couple weeks, and send these idiots packing!!! The final power still rests with We the People, but we have to exercise it first. A 56% voter-turnout ain't gonna cut it, Boys and Girls. Strength in numbers, dig?
More shortly.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
For The Ox & Winston Legthigh
Remembering the Two Johns on their respective {shared} birthdays.
Both had tremendous impact on my life, and both left us way, WAY too soon. Thanks to a third John {who was great friends to both, and also had somewhat of an impact on me}, a perfect tribute was created about two years after Winston "left the building." Twenty years later when The Ox cashed in his chips, I was motivated to concoct my own interpretation, which my old band performed numerous times between 2002 and 2004. To make it fit The Ox as well as Winston, I simply substituted "Vegas sunset" for "New York sunset" in the lyric. It's one of a handful of songs that always gives me chills and goosebumps every time I play it.
When it was new though, I was fortunate enough to see Sir Reg perform it live with his classic band of Davey, Dee and Nigel on three separate occasions. Each time reinforced my desire to one day perform it myself, and each time was also a chilling, haunting experience. I fully intend to revive it as soon as I'm back on my musical feet again; as I said earlier, it's a perfect tribute to the Two Johns {no waiting}.
Oh - what's it called, then?
Empty Garden - and it goes just like this:
Go carefully, Lads - you're both missed tremendously.............
More shortly.
Both had tremendous impact on my life, and both left us way, WAY too soon. Thanks to a third John {who was great friends to both, and also had somewhat of an impact on me}, a perfect tribute was created about two years after Winston "left the building." Twenty years later when The Ox cashed in his chips, I was motivated to concoct my own interpretation, which my old band performed numerous times between 2002 and 2004. To make it fit The Ox as well as Winston, I simply substituted "Vegas sunset" for "New York sunset" in the lyric. It's one of a handful of songs that always gives me chills and goosebumps every time I play it.
When it was new though, I was fortunate enough to see Sir Reg perform it live with his classic band of Davey, Dee and Nigel on three separate occasions. Each time reinforced my desire to one day perform it myself, and each time was also a chilling, haunting experience. I fully intend to revive it as soon as I'm back on my musical feet again; as I said earlier, it's a perfect tribute to the Two Johns {no waiting}.
Oh - what's it called, then?
Empty Garden - and it goes just like this:
Go carefully, Lads - you're both missed tremendously.............
More shortly.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Flux Redux {Slight Return}
The Good Fight has been quite fierce as of late, boys and girls. Although I've obtained a measure of stability, my footing is still anything but sure, and I'm pulling all the stops to gain the truly firm ground I need to charge forwards. It's affecting everything in my life, music at the top of the list. While there is some real daylight at the end of my current tunnel, when I'll ever get out into it at last remains to be seen. Please bear with me "until," if you would?
More shortly; hope y'all are going to help me do the right thing, come Election Day...............
More shortly; hope y'all are going to help me do the right thing, come Election Day...............
Monday, September 17, 2012
LILY
Farewell Cherished Rose, you will never flee my heart.
You touched my deepest soul, before we tore apart
You sang out to my weakness, and your giggles seared my brain.
I put you on my pedestal, and our Sparks spelled out your name.
It's clear to see we found our love like a whisper on the wind.
Always stronger after sunset, when the pain came in.
Our footsteps would one day fall there upon Newtown's greenest hills;
The whisper died out long before, my anguish ever will.
Loneliness I`ve had, these empty days without your smile.
This torch I`ll carry for my Rose, so loving and oh so wild.
And no I can't deny, the truth that brings me full to tears;
My words can't express the pain of loss, of my Lady Most Eternally Dear.
It's clear to see we heard our love like a whisper on the wind
Always louder after sunset, when my pain set in.
"Our footsteps will one day fall here upon Newtown's greenest hills;"
The whisper died out long before, my anguish ever will.
Farewell Cherished Rose, you will never flee my heart.
You touched my deepest core, before we tore apart.
Farewell Cherished Rose, from the drummer who lost half my soul.
