The weather outside last week was dismal, so I wasn't all that inspired.
However, the weekend got me fired up - worked with two of my regular bands
last Saturday, and then this past Sunday night was really special.
Even if you're not a rock music fan, you've most likely heard of Ted
Nugent, ether good or bad. Lately, mostly bad.
However, his personal political opinons aside, there's no denying the
staying power of the music. I've been a fan of the music for a long time,
and a lot of that music was mostly written by a guy named Derek St. Holmes,
the rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist for the band. And, unlike his boss,
he's all class. In a business full of ego-driven unpleasantness, Derek is
one of the warmest, most welcoming people I've ever met. I know his
personal booking agent and, just for fun, one afternoon I asked her what
the chance would be that Derek would do a solo acoustic show for me. I
knew it was very remote, since when he wasn't touring with Nugent he played
electric with a full band.
And then she called me back and told me that he said he'd love to. I have
to admit, the fan inside me squealed just a bit.
He flew in Saturday, and a friend of mine picked him up. I took him to
dinner, used various technologies to find his iPhone that he had somehow
lost back in Nashville where he lived (he accidentally left it on top of
his sister's SUV, and it fell off along the road. We located it, and
talked his sister to the location. I started calling it to make it light
up and ring.... and she found it. It had been run over, but she found
it!) That alone was a bit surreal. And then the next day I took him to
the AT&T store so he could buy a replacement. So, I went phone shopping
with one of my musical heroes. And then, the concert.
My audiences, while they may be small at times, are totally into the
music. He wasn't sure how the show would go, but the audience energy and
love drove the show, and at the end he told me that he had more fun than
anyone in the house and that he definitely would be doing it again.
Afterwards, there was a group of us that went to dinner. His daughter and
her friend, who live a couple hours away North of Chicago, and two friends
who drove in from his native Detroit, plus my partner Jim. We originally
wanted to go to the steak house we went to on Saturday (and this time,
dammit, I was going to get the side-lit portrait!), but it turned out they
closed early on Sunday. So, we decided to all go to the big Greek-owned
family restaurant in town. Except that because of the cold, the owner sent
the cooks home early and was closing 2 hours early. So... next up? Bob
Evans! Yep. Closed early. Then Derek saw the Steak'n'Shake across the
street and said, "Ya know, I could go for some chili mac..." and off we
went. No pretense, no "If I can't have steak, we have a problem" We're
all just having cheeseburgers and fries. And having a ball.
I took him back to the airport yesterday morning, so we had some time to
talk more about music, friends in common, and our love for Chicago (he and
his wife had lived there for 2 years in the 80's).
What started out as more or less a joke suggestion turned into one of the
best concerts we've ever had, and I have a new friend. And an open
invitation to come see them play when the Nugent tour rolls through town.
My life is officially weird. And I love it.
There are 8 new photos in the Music Is The Medicine folder - two of those
were duped into the PAW folder. Enjoy.
http://zone-10.com/tope2/main.php?g2_itemId=5407
C&C encouraged.
--
Paul Braun
Certified Music Junkie
"Music washes from the soul the dust of everyday life." -- Berthold Auerbach
--
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