Saturday, May 31, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/30/14




Vince Mejia and I did our piano-show thang tonight in New Braunfels, Texas to a packed house. Vince and I haven't teamed up in a while, and it was a pleasure to hear him drum again. I had more requests tonight than in recent memory, and they kept coming all night long. Fun night with a fun crowd!!


Friday, May 30, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/29/14







Things were a little slow in New Braunfels, TX tonight, but that didn't stop the request show. I had several tables stick around for my whole show, and some late-comers made the night even more fun. To start things off this evening, people were not sure what to request, so we played a round of alphabet name-that-tune, where I quickly went A-Z though tunes just long enough for the crowd to guess the song title. As soon as I finished, the requests began to flow!



Monday, May 26, 2014

Redfest 5/25/14




The third and final day of Redfest in Austin, Texas at the Circuit Of The Americas track went great! David Lee and I started our first set just after I got the word about my mother's recovery from a major health scare, and so I was able to focus more easily on the show knowing she was getting better. We had a packed crowd today, and I heard nothing but good things as we finished out our last set. News crews came in to capture our souls for the TV, requests were made by the crowd, and songs were sung by the masses. Thank you to my wife Christine for the great photos and for helping us as a roadie today. Our show ended at 6pm, but we weren't allowed to leave the festival with our gear until after midnight! Wooooo.....long day!








Sunday, May 25, 2014

Taxi's Piano Bar 5/24/14




A huge thank you to drummer Chris Wallis for keeping me focused tonight. I got some worrisome news about my mother just before the show, and Chris got me through the night. We had a good crowd, but they kept requesting slow, sad tunes. Finally, I just played every upbeat thing I could, and the crowd left happy.


Saturday, May 24, 2014

Redfest 5/24/14




David Lee and I traveled back to the Circuit Of The Americas track in Austin for day 2 of our 3-day stint. We moved to a different location, and it was a good move! The crowd in the new tent was seated in a much more piano-bar friendly atmosphere. I look forward to day 3 tomorrow!


Friday, May 23, 2014

Redfest 5/23/14




David Lee and I opened for Lynyrd Skynyrd today in Austin, TX at the Circuit Of The Americas track. Well...maybe "opened" isn't the right word. Maybe I should say that we played a four-hour set with no breaks, and during our fourth hour, Lynyrd Skynyrd was playing simultaneously on a different stage. We saw one of the fellas from Duck Dynasty listening to our show, and we made many Mrs. Pacman references throughout the day due to an arcade we were near. Lots a-singin' and a-dancin' happened, too!


AJ's Ale House 5/22/14




My Thursday night show in New Braunfels, TX, brought in a couple of fun birthday parties, and they had a good time requesting tunes, singing and dancing with me. It was a solid three-hour show for me of lots of random requests, and new fans were made! Thanks, everybody!


Sunday, May 18, 2014

Taxi's Piano Bar 5/17/14




Nobody knows how to party like it's their last day on earth better than the living dead bridal girls! Chris Wallis and I had a bunch of fun this evening in San Marcos, TX playing requests for the crowd, but for me, the evening climaxed with the appearance of the very same group of gals who were also in the club celebrating last night in regular clothes, this time in full zombie attire, and never breaking character. Thank you to all the singing and dancing from the people who were alive, and all the moaning and swaying from the undead!





Saturday, May 17, 2014

Taxi's Piano Bar 5/16/14




Yes! Chris Wallis and I did our best tonight in San Marcos, TX for an all-request piano show. Yes! We celebrated bachelorettes and birthdays. Yes! People partied and had a great time. No! You must keep your clothes on, or else you get asked to leave.


Friday, May 16, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/15/14




I met a man and his wife from London tonight at AJ's in new Braunfels, Texas. Naturally, they want to hear some British bands, so I played lots of the Rolling Stones, Oasis, The Who, Beatles, The Cure, and Phil Collins. Another table just wanted to sing songs while I played piano without me singing. So I played a couple of tunes, and they led the crowd with the lyrics! You just never know what's going to happen at AJ's.


