The Night Shift... Continues!

[pro70z28]

[WildcatOne]

Maritime designed, hosts and maintains it now...I sent him the stuff and he put it all together...the guy is awesome...

[Gator]

Great !!!!!

[WildcatOne]

Pee Wee, Jerry and all of the band's regular followers absolutely flipped over the site...they say it's beautiful. I had a beautiful experience Sunday. We were booked to play at the American Legion Hall on the outskirts of Clear Lake, it's near Ellington Field and NASA, but far enough out in the sticks for it to be misplaced on Yahoo Maps and nobody knew the address. "It's on Highway 3." "Just outside of Clear Lake". "Take a left off of 518 and it's between there and 96." We drove up and down Highway 3 for half an hour and we didn't find it until we went in the other direction than the one they said to go, and after a few miles, we found it. I don't go in and gripe about the vague directions. I just go in smiling, set up and play. Howdy, great to see ya. How you doing, etc. No point in getting worked up about anything. Anything at all. We're there to play a show and be entertainers and we're being paid a hundred bucks a man for those 4 hours. We get set up, I really wasn't in that great of a mood, to tell you the truth. I knew I had to work the next day, I was thinking how nice it'd be to be back home playing with Photoshop with the ball game on TV and Nick playing his drums in the garage, Debby coming in and hugging me, Kyle and his buddies running around, it relaxes me. But Pee Wee called a band meeting before showtime. He has been turning gigs down that we are being offered because we're already booked somewhere else (The Sheraton wants us for 4 shows and we're already booked...they pay huge money, but it's just for 4 shows...the other places we're booked at have us for a year's contract, once a month...you don't walk away from those places...it's smart to be loyal), and most of the other bands in the region are not working at all. He's referring those gigs to bands that are our friends, many of whom we have played in in the past. Pee Wee was nominated for entertainer of the year by the Scene magazine, where Jim Shortt worked as a writer and reviewer. Last year they contacted him to come to the awards banquet and pick up the award. He went, and the award was for the band...he was embarrassed but proud of us, but this year it's for HIM...Life is good! We went into this place, there was not a big crowd, but they had a catered barbecue buffet, an open bar, decorations and this beautiful lady was sitting at the front table with a guy who looked like he was going to get up and kick my ass if I looked at him sideways...we played...the lady flipped...our crowd was there and they all got up and danced...this was the best we've ever sounded. There was something about that hall that didn't just capture our sound, it elevated it, it accented it, the band sounded fantastic...Pee Wee played an inspired show...we were suddenly riding the wave...it's a moment musicians dream of...it happened. Before the 3rd set, I went over and got a water and as I was walking back to the stage, I stopped by that table and introduced myself to the beautiful lady and the mean-looking guy with her, who had been sitting right there the whole time. She was Blue...the lady who put this party on and hired us. The guy is the waitress' boyfriend. The first thing she said was "Thank you for sitting with us. I'm Blue. YOU are WONDERFUL. The band is fantastic. I am utterly stunned...THANK YOU for playing here..." I was humbled by that, and the mean guy said "She's right. You guys are just great. Y'all must play what, 5, 6 nights a week?" I said no, we haven't played a whole lot lately...the storm wiped out a lot of our venues...he was like, you mean you just walk in and do this once in a while? You guys are big-time, man. I've enjoyed every single note of it! I thanked him and we had a pleasant chat. He was a fiddle player in a country band for about 5 years, but he doesn't play anymore...he does appreciate a good band, though and he didn't mind letting me know he really likes us...I don't know how else to say this, but it warmed my heart. The lady couldn't have been more gracious and appreciative...we finished a perfect evening at 8PM. Me and Sylvester loaded up Debby's Malibu (Kyle is using Ludwig right now) and we helped Pee Wee load up the Coca Cola trailer behind his '56. I'm sitting there in the car, getting ready to start it up and drive back home, and Pee Wee walks up. He said. "You're not going to believe this...Blue just tipped us a hundred dollars a man..." And he hands me and Sylvester ANOTHER C-note each...I liked to fell over backwards. Pee Wee's buddy, the top guy at that American Legion Hall, gave a talk during our last set. He said "Y'all have just heard a concert by the best band in the South. You heard anything better than this?" "NOOOOOO!" He said Pee Wee has been for years donating his time and energy to our causes and I just wanted to salute you and your great band for this most special of evenings. It was another great moment. Pee Wee deserves it, too. He's a great human being. We needed that extra hundred bucks, but I didn't say that. I just accepted it with humility and gratitude. We've gained a reputation in town as not just being a good band, but being good people who don't snob our crowd. We hang out with them and have fun. It's paying off in spades. I think I was more satisfied with that show than a lot of them we've done in recent memory. I am so very fortunate to be with Pee Wee...with DragList...with my family...with my job. Life is truly good. WC1

[draglist]

I always feel that my responses to your fine posts are inadequate, but GREAT story, Cat. They are the next best thing to hearing you play live. bp

[Rapid Randy Baker]

WOW, what an incredible ride WC, thanks for taking us along.

