The show at Marsh Woodwinds was an absolute blast. Playing alongside Greg is always amazing- he's so tasteful & creative, just one of the best musicians I've ever known. Hanging out for a weekend with him & Maura & Halle would've been awesome enough on its own, but to get to play a show during the visit was icing on the cake.
Greg's bandmates in The Fidgets came over around 2pm on the day of the show and set up in Greg's living room for a quick rehearsal. I was happy to finally put faces to the names I've heard so much about, and they were all so friendly and warm- great musicians & great people. I listened to them rehearse some of their tunes, just soaking in the sound... man, I wish more bands would play music like this! Solid, college rock- without sounding dated at all. Just cool new music.
When I stepped out to the kitchen to talk with Maura for a minute, the guitar riff from "Blood on the Statehouse" came wafting out of the living room. The Fidgets had gotten the recording & learned it for the show! I caught a bit of the run-through on video,
here. I have to say, hearing that was totally surreal...
After rehearsal, we loaded up the gear & headed over to Marsh Woodwinds in a big caravan of cars. It's strange after playing solo for so long to sorta feel like you're in a band again.
Marsh Woodwinds- what a crazy-fun venue! I wish I'd taken a picture of the tiger-print blanket covering the entryway, as it totally sums up the mood for the place. Rodney, the owner, has all these bizarre/eclectic objects d'art (such as leather-covered, life-size black panther behind the drumset) placed throughout- along with a bunch of beautiful, vintage instruments that he makes available to any performers who want to use them. I played a Hammond B3 organ during the Fidgets' tunes- holy fucking awesome, batman! That thing was beef. Wow. I was afraid to turn it up too loud because the Leslie speaker was right behind my head (plus I'd only learned the tunes that afternoon), but Rodney was all "crank it up, girl!! it's your big chance to be LOUD!" He was a trip- totally supportive of music & just a really nice guy.
I played a few tunes solo-acoustic, then Greg joined me for a few before Greg Henshaw (Fidgets bassist) rocked out with us on "Now." Chip Meyers (guitar) totally nailed the atmosphere on "Awakening" before Eddie Mills (guitar) joined us all to close my set with "Blood on the Statehouse." I love playing with a band and I think the guys had fun playing some new tunes, too. We decided to tour together & play on each others' songs because it's just too damn much fun.
I'm back in Massachusetts now, working on a plan for the coming months. My life is a little chaotic at the moment- some rather major changes underway (including moving to a new place)- but things will settle down soon. I'm gearing up to record the new tunes in August and tour in the Fall. I'll keep you posted as we go...