Chris Wallis came back from Vegas (where all he won was a cold) and rejoined Pat and I at Baker's Street in Austin tonight. We had a fantastic crowd, and we played a bunch of new tunes for them. On our first break, I had a couple come up and tell me how much they enjoyed all the New Orleans piano tunes we were playing and then ask me about a few other Austin musicians, none of which I knew. They were surprised I wasn't "in the know" until I told them I had just moved to the area recently. When they asked where I moved here from, I told them Indiana, to which they responded, "I didn't know the bayou stretched that far north."
Best compliment of the evening.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Wake The Dead 4/22/11
I enjoyed performing at Wake The Dead in San Marcos tonight. My awesome wife, Christine, showed up and took some photos while I did my thing. She even decided to challenge me by calling out some tunes for me to play, ones which she knew I have never tried before. Fun time as always!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Baker's Street Pub 4/22/11
Chris Wallis was out of town this weekend, so Pat Whitefield and I had the pleasure of working with Mark Hays on drums for our show in Austin, TX! It was warm, but not hot, so playing out on the deck was really great. The crowd was pretty into what we were playing, and I can hardly wait for next week!
Friday, April 15, 2011
J's Bistro 4/14/11
Sweet songs like "As Time Goes By" were requested tonight in San Marcos, TX, as well as odd favorites like "Hold On, I'm Coming" and other requests I've never seen. I had a good time performing with Taxi Haskell (on drums), and we slammed tons of tunes straight through for about two-and-a-half hours. It seemed like about every third table was celebrating a birthday, so we did a bunch of call-downs for the crowd. Busy night for a Thursday!
Saturday, April 9, 2011
J's Bistro 4/8/11
So I finished my show at the Coffee Pot and walked over to the show here at J's Bistro to perform with birthday boy, Taxi Haskell, on drums. We did one long set from 11p-2a, doing everything from Beatles to Journey to Guns N Roses to B-52's. All night long, the requests kept coming up, and all night long, Taxi and I just knocked them down! Fun night...Happy B-Day, Taxi!
Coffee Pot 4/8/11
J.P. Whitefield and Chris Wallis joined me to perform at the Coffee Pot in San Marcos, where we made a bunch of new fans. I like playing for people, but I really like playing for people on an acoustic piano! As always, Chris and Pat were on top of all the tunes, and as always, I enjoyed playing with them. First show of the night was from 8p-10p, then I packed up and walked half-a-block down to my next show...
Friday, April 8, 2011
Baker's St. Pub & Grill 4/7/11
DHG played for a crawfish boil at an Irish pub on south Lamar St., in Austin, TX. From 5p - 9p, the crowd grew and grew to listen to our tunes. Chris Wallis never fails to impress on the drums, and with Pat Whitefield holding down the low end, they make a great rhythm section. I even pulled out about half-a-dozen tunes they had never played over the course of the evening, and they knocked them out of the park. I love my job!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Zilker Park 4/2/11
We performed for a crawfish boil in Austin for an early afternoon gig. The crowd rolled in as we ran through our songs, and the smell of the boil was teasing us the longer we played! This was a great event to benefit Flatwater Foundation, an organization supporting those diagnosed with cancer and their families with mental health therapy and support. We were proud to take part in the event!
Friday, April 1, 2011
J's Bistro 3/31/11
After I finished performing about 3 hours of music at Wake The Dead, I headed about a mile north to take some requests for tunes, which I then played with the very talented Taxi Haskell on drums. We had a decent crowd and few birthdays in the house. This was my second week at J's, and I'll return in a couple weeks! Fun place, everyone should try to make it out next time I perform there!
Wake The Dead 3/31/11
The guys sounded fantastic tonight at the cool coffee house in San Marcos, TX. We performed for the few people who wandered in, and took the opportunity to make some new fans (hi, new fans!). My wife showed up and snapped a few shots of us (thanks, darlin'), and I really enjoyed my night!
Friday, March 25, 2011
J's Bistro 3/24/11
I jammed with Taxi Haskell (on drums) for the big return of their "Piano Bar Thursday Nights" in San Marcos, TX. I had a good time, and I had lots of great and unusual requests. Taxi is super-easy to perform with, and the people were definitely out to have a good time. A couple of birthday girls came up and followed instructions on "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes", and the crowd ate it up. I'll be back next Thursday night to party again!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Private Party 3/19/11
Rob Roy Parnell invited me to perform with him, as well as with Ralph "Coffee Boy" Johnson, Chris Wallis, and J.P. Whitefield tonight at a private birthday party in Dripping Springs, TX. We ran through a couple of hours of Rob's tunes, and a I even sang a couple. These guys are really a talented bunch of musicians, and I'm looking forward to working with them a bunch!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Coffee Pot Bistro 3/18/11
Only one small technical glitch with the pick-up attached to the piano made me stop about an hour into my three hour set. After I fixed it, I continued playing for the crowd drinking coffee and Taylor, the barista. I played a whole slew of originals, as well as some Beatles and Professor Longhair favorites. This is spring break in a college town, plus SXSW in Austin, so the crowd was a bit thin, but very appreciative, as was I for them. I'll be back soon at the Coffee Pot!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Gruene Hall 3/13/11
Rob Roy Parnell celebrated his 50th birthday in New Braunfels with a huge party at "Texas' Oldest Dance Hall", the famous Gruene Hall. He invited a bunch of great musicians out to perform, including his brother, Lee Roy Parnell. There was cake and a huge crowd and never less than nine musicians on the stage at any given moment. I brought two keyboard rigs (one for each side of the stage), and I rotated with four other great keyboard players all night. Lots of special guest singer/songwriters came up to perform with the band. As we were setting up, the sound crew was nervous because of the sheer number of amps and people who were performing together, but it sounded great. Sax, trumpet, two piano players, at least three guitar players, bass, drums and Rob Roy on harmonica made a thunderous wall of sound. This was a great introduction for me into the world of Texas dance halls!
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Zilker Park Clubhouse 3/11/11
My first official band gig in Texas was a bunch of fun. It was in Austin at the clubhouse in Zilker Park for a private party. Pat Whitefield on bass, Chris Wallis on drums, and I were joined for a few tunes by Kira Withrow, who sang beautifully. We ran through about 75 minutes worth of stuff on a cool March evening. I'm looking forward to playing a bunch with the new Texas version of Dan Holmes Group!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Zydeco's 3/8/11
Oh, Mardi Gras, how I love you so! Random costumes and King Cake and shrimp and gumbo and jambalya and music and much, much more. I was really happy to perform with Bill Ritter, Steve Brunner and Jake Hahn one more time before leaving for home in Texas. A woman named Sharon tore the roof off on one song, "Summertime", with us. She sings every year, and is always amazing. Also, 15 years ago, the owners of Zydeco's, Deb and Carter, met at Mardi Gras in New Orleans, so in honor of the occasion, Deb bought Carter a smart car!!! He was thrilled, and everyone took turns walking out to take pictures of the happy couple. Eventful Mardi Gras!!!!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
SUMC Childcare 3/8/11
Happy Mardi Gras from all the kids at the daycare! We played for the children so they could parade around the loop of their school, while the teachers threw beads and doubloons to them. They danced and sang to classic New Orleans tunes like "Big Chief" and "I'm Walkin'". They ate King (cup)Cakes, and even crowned a king and queen of the Mardi Gras parade. The kids are always a good audience when we get a chance to perform for them!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Zydeco's 3/6/11
Brunch in Mooresville, IN was fun this morning! The one and only Bill Ritter (not the ex-basketball coach or the ex-governor of Colorado) joined Jake Hahn, Steve Brunner and myself to play some New Orleans classics to gear everyone up for Mardi Gras. Chris Wolf (dressed as Joey Ramone) showed up and performed during our break. I really enjoyed performing with the guys today (and last night). It makes me sad I couldn't take them all with me to Texas, but I'm glad I still get to play with them from time to time! Quote of the gig: "You started off as Joey Ramone and ended as Gallagher."
7th & 8th UCC 3/6/11
I was able to perform one more time before heading back to Texas for the congregation in Indianapolis. I sang "What A Wonderful World" during the offertory before I had to quickly leave to make it to Zydeco's in Mooresville, IN to perform for their brunch. I'll see everyone at 7th & 8th next time I'm in Indianapolis!
Zydeco's 3/5/11
What a party in Moorseville, IN it was tonight! Jack Joseph wore his whitest cousin Eddie shoes, while Jake Hahn went opposite with his black & white ensemble. Steve Brunner and I did not coordinate with them, so we just looked normal. The crowd was crazy, and I had so much fun watching everyone dance to the most random set list we've ever played. I was pulling out Mardi Gras classics and rock tunes, blues shuffles, and ballads for about six hours of music! The costumes were great, and my only view of a down side is I stayed late, and tomorrow I play a church service, then I'm back here for brunch! Time for bed...
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