A different class...
I often remind people to support live local music. To be honest, part of that is out of self-preservation. It's how I make my living, after all. But there's more to it than that. Our area has some real treasures. Every now and again you'll hear, and really experience something that you won't get from some big touring act that doesn't even know what city they're in tonight.
This week, I had two musical experiences that left me feeling like I was lucky to be there.
The first was at The Beale Street Cafe. I play harmonica. I'm ok, but I don't claim to be great at it. Well, there was a man named Curtis Waterman there who just floored me with what he was playing. I remember seeing Curtis years ago when I lived in Syracuse. He had quite a reputation even then. He recently moved to this area, and he sat in with me while I did a few songs. On one song in particular, I almost couldn't finish because I just wanted to stop singing and playing so I could listen to him. He got sounds out of the harmonica that I didn't know you could get. It was really something. He'll be playing around town with his band Corn Bred. Do yourself a favor and look for them.
The second experience came a little later the same night. I stopped by The Flipside to see what was going on at Open Mic. My friend Connie Deming was there, and she was telling me that she had already done a gig that evening, so she wasn't entirely feeling like she wanted to sing again. Well, if Connie is in that room, there's little chance that her arm isn't going to get twisted to sing, so she went up. She did a couple of songs that were great as usual, then I remembered her performance at the Christmas show I put on last year at Chocolate Bar. I asked Connie to sing O Holy Night. The room just changed. It got very quiet as people realized what was happening. Connie just got inspired. While she was singing, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. She'll be joining Pete Collin and I at House of Hamez on Dec. 21 for our Christmas show this year. You won't want to miss it.
Here's wishing you get the same kind of experience I was lucky enough to have twice in one night the next time you see someone perform at a different level.
Posted by westguitar
at 9:00 AM EST