It was an interesting gig at Arts Quest, sandwiched between attending an Arts Council meat market at Penn State, LV with Doug Roysdon.
I was aware of my dust-up with AQ when I arrived, and made a point not to make any comments during my show. It would be hard for me to do. The sound guy is a good guy to work with, and I had John Christie riding shotgun for me today, as well.
There was a Blues Festival going on at the site this weekend, and though there were no acts going on during my set, there were interesting blues people cruising by, so John and I tossed some nasty and bluesy stuff over the heads of the kids. Nice.
John is a wonderful friend and musician who has supported me and my music in many ways. We’ve always enjoyed jamming at picnics back in the good ole days of Beck Road. He has raised his young family as I was raising mine, and he raised them on my music. He now shares my music with his precious granddaughter Alexis and, of course, his wife Susan. He’s booked me at the schools he teaching in.
And he plays great guitar. It’s great to watch the dad’s in the audience sit up and take notice of the music when John takes a lead. Again, a very important part of my family show is the quality of craftsmanship instrumentally. I’m a strong rhythm player that works well as a solo, but John’s leads take the performance to another level. I also get to listen to him.
All this was in my mind today, especially since John’s headed for shoulder surgery this week. Today was his last gig for awhile and that would be a very tough situation for any musician. It would drive me mad. So, I just had him tear it up the whole set, which was cool because all the kids were swimming in the pile of scarves, shakers, shades, etc. strewn before us. Again, it’s amazing to take note of the many layers of interaction that goes on for these family shows. John and I have the best seats.
Next year, we should do the Blues Festival Kids Show.