Howl At The Moon 2/28/08

So, as soon as our Papa Joe's gig ended, I rushed downtown to the dueling piano bar to play until 2:00am. The crowd was into it, right up until it started snowing at the end of the night. Jay, Nick, Rob & Tod (along with Guy and Joe) rocked the house!

Papa Joe's 2/28/08

The house was packed by 6:00p and everyone stayed until we took a break at 7:30. When we went back on at 8:00, two tables were there. By 9:30, we were playing to Mary (she is the most regular of regular customers for Papa Joe's).

After two + years, next week will be our final Papa Joe's gig (at least until the economy picks up a little). Bill and I would like to thank the staff at Papa Joe's for having us, it's been a fun two years!

The Keys 2/23/08

My last night in Mt. Clemens was a good one. The place was packed, and people were into the show. This is how the past few nights should've been. Soon I shall sleep, for tomorrow holds a five hour drive home...

The Keys 2/22/08

Tonight it was nutty in da club. Lots of drunken patrons (and a couple of piano players) were there to sing a bunch of songs which they didn't know. We played our hearts out, put them back in, and then played them out again.

No animals were harmed in the writing of this blog.

The Keys 2/21/08

It's a little odd to me, but this is their college night, which doesn't start getting busy until 10:00pm. I know that doesn't sound odd, but the timing is strange.

Mostly because we played to no one from 5p-9p.

The Keys 2/20/08

I traveled north of Detroit to Mt. Clemens, MI to perform at a new dueling piano club known as "The Keys". They haven't really built their business up yet for Wednesdays, but I had a good time with the few who showed up! I also met a couple of players Brian Griffin & Bart Fubbles. These guys are on thier game, and it should be fun this week playing with them.

Zydeco's 2/16/08

It took the crowd about an hour to really build and get into the show, but once they were into it, Bill and I kept 'em all till the end! Deb even drank enough wine to jump on stage with us and sing her two classics, "Big Spender" and "Brand New Key".

Everyone needs to make it to Zydeco's at least once in their lifetime.

Geist Church 2/16/08

I was hired to run sound for the evening service. Greg McGuirk led the music, and they sounded great as usual! Then, 6:30 came, and I bolted to Zydeco's.

Let's see...I must go from Geist to Mooresville in a half an hour....

Rum Runners 2/15/08

I had a lot of fun last night (playing with Jeff, Michael, and John) because the requests were so unusual. I had everything from Tom Waits to Dr. John, "Invisible Touch" to "Back In The USSR", and my batting average was way up there. So at 2am, I got in my car and headed for home. I was on the phone with my friends in Cali, telling them about the time I drove back from South Bend and got pulled over in Kokomo, when, yes, I was pulled over. The kind officer in Lapaz, IN, informed me that the speed changes from 60mph to 35mph for about one mile, and then back to 60mph. He didn't give me a ticket, just told me to slow down for that one mile of road...

Puck's 2/14/08

Last night at Puck's was a blast! DHG backed up the great singer, Tish Lyndsey. She mesmerized the audience with a bunch of her original songs mixed in with some classic jazz and R&B. Look for us again at Puck's soon!

Golden Living Center 2/14/08

Bill and I played for a retirement home on the south side of Indy today at 2:00pm. We pulled out all the old love songs and the had a very nice response from the group. One lady even made Bill and I Valentines and gave them to us after the show. Now we're off to Puck's at the Art Museum!

Rum Runners 2/13/08

I drove back to South Bend to play with John on guitar, and a man I hadn't worked with before named Jeff Long, from Arkansas. We played college night to a crowd of kids that had no idea how a dueling piano bar worked. so about every half hour, we had to re-educate them. Worked it till 2am, then I drove home to get ready for the two Valentine's Day gigs I'm playing.

Rum Runners 2/9/08

This was a long, hard gig tonight! We played this job as a three way (Michael, John and I) which means play for an hour, take a half hour break, and repeat for seven hours. requests were flying up like Hanson's hair in a wind machine. The crowd left happy, and I got in the car at 2:00am and drove home, 2 1/2 hours away...