I`ll miss the little wings of your sweet passion, more than you will ever likely know.
It's clear to see we lost our love like a whisper on the wind
Always sweeter after sunset, when my pain set in.
Our footsteps will never fall there, upon Newtown's greenest hills;
The whisper died out long before, my anguish ever will.
Lyric © 2004 / 2012 Backwards Coffee Music BMI, all rights reserved.
Even though my heart is broken and my soul is in mortal agony - I still Believe.
Even though our beach and castle are gone - I still Believe.
And even though you never heard our song the way I always did - I still Believe.....................
Happy Birthday, Immortally Beloved.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Silly Season: Send In The Clowns
How dumb do they think we are?
I know that the DNC still has one more day to go, but enough is enough already. I don't recall many {make that ANY} reports from last week's RNC about delegates wanting to KILL the opposition's nominee. I don't recall an illegal alien making a keynote speech at the RNC; nor do I recall seeing say, Dan Quayle or Bob Dole acting like they're still movers and shakers within the GOP, the way Slick Willie Pantload and John "Swiftboat" Kerry seemed to dominate "Jackasspalooza" this week. And I sure as hell don't see how Barack Hussein "saved the US auto industry." Didn't his attempts to do so only give us the Chevy VOLT????
I could go on and on with the partisan rhetoric, but there's hardly any need to. Unemployment and the economy have been virtually stagnant since BHO assumed the office. Thanks to BHO's economic policies, our international credit-rating was downgraded for the first time in the entire history of this country; I hardly need to mention what happened to both our trade and national deficits during this same time-frame. BHO may have "got Bin Laden," but he's turned his back on the rest of the Mid-East, as well as the Near and Far East.
This could have been somewhat acceptable, had he also got us away from being dependent on OPEC oil - but Barry has had no less than SEVEN golden opportunities in the last 4 years to do so, and he's passed on each and every one. Hell's bells, General Electric is getting ready to create in excess of 800,000 decent-paying jobs over the next five years - and every last one of them will be in support of their overseas holdings. Then on top of all that, add in the $1 billion tax-dodge they pulled off this year {with the Fed's blessing} - how could any sane person look at all this and say that we're "heading in the right direction?"
Item - the mean poverty level has risen about 2% annually every year since BHO took office; for almost 20 years before that, it had declined by the same amount annually. Even if the many minimum-wage proposals on both State and Federal ballots get passed this year, it'll only mean that MORE people will be at or near poverty-level, because the basic cost of living has also begun to skyrocket out of control. When was the last time you paid $2.25 for a gallon of gas, or $3.00 for a pound of ground sirloin, or $.95 for a pound of butter? Or even under five bucks for a fast-food "value meal?"
Those of you who answer "Four or more years ago" can take a bow, and relax. For the rest, well, let's just say I'm not terribly sanguine about the future of this country if BHO manages to keep his job. His "saving the US auto industry?" Bullshit. Aside from Ford, there IS no "US auto industry." GM has precious few assembly plants left in the lower 48 - and virtually all of its' onetime manufacturing ability has been outsourced to Canada, Mexico, and overseas. ChryCo? Last I heard, Fiat was the majority shareholder - the Pentastar brand hasn't been a US-based operation since Daimler bought 'em out back in '98!!
Ironic that of the onetime "Big Three," Ford remains as the only legitimate US auto-maker, with it's own plants, facilities, and financial stability. And is it any wonder that they didn't accept one damn dime of BHO's oh-so-precious "stimulus" package? They didn't need to - they bloody well know how to look after themselves THEMSELVES!!!! A little concept called "self sufficiency," which BHO and the rest of the DNC simply don't have a clue about. Item - both GM and ChryCo have re-structured their boards two or three times since accepting Barry's cheese; FoMoCo hasn't had a hint of flux at the top since they shit-canned Lee Iacocca......
