I headed over to the Delaware River for Andy Killcoyne’s Hot Acoustic Jam. I had been meaning to get down there to try out some of my newer songs in a bar room type of atmosphere, and I thought these tunes would be new for the club and ‘not quite nailed down’ on my part.

I decided on Nadine (for Nadine, of course), Rosie is a Friend of Mine and Can’t Find My Way Home, a good jam tune.

I decided to lead with Rosie, partly because I wanted to funnel my opening energy into pulling off a song that means something to me, and because it is just so much fun to play. I finally got the words and phrasing down, and Andy played some very nice leads, having never heard the song before. One thing I can do is lay down the format of the song and players can pick up from my rhythm guitar. It’s a true skill set.

I knew I could relax a little with Nadine, a Chuck Berry tune with a strong groove. Mitch came up on bass, Andy fit in and we passed some leads around, too. I’ve been trying to get the words to this right, and I came real close tonight….. blew the last line, but, at least, it rhymed.

I finished off with Can’t Find My Way Home. It’s not there yet vocally and has some surprisingly odd twists with the chords, so I had some issues with having the guys listen to my changes while they landed on their own. So, I adapted to them. That’s what a jam is all about. The crowd really responded to the set and several folks asked me to return. Nice.

The top of the evening was a moment when I acknowledged the gent who preceded me, Jim Highway Sheridan, an improving picker who has come a long way in the last year with his on-stage presentation. I said that ‘Highway’ inspired me to add a tag to my name. Seeing how I was 50 yards from the Delaware Canal, I decided on Dave “Tow Path” Fry, much more to my style. I also added that there may be a mule or two involved, as well. It dawned on me later that I could add my sister, “Psycho Path” to the group.

Anyway, it was good to get out and play my fresh tunes in front of a new audience. It’s all good.