The next three days should be fun for me.    On Thursday,  I play solo.  On Friday,  I'm playing with Pete Collin.  On Saturday,  W.B. Blues has a show.   (See the upcoming gigs page for details)

While there is some overlap of material,   the three shows are substantially different.   I make it a point to try to avoid doing a lot of the same songs with different acts.    That way,  I stay interested.   It's also more interesting for people who have seen me in one act to see what else I can do.

I hope you'll join me for one, two, or all three performances this week.

Last night I played at The Brown Hound Bistro in Naples. It's been a couple of months since I've played there,  but it seems like much longer.   I've missed it.   It really is one of my favorite places to play.  It's very intimate,  and the people who work there are fantastic.  There were even a few customers that I've seen there more than once.

The Hound is the kind of place where I tend to play softly,  and I don't really expect people to applaud,  or even pay much attention.   They're eating their dinner and having conversations at their tables.   I'm background music there,  and I'm fine with that because I know it going in.   But every so often at the end of a song,  one of the staff would start to clap.  The customers would notice it then they'd start to clap.   It was really cracking me up because it was like a chain reaction.   The looks on the customers faces when they realized somone was clapping for something so they better join in was hilarious.

This is supposed to be my music website, but we're quickly approaching April 15.   If you're an American,  you know what that means:  tax day.   I finished figuring my taxes last night,  and I'm not happy about it. 

I have a proposal:  At every level of government,  any proposal for an expense must be accompanied by a figure of what it will cost the individual taxpayer.   The numbers that we get now are so huge that they don't mean anything to the average guy,  and we tend to tune them out.  "Two billion for a transportation bill?   Sure,  go ahead."     But if they came to you and said, "Hey Joe, we need $85 from you to put up a sign announcing that this highway is named after your congressman," you'd start to question the necessity of things a little more.

OK,  give me a day or two to stew about it,  then I'll post something a little cheerier.

Compliments have always been difficult for me.  Not giving them, but receiving them.  I used to discount them until someone once called me on it.  "Take a compliment, you jerk!"    So I learned to say a gracious thank you instead of pointing out to the complimenter what was wrong with their statement.  

Well,  "thank you"  just replaced some self depricating remark,  but I didn't always really consider what was in the compliment.   Then the other night,  someone whom I respect considerably paid me a compliment that really blew me away.   It was more than just the basic, "hey you sound good"    He really took the time to consider what he was saying,  and I have to tell you,  I was touched.

I'm not going to write what was said, or who said it.   But if you're reading this,  I hope you'll consider what it could mean to someone to pay them a genuine, considered compliment from the heart.

For the past several months,  I've been very fortunate to have two, three,  or even four gigs a week.  Recently,  someone who lives in Rochester asked me how come I never play out anymore.   I looked at them like they had three heads.  I've been busier than ever.   Then I realized,  I haven't played a gig in Rochester in Months.   With the exception of a couple of times in Honeoye Falls, which is closer to Livingston County,   I haven't even played in Monroe County for a public gig since last October.

     Although I don't have much in the way or Rochester appearances on my calendar right now,   W.B. Blues recently finished a demo cd,  and we hope to use it to get some gigs in Rochester.    Don't get me wrong,  I'm grateful for all the work I've had in the southern tier in the last half year or so,  but it would be nice to get a little exposure in the city too.

 I played guitar for someone the other night while she sang.  It wasn't exactly the first time she's sung in public,  but it isn't something she does regularly,  so she was a bit nervous.   I told her to get over it.   After a song or two,  she relaxed and everything was just fine.    It got me thinking though about the first time I performed in public.  I was in the high school musical.   I didn't have a major role,  but I had a few lines and had to sing a song or two.   I just about puked before going on stage.

If you ever take a public speaking course,  the first thing they will tell you is that most people fear public speaking more than they fear death.  Personally,  I think that's a line of B.S.  someone made up to sell more public speaking courses,   but the underlying theme isn't lost on me.   Getting up in front of a group of people who are all looking at you and waiting for you to do something can be nerve wracking.  Nobody really wants to be judged.    The thing to realize is that we're often our own worst critics.  Most audiences aren't going to notice minor mistakes anyway, and are pretty forgiving if they do.

The important thing is to give it a try.