Anyhow, despite my earlier vow to avoid all this mess this year, I just had to take a peek for myself to see if it's really as bad as I thought. It's worse!!! The DNC is championed by the only President to be IMPEACHED in the 20th Century; a lack-lustre Senator who failed his own Presidential bid in spectacularly embarrassing fashion back in 2004; a conspicuously absent Secretary of State {who can't wait to get rid of the damn job in a few months}; and enough other freaks, misfits, and ne'er-do-wells in the rank and file to fill a small stadium, drink the Kool-Aid, and try to make the GOP look worse than them. It's like putting Raquel Welch and Rosie O'donnel together in the same beauty pageant - only Helen Keller or perhaps Stevie Wonder could miss the painfully obvious............
I'm not sorry I avoided the bulk of the Circus this year, boys and girls; I just hope enough of the rest of my Fellow Babies out there are as disturbed by the dog-and-pony show as I am. Maybe this will be the year we finally climb over 60% voter-turnout for the first time since JFK's election - I dare say we need to. Barry's had his chance. Now it's time for him and all his Leftie-crew to go away, so the big boys can come in and start getting our house back in proper order again.
More shortly.
I know that the DNC still has one more day to go, but enough is enough already. I don't recall many {make that ANY} reports from last week's RNC about delegates wanting to KILL the opposition's nominee. I don't recall an illegal alien making a keynote speech at the RNC; nor do I recall seeing say, Dan Quayle or Bob Dole acting like they're still movers and shakers within the GOP, the way Slick Willie Pantload and John "Swiftboat" Kerry seemed to dominate "Jackasspalooza" this week. And I sure as hell don't see how Barack Hussein "saved the US auto industry." Didn't his attempts to do so only give us the Chevy VOLT????
I could go on and on with the partisan rhetoric, but there's hardly any need to. Unemployment and the economy have been virtually stagnant since BHO assumed the office. Thanks to BHO's economic policies, our international credit-rating was downgraded for the first time in the entire history of this country; I hardly need to mention what happened to both our trade and national deficits during this same time-frame. BHO may have "got Bin Laden," but he's turned his back on the rest of the Mid-East, as well as the Near and Far East.
This could have been somewhat acceptable, had he also got us away from being dependent on OPEC oil - but Barry has had no less than SEVEN golden opportunities in the last 4 years to do so, and he's passed on each and every one. Hell's bells, General Electric is getting ready to create in excess of 800,000 decent-paying jobs over the next five years - and every last one of them will be in support of their overseas holdings. Then on top of all that, add in the $1 billion tax-dodge they pulled off this year {with the Fed's blessing} - how could any sane person look at all this and say that we're "heading in the right direction?"
Item - the mean poverty level has risen about 2% annually every year since BHO took office; for almost 20 years before that, it had declined by the same amount annually. Even if the many minimum-wage proposals on both State and Federal ballots get passed this year, it'll only mean that MORE people will be at or near poverty-level, because the basic cost of living has also begun to skyrocket out of control. When was the last time you paid $2.25 for a gallon of gas, or $3.00 for a pound of ground sirloin, or $.95 for a pound of butter? Or even under five bucks for a fast-food "value meal?"
Those of you who answer "Four or more years ago" can take a bow, and relax. For the rest, well, let's just say I'm not terribly sanguine about the future of this country if BHO manages to keep his job. His "saving the US auto industry?" Bullshit. Aside from Ford, there IS no "US auto industry." GM has precious few assembly plants left in the lower 48 - and virtually all of its' onetime manufacturing ability has been outsourced to Canada, Mexico, and overseas. ChryCo? Last I heard, Fiat was the majority shareholder - the Pentastar brand hasn't been a US-based operation since Daimler bought 'em out back in '98!!
Ironic that of the onetime "Big Three," Ford remains as the only legitimate US auto-maker, with it's own plants, facilities, and financial stability. And is it any wonder that they didn't accept one damn dime of BHO's oh-so-precious "stimulus" package? They didn't need to - they bloody well know how to look after themselves THEMSELVES!!!! A little concept called "self sufficiency," which BHO and the rest of the DNC simply don't have a clue about. Item - both GM and ChryCo have re-structured their boards two or three times since accepting Barry's cheese; FoMoCo hasn't had a hint of flux at the top since they shit-canned Lee Iacocca......
