The last week of January is the one week that catholic schools spend some money on the arts so RockRoots has always pulled in a couple of gigs from it. Today, we played an afternoon set for about 100 3rd – 8th graders in Elmwood Park in the middle of NJ.
These catholic schools are invariably pleasant to play for: the kids are respectful and attentive, the teachers are hip and give us a comfortable audience to play for.
We haven’t played as a band for months and, along with my more frequent mental lapses, I didn’t have great confidence in my remembering all the nuances of the show. I was counting on muscle memory, and, for the most part, we did really well. I was also glad that there were no equipment snafus that always distract me from the show.
I rolled pretty quickly through the show and, after the show, the lads reminded me that I had forgotten to do Mojo for the R&B example, but I did do the intro featuring Wayne’s electric blues work. I suppose I was thinking ahead to the Country intro, but I escaped any damage to the show. Still, it’s a concern for me, but now I know for the next show’s on Thursday.
All in all, the show was well received and the principal and the teachers came up and said that it was great. A couple of girls came up for autographs, as well.
It’s really good to get back on the road with this show. I feel better about my place in the world, too.