in the last few weeks i did this run up a section of the north east[dc-boston] then flew back west for three shows in the northwest. lots of ground covered on that. a bit of the old I 95 shuffle.
it’s pretty fun and challenging to work solo. one of the main things i like is being able to just focus on the set, and hone it in. the whole day can focus on having your set together at exactly the right moment when it’s time to start, getting the songs in the right order and being warmed up and ready to go. having the exact amount of material for the alotted time. getting there in time to warm up. getting sleep and leaving at exactly the right time for the next day’s set. not forgetting anything or making any wrong turns.
on a lot of that stuff, the margin of error is pretty slim. like if that flight doesn’t take off, or if there’s a wreck the show ain’t gonna happen. it’s a little stressfull in that…..it’s all on your shoulders {paperwork says so} and so forth. you set it all up out there in the future and you hope it all goes well. but i gotta say typically i’ve had pretty good fortune.
i’m thankful for the folks that come to my shows. it seems the small cross section of folks out there in the world that will come to see me work tend to be pretty good folks. readers. interested and interesting folks. i mean, in the past i have played in bands where the average patron just got a tooth knocked out. so i’m thankful that no matter what seems to be happening in the world, there’s still some folks that are trying to make a difference, even if it’s just expressing oneself as a good person. i’ve met some really smart folks, which is encouraging.
the travel is a little intense. that’s all we need to say about that.
there’s in a sense, three things to be juggled on my solo show. the instrument, the voice, and the emcee work. it must be similar to how a baseball pitcher thinks, there’s the fastball, the curve, and the slider. at any one time, you may not have all three up and going. you may only have two, or sometimes only one that is in that effortless place. on rare occassions, all three {or none!} are in synch. {one of my art loving pals said “man when you just stand there and play that is the most out thing you’ve ever done!”}
it remains kind of a mystery. about the time you start thinking “wow i didn’t eat any food before the show i think things went better” then something goes awry and you abandon that and try ONLY SOUP! in a sense i feel a connection to all those old actors musicians comedians magicians and troubadors of the past. you just have to deal with things, which is to be expected on account of it being a noble endeavor and what not. you spend your whole life making things as a reaction to other things.
thank you for keeping up with all this stuff.