Anyhow, despite my earlier vow to avoid all this mess this year, I just had to take a peek for myself to see if it's really as bad as I thought. It's worse!!! The DNC is championed by the only President to be IMPEACHED in the 20th Century; a lack-lustre Senator who failed his own Presidential bid in spectacularly embarrassing fashion back in 2004; a conspicuously absent Secretary of State {who can't wait to get rid of the damn job in a few months}; and enough other freaks, misfits, and ne'er-do-wells in the rank and file to fill a small stadium, drink the Kool-Aid, and try to make the GOP look worse than them. It's like putting Raquel Welch and Rosie O'donnel together in the same beauty pageant - only Helen Keller or perhaps Stevie Wonder could miss the painfully obvious............
I'm not sorry I avoided the bulk of the Circus this year, boys and girls; I just hope enough of the rest of my Fellow Babies out there are as disturbed by the dog-and-pony show as I am. Maybe this will be the year we finally climb over 60% voter-turnout for the first time since JFK's election - I dare say we need to. Barry's had his chance. Now it's time for him and all his Leftie-crew to go away, so the big boys can come in and start getting our house back in proper order again.
More shortly.
Monday, August 27, 2012
SNJ - Growing Pains
Mixed bag last night, boys and girls.
My third outing at Bobby's didn't quite turn out as I'd hoped. For whatever reason, I only managed three tunes, spaced out over the course of perhaps a couple hours. That was bad enough in itself, but the balance of the evening was spent trying to avoid cold shoulders from not one, but two old flames of mine. And to top it all off, my drum-proteg`e Lady Sheila was once again absent from both my side, and the overall festivities.
I suppose I could have copped out and insisted on playing nothing but the blues, but I didn't want to blow everyone else's night out. Besides that, I was still looking to connect with some of the Regulars I haven't gone up with yet - I'm still the unknown commodity / new kid on the block, remember. As it turned out, I did break a bit of new ground on my last tune, but it was only a bit, nothing more. A rather tasty bit to be sure, though.
As happened last week, my buddy Chris O. tapped me for some fun-n-games to kick things off. Chris was the "featured artist" this week, so he basically had carte-blanche to put together his setlist. By mutual agreement, he had me up for the first two tunes, and Drum-Bud Brian played the last two. I had earlier asked Brian if I could add my ride cymbal to his kit, in my usual left-handed position; he kindly agreed, and that simple gesture was a crucial factor in making me feel the most comfortable I've ever felt in the last three weeks, playing-wise. This time around, I'd be more than ready to do my thing when the time came.
In due course my first call came, and up I went. The adrenaline did much to combat the icy chill coming from the old flames on opposite sides of the room {crossfire hurricane of a different sort, dig?}, and the slight half-sneer on me mug as I sauntered up took care of the rest. The potential for "high drama" never was a match for me when I'm determined about the task at hand, and last night was no exception. Chris launched Stu and myself straight into a Van Halen tune, and I did something totally unexpected - I simply sank into the overall spirit of the jam, and played what I felt. No heavy emotional involvement like I'm usually guilty of, or "OK, this is the version of this tune, let's kick some serious ass." I just relaxed and happily went with the flow, adding chunks of the usual chaos and mayhem wherever and whenever I felt like it.
Thanks to Brian's kindness my true Southpaw attack was unleashed, and boy did I try to make the most of it. Stu was locked tight with me as usual, so I concentrated on trying to "dramatize" what Chris was doing up top. True to form, once Chris heard me making with the silliness he started ramping-up himself, and the tune turned into a pretty amusing romp, considering all the ridiculous chances we were taking. At the tag-out Chris segued us straight into "Turn the Page," and I kept right on grooving in a very loose-and free manner. My chops were sharp, crisp, and tight; they complemented Stu and Chris's work rather effectively - and yes, even my usual million-and-one mistakes integrated well into the flow. We flourished out the song in fine fashion, and my opening salvo was done.