Monday, May 12, 2014

Cheatham Street Warehouse 5/10/14




The 2nd annual hill country formal took place tonight at the legendary Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos, Texas, where I performed with The Hill Country Gentlemen to close out the night of music which was started with Victor Holk & The Lookout, Big City Folk, and The Shady Rest Band. We had an excellent crowd, and the Gents sounded fantastic! I'm always glad to perform with the fellas, and it was a real treat getting to hear some other great musicians in their bands tonight, too. We even had a special guest, 7-year-old Jake, who played a couple of harmonica solos on "Amy's Mercedes"!


Sunday, May 11, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/10/14




My second gig of the day was an overwhelming success, this time with drummer extraordinaire, Chris Wallis! New Braunfels, TX was ready to party from our first note to our last, and so we did our best to keep up with a truly amazing amount of requests. The people tonight were so generous and in great spirits, so it made the night really enjoyable. Also, it never hurts to play with a rock-solid guy like Chris.


Saturday, May 10, 2014

Live Oak Country Fairgrounds 5/10/14




The Live Oak Country Fairgrounds in George West, TX, was the scene of a cook off, where Americana music with The Hill Country Gentlemen could be her ringing throughout the fairgrounds. Clay and Jeremiah locked in with drums and bass so tightly that it made a great bed for the rest of the music to lay in. Troy's vocals sounded great, and I enjoyed trading links with Kevin's guitar on my piano. I'm really glad the schedule worked out for me to be able to make this show today. I had a great time!





Angry Elephant 5/9/14





Mikey Gammon and I put on one heck of a show tonight in San Antonio, Texas! The crowd couldn't get enough of Mikey's drums, so we had to play a few songs to highlight his skills, like Led Zeppelin's "Rock & Roll". The crowd stayed with us all night long, even though there were many bad presidential impersonations happening, from Lincoln to Clinton, none were safe.


Friday, May 9, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/8/14




The thing that I like the best about playing Thursday nights in New Braunfels, Texas is that with a slightly smaller crowd, the requests get a little further outside of the norm. "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away", "Bare Necessities", & "Dancing Days" were some of my favorites requested tonight.


Thursday, May 8, 2014

Tower Of The Americas 5/6/14




Howl-2-Go set Matt Wilson and I up this evening in San Antonio, TX, atop the 750 foot Tower Of The Americas to perform a private event for the folks of Itineris, a company dealing with utilities. We rode an elevator to the top with our gear, and before our performance was over, the Tower employees informed us that the elevator wasn't going to be working for a while! So, we just played some more tunes and partied with the guests until the elevator was brought back on line. It was a fun night, Matt sounded great, and thank you to Troy Stone for coming out to roadie for us!


Sunday, May 4, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/3/14







Woooo....what a crazy night in New Braunfels, TX I had (with Chris Wallis on the drums)! A big street festival in front of AJ's finished up just about the time we took the stage, so after the first half-hour, the bar was standing room only. We took so many requests and helped so many people celebrate their occasions, I lost track! I know it was a good night because the gig just flew by. Chris kept everybody on their feet with his beats, and fun was had by all.



Saturday, May 3, 2014

HEB 5/3/14




First show of the day took place today with The Hill Country Gentlemen in San Marcos, TX, at My HEB. MINE. Not yours. We had friends come out and hang while we played a couple sets of good Americana music. HEB and The Hill Country Gentlemen make one combo loco!


AJ's Ale House 5/2/14




My first time performing with drummer Jeff Botta went great tonight in New Braunfels, Texas! We had a full house of folks requesting their favorite songs, and a few special occasions being celebrated. Fan of the show, Emily, came up to let me spoil her with some birthday attention, and we helped another bride-to-be overcome her stage fright. Some sports were happening on the TVs, but amazingly, the crowd stayed focused primarily on our show. We must've been doing something right...


Friday, May 2, 2014

AJ's Ale House 5/1/14




The show tonight in New Braunfels, TX was fun for all! Thursdays are always interesting because since it's not fully packed on a weekday, the show becomes more personal, and I get many more people who approach the piano to ask about unusual songs. The crowd enjoys challenging me, and I enjoy the challenge. If you haven't yet, you should try to make it out on a Thursday sometime!