Keith at Uncorked -- Friday, 01Apr2016

I got a text from the owner asking me if I was available since the guy who was supposed to be there this Friday "might" be too sick. I said yes, and she just decided to tell the other guy not to come.

(A) It's nice that I'm the guy she calls to fill in, and (B) it's nice that she's willing to just outright cancel the other guy in favor of me (well, not so nice for him...). The other employees there also make it pretty clear that I'm the best act they've got, and although that's a microscopic pond, it's flattering to be the best fish in it.

I guess people are getting used to the time change by now, 'cuz there were people already there when I got there this time. And the "song lists on the tables, request something" thing caught on pretty well, with people noticing other people doing it, so they did it too. And the owner and bar guy were bringing requests over from the people at the bar, who feel too far away to shout one out to me. Not sure why they bring a physical list over and point at a song on it instead of, you know, just saying it, but whatever.

There was an older couple at the closest table, and the guy wanted to request some songs, but he couldn't remember any songs from their titles. So he kept asking me "What's 'Peace Train'?" and "What's 'Watching the Detectives'?", etc., apparently going for songs strictly by the curiousness of their titles. I usually get that kind of behavior from little kids who want "the song about the lollipops" just because it's about lollipops. Strange.

I usually give new songs a Real World tryout down at The Corner in Laguna 'cuz it's less formal, but I took a chance on the song I'd learned two days earlier, Billy Joel's "She's Always a Woman". It's a decidedly "written on a piano" song with chords that you don't much encounter on guitar, but I worked out a way I can manage it, and it worked pretty well.

Anyway, it was a really good night. Usually the owner and bar guy are occupied chatting up "regulars" at the bar and ignore me, but this week they both spent a lot of time just staring at me, listening. That felt good.