Rum Runners 2/8/08

Tonight was fairly busy at this downtown South Bend dueling piano bar. I met a great player named Michael Bell. He has worked the circut for a while. Dave, John, Michael and I ran like crazy, trying to keep up with requests. As a bonus, I don't have to drive back to Indy tonight because I'm back at RR tomorrow!

Howl At The Moon 2/7/08

Rob, Wild Bill, Jay, horn players, crazy drunk people, Hoosiers, Boilermakers, wait staff, two pianos, a keytar, drums, a few hip hop beats, a million fried brain cells and three bottles of water made this night special to me.

Nothing beats having a good group of musicians around you too make you feel good.

Papa Joe's 2/7/08

Cold, rainy. People stayed at home. We still performed from 6p-9:30p as we do just about every Thursday. Those who came enjoyed the show and told us they'd be back with their friends next time.

Bill and I played about 95% instrumentals tonight because my voice was shot from last night, which scares me because I'm now on my way to Howl at the Moon in downtown Indy!

Rum Runners 2/6/08

South Bend was very cold and slushy, but the kids still flocked to the dueling piano bar! Showtime was great as the staff shook thier tail feathers. It wasn't as busy as usual, but the crowd was still very involved! 2:00am rolled around and I headed for home, three hours away...

Zydeco's 2/5/08

DanHolmesGroup Mardi Gras 2008
Originally uploaded by Dan Holmes Group

The biggest Mardi Gras party in the state happened last night in Mooresville! The upstairs, downstairs, and the building across the street were all packed with people, food, booze and music. Each spot had a band, and Dan Holmes Group was downstairs in the main building.

We recorded the show and I might be using some of the tracks for our upcoming live CD. Thanks to Karl, Steve and Bill for rockin' so hard last night!

Happy Mardi Gras, y'all!

Speedway Daycare 2/5/08

The kids at Speedway United Methodist Church Childcare threw a Mardi Gras party! Starting at 10:00am, The kids paraded throughout the building, while Bill and I played some New Orleans classics for them to dance to. They all wore masks, while the teachers threw beads to them. It was a fun way to start Mardi Gras!

Zydeco's 2/2/08

Samedi Gras at Zydeco's
Originally uploaded by Dan Holmes Group

Happy Samedi Gras!
We performed to a packed house in Mooresville tonight. The group, Mojo Gumbo, was performing downstairs, while we were upstairs. As a way to gear up for Mardi Gras, everyone was dressed in costumes, and singing along with all of our songs.

When we finished playing our originals and Mardi Gras classics for three consecutive hours, a girl asked us if we could go back on and play any Tim McGraw.
I walked away.

Art Bank 2/1/08

Bill and I performed at an art gallery on Mass Ave in downtown Indy tonight. It's been fairly rainy, but the crowd was steady. This gallery has a very cool layout. It is in an old bank, and you can wander from room to room, including the vault, and look at all different types of art work.

We played a bunch of our originals, and sold several CDs. By the time the night was over, they were telling us they wanted to pass our info along to the other galleries for us to perform at as well.

Papa Joe's 1/31/08

Storms were brewin' as Bill and I played at Papa Joe's this week, so the crowd was a little thin. We did have a couple of people who were very interested in a TV show, and decided it should be turned up on our break (of course, while we play, the sound is off). When we returned from our break, we were competing with the TV.

Why would you go to a resturant with live music and watch TV?

Bob & Tom 1/30/08

Tom asked me questions today about how I fell out of my attic (ladder slipped, it hurt) so after the show my mother called because she didn't know I fell from the attic. It's funny when my family learns about me from a morning radio show.

We played the NFL song, and this is my last trip to Bob & Tom for the season. Duke and Mark have one more song to go, but I'll be gigging out of town when they perform next week. My thanks to Bob, Tom, Chick and Kristi for another great season on the air!