[pro70z28]

Cool story WC. You've worked hard and the payoff is well deserved.

[WildcatOne]

We're still feeling the effects that Hurricane Ike put on this region, but it's been a really wild ride. A couple of weekends ago, we had extremes. Friday night, we played at Heads & Tails in Kemah to a packed house. I saw Jerry La Croix in the audience. He liked us. Lanis Neugent of the Whiskey Saints was also there and he sat in and did vocals on "Mustang Sally". We also had a sax player show up and play, and a guitar player friend of Hank's was there and he sat in. The band sounded FAT and SASSY. Pee Wee had just received Bay Area Houston Magazine's entertainer of the year 2008 award that day (he refused to have his picture taken for the publication without the whole band in it with him, so last weekend at Lone Star, we posed with Pee Wee holding the award...great guy, Pee Wee is), the crowd was partying and it was standing-room only in there. When we played, they had us backed up to our amps...it was wall-to-wall people and they were dancing like crazy. The band sounded great, we had a blast. At the end of the night, I turned around and there stood none other than Lynn Raggio...we hugged and talked for a while. Got caught up on things, and what I found out the next week was that we were double-booked in there that night with his band and the manager gave the gig to us. I checked with Lynn about it and he said yes, that did happen, but they paid him and his band for a full night, so he said he enjoyed just hanging out and hearing us play. I did some graphics for an organization he belongs to and he said it was a major hit, I was very happy to hear that. Lynn was a major supporter of Blues For Becky and I never forgot that, so when he asked me for a graphic a month ago, he had it within 24 hours. We're going to keep in touch. The next night we played at the 1400 Club in Houston and there must not have been 10 people in that place. Debby went with me to this gig so we had fun. She had a few drinks and she got lit up, she's funny as hell when she's had a few. Since there weren't any people in there to speak of, we decided to "rehearse" the last set. We ended up doing "Night Train", the old Jimmy Forrest instrumental that has the "Bomp...Bomp Bomp" thing in it. Debby jumped up and did a Fandango with her sweater, she was swinging it around and shaking it up and we all grinned. She hit the highlight of the night with that one song! The club said they were going to get us back, but I don't know if that'll happen. We have a following and a loyal crowd of people that come to all our shows in the Bay Area, but downtown we're virtually unknown...we'll see. Not long after the 1400 show, I got sick. I can't afford to stay home sick so I just worked through it. Debby caught it and she really got sick...I have been on her case to go to the doctor but she refuses. I suppose she's a little better now, but we both got hammered by a severe cold. She's got bronchitis from it now...I told her just call the doctor and cough into the phone and you'll get a scrip right then...but no. She's going to slowly recover. I wish I could force her to go to a doctor, but I can't force her to do anything. She says she'll be OK, just leave her be. Anyway, Pee Wee's got his '56 BelAir post on display at Autorama this weekend at AstroHall. He called me today and told me he's got a ticket for me. I'm meeting him up there tomorrow at 5 and I'll remember to bring my camera. He said the awards will be given out at 7PM. It was nice of him to think of me..I'm a Phantom Kruizer, and the Phantoms are all behind Pee Wee for this deal. The '56 is beautiful, and it deserved to get voted into Autorama...he might win...wouldn't THAT be great! We're booked through February (Mardi Gras) starting next weekend, and they're all except one, private, high-paying jobs...life is good...the one that's for free is the benefit for the Ronald McDonald House in Galveston that we're headlining, and I believe that we'll get a lot of private jobs out of that one show. I hope everybody has a safe and happy Thanksgiving weekend! Cheers, WC1

[draglist]

All great, Cat. Hope you had a happy one. I broke down and went to the doc for a cold and even got a chest xray for a lingering cough... waiting on results but probably OK... You and Debby should, too! Love ya. bp