Popcorn Jam 7-3-16: West 66 Otherwise

I didn't think about doing any drum cameos when I told Mike Serbousek about coming down to Hot Shots to sit in on some songs, but I think he wanted me to do just that. I guess he was serious about playing the last set too.  Had I known What I Like About You and Mama Let Him Play was on that list, I would have signed off on that.

While Mike plays in Julie And The Mad Dogs, he also is in West 66, a band that's a bit more classic rock than the Mad Dogs.  I suppose getting up at 5 AM does take a toll on you if you're working days and perhaps Mike looked somewhat tired but he managed to do a good job.  We hung out and talked a bit during breaks and I told him if I do show up at other gigs I'd be happy to help out on a few songs, however I joked if I had to do a set, I'm requesting the usual union fees for musicians.  I think he got a laugh out of that.

To play in classic rock covers bands, you have to really do it for the fun, the money really isn't there.  And I'm not sure if Sweet Home Alabama is a requirement for playing at bars, but at least we were spared of Folsom Prison Blues.  I could work with the band if need be, after all, I did first time takes of Hey Bartender and a slow song that I'm not sure of the name, so I really had to follow the bass player.  I think I did okay, although I'm sure Herm Sarduy would have stormed the stage to play Hey Bartender.

Hot Shots in Anamosa has its regulars and of course if you're a stranger you have many pairs of eyes staring at you.  Mike had a friend who works with him, and he's pretty cool guy. He bought me a drink and we bullshitted a while. Somehow I got dragged into the dance floor with his wife I think (or mom maybe?) and I can't slow-dance worth a shit and after half way she gave up on me.  But we got back to the dance floor on Call Me The Breeze.  I think I'm done dancing for a while.  Anyway, this was this bearded fellow who kept staring at me at times, some say he was a homeless dude, and he talked to me after I did Johnny B Goode, but I tried to avoid him, he was really creepy.  But afterwards I did thank the guys in West 66 for playing drums, and gave Mike a hug on the way out.   He did mentioned that next week, he won't be sleeping much when Julie And The Mad Dogs play Rumors next Friday Night, he'll have to get back up at 5 AM on Saturday to go into work.  I wished him luck on that.

Saturday, I did an half acoustic, half electric thing to try to sharper up my skills for the next live Townedger album and trying to go without the lyric sheet.  I have to conclude that no matter what I do, the shows are not going to be perfect and there will be words messed up, guitar notes messed up and not a thing I can about it.  I suppose it's the power of rock and roll although The Townedgers are making The Replacements sound like Rush.  While there were plenty of songs taken off certain albums (Town's Edge Rock, Pawnshops For Olivia) some albums got left out in the cold, Wapsipinicon Dreaming and Diamonds In The Skies for that matter.  After years of singing about a certain girl from high school, I decided to bury her in the past by not singing Running In The Rain anymore, I think I did that with the other high school sweetheart too. Songs that once served a purpose, don't mean nothing and it reminds me of somebody I'll never see or know anymore.  These songs had a place and time that is now history.  Why I chose to do Listen To Love is that it's easier to sing, it has a catchy melody and it isn't directed toward anybody in particular. Or Ever So Much, which started on TE Rock and then found its way on Pawnshops For Olivia, the latter version a very pretty type of song celebrating love.  Everybody should be in love at least once in their life. 

For many years I have tried my best to find the right one, only to come up short or wasted three weeks of this life on idiotically ill-advised thoughts from the heart.  The heart has no conscience. When things don't go as planned, the heart breaks.  The mind knows better, if my heart would have listen to my mind about forty years ago, I wouldn't be this leery about love.   Even today, I still fall into that trap, and I'm sure till the day I pass on, that will go on.  Even in my own cynical ways, I still believe in love and still believe somebody would be fool hardy and willing to share their life with me.  Being a hobbyist musician drummer and record hoarder doesn't make me that attractive to anybody.  But let's face it, the majority of women out there today at my age do not want to come to a place where the first thing that greets them is a five piece drum set and 7 cymbals staring them in the face.   Or three guitars.

And so it goes.  I have friends that do matter, band mates that do care and the blessings from the Lord.  As I continue my musical adventures, I remain on a road that is like Arizona highway 66.   Once in a while I'll hook up with good friends to jam a song or two and then it's back to Solitude, driving but with good music in the background.  Whoever I come to find down the road is invited to come along for the ride..............

Popcorn Jam Set list:

Spooky (Atlanta Rhythm Section Version)
Dead Flowers
Gimme Shelter

Lineup:
Tommy Bruner-Lead vocals on Dead Flowers, Gimme Shelter
Ted Reilly-Bass
Tom Craft-Keyboard, vocals on Spooky
R.S.-The Drummer

Music Director: Terry McDowell 

Tommy Bruner is a very dedicated person who plays for the love of rock and roll. Who else can hi tail it back from Davenport and playing at the new Rhythm City Casino And Resort the past two nights to forgo sleep and play at the popcorn jam?  Next to Terry who has hosted the jams, Tommy has played about three or four of them since Tim Duffy moved out of town.

Once again, the jammers were mostly drummers, only Tim Canfield (Bass) and Stuart Frondle (Guitar) were not drummers, (Oh forgot about the bass player that showed up to do Bad Motor Scooter).  I think this is the first time Canfield was at the popcorn jam in a player's mode.  Despite it being the forth of July weekend and plenty of other band happenings going on around the town, we had a nice turnout.  Karie Skogman from Lipstick Slick, Ted's main band came on with Stuart to do a version of Bad Motor Scooter, the famed Montrose song that we took to speed metal in Paraphernalia years ago. I did wish I could played that song just for old time's sake but it's Terry's jam and his call and I'm sure the guys felt more comfortable with him behind the drums.   They did a nice version of it.

I think the keyboard player played the jam a while back but I can't think of his name.  He mostly did Billy Joel numbers and threw out Spooky the ARS version rather than Dennis Yost and Classics IV.  He'd later join Tim Canfield and Kevin Faulkner on Get Together, Barefootin and left soon after.  After that Tommy dusted off the Rolling Stones song book to do Dead Flowers, to which his version is much slower than the Townedgers and I had to fall back on the groove between him and Ted.   Gimme Shelter was another Stones number that Tommy sings in his bands but this was the first time I attempted it in any band.  It was kinda jamming with plenty of sloppy drums to go along with that.  Still in good fun.

 I suppose I should take a look at the Cooter's Acoustic jam with Mike Williams hosting.  I know Dan Hartman plays a role and helps out a lot down there but since there's no drums I tend not to be that interested.  Or stay close to home and check out the Stone City Acoustic jams.  Problem is all three of them start at the same time on Sunday Afternoon's 4 and ends at 7, although the Cooters jam might go on for another half hour or so.

Next commitment will be the July 8th Julie And The Mad Dogs gig at Rumors.  After that I may take the next week off and do my annual walk from New Bo to Cedar Lake and back again.   But I have a sneaky feeling that Mike Serbousek might need a bit of emotional support  that Friday Night.

Any way I can, I help him get through it.  As soon as I get off work.

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