I barely registered but nonetheless thanked the compliments from the onlookers I passed on the way back to my table; I was preoccupied, anticipating that cold-shoulder crossfire to suddenly go liquid-hydrogen on me, 'cos I didn't fook-up onstage the way they wanted me to. Feeling well vindicated, I settled into my table to await the next call. Unfortunately, said call came near the end of the evening, ensuring that my overall blow would be the near-ultimate in pithiness; zero chance for me to dig deep into my pro-fusion blazz trick-bag, or boil up some heavy adrenaline, in other words. Small comfort for me to work for the first time behind Philmo M, and my man Dave B; the long pause between blows had cooled the adrenaline, and the icy crossfire was still there, albeit somewhat muted.
Philmo asked me for an up-tempo blues shuffle; I quickly dug the groove, and our Aggregation took off. We climbed, rode, and fell our way through the tune, propelled on the strength of my even looser playing. It worked well enough, but by now the offstage rot had finally set in to a degree, affecting my concentration. It was enough to make me totally muff the opening to "Candy Rock," and Brian had to be called up to bail things out. Needless to say, I was beside myself with seething rage over how the play had fallen out for me, affected by outside influences. After patiently waiting for the night to end, I reclaimed my cymbal as quickly as I could and split - but not before giving short shrift to my good Facebook-Bud Woody Z, whom I didn't even see at the play until that moment!! Hopefully after he reads this, he'll understand why I was so rude to him and forgive me.
I dunno, gang. I'm well used to the fact that there are going to be just as many off-nights as "ons;" the bulk of my personal upset stems from the dual factors of offstage tension, and onstage wariness from those new to my acquaintance. So I blew one song-intro; it's not like I played "Chopsticks" whilst everyone else was making with the Chopin or Strauss. It's a bloody jam-session, right? At least give me the chance to correct the mistake before ya give me the hook - I could easily turn the tables by asking for "Killin' Floor" the exact way Jimi did it in Monterey, then call for others to come in after the first mistake. I'm respectful and totally supportive of the SNJ; I don't see any reason why the notion can't be a mutual proposition, if you follow my logic.
All the above notwithstanding, there will be plenty more SNJ plays I'll attend in the future - one {poor} night does not a tenure make, y'know? Plus, I'll be damned to the nth degree before I'll let ANY offstage antagonist keep me from fully enjoying the fruits of my musical Gifts. I'm gonna bounce back like a bag of Superballs tossed into the dodge 'em cars at an amusement park {still paying attention, Mister Brahler?} - b-b-b-b-baby you ain't seen n-n-n-n-nothing yet........
More shortly.
My third outing at Bobby's didn't quite turn out as I'd hoped. For whatever reason, I only managed three tunes, spaced out over the course of perhaps a couple hours. That was bad enough in itself, but the balance of the evening was spent trying to avoid cold shoulders from not one, but two old flames of mine. And to top it all off, my drum-proteg`e Lady Sheila was once again absent from both my side, and the overall festivities.
I suppose I could have copped out and insisted on playing nothing but the blues, but I didn't want to blow everyone else's night out. Besides that, I was still looking to connect with some of the Regulars I haven't gone up with yet - I'm still the unknown commodity / new kid on the block, remember. As it turned out, I did break a bit of new ground on my last tune, but it was only a bit, nothing more. A rather tasty bit to be sure, though.
As happened last week, my buddy Chris O. tapped me for some fun-n-games to kick things off. Chris was the "featured artist" this week, so he basically had carte-blanche to put together his setlist. By mutual agreement, he had me up for the first two tunes, and Drum-Bud Brian played the last two. I had earlier asked Brian if I could add my ride cymbal to his kit, in my usual left-handed position; he kindly agreed, and that simple gesture was a crucial factor in making me feel the most comfortable I've ever felt in the last three weeks, playing-wise. This time around, I'd be more than ready to do my thing when the time came.
In due course my first call came, and up I went. The adrenaline did much to combat the icy chill coming from the old flames on opposite sides of the room {crossfire hurricane of a different sort, dig?}, and the slight half-sneer on me mug as I sauntered up took care of the rest. The potential for "high drama" never was a match for me when I'm determined about the task at hand, and last night was no exception. Chris launched Stu and myself straight into a Van Halen tune, and I did something totally unexpected - I simply sank into the overall spirit of the jam, and played what I felt. No heavy emotional involvement like I'm usually guilty of, or "OK, this is the version of this tune, let's kick some serious ass." I just relaxed and happily went with the flow, adding chunks of the usual chaos and mayhem wherever and whenever I felt like it.
Thanks to Brian's kindness my true Southpaw attack was unleashed, and boy did I try to make the most of it. Stu was locked tight with me as usual, so I concentrated on trying to "dramatize" what Chris was doing up top. True to form, once Chris heard me making with the silliness he started ramping-up himself, and the tune turned into a pretty amusing romp, considering all the ridiculous chances we were taking. At the tag-out Chris segued us straight into "Turn the Page," and I kept right on grooving in a very loose-and free manner. My chops were sharp, crisp, and tight; they complemented Stu and Chris's work rather effectively - and yes, even my usual million-and-one mistakes integrated well into the flow. We flourished out the song in fine fashion, and my opening salvo was done.
I barely registered but nonetheless thanked the compliments from the onlookers I passed on the way back to my table; I was preoccupied, anticipating that cold-shoulder crossfire to suddenly go liquid-hydrogen on me, 'cos I didn't fook-up onstage the way they wanted me to. Feeling well vindicated, I settled into my table to await the next call. Unfortunately, said call came near the end of the evening, ensuring that my overall blow would be the near-ultimate in pithiness; zero chance for me to dig deep into my pro-fusion blazz trick-bag, or boil up some heavy adrenaline, in other words. Small comfort for me to work for the first time behind Philmo M, and my man Dave B; the long pause between blows had cooled the adrenaline, and the icy crossfire was still there, albeit somewhat muted.
Philmo asked me for an up-tempo blues shuffle; I quickly dug the groove, and our Aggregation took off. We climbed, rode, and fell our way through the tune, propelled on the strength of my even looser playing. It worked well enough, but by now the offstage rot had finally set in to a degree, affecting my concentration. It was enough to make me totally muff the opening to "Candy Rock," and Brian had to be called up to bail things out. Needless to say, I was beside myself with seething rage over how the play had fallen out for me, affected by outside influences. After patiently waiting for the night to end, I reclaimed my cymbal as quickly as I could and split - but not before giving short shrift to my good Facebook-Bud Woody Z, whom I didn't even see at the play until that moment!! Hopefully after he reads this, he'll understand why I was so rude to him and forgive me.
I dunno, gang. I'm well used to the fact that there are going to be just as many off-nights as "ons;" the bulk of my personal upset stems from the dual factors of offstage tension, and onstage wariness from those new to my acquaintance. So I blew one song-intro; it's not like I played "Chopsticks" whilst everyone else was making with the Chopin or Strauss. It's a bloody jam-session, right? At least give me the chance to correct the mistake before ya give me the hook - I could easily turn the tables by asking for "Killin' Floor" the exact way Jimi did it in Monterey, then call for others to come in after the first mistake. I'm respectful and totally supportive of the SNJ; I don't see any reason why the notion can't be a mutual proposition, if you follow my logic.
All the above notwithstanding, there will be plenty more SNJ plays I'll attend in the future - one {poor} night does not a tenure make, y'know? Plus, I'll be damned to the nth degree before I'll let ANY offstage antagonist keep me from fully enjoying the fruits of my musical Gifts. I'm gonna bounce back like a bag of Superballs tossed into the dodge 'em cars at an amusement park {still paying attention, Mister Brahler?} - b-b-b-b-baby you ain't seen n-n-n-n-nothing yet........
More shortly.
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