JV's -- First Thursday of April

A really fun show last night. We had Eric Shramek on bass, one of the best slap players around -- and he had to slap like hell, because our drummer, Tom came down with the currently rampant horrible stomach virus on his way to the gig.

We always figure we might play the first few numbers as a trio at JV's since it starts up right at 9:00 and Tom doesn't close the liquor store until 8:30. So 9:00 rolled around and Eric, Bob, and I launched into "Today I Started Loving You Again". We got literally one measure into it when Tom shows up looking as grey as the weather outside and says, "I'm not well. I threw up four times between work and here". I encouraged Tom to take the night off, as rockabilly and stomach viruses don't mix well. So he headed home, and we kept on playing the song, and finished out all three sets as a trio.

I have to say it was a ton of fun. Some highlights for me were playing songs you'd never think could be done that way, like Fats Domino tunes without drums, piano, or sax. A really good song can stand up to nearly any arrangement. Bob did Chuck Berry's "Memphis" for the first time I can remember. We hit the country tunes a little more often than usual, which was fun. Long-time Western Bop fans will remember that Eric was the original bass player in the band, and that we did a lot of country in those days. In fact, Eric and I once did an entire three set rockabilly brunch as a duo in a coffee shop!

There were plenty of interesting people coming in out of the cold rain. It was good to see all the fine folks, especially Julia (a fine dancer), and Eric (the JV's regular), and the guy who sits up front with the glasses and gave me a good recommendation for a Warren Zevon tune. There was a nice couple from Bethesda getting their first taste of Western Bop -- I'm hoping we'll see them out and about soon.

We're at JV's the first Thursday of every month. It's always a good time. You should come see us there next time, May 1st.

Can't wait for the next show -- Saturday at the QH with an extra dose of Tex Rubinowitz tunes!