K&W in Laguna Beach -- Saturday, 30Jan2016

The weatherman said it would be done raining by 5, but it was still drizzling as I drove down at 6:30. But I'd been practicing with my new bass drum and working up a bunch of new (or unfinished old) songs, and I wasn't about to miss one of our rare Saturdays, even if I had to stand out there all alone.

And I'm glad I went. It sprinkled for the first hour or so, but since the ice cream store was closed, we were able to set up under their narrow awning and stay mostly dry. And a surprising amount of people were out, though only a very few stopped. That was OK though, I was mainly there to experiment with the new stuff I'd been working on.

But even before I was fully set up, a lady came by with her dog and declared, "You have those two CDs, one for adults and one for kids". Um, yes, I do. "You should record another one for adults -- I love the one I have." I told her that, since there are 25 songs on that first CD, it was essentially a "double album", but that, yes, I may have enough new material by now to do another one. I hadn't been considering that, but now I will.

We mostly ran through the songs that I've been playing with and trying to get the hang of using the bass drum pedal on. But around 9:00 or so, it had dried out enough that some people could sit on the bench, so a nice couple did, and asked for a few songs. And then a girl showed up with her two little dogs and asked for "some Eagles", and chose "Peaceful Easy Feeling" of the offered choices. Then she asked for "Desperado", and started crying midway through it. She apologized (?!) and explained that a friend had died two weeks earlier. Then she asked for "Bridge Over Troubled Water", and had to bolt halfway through that one. You know, it's always nice when someone is affected by your music, but not to the point where they have to get up and leave...

Later on, as I was playing "Southern Cross" two ladies came by -- one short, quiet, and shy, and the other statuesque, large-breasted, and apparently somewhat inebriated. Since I was set up in front of the doorway to the ice cream shop, the flagpole that holds the "gate sign" was right in front of me. I don't really think of "Southern Cross" as a dancing song, but she started dancing anyway -- normally at first, but got more "grindy" as she went on, discovered the pole, and by the end of the song was apparently intent on having that pole's babies. Halfway through the song, she danced over and gave Warren a kiss on the cheek, and at the end, she kissed mine, and off they went, without so much as a howdy-do. The joys of busking...

Anyway, while I'd'a preferred having some audience to play for, the evening was helpful as a way to get some experience with the drum pedal and try out some songs in Real Life. I'd worked up Toto's "Africa" a few years ago, but couldn't really play it well enough. But with the new guitar, and the drum pedal to provide some rhythm and depth, it sounds pretty good. A lady came right over and put some money in the jar while mouthing the words, so that's a good sign. And "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and "Against the Wind" appear to be keepers, as I attempt to bring the average tempo of my list up a bit. And with the new guitar, I can finally really play "Layla", which nobody can resist singing along to, even as they